How to resolve AdBlock issue? 
News
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – A Clearlake man has been sentenced to jail time, probation and possible restitution in a case involving the possession of American Indian artifacts that authorities say were looted from local archaeological sites.
Brian Gene Smith, 41, pleaded guilty to unlawfully possessing ancient American Indian artifacts during a Feb. 21 court appearance, according to District Attorney Don Anderson.
Lake County Sheriff’s Deputy Richard Kreutzer arrested Smith on Aug. 22, 2015. Kreutzer originally contacted Smith regarding allegations that he had left an inappropriate letter for a 14-year-old girl, authorities said.
When Kreutzer found Smith, he was behind a business in Lower Lake, appearing to be under the influence of drugs, with his van filled with a number of artifacts – Indian bone fragments, arrowheads, clay pottery bowls, pieces of obsidian and other rocks which were shaped into points, and other items, according to law enforcement reports.
Some of the objects had index cards explaining where they had been located, which the original sheriff’s report said were areas around Clear Lake that had been exposed due to the ongoing drought conditions at the time.
There also was a flash drive that Kreutzer found that had pictures of Smith and another male subject holding obsidian points from an unknown location, authorities said.
Kreutzer knew he had an archaeological crime case on his hands. Two days beforehand, he had finished a training on such crimes which was co-presented by tribal groups and the sheriff’s office, as Lake County News has reported.
Anderson said Smith failed to show at a Nov. 8 court appearance. On his next court appearance on Jan. 6, he said he was autistic and needed the court to explain a jury trial.
Anderson said his office reached an agreement with Smith in which he pleaded on Jan. 10 to the felony charge of unlawfully possessing ancient American Indian artifacts.
As a result of the agreement, a number of other charges Smith originally had been facing – including vandalism and removing or injuring any object of archaeological or historical interest, and drug charges – were not pursued, Anderson said.
On Feb. 21, retired Lake County Superior Court Judge Arthur Mann sentenced Smith to felony probation and 109 days in the county jail plus other terms of probation which include possible restitution to the local American Indian community, according to Anderson.
“We’re elated. We’re happy,” said Dino Beltran, tribal administrator and treasurer of the Koi Nation of Lower Lake.
It was Beltran who had first proposed to Sheriff Brian Martin in early 2015 that the trainings on archaeological crimes be held locally for law enforcement.
The Koi Nation, Robinson Rancheria and the Habematolel Pomo of Upper Lake form a tribal consortium called Ancestors 1, which entered into a memorandum of understanding with the county of Lake in 2015 to increase protections for cultural resources.
In October the California Office of Historic Preservation awarded the Governor's Historic Preservation Award for 2016 to Ancestors 1 and the county for the agreement, as Lake County News has reported.
Beltrans praised Sheriff Martin for hosting the archaeological crimes class, Kreutzer for his work and Anderson for following through on the prosecution and “saying that this does mean something.”
There have been other busts previous to the one involving Smith, but they didn’t go anywhere or, in one case, were dismissed as lesser charges in a stabbing case, Beltran said.
While this case has come to its conclusion, Beltran said it’s important to keep up the efforts to stop similar crimes. “These are happening often,” he said.
In a 2015 interview, Martin McAllister of Archaeological Damage Investigation & Assessment – who led the archaeological crimes class held in Lake County – told Lake County news that archaeological looting is a very serious problem, and one that’s “much more serious than the American public realizes.”
McAllister said stolen artifacts form a multimillion dollar black market industry in the United States, and cited Interpol numbers that estimates the illicit artifacts trade is a $7 billion annual industry worldwide.
Anderson said the District Attorney's Office will work closely with law enforcement and the American Indian community to help preserve their culture and heritage.
He said his agency is still doing followup on where the artifacts Smith had in possession came from originally in order to return them to the tribe to whom they belong.
As for similar cases, Anderson said his department doesn’t have any others they’re now working on.
Smith’s case, he said, can serve as a deterrent, but he’s also concerned that it could make some people more interested in attempting to seek out such artifacts.
To that second group, he said, “I wouldn’t take a chance.”
Email Elizabeth Larson at
LAKEPORT, Calif. – The city of Lakeport Emergency Operations Center will host a community meeting to discuss the latest information on the ongoing flood event.
The meeting will take place beginning at 5 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 28, in the council chambers at Lakeport City Hall, 225 Park St.
City officials said the meeting is open to the public but is mainly intended for Lakeport residents in flood-affected areas. A translator also will be available for Spanish speakers.
