Monday, 14 October 2024

News

LAKE COUNTY – Citing budget issues, the state Department of Justice has pulled out of its leadership role of the Lake County Narcotic Task Force, a move that has required a change locally in how the group will be managed.


“Mainly, it boils down to budget issues,” said DOJ spokesperson Dana Simas.


Simas said “extreme budget constraints” caused the agency to pull out of the two-decade-old task force. “We hope it's temporary.”


Sheriff Rod Mitchell said he received a letter from the state in January announcing the DOJ's intentions to pull out of two task forces – Lake's being one – citing “unprecedented budget reductions.”


He said the letter noted the agency was undergoing a $12 million budget reduction and the loss of 80 staff members.


“They're committed to coming back as soon as their staffing and funding permits,” he said.


Mitchell said he's seen the agency pull out of task forces before.


But just because the DOJ is pulling out doesn't mean that the task force – which is an agreement, not an entity – is going away. Mitchell guaranteed that it isn't, saying they'll continue to combat narcotics “with great fervor.”


He added that the change shouldn't cause any alarm for the public, nor should criminals start to relax.


With DOJ's withdrawal, Mitchell and other area law enforcement leaders – among them Clearlake Police Chief Allan McClain, Lakeport Police Chief Kevin Burke, California Highway Patrol Commander Lt. Mark Loveless and the Narcotic Task Force Steering Committee – have been working out the details of what the task force will look like going forward and how it will be managed.


“We're going to be working in partnership with each other, as closely as we can,” Mitchell said.


Mitchell emphasized that there's no way to do this kind of work without the agencies working closely together. That's particularly important when it comes to running operations smoothly and ensuring “deconfliction” – which essentially means making sure they're not interfering with another agency's undercover work.


Under the DOJ's leadership, the task force had seven members – one supervising DOJ agent, one officer each from Clearlake Police, Lakeport Police and CHP, two sheriff's deputies and a sheriff's secretary, half of whose salary Mitchell paid.


“The number of law enforcement officers in Lake County combating the drug problem and problems associated with drugs will not be reduced,” Mitchell said, adding that the number of dedicated law enforcement officers may even increase.


“We may have to redirect resources,” he said. “We're not going to let this thing get away from us.”


He said each of the local agencies have experienced narcotic investigators who they had considered co-locating in the sheriff's administrative offices, but that hasn't worked out, said Mitchell, so the agencies will continue to work out of their separate offices.


Mitchell said having the DOJ run the task force has advantages, including having money available for undercover work and assistance coordinating activities and investigations.


Staffing and building leads will be important issues going forward, said Mitchell.


He said the DOJ will continue to make technical assistance available to counties. “We're always helping each other, we have to.”


They'll also make staff and resources – such as some kinds of operational equipment – available during operations when needed, said Mitchell, so in that way things won't change.


The task force's steering committee also will remain in place, said Mitchell. The DOJ's Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement will remain a part of the committee.


Cases continue to be worked, Mitchell added, with several investigations under way, as before.


A brief history of the task force


The task force deals with a broad range of narcotics, said Mitchell, such as methamphetamine and marijuana.


However, he said his office primarily handles pot eradication in the Mendocino National Forest because they have a contract for that work.


Mitchell said the narcotic task force began in 1988, when he was working locally as a deputy sheriff. “Meth labs were running rampant at the time.”


Since then, they don't see meth labs like they used to, he said, with a reduction in the numbers becoming notable several years ago. Street-level sales and use remain a big issue.


Methamphetamine, however, is linked to illegal marijuana, said Mitchell.


“There is a connection between the illegal marijuana trade and the profits going toward boosting up the methamphetamine trade,” he said.


Mitchell said the “grotesque” profits made by illegal marijuana are used to acquire methamphetamine and distribute it. Meth, comparatively, is very cheap, he said.


He said certain Mexican and outlaw motorcycle gangs now control major meth production. “It's more of a criminal enterprise than it used to be.”


McClain believes the task force has made a dent in the local production of methamphetamine. “They really had a heavy impact on their ability to produce locally.”


While there are still small labs here, the bigger ones now appear to have moved south, into Mexico, McClain said, because the profits were getting cut into by the task force's work.


McClain, who worked for many years in law enforcement in Kings County – where he also was sheriff – said he saw the same things with meth labs there as he's seen here. They were moving out of the area, he said, which is happening up and down the state.


Interstate 5 runs through Kings County, and officers saw meth increasingly being transported up and down the state, McClain said.


