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CLEARLAKE, Calif. – The Clearlake Police Department is investigating the circumstances that led to a Clearlake man being severely injured last week.
Nicholas Vining, 29, known as “Caveman,” was found near his mother’s home on the afternoon of Monday, Dec. 3, with severe injuries, including head trauma, according to social media posts and entries on a GoFundMe page reportedly written by family members and friends.
Sgt. Tim Hobbs of the Clearlake Police Department confirmed to Lake County News that the agency is investigating the case, but that so far they have little information.
The social media posts claim that Vining – who is reported to have a cognitive disability – was attacked on Old Highway 53 at the time school was getting out for the day, and that the assailants were three to four teenage boys who jumped him.
“They pushed him off of his bike, beat him, cut off his hair and beard with a knife and stole his backpack, phone, foodstamp card and the shoes off of his feet. They left him with his wallet and his beat up bike,” a Facebook post stated.
Other posts on Facebook and GoFundMe said his 49ers hoodie and baseball cap also were taken, and that the boys threatened to kill Vining if he told who they were. Those posts also said there were no known witnesses.
Vining was reported to have gotten to his mother’s home, where she found him hanging over the fence. He told family members that he had been attacked across from the “court school,” and that “court school kids” were responsible for hurting him. He then lost consciousness, according to the posts.
The social media narrative said his mother called 911 and he was lifeflighted to the UCSF Medical Center where he is in the Neurointensive Care Unit with a brain bleed. Holes have been drilled in his head to relieve the pressure, and he has not regained consciousness since he was injured.
Hobbs said that the incident was reported to the Clearlake Police Department on Dec. 4, the day after it is said to have occurred.
“We interviewed hospital staff and Nicholas’ mother,” Hobbs said. “Nicholas was not able to be interviewed at that time.”
Hobbs said Vining’s mother wasn’t able to give much information, and that police don’t yet know what was the cause of Vining’s injury or if it was, in fact, the result of a fight.
The case has been forwarded to the department’s investigation division to conduct further investigation including follow up with Vining when he is able to be interviewed, Hobbs said.
While the account of the incident states that it happened near the “court school,” there is no court school on Old Highway 53, although the Clearlake Community School is located at 6945 Old Highway 53.
The Clearlake Community School is operated by the Lake County Office of Education.
“I became aware of this over the weekend,” said Lake County Superintendent of Schools Brock Falkenberg, who read the social media posts about the incident.
“I directed staff at the school this morning to reach out to the school resource officer in Clearlake because we do have a lot of cameras around that campus and to see if there is anything that we can do to help with the investigation,” Falkenberg told Lake County News on Monday night. “We want to do everything we can do to make sure that justice is served in this particular case.”
He said his staff talked to the school resource officer, who told them that the incident didn’t happen near the school but somewhere else, and that it wasn’t related to the school.
There also are reported to be witnesses, based on what police told Falkenberg’s staff.
While Falkenberg said a court school is different from a community school in that it’s located at the juvenile hall, community schools are still often referred to as court schools. Community schools traditionally serve expelled and adjudicated youth.
He said the children attending the school are in grades kindergarten through 12th, but primarily in the elementary and lower grades.
All of the students at Clearlake Community School get door-to-door transportation, so they don’t walk back and forth to school, Falkenberg said.
There are numerous cameras around the campus, and Falkenberg said the Lake County Office of Education has opened up its cameras for police for other events and is happy to do it again.
As of early Tuesday, no arrests had been made in the case, according to Sgt. Dominic Ramirez of the Clearlake Police Department.
Anyone who has information about the incident or who saw Vining that afternoon are asked to call the Clearlake Police Department at 707-994-8251 and speak with Investigations Department Supervisor Sgt. Martin Snyder, Extension 306.