Four city neighborhoods along the lakeshore were ordered to evacuate on Feb. 20, with city officials reporting that 225 people were evacuated.
Those city residents remain under a mandatory evacuation order, with evacuation shelters set up at the Lakeport Seventh-day Adventist Church, 1111 Park Way, and the National Guard Armory, 1431 Hoyt Ave. in Lakeport.
City officials said Monday that Verizon has installed a temporary “cell on wheels” at the church to improve wireless communications for emergency workers and the close to 100 evacuees sheltering there.
The city said the Verizon Crisis Response Team outfitted the Lakeport Emergency Operations Center last week with enhanced wireless data connectivity allowing for better coordination among emergency workers and city officials.
Verizon also provided a portable wireless hotspot and Internet-connected laptops to the Seventh-day Adventist Church’s evacuation center for a homework room for schoolchildren, as Lake County News has reported.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
This list has been updated and is current as of 4 p.m. Tuesday.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The week started out with many county roads and city streets remaining closed due to continuing flood conditions.
The major closure in the county, of the Nice-Lucerne Cutoff, remained in effect on Monday, with the Lake County Public Works Department reporting that there was not yet an estimated time of reopening for the roadway.
In Lakeport, many streets remain closed due to damage or flooding, but on Monday Giselman Street between Lakeshore Boulevard and Sayre Street was reopened.
However, the city said Lakeshore Boulevard east of Giselman to the city limits at Beach Lane remains closed due to flooding. Through traffic is encouraged to use the Hartley Road detour via Twentieth Street.
The full list of road closures and advisories for areas around the county follows. Information was compiled from reports from Caltrans, the California Highway Patrol, the Clearlake Police Department, Lake County Department of Public Works and the Lakeport Police Department.
In the map shown on this page, areas marked with the flooding symbol and the red triangle indicate closures; the rockslide icon indicates those areas where there are slides but which remain open.
The map is subject to updating throughout the day as new information becomes available.
CLEARLAKE
All city boat launches remain closed.
Lower Lakeshore Drive at Lakeshore Drive: Closed due to flooding.
CLEARLAKE OAKS
High Valley Road: Road conditions from Brassfield Winery to Bartlett Springs Road are unknown at this time.
Island Drive: Closed from Highway 20 to the bridge due to flooding.
Keys Boulevard: Closed due to flooding.
Lake Street: Closed due to flooding.
Old Long Valley Road: Open with slide activity.
Widgeon Way: Closed from the Plaza to Shady Lane due to tree across the roadway.
COBB
Maple Shadows: Closed at the south end from Highway 175 to Parnassus due to culvert failure.
Socrates Mine Road: Road slip out at MPM 3.8. Down to one lane in this area.
LAKEPORT (CITY)
All city boat launches remain closed.
Library Park continues to be closed due to the extreme danger and flood conditions.
City parking lots at Third Street, Fourth Street and Fifth Street are closed.
– Esplanade Street.
– K Street.
– Konocti Avenue.
– Lupoyoma Avenue.
– Helena Avenue.
– Lily Cove Avenue.
– Oak Knoll Avenue.
– E Street.
Lakeshore Boulevard: Closed to all traffic east of Giselman to the north city limit boundary at Beach Lane. Through traffic is encouraged to use the Hartley Road detour via 20th Street. Lakeshore Boulevard across from Jones Street appears to be undermined and may be structurally unsafe. Avoid the area.
Royale Avenue: Closed to all vehicles at Pike Drive.
LAKEPORT
Hill Road: Closed between Sutter Lakeside Hospital entrance and Lakeshore Boulevard due to mudslides across the roadway.
Lakeshore Boulevard: Closed from Park Way to Alterra Drive due to flooding.
Lakeshore Boulevard: Closed from Park Way to 2,500 feet north due to flooding and a power pole leaning into the roadway.
LOWER LAKE
Morgan Valley Road: Closed at the Lake/Napa line due to numerous trees and mud slides on the Napa County side.
LUCERNE
Bartlett Springs Road: Closed at MPM 18.0 due to mudslide.
Twin Valley Road: Closed due to mudslide.
NICE
Lakeshore Boulevard: Closed from Stokes Avenue to Carson Street due to flooding.
Nice-Lucerne Cutoff: Closed due to flooding.
Stokes Avenue: Closed from Stokes Court to Nice-Lucerne Cutoff due to flooding.
UPPER LAKE
Elk Mountain Road: Roadway closed at MPM 29.6 due to road washout. No estimate of when road will be reopened.
MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – The Middletown Area Town Hall gathered earlier this month to hear an update on building codes and the local museum.
During the Feb. 9 meeting at the Middletown Community Center Lake County Community Development Director Bob Massarelli gave an update on new building codes and his department’s operations.
Voris Brumfield also gave an update on the transfer of the Gibson Museum from the Lake County Historical Society to Lake County Museum System and museum activities.
The MATH Board includes Chair Claude Brown, Vice Chair Linda Diehl-Darms, Secretary Fletcher Thornton, and members Lisa Kaplan and Gregg Van Oss.
Diehl-Darms chaired the meeting; Brown and Van Oss both were absent.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Jean Allen passed away peacefully at home with her husband, Dennis Shoffeitt, by her side, on Feb. 23, 2017.
Born on Jan. 1, 1932, in Vienna, Mo., she was the sixth of seven siblings, all of whom were very close and are now united.
After graduating from college and a successful career working at Southwestern Bell, Jean married her first husband, Jerry Allen, who preceded her in death in 1974. They moved from Orange County, Calif., to Lake County to raise their family and start a successful business: Allen's Sales.
Jean remarried in 1983 to Dennis Shoffiett in Hawaii and continued a wonderful life in Lake County, where they lived, worked and enjoyed their lives together.
Dennis was a dedicated husband and friend. They loved to travel together in their motor home and shared many of those experiences with friends.
Throughout her life she strived to nurture her family, continue her career, support her local community and enjoy her church. Jean was a loving wife, mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, great aunt and friend.
She volunteered at the Lower Lake Community Action Group, the Adult Literacy Program and various philanthropic organizations. She enjoyed tennis, playing cards, dominoes, traveling, work and walking on the beach. She had a rich and happy life.
Jean was a loving mother to Cindy Allen and Karen Berg; devoted wife of 34 years to Dennis Shoffeitt; stepmother to Renee, Bill, Keith and Michael; and grandmother to seven grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. She will always be missed, loved and never forgotten.
Services to be held on Sunday, March 5, at 2 p.m., with a reception following in the Fellowship Hall at Kelseyville’s United Methodist Church, 3810 Main St.
In lieu of flowers, donations to the Lower Lake United Methodist Church would be greatly appreciated: P.O. Box 516, Lower Lake, CA 95457 - in memory of Jean Allen.
MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – The Middletown Art Center is pleased to present St. Olof Cellars and Big Valley Wine Company for the first in the 2017 series of Palette to Palate – an intimate pairing of wine and art.
Join them on Saturday, March 4, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. as the guests share their creations with tastings and stories.
Wine makers and artists share the same creative impulse. A vine is planted and nurtured, a concept composed; harvested and crushed, forms blocked in; varietals are blended and seasoned, colors and textures stroked onto canvas; through creative alchemy a uniquely flavorful elixir, or work of art, comes into being.
St. Olof Cellars produce only about 500 cases/20 barrels per year. The majority of their wines are made from their estate grown grapes: Nebbiolo, Malbec, Barbera and Petite Verdot.
Pamela and Dana Kirkpatrick farm four acres of grapes in Finley. This lush clay soil grows exceptional Zinfandel. They also farm olives, producing delightful olive oil.
The Kirkpatricks produce about 300 cases of Zin. They lost about 200 cases in the Clayton fire last October. Enjoy their spicy and full-bodied wine.
The current exhibit at the Middletown Art Center, “Driven to Abstraction,” is a thought-provoking exploration of abstraction highlighting a variety of artists and mediums. Some of the exhibiting artists will be on hand to share their process alongside our winemakers.
Your $10 cover fee provides wine tastings from both St. Olof and Big Valley wineries. Additional glasses of wine will be available for $5 per glass.
Join them for a great experience sipping wine, viewing art, enjoying light refreshments, and hearing stories from the winemakers and artists.
Proceeds help support the Middletown Art Center, a nonprofit dedicated to inspiring every child and adult to express themselves and to grow through the arts and arts exposure.
The mission of the Middletown Art Center is to create art opportunities, art education, cultural enrichment, and ecological awareness contributing to the social and economic well-being of Lake County. Since the Valley fire, the center has provided a strong sense of continuity, community and enrichment to recovering residents and the area.
The center is a project of EcoArts of Lake County a nonprofit 501(c)3. All donations to the center are tax-deductible.
The Middletown Art Center is located at 21456 Highway 175 at the junction of Highway 29 in the heart of Middletown.
Visit www.middletownartcenter.org to learn more about exhibitions, classes, events, volunteer opportunities and membership.