McClain said marijuana is more prevalent in Lake County. “It's a little harder to track here because it's a mountainous area,” he said, noting Kings is fairly flat.


Kings, he added, did see an increase in indoor marijuana grows and people leasing large agricultural orchards to cover their marijuana growing operations.


Mitchell said there has been an increase in illicit marijuana growing in Lake County, especially on public lands such as the Mendocino National Forest. He attributes most of that activity to Mexican nationals paid to come here to grow the drug.


“It doesn't stop there,” he said, explaining that the money from the pot gardens goes to smuggling meth into the United States.


“The drug problem is multifaceted,” he said. “It is more interconnected than it used to be.”


The argument over decriminalizing marijuana growing doesn't address what Mitchell calls the “immediate, present realities” facing law enforcement as it deals with criminal profiteers destroying public lands and threatening public safety.


“We have real problems that are not going to be resolved by pretending it's not a problem,” he said.


He added that he plans to continue fighting illegal marijuana in the county.


Other agencies plan to continue involvement


The county's other law enforcement leaders have indicated that they'll continue their involvement in the narcotic task force.


McClain said his department has added more resources to the effort, going from one committed officer to two.


For McClain, the main changes that he sees is the state's departure. DOJ paid for an office for the task force and a supervising agent, who had oversight duties, along with conducting audits of evidence and money.


“The sheriff's office and the county are taking on those responsibilities,” said McClain.


Overall, supervision and the executive board will remain the same, he said.


“The way I look at it is, the task force is still in place, it's still running,” said McClain.


He said some aspects will be done differently, and the task force will be more case-based. “We're just looking at overall results.”


Loveless said CHP will continue working closely with all of the task force's allied agencies.


He said the task force will remain strong, with Lake County Probation also now contributing an officer. CHP will have multiple officers assigned to the task force as cases develop.


Loveless said the CHP's statewide commander, Joe Farrow, has taken a stance that he supports the DOJ's Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement's efforts in drug enforcement.


He said CHP also has committed five officers statewide to work with the DOJ's Campaign Against Marijuana Planting – known more commonly as CAMP.


McClain thinks the task force has done a good job.


“The hard thing with the task force and what they do is when you work with the public, a lot of what they do people don't see,” he said.


McClain said he would like to see the task force's work be more visible so the public can better understand its functions.


Mitchell said local law enforcement is putting together a “full court press” to get the DOJ back into the local task force.


“The sooner the better,” he said.


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Dewey & Sons Painting set up to work on Upper Lake Library. Courtesy photo.




UPPER LAKE – People passing Upper Lake’s historic Harriet Lee Hammond Library and seeing the forest of ladders around the building might wonder what’s happening there.


The library is undergoing a much-needed facelift.


Dewey & Sons Painting of Lakeport is repairing and sealing the stucco exterior and painting the 92-year-old library.


Major cracks and holes in the stucco had impaired its beauty. The repairs, sealing and painting will protect the exterior many years to come. The library is open during the repair work, which library

officials expect to be finished early in April, weather permitting.


Librarian Linda Bushta is delighted with the progress and describes the new look as amazing. A new sign in front of the library completes the refurbished look for the building that has served local readers for so many years.


Upper Lake has had library service since 1914 when the Upper Lake Women’s Protective Club and other interested citizens set up a library in J.N. League’s store downtown.


In 1916 Lottie Mendenhall and Amy Murdock donated the land at Main and Second Streets for a library in memory of Charles Mifflin Hammond.


Harriet Lee Hammond donated the money for the building and hired a well-known Boston architect, A. W. Longfellow, to design the building.


The Hammonds came from Massachusetts to Lake County in the late 19th century to farm. They were active in civic affairs in Lake County, donating time and money to support local causes.


After Mr. Hammond died in 1915, Mrs. Hammond returned to Massachusetts, but her interest in,

and support for, the library lasted until her death in 1936.


The ULWPC ran the library until a library tax district was formed in 1941. In 1975 Upper Lake joined the newly-formed Lake County Library and continues to function as a branch of the county system.


The Upper Lake Library, 310 Second St., is open Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 1 p.m. to 6 pm, and Wednesday and Saturday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The phone number is 275-2049.


The Lake County Library Web site is www.library.co.lake.ca.us.


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THIS STORY HAS BEEN UPDATED REGARDING THE NAME OF ONE OF THE VICTIMS.


KELSEYVILLE – Sheriff's investigators believe an argument was the basis for an early morning shooting in Kelseyville.