The GoFundMe page for Vining had raised $745 of a $10,000 goal by early Tuesday, with the funds raised meant to help his mother with travel and lodging costs, as well as medical expenses.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
The Clearlake City Council will hold a closed session at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 13, to discuss cases of anticipated litigation and property negotiations for 14130 Tuli Lane before convening for the public portion of its regularly scheduled meeting at 6 p.m. in the council chambers at Clearlake City Hall, 14050 Olympic Drive.
The council will start off the meeting with a presentation to outgoing Mayor Bruno Sabatier, who is leaving the council to take over as the new District 2 representative on the Lake County Board of Supervisors.
There also will be a swearing-in of a new police lieutenant, police officer, code enforcement officer, kennel technician and dispatcher.
Under business, the council will accept the November 2018 election results and then administer the oaths of office to Russell Cremer and Dirk Slooten, who were elected to the council.
Cremer was appointed to fill a vacancy on the council earlier this year and successfully ran to keep the seat. Slooten, who like Cremer has served on the city planning commission for many years, was the top vote-getter in the November race. Both men are members of Rotary and have been active in raising funds for local fire recovery.
The Thursday meeting agenda also includes two public hearings on commercial cannabis operations proposed by Justin Jones and Steven Malone.
Other business includes consideration of the 2018 city photo contest entries, an automated license plate recognition program, a contract for a transportation improvement program study, the first reading of an ordinance to amend the Clearlake Municipal Code regarding sidewalk vendors and door-to-door sales and city code regulating itinerant businesses; an amendment of the contract with Foster Morrison to add the Lake County Fire Protection District to the Clearlake Local Hazard Mitigation Plan; and consideration of the fourth amendment to the employment services agreement for City Manager Greg Folsom.
The only item on the consent agenda for the redevelopment successor agency is the approval of a request for consent by the successor agency for the withdrawal of Casitas De Mendota LLC of its interest in the partnership of “O” Village Investors, related to the development of the Olympic Village Apartments, and approval of the request for the redevelopment successor agency to sign a subordination agreement in reference to the same project.
Consent agenda items for the council include warrant registers; continuation of a local emergency issued on Oct. 9, 2017, and ratified by council action on Oct. 12, 2017; approval of the appointment of Curt Giambruno to the Lake County Vector Control District Board for a four-year term; adoption of the 2018 Conflict of Interest Code, Resolution No. 2018-55; amendment of the contract with the Melton Design Group; flooring for police department and city hall; and cubicles for the police department.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
121318 Clearlake City Council agenda packet by LakeCoNews on Scribd
The following cats at the Lake County Animal Care and Control shelter have been cleared for adoption.
Female domestic short hair
This female domestic short hair has a brown tabby coat.
She’s in cat room kennel No. 47, ID No. 11452.
‘Simon’
“Simon” is a male domestic short hair cat with a blue point coat.
He’s already been neutered.
He’s in kennel No. 74, ID No. 11458.
Female domestic medium hair
This female domestic medium hair has a brown tabby coat.
She’s in cat room kennel No. 103, ID No. 11468.
Lake County Animal Care and Control is located at 4949 Helbush in Lakeport, next to the Hill Road Correctional Facility.
Office hours are Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday. The shelter is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday and on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Visit the shelter online at http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Animal_Care_And_Control.htm.
For more information call Lake County Animal Care and Control at 707-263-0278.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
The projects include a $1,986,000 safety project on Highway 20 in Lake County.
That project, to be located near Upper Lake between Irvine Avenue and Mid Lake Road, proposes to improve curves and widen shoulders on Highway 20.
“Caltrans will focus on repairing and rehabilitating the state highway system by improving pavement, bridges, culverts, and intelligent transportation systems, which are included in the performance requirements of SB 1, to improve transportation for all of our residents and visitors, no matter their mode of transportation.” said Caltrans Director Laurie Berman.
More than 200 transportation projects will improve and maintain California’s current transportation system.
Most of the projects receiving funding allocations are part of the State Highway Operations and Protection Program, which is the state highway system’s “fix-it-first” program that funds safety improvements, emergency repairs, highway preservation and some operational highway improvements.
