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LAKE COUNTY – The U.S. Attorney General Office's said a drug trafficking investigation that took several years and covered the North Bay area – including Lake County – has resulted in eight indictments and several more arrests.
Eight Santa Rosa residents were indicted Feb. 6 as part of the investigation, Operation Emerald Web, which investigated methamphetamine and other drug trafficking, said U.S. Attorney Kevin V. Ryan.
The charges against the defendants include conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and pseudoephedrine, distribution of methamphetamine, and maintaining a place for manufacturing, storing and distributing marijuana.
The indictment was unsealed Feb. 14 after the individuals were arrested by federal and state law enforcement officers.
Those indicted Feb. 6 were Domingo Tamayo Jr., 27; Javier Tamayo Jr., 31; Julio Palominos, 19; Jose Campos, 54; Richard Moreno, 28; Cristobol Tamayo, 18; Edward Souza, 49; and Carolina Palomares, 55.
Luke Macauley, a spokesman for the US Attorney's Office, said the Lake County Sheriff's Office assisted with arrests in the case and are involved with the ongoing investigation.
“As for impact on drug trafficking in Lake County, I can say that it has disrupted drug trafficking in the area,” said Macauley. “We’ve had large amounts of seizures that illustrate that disruption.”
Sheriff Rod Mitchell confirmed Friday at LCSO and the Lake County Narcotic Task Force were involved in Emerald Web.
Methamphetamine trafficking such as that investigated in Operation Emerald Web has had a severe impact on Lake County.
Laura Solis, administrator of Lake County's Alcohol and Other Drug Services (AODS) department and her treatment coordinator, Mark Messerer, said that methamphetamine is the No. 1 drug of choice among people who come to seek treatment at AODS.
Meth is the No. 1 drug in every county in the state, except two, San Francisco and Marin counties, said Messerer.
Ryan said the arrests are the latest action in an ongoing, multi-agency Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation, one of the largest ever directed against narcotics trafficking in the North Bay.
In the past two years, the investigation resulted in numerous searches that yielded seizures including more than $600,000 in US currency; 35 pounds of methamphetamine; 4 pounds of pseudoephedrine; 3 pounds of cocaine; 5,000 Pounds of Marijuana; nearly 20,000 live marijuana plants; and at least 50 firearms, including at least 5 assault rifles.
The DEA estimates the street value of the seized drugs to be over $5 million.
The investigation, begun in late 2004, was led by the Drug Enforcement Administration and Federal Bureau of Investigation, along with substantial assistance from LCSO; the Sonoma County Narcotics Task Force; the Sonoma County Sheriff's Department; the Mendocino County Sheriff's Department; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; the California Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement; the Santa Rosa Police Department; the Petaluma Police Department; the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement; the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation; and the Sonoma County District Attorney's Office.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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LAKE COUNTY – A Clearlake man found guilty in Sonoma County of second degree murder had his conviction overturned in the state's First Appellate District Court.
Lance Ernest Laumann, 52, won the decision on Feb. 16, according to court documents, after the judges ruled his conviction was based on an improper legal theory.
Laumann was convicted in 1999 of several charges, chief among them second degree murder for the death of his girlfriend, Sandra “May” Lyndall, who died while Laumann was attempting to escape from police.
He also was convicted of vehicular manslaughter, evasion of a police officer, being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm and several drug offenses.
In April 1999, Sonoma County officials found a loaded sawed-off rifle and the components of a methamphetamine laboratory in a car linked to Laumann.
The next month, during an early morning traffic stop, Laumann sped away from police. He led them on a high-speed chase reaching speeds of 70 to 80 miles per hour before crashing his car.
Lyndall, who was riding in the car with him, was ejected from the vehicle during the collision and later died.
Court documents say that the second-degree felony murder conviction against Laumann was predicated on his attempt to evade police, which prosecutors claimed caused him to drive in a “willful and wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property while fleeing from the police,” according to Vehicle Code Section 2800.2.
Laumann was sentenced to 30 years to life – 15 years to life for second degree murder and 15 years for the other offenses. He has been serving time in San Quentin State Prison.
Since his conviction, Laumann had repeatedly made appeals at the appellate and state Supreme Court levels. Among his arguments was that Vehicle Code Section 2800.2 was not an inherently dangerous felony under the felony murder rule, and thus could not be a predicate felony for second degree felony murder, according to court documents.
Both the appellate and Supreme Court upheld his conviction. Then, in January 2005, in reviewing another case, the Supreme Court concluded that section 2800.2 can't serve as the basis for a valid theory of second degree felony murder.
In November 2006, Laumann filed another appeal based on the January 2005 ruling. That appeal resulted in the Feb. 16 ruling.
In addition to finding that Laumann's murder conviction was based on an invalid theory, the court ruled that the jury in Laumann's trial was not instructed on the elements of implied malice necessary for a second degree murder conviction.
The court ruled that Laumann's case be remanded to the trial court in Sonoma County for further proceedings, which could include retrial under a valid murder theory or resentencing.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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The school's efforts were recognized this week by the state, when State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell named the school one of 13 Model Continuation High Schools for 2007.