Two men were shot after a struggle over a handgun, during which the handgun discharged, striking one man in the hand and the other in the head, according to a report from Capt. James Bauman of the Lake County Sheriff's Office.


The gun went off while in the hand of Leroy Thomas Anderson, 27, of Chico. Teodulo “Junior” Tovar of Lakeport, 21, was struck in the hand, while Alvin Waylon Olson, 23, of Kelseyville was hit in the head by the bullet, according to Bauman.


Bauman reported that, late Tuesday morning, Anderson was booked at the Lake County Jail on two felony charges – assault with a firearm and willful discharge of a firearm in a negligent manner. He is still in custody with bail set at $15,000.


At about 1:40 a.m. Tuesday, sheriff's deputies responded to a reported shooting at a residence on Eastlake Drive in Kelseyville, Bauman said. Sheriff’s dispatch received a 911 call from the home reporting that an unidentified male subject showed up at a party there and “randomly” shot another male subject in the head.


Bauman said as many as five sheriff’s units responded to the area and rescue personnel from the Kelseyville Fire District were dispatched to stage until the scene was secured.


When the first sheriff’s deputies arrived at the scene, Anderson, the suspected shooter, was detained without incident. Bauman said rescue personnel were then cleared to respond in to treat Osborn for a gunshot wound to the head.


As additional sheriffs units arrived at the scene, dispatch received information that a second victim, later identified as Tovar, had also been shot and was being transported to Sutter Lakeside Hospital by friends, Bauman said. Units from the Lakeport Police Department and the California Highway Patrol were requested to respond to Sutter Lakeside pending Tovar’s arrival.


Sheriff’s detectives were called out to assist with processing the scene and to interview witnesses. Bauman said a weapon was recovered and Anderson was later transported from the scene to be interviewed.


Following preliminary treatment by local rescue personnel, Osborn was transported by air ambulance to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital in critical condition, said Bauman. Tovar was treated for a gunshot wound to the hand and later released from Sutter Lakeside.


Bauman said much about the shooting has yet to be investigated, but preliminary information indicates that Osborn, Anderson, Tovar and several others had gotten into a verbal argument during the party.


At some point during the argument, Tovar and Anderson engaged each other and Anderson allegedly produced a .45-caliber handgun from his jacket to ward off Tovar’s aggression, Bauman said. As Anderson was backing away from Tovar, he was reportedly struck on the head by a bottle from behind and as he and Tovar began struggling over the gun, the weapon discharged.


Tovar was shot in the hand but the round then struck Osborn in the head as he was apparently trying to help Anderson, Bauman said.


Bauman said investigation into the shooting is continuing, and detectives are currently working with the District Attorney’s Office on a search warrant for the scene on Eastlake Drive


Osborn’s current condition at Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital is unknown and further information on the case will be released as soon as practical, Bauman said.

CLEARLAKE – A medical examiner arrested in Lake County in January is facing misdemeanor charges alleging she was driving under the influence and had a Vicodin without a prescription.


Dr. Kelly Arthur, 41, was arrested Jan. 13 in Middletown after a California Highway Patrol officer saw her drive through a crosswalk where a pedestrian was walking, as Lake County News has reported.


After conducting a field sobriety test, the officer arrested Arthur for driving under the influence. She also was found to be in possession of a small amount of marijuana and a single Vicodin pill.


California Attorney General's Office spokesman Abraham Arredondo said the Attorney General's Office filed a criminal complaint on March 27 charging Arthur with the two misdemeanors, driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs and possession of Vicodin without a prescription.


Because Arthur is often called as an expert witness in criminal cases, Lake County District Attorney Jon Hopkins asked the state Attorney General's Office to handle the case to avoid a potential conflict of interest.


Arredondo said a prosecutor out of the attorney general's San Francisco office is handling the case.


The Attorney General's Office can step in, said Arredondo, in cases where someone who works closely with a law enforcement agency is facing prosecution.


“It's not frequent but it does happen in all areas of the state,” said Arredondo.


On the day of her arrest Arthur, a medical examiner with Fairfield-based Forensic Medical Group Inc., was in Lake County at the time to give testimony in the murder trial of David Deason. She had conducted the autopsy on Marie Parlet, who Deason was convicted of murdering.


Santa Rosa attorney Jonathan B. Steele said he appeared in court on March 27 on behalf of Arthur, who was arraigned and pleaded not guilty to both charges.


Initially, Arthur was arrested on felony counts but wasn't charged with felonies, which Steele said had been his initial concern.