While funding for this program is a mixture of federal and state funds, a significant portion comes from SB 1.
Other area projects receiving funding include:
Maintenance project on Highway 1 in Mendocino County: $789,000 of support costs for the advancement of a project on Highway 1 in Mendocino County in Point Arena from the Sonoma County line to Mill Street. The proposed project plans to repave 15 miles of Highway 1.
Safety project on Highway 299 in Humboldt County: $885,000 of support costs for the advancement of a project on Highway 299 in Humboldt County near Willow Creek from 1.5 miles east of East Blair Road to 0.4 miles west of Cedar Creek Road. The proposed project would widen shoulders.
Safety project on Highway 199 in Del Norte County: $600,000 of support costs for the advancement of a project on U.S. Route 199 in Del Norte County from 0.7 to 0.3 miles south of the Hardscrabble Creek Bridge. The proposed project includes the installation of a high friction surface treatment, signs, guardrail and a centerline rumble strip.
Other projects are designed to reduce congestion, improve freight transportation, and provide funds for local government improvement projects. These vital programs tackle congestion, support valuable trade corridors and bolster local agency efforts to invest in transportation.
Seventeen active transportation projects to encourage walking and biking, such as new bike lanes and walking trails, were also approved for $12 million.
The Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program funds projects to modernize transit systems, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve safety were allocated nearly $32 million in SB 1 funds for four rail and transit projects.
The Road Repair and Accountability Act (SB 1), the landmark transportation infrastructure bill signed by Gov. Brown in April 2017, invests $54 billion over the next decade to fix roads, freeways and bridges in communities across California and puts more dollars toward transit and safety. These funds will be split equally between state and local investments.
Caltrans is committed to conducting its business in a fully transparent manner and detailing its progress to the public. For complete details on SB 1, visit http://www.rebuildingca.ca.gov.
LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lakeport Police Department is seeking the community’s help in identifying a woman who stole another woman’s purse at a city car wash on Dec. 4.
Just after 10:30 a.m. Dec. 4, a 71-year-old woman was using the car wash facility at South Forbes Street and Martin Street, police said.
At the same time a younger adult female was using the same facility. Police said she was watching the victim’s actions and when she knew the victim was distracted, she entered her car and removed her purse and left the location.
In a surveillance video shown above, the victim’s vehicle is in the upper right of the screen and the woman who stole the purse is with her vehicle in the center of the screen.
Lakeport Police officers have been investigating the case and have not yet been able to identify the woman responsible for the theft. They are hoping that a member of the public may be able to identify the woman.
Anyone with information is asked to contact investigating Officer Casey Debolt at 707-263-5491, by email at
The Lakeport Police Department reported that it is continuing to see an increase in all types of theft this holiday season and it asks the public to maintain awareness of their surroundings, take necessary security measures and report all suspicious persons and activities.
LUCERNE, Calif. – A Lucerne home burned early Monday morning in a fire for which a cause has not yet been determined.
The home, located at the corner of Seventh Avenue and Country Club Drive, was reported to be on fire just after 2 a.m. Monday, according to radio reports.
Firefighters arrived within minutes to find the single story, stick built structure fully involved. The fire also initially threatened other nearby structures, and power lines were down.
Crews were on scene for some time bringing the fire under control, based on radio reports.
“We posted someone there until daybreak this morning to make sure everything was out,” Northshore Fire Chief Mike Ciancio told Lake County News later on Monday.
Ciancio said there were no injuries.
The home, built in 1926, is a total loss, said Ciancio.
He said the cause remains under investigation.
The fire is the second in three days to destroy a home in Lucerne.
Another fire on Saturday night destroyed a residence on Roland Drive, as Lake County News has reported.
Ciancio said the fire in the Roland Drive structure, which he said was a singlewide mobile home, also remains under investigation with no determination yet reached on the cause.
There also were no injuries in the Roland Drive fire, Ciancio said.
Email Elizabeth Larson at