It's the third time the school has received the honor, which recognizes schools for outstanding programs designed to help at-risk students.
The school's previous wins came in 2002 and 1995.
"These 13 schools provide promising practices that other continuation high schools may emulate to help students with diverse needs complete their high school education," said O’Connell. "These schools were selected because of their exemplary programs that are designed to close the achievement gap, keep kids in school so they can graduate, and adequately prepare them for careers or college.”
Continuation high schools such as Carle serve students aged 16 years or older who are at risk of not graduating from high school.
The state reported that more than 69,000 California high school students attended 521 continuation high schools in 2005-06, the latest data available.
Ninety-five students were enrolled at Carle during the 2005-06 school year, according to CDE statistics; there are 3,200 students in the entire Konocti Unified School District.
Carle's dedicated faculty and staff, led by Principal William MacDougall, have been recognized locally for their efforts as well.
The school's Web site reports that Carle has received six-year accreditations from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges in 1992, 1998 and 2004, as well as Exemplary Program Recognition Awards from the California Continuation Education Association for its Career Pathway Program in 1999 and its Treating the Influence classroom program in 2004.
Carle also offers its students the chance to participate in real-world business projects, such as Pegasus Promotional Products, which markets, designs and manufactures personalized products; and the video production business Pegasus Productions, which creates public service announcements and videotapes special events such as concerts at Konocti Harbor Resort & Spa, according to the school's Web site.
Among its noted staff are husband and wife teaching team Alan and Angie Siegel both have received Lake County Teacher of the Year honors, in 2005 and 2006 respectively.
Alan Siegel – who teaches history, civics and economics – went on to be named one of five California Teachers of the Year for 2005.
In 2006, the school staff won a Stars of Lake County Award in the “youth advocate, professional” category.
The school even had its own cat, Jack, who showed up on the school's doorstep several years ago, sick, injured and hungry. Science teacher Tom Essex's son, Scott, who happens to be a vet, fixed Jack up, and he became a fixture in the school's office, where he liked to lounge on Secretary Barbara Dye's desk.
“Jack found his way here all on his own, and it was just meant to be,” said Dye.
For the school, Jack became a symbol of what love and nurturing can do. The school's Web site said of Jack: “Jack-the-Cat reminds us of our students in many ways. He arrived in sad shape, but with a little time and nurturing, he has blossomed into a fine and happy cat.”
Jack died last May 15, but still remains on the school's site. “We haven't had the heart to take him off,” said Dye.
They've been offered plenty of new cats, but haven't taken one, she said. “We figure some day another cat will wander in if it's meant to be.”
Continuation education isn't a new idea. The California Department of Education’s (CDE) Continuation Education program has been an option for students since 1919.
The program emphasizes career technical education, uses exemplary instructional strategies, offers students guidance, counseling services, and more flexible school schedules to meet their needs.
The Model Continuation High School Recognition Program is a partnership of the CDE and the California Continuation Education Association that identifies and recognizes outstanding programs and creates a resource list of quality programs for school visitations. Fourteen schools applied for the recognition.
Applicants must be accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, demonstrate exemplary program effectiveness, school management, curriculum, instructional strategies, assessment and evaluation, education climate, and guidance and counseling, CDE reported.
Parents, students and community members were required to submit narrative statements supporting their respective schools, according to CDE. A review team visited the schools and recommended 13 for model school status.
The selected schools retain their title for three years and must submit an annual assurance of compliance with model school guidelines in order to maintain the designation.
Carle and the 12 other schools join 61 previously designated Model Continuation High Schools.
Visit Carle High School online at www.carle.lake.k12.ca.us/.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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"I haven't heard anything," said Brown, regarding Kenwood's potential purchase of Konocti Harbor from UA Local Convalescent Fund.
"We're waiting with baited breath," added Brown, who said he had spoken with Kenwood representative Brad Welch in the week since Kenwood canceled a meeting with himself and other county officials.
Brown said Welch told him that Kenwood hasn't given up on the deal yet.
The meeting cancellation followed the Supervisors' 5-0 vote against allowing Kenwood to move forward with a casino project, which could be made possible by federal legislation converting the 38-acre Konocti Harbor property into an Indian reservation, or rancheria.
Whether the unanimous vote slamming the door on the Kenwood plan killed the deal, Brown is uncertain.
"They haven't pulled out," he said,"and I'm not implying that they will."
The resort remains at the heart of a federal lawsuit, scheduled to go to trial May 7.
In that lawsuit, the Department of Labor alleges that Local 38 of the United Association of Plumbers, Pipefitters and Journeymen – which controls the convalescent fund that owns Konocti Harbor – diverted $36 million in assets of five employee benefit plans to renovate and operate the resort.
Brown is planning a trip to Sacramento Monday to meet with lawmakers about the casino issue, including Assemblywoman Patty Berg, Sen. Pat Wiggins, and staff from the Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's office, as well as staff from the offices of Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez and Senate leader Don Perata.
E-mail John Lindblom at
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