He called the potential for felony charges in the case “absurd.” After discussing the case with the Attorney General's Office, “They came to the same conclusion, fortunately,” he said.


Steele said his office is having toxicology tests done to show that Arthur was below the legal blood alcohol limit of .08 at the time of her arrest. He said people who are impaired while driving can still be prosecuted even if they're below the limit, but it's his contention that Arthur wasn't impaired.


Regarding the charge relating to possession the Vicodin, Steele said Arthur does have a prescription for the drug.


Steele said they got a “good start” on the case last week. He said he'll continue conferring with the Attorney General's Office as he seeks a resolution in the case.


“At least we know we got rid of the two most serious charges,” he said.


The case will return to Lake County Superior Court for a settlement conference on April 20, said Steele.


Steele said he's not sure of how long it will take to resolve the case, as both private and government labs that do the kind of toxicology testing he wants for Arthur's defense are very busy right now.


The DUI charge against Arthur carries a maximum sentence of six months in county jail, a fine and a first offender's school, the latter to satisfy Department of Motor Vehicle requirements, Steele explained.


However, he said, no one gets the maximum sentence. If there are further reductions in the charges the penalties will change, too.


Steele said Arthur continues working as a medical examiner.


“It's just an unfortunate incident for someone who has an amazing reputation and career,” he said.


Steele added that it's a reminder that everyone is susceptible to these kinds of cases. “Anybody can make a mistake.”


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LAKEPORT – Faced with economic challenges, the Lakeport Regional Chamber of Commerce is asking for the community to help fund this year's July 4 firework display.

Over the last two decades the Lakeport fireworks display has been a major draw at the lake's north end.

“For all of these years the chamber has done the fireworks – we signed the contract, we did the whole things,” said Chamber Chief Executive Officer Melissa Fulton.

Fulton said the chamber has funded the fireworks through the annual “add a dollar” campaign, assisted through local merchants, as well as large donations to the effort by the city of Lakeport.

But last year the city didn't budget the more than $13,000 of the total $18,000 bill that it usually pays toward the event. After discussing the issue over several meetings, the council agreed in March to give the chamber $5,000 toward the total costs from the city's redevelopment budget, as Lake County News has reported.

The chamber previously had projected an $11,000 deficit for this year. Fulton said the financial picture has since improved slightly, due to laying off one staffer and cutting back on expenses. “I'm hoping we come out in the black.”

Still, Fulton said that, due to its financial constraints, the chamber can't fund this year's fireworks display, so they're going to the community to ask for assistance.

“If the community feels that the fireworks are important, then they'll help us,” said Fulton. “It will be a community fireworks program.”

She said she will once again seek a monetary contribution from the city. The chamber and the city haven't discussed whether or not the city will restore full funding in the future.

Fulton said, so far, the support and enthusiasm appears to be there, despite the economic issues everyone is facing. This year's display also is estimated to draw larger crowds in the wake of the city's recent decision to deny the applications of four nonprofit groups seeking to sell safe and sane fireworks.

The chamber formed a fireworks committee which began meeting in February, Fulton said.

The committee includes Lakeport Mayor Ron Bertsch, who also represents the Early Lake Lions; Ross Kauper, Lakeport Kiwanis; Kevin Burke, Lakeport's police chief and interim city manager; Leslie Firth, Lakeport Main Street Association president and a chamber director; Armand Pauly, a chamber director; Barbara Breunig, Lakeport Main Street Association treasurer; and Richard Knoll, Lakeport Redevelopment Agency director.

Fulton said the group has met three times so far, and will hold another meeting at 3 p.m. Tuesday, April 7, at Lakeport City Hall, 225 Park St. The public is invited to attend.

The committee has looked at ways to cut back on the estimated $17,300 that the display will cost this year – an amount which doesn't include the cost for sound system rental for the boat parade, said Fulton. The celebration won't feature the coordination of fireworks and music as it has in the past.

To keep costs down, Fulton said the committee considered having the fireworks fired off from land, specifically Natural High School's campus on Main Street.

Fulton said the fireworks company representative visited Lakeport earlier this year and determined they could do the firing from land, but they wouldn't be able to use the largest fireworks, which are 6-inch shells.

The committee decided it wanted to have the same size show as in previous years, so they chose to have the display fired from barges the chamber purchased several years ago for the fireworks display, Fulton said.

The committee has created several corporate sponsorship levels to support this year's fireworks display, including Betsy Ross, $50; Ben Franklin, $75; Abraham Lincoln, $100; George Washington, $500; and Uncle Sam, $1,000.

For more information on the committee or to make a donation, contact Fulton at 707-263-5092 or via e-mail at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
 
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The area near mile post marker 44.19 on Highway 20 has been the site of six serious collisions over the last two years. Courtesy photo.

 

 


CLEARLAKE OAKS – As Highway 20 winds out of Lake County, it takes drivers past Walker Ridge Road and mile post marker 44.19, an area that is getting extra attention from officials due to a high number of collisions, including a fatal one last year.


In the past two years six crashes have occurred at the spot, just east of Walker Ridge Road and across the highway from the Abbott and Turkey Run mercury mines, roughly 15 miles east of Clearlake Oaks.


The most recent crash – which occurred on March 16 – sent two women to area hospitals following an extensive rescue effort, as Lake County News has reported.


Northshore Fire Protection District Battalion Chief Pat Brown told Lake County News that there have been six crashes at that site over the last two years. Area firefighters have done a total of four such low-angle rope rescues in the area, where a steep embankment comes off the road. That was the case on March 16.


Phil Frisbie, a spokesman for Caltrans, confirmed that there have been six collisions at the spot, including the March 16 crash.


All of the collisions, Frisbie said, occurred when the road was wet or icy.


He added that speed appears to have been the primary cause of all of the crashes previous to the March 16 incident. The CHP has offered no preliminary finding on that crash's cause yet.


Frisbie said the speed limit in the area is 55 miles per hour, but there is an advisory sign which cautions a slower speed. It's easy to go above the posted speed unless one is breaking or downshifting, he noted.


“Last year we performed an initial investigation of the area,” he said.


As a result, last November Caltrans installed enhanced signage for eastbound travelers and changed the speed advisory sign, reducing the suggested speed from 40 miles per hour down to 35 miles per hour and making the sign larger, Frisbie said. In addition, they added a right arrow to try to get people's attention.


The six collisions is “above what we would expect for that area,” he said.


“That's why it came up on our radar this last year when we started the investigation,” said Frisbie.


A fatal collision took place in the area on Memorial Day 2008, as Lake County News reported last year.


Debra Curtis of Suisun City was driving eastbound mid-afternoon when she lost control of her vehicle during a short rain shower, according to the initial CHP report.


Curtis' Ford Escape spun out and hit a Lexus RX300 driven by Delores Zeni of Santa Rosa. Zeni's passenger, 72-year-old Judith Tilt of Sebastopol, died at the scene.


Both Delores Zeni and Robert Zeni of Santa Rosa were flown to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital with major injuries. Curtis, also suffering major injuries, was flown to Enloe Hospital in Chico.


CHP eventually ruled that the collision's cause was unsafe speed for conditions, said CHP Commander Mark Loveless.


Curtis is now facing prosecution for the crash, according to Chief Deputy District Attorney Richard Hinchcliff.


He said Curtis, 50, was charged with misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter without gross negligence. The maximum time she could receive upon conviction is a year in the county jail.


Hinchcliff said he couldn't discuss any previous record Curtis might have, and said such issues are only taken into consideration at the time of sentencing, not when a charging decision is being made.


Neither Hinchcliff nor Loveless had a determination about Curtis' alleged speed at the time of the crash.


Curtis' case is set to be in court April 6 for disposition or setting, said Hinchcliff.


The law firm Carter and Carter of Lower Lake is defending Curtis.


Partner Angela Carter believes that it's the roadway that's the issue – not Curtis' driving.


“We're aware of the problems with the roadway and we believe that once we can prove what's going on with the roadway that it will vindicate our client,” she said.


Frisbie said Caltrans' investigation into the area is continuing.


Loveless said CHP is providing the May 2008 crash report to Caltrans for its investigation.


“We're going to be testing the pavement to see if there is anything we need to do or anything that we can do to enhance the performance of that pavement,” Frisbie said.


They'll also look at other sign improvements, he said.


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SAN JOSE – Law enforcement officials are investigating the suspicious death of a former Clearlake Oaks resident whose body was found earlier this week in a San Jose-area quarry.


On Wednesday the Santa Clara Sheriff's Office reported that they had identified the body of the man, found Monday on Hillsdale Avenue in the unincorporated area of San Jose, as that of James Edward Heeszel, 33, of San Jose.


Heeszel formerly lived in Clearlake Oaks where his parents reside. They could not be reached for comment on Wednesday.


Sgt. Don Morrissey of the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office said Heeszel had been reported missing about a month prior to the discovery of his body.


Morrissey said San Jose Police officers responded on Monday to the report of a dead body at a quarry, located at 55 Hillsdale Avenue. That address is listed as belonging to Raisch Products, which produces aggregate products and receives concrete and asphalt for recycling.


Shortly after the officers arrived, they located Heeszel and determined that he was deceased, according to Morrissey. After isolating the scene, police learned the area was in the sheriff's jurisdiction and sheriff's deputies were called.


Morrissey said Heeszel's body was located in a pile of large boulders on the quarry property.


He said it took several hours and heavy equipment to remove the large boulders and allow access for investigators to get to the body.


An autopsy was conducted on Heeszel's body Wednesday, said Morrissey, but no cause of death has been released.


Santa Clara Sheriff’s Office homicide detectives are actively investigating the case, Morrissey said.


Anyone with information regarding this incident is urged to call Sgt. Leon or Sgt. Baker of the Santa Clara Sheriff's Office Investigations Division at 408-808-4500.


Those wishing to remain anonymous can contact the Anonymous Tip Line at 408-808-4431.


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WASHINGTON – A new bill introduced on Tuesday is meant to aid in the protection of thousands of acres of our nation’s shrinking agricultural lands and open space.


Congressman Mike Thompson (D-Napa Valley) introduced the bill, which will permanently allow landowners to get significant tax deductions if they place a conservation easement on their property.


These conservation easements allow property owners to continue using the land, while protecting the land from future development.


“We’ve seen a 50-percent increase in conservation easements since Congress passed my provisions to enhance these tax benefits on a temporary basis in 2006,” said Congressman Thompson.


If current development trends continue in California, another two million acres will be paved over by 2050, Thompson said. “It’s time we made these protections permanent. By making sure that landowners can count on this program, we’ll take a big step forward in preserving our agricultural lands and open spaces.”


When landowners donate a conservation easement, they maintain ownership and management of the land and can pass the land on to their heirs, while forgoing their rights to develop the land in the future.


Conservation easements have historically been an effective tool for protecting farmland and open space, and Thompson anticipates this bill will enable more farmers and other property owners to conserve their land. The bill enjoys broad support from a grassroots coalition of farmers, and conservationists.


The tax provisions allow property owners to get a deduction of up to 100 percent of their adjusted gross income for 15 years.


These tax provisions have a long record of success. In August 2006, Congress passed provisions written by Thompson that enhanced the tax incentive for the donation of conservation easements by allowing landowners to deduct a larger share of their income over a longer period of time.


With these enhanced tax provisions, 535,000 more acres were put into trusts in the last two years, according to a survey by the Land Trust Alliance.


The first land protected by Thompson’s provisions were in California’s 1st District, which includes Lake County.


Andy Beckstoffer of Beckstoffer Vineyards gave a conservation easement on 89 acres of the historic To Kalon vineyard in Oakville just five days after the measure was signed into law.


The new bill currently has 93 cosponsors. Thompson is a member of the Ways and Means Committee, which has jurisdiction over all tax measures in Congress.

CLEARLAKE – This Thursday, a special event to remember those lost to drunk driving collisions and their families will be held in Clearlake.


Team DUI will host the candlelight vigil at 6:30 p.m. at the gazebo in Clearlake's Austin Park, 14077 Lakeshore Drive. The community is invited to attend.


The award-winning group formed a few years ago. It includes local officials and citizens who work together to fight underage drinking and drinking and driving. They've presented programs to more than 1,500 local students.


Speakers at the hour-long vigil will include Lake County Sheriff's Capt. Russell Perdock, Chris Tyner, Konocti Unified School District Superintendent Bill MacDougall and Wendy Jensen.


Plans also include a moment of silence and offering luminaria – small paper lanterns – to remember those who have died in DUI crashes, said Larry Fanning, a Team DUI member and pastor of Clearlake's First Baptist Church. Fanning will serve as the vigil's master of ceremonies.


The genesis of the event, said Fanning, came in January at the Judge's Breakfast, hosted by Judge Richard Freeborn at the Main Street Cafe in Clearlake.


Fanning said local law enforcement officials were discussing the 20th anniversary of a crash that claimed the life of three Lower Lake High School students and top athletes – Joseph Dizon, 18; Joshua Burke,18; and Frank Doyle, 19.


The collision occurred on Jan. 14, 1989.


A chaplain with Clearlake Police for 15 years, Fanning said he's used to seeing law enforcement hide their emotions. But as the men spoke about this case, he could see the emotion. Fanning said the story also brought MacDougall, who was in attendance, to tears.


“Twenty years later and there's all this emotion,” said Fanning. “This needs to be used for something positive.”


Fanning started looking into the case, and found that everyone familiar with the incident had a story. “It was a very powerful event for the high school students of the day.”


The car the three young men were riding in hit a tree a few hundred feet away from a party. The driver of the car survived and went to prison, Fanning said. “It's a very tragic story,” he said. “It was just horrific.”


Team DUI decided to hold an event later in the year, during April, which is a month that focuses on DUI prevention, Fanning explained.


He said some of the speakers at the Thursday vigil will discuss the 1989 crash.


Fanning spends at least one night a week riding with Clearlake Police officers.


He said he's been at crash scenes and watched drunk drivers trying to get out of their cars and walk away. He's also accompanied police to parties where young people were drinking. It's an unusual situation for Fanning, who doesn't drink.


Fanning said part of the emphasis of the Thursday vigil is to commit the community to facing the issue of drunk driving.


“It's not going to go away,” he said.


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From right, Gail Salituri, Marie Beery and Kathy Fowler, along with Lake Family Resource Center staffers, at the drawing on Wednesday, April 1, 2009.


 

 


KELSEYVILLE – The Barbara LaForge Memorial Fund held its latest drawing in its effort to collect funds to build a domestic violence shelter.


At the time of the Wednesday drawing, held at the Saw Shop Gallery Bistro in downtown Kelseyville, the fund has generated $3,800, according to its founder, Gail Salituri. The funds will benefit Lake Family Resource Center's Freedom House shelter project.


Last month, Salituri was honored with a Star of Lake County award in the professional artist category. Her work on the LaForge Memorial Fund was cited at the ceremony.


“Red Hills Road in Fall,” an original 24 inch by 30 inch original oil painting Salituri created, was won by Marie Beery, owner of the Saw Shop Gallery and Bistro. The painting has been featured at the Saw Shop for the past several weeks where many tickets were sold.


“We have great supporters – the Lake County Arts Council, and recently the Saw Shop, but our biggest supporters are the general public,” said Salituri. “However, I cannot speak of this event without offering special thank yous to Kathy Fowler, who is always there to help make my efforts in creating a magical and successful benefit.”


Salituri offered her thanks to all those who purchased tickets for the drawing at recent events, including February's Wine and Chocolate and the Lake County Arts Council's Friday Night Flings, as well as those who stopped by her Inspirations Gallery on Main Street in Lakeport to buy tickets there.


Present for the Wednesday drawing were representatives from the Lake Family Resource Center, along with Kathy Fowler, Beery, and Gail and Sheri Salituri.


Following the drawing, Gail Salituri presented to the Lake Family Resource Center, her second donation of $1,000.

 

In January 2008 Salituri opened the Barbara LaForge Memorial in memory of her friend, who was violently murdered in October 2002. To this day her murder is unsolved.


“No woman or person should be victimized and generating funds to help the Lake Family Resource Center build their Freedom House is very appropriate and a worthy cause,” she said.

 

The next release and raffle will commence on June 1 and the original will go up for auction at Inspirations Gallery. The winning ticket for that raffle will be held on the evening of the Taste of Lakeport event in August.


Donations can be made to the LaForge Memorial Fund at any Westamerica Bank branch.


For more information or to see winners go to www.gailsalituri.blogspot.com or visit Inspirations Gallery, 165 N. Main St, Lakeport.

A particularly nettlesome area of estate planning – one fraught with potential danger – is the area of substantial gifts transferred in California by “dependent persons” [as California residents] in favor of an unrelated “care custodian” (e.g., a caregiver who is not related by blood or marriage to the dependent person).


For example, consider an elderly person aged 65 years or older, or a disabled non-elderly person, who makes a large gift to an unrelated person who provides care by driving them to the hospital, preparing their meals, assisting them with their other personal needs – taking medicine, bathing – and so on.


This scenario frequently applies to elderly persons who are neglected by their natural family while alive.


Public awareness of this nettlesome rule is important because the proposed transfer, when legitimate, can be validated if independently reviewed in advance by a disinterested (unbiased) attorney who issues a certificate of independent review. Obviously, this must occur while the “dependent adult” is still alive. This review requires proactive action.


Now, let’s examine Probate Code section 21350.


In order to prevent abuse and fraud being perpetrated by caregivers upon their presumably vulnerable dependent persons, section 21350 of the Probate Code presumptively invalidates transfers (or gifts) made by dependent persons to these unrelated care custodians unless the transfer is reviewed by an independent attorney who issues a “certificate of independent review.”


The certificate validates the transfer. Knowing when a transfer might later on become susceptible to being subsequently characterized by an adverse party, such as the dependent’s heirs who lost out, as being an invalid transfer is important.


Recognition should prompt a certificate of independent review being obtained out of prudence. Often the certificate of independent review is requested of the dependent adult’s own attorney when drafting their will or trust, which includes the substantial gift. The drafting attorney will then usually advise their client to see a second neutral attorney to review the matter and issue a certificate.


When might the rule apply to invalidate a gift? First you need a “dependent person”. That means anyone age 65 or older and younger persons with significant disabilities.


Second, you need a transfer whose value exceeds $3,000 in the case of a person whose estate is greater than $100,000 or a transfer of any amount in estates under $100,000.


Third, you need an unrelated care giver – that is someone who is unrelated by blood or marriage to the dependent person.


Fourth you need a “care custodian,” also known as a “caregiver.” Whether the recipient is a “care giver” is where the litigation controversy abounds (usually after the dependent person is dead).


The concept of “caregiver” is broadly defined and includes, “persons providing care or services for elders or dependent adults."


If the foregoing pattern appears relevant to a situation then a certificate of independent review should be obtained, and, in some other instances a court ordered “substituted judgment” order approving the proposed gratuitous transfer (involving conservatorships).


The attorney drafting that certificate must be someone who is so entirely disassociated from the transaction and the care giver as to be able to independently and confidentially advise the dependent adult who is their client as to the nature and consequences of the proposed transfer.


The whole purpose of the second attorney’s independent review is to ensure that the proposed transfer is not, “the product of fraud, menace, duress, or undue influence.”


Presumably, if the certificate itself were to be challenged as being a “rubber stamp” issued by the reviewing attorney then the certificate itself will likely only be as good as the second attorney’s underlying independent review upon critical examination.


Dennis A. Fordham is an attorney licensed to practice law in California and New York. He earned his BA at Columbia University, his JD at the State University of New York at Buffalo,and his LL.M in Taxation at New York University. He concentrates his practice in the areas of estate planning and aspects of elder law. He can be reached at dennis@dennisfordhamlaw, by phone at 263-3235 or at his office at 55 First St., Lakeport.

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Stoney Prior was arrested March 28, 2009, in Nevada. Courtesy photo.
 

 


CLEARLAKE – A parolee who allegedly cut off a GPS tracking bracelet and fled the county earlier this month has been arrested.


Stoney Martin Prior, 31, was arrested Saturday in Humboldt County, Nev., according to officials.


Prior, a high-risk sex offender, had gone missing March 12 after he allegedly took off the bracelet in Lower Lake. Last week officials reported that they believed he was in the area of the Fort McDermitt Indian Reservation in northern Nevada, as Lake County News has reported.


California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation spokesman Gordon Hinkle said Prior was paroled on March 10.


Hinkle said Prior had been committed to state prison in January of 2005 for assault with the intent to commit a specific sexual offense. As a result Prior was placed on the state's Megan's Law Web site, which tracks convicted sex offenders.


Prior had reported to the Ukiah parole unit at noon on March 12 to be fitted with the GPS bracelet, said Hinkle. The investigation revealed that at about 5:30 p.m. the same day, Prior allegedly removed the device. The device's removal was noticed by a parole officer the next morning.


A officer drove to Lower Lake, Prior's last known location, and attempted to find him by showing his picture at several local businesses, said Hinkle.


An attempt also was made to make telephone contact with Prior's grandparents, who had transported him from San Quentin State Prison to the Ukiah parole unit, but Hinkle said that also was unsuccessful.


Officials used GPS data to determine that 30 minutes before Prior allegedly removed the bracelet he entered a local gas station, said Hinkle. His parole officer contacted the gas station manager to request permission to see the surveillance tapes, which showed Prior getting into a minivan driven by his grandparents.


On the tape, the parole agent was able to get the vehicle's license plate, which was traced to an address in Winnemucca, Nev., said Hinkle. Information on other members of Prior's family also was collected during the investigation.


The Humboldt County, Nev. Sheriff's Office, which finally arrested Prior, got involved when parole officials contacted the agency for help in contacting Prior's grandparents, Hinkle said.


Last week, officials had reported that the van Prior left California in was reportedly found on the Fort McDermitt Indian Reservation, home to the Fort McDermitt Paiute and Shoshone Tribe.


E-mail Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

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