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LAKEPORT, Calif. – Three people charged with taking part in two homicides that occurred in Lakeport earlier this week have been arrested thanks to the efforts of law enforcement in Lake, Mendocino and Napa counties.
Dahnna Phyllis Burrows, 26, and Conrad Joseph Velez, 41, both of Lakeport, were arrested on Tuesday after being located in Napa County, and 19-year-old Dakota Joseph Velez of Kelseyville was arrested on Wednesday evening in Mendocino County, according to Lt. Steve Brooks of the Lake County Sheriff's Office.
Brooks identified the homicide victims as 54-year-old William Frank Busch of Lakeport and Edward Harry Morgan, 46, of Kelseyville.
Determinations as to the causes of death for both Busch and Morgan are pending autopsies scheduled for this Friday, Brooks said.
Burrows is charged with murder, carjacking and assault with a deadly weapon other than a firearm with great bodily injury, with bail set at $1 million, based on her booking sheet.
Conrad Velez is being held on a parole violation, with jail records also indicating he is charged with assault with a deadly weapon other than a firearm with great bodily injury. He is in custody on a no-bail hold.
Dakota Velez also is facing a murder charge, Brooks said.
Brooks said Burrows and Conrad Velez may also face additional charges once the investigation concludes.
The first homicide occurred Monday night in the 3800 block of Highland Springs Road near Lakeport, according to Brooks.
Firefighters from three local fire districts responded to a fire at the home that was dispatched just before 10:30 p.m., as Lake County News has reported.
Radio reports indicated neighbors heard loud popping sounds shortly before the fire broke out.
Once firefighters had controlled the fire outside and moved to the building's interior, they found the body of a male subject, according to Lakeport Fire Chief Ken Wells.
Wells said the Lake County Arson Task Force and the Lake County Sheriff's Office were called to investigate the discovery.
Brooks said members of the Lake County Sheriff’s Office Major Crimes Unit, which included crime scene investigators, responded to the scene and identified Busch as the victim.
Detectives reported that Busch had sustained injuries which were suspicious in nature and they believed he may have been the victim of homicide, Brooks said.
The following morning at 8:05 a.m. Central Dispatch received a report of a vehicle on fire in a field in the 900 block of Soda Bay Road in Lakeport, Brooks said. Lakeport Fire responded and extinguished the blaze.
Brooks said Central Dispatch conducted a records check of the vehicle and discovered it was registered to Busch. Detectives and crime scene investigators responded and processed the vehicle for evidence.
During the course of the investigation, detectives were able to develop several leads, identifying Conrad Velez, Dakota Velez and Burrows as persons of interest, Brooks said.
Then on Tuesday afternoon just before 2:30 p.m. deputies and firefighters were dispatched to the area of Robin Hill Drive and Lakeshore Boulevard near Lakeport on the report of an assault victim, he said.
Brooks said the information law enforcement received was that an adult male had been thrown out of an older white SUV before being run over. A male suspect then got out of the vehicle and used an unknown weapon to assault the victim before getting back into the vehicle and leaving the scene.
Initially the vehicle was described as possibly being an older white Chevy Suburban. Brooks said the caller was unable to provide any additional identifying information as to the occupants or the vehicle.
He said multiple deputies responded and arrived on scene within approximately three minutes of being dispatched.
The victim, identified as Morgan, died at the scene shortly after the deputies arrived, Brooks said.
Brooks said Central Dispatch immediately broadcast the vehicle's description and sheriff's personnel, California Highway Patrol and Lakeport Police officers began searching the area in an attempt to locate it. At the same time, detectives and crime scene investigators were responding to the scene.
Sheriff's detectives located a vehicle title in Morgan’s possession for a Chevy Tahoe, which also was reported to be white in color. A description of Morgan’s vehicle was immediately broadcast, Brooks said.
At 7:30 p.m. Tuesday Central Dispatch received a telephone call from the Napa Police Department, which advised that its officers responded to an unrelated family disturbance and detained Conrad Velez and Burrows, Brooks said.
Brooks said Napa Police officers also had located the Chevy Tahoe belonging to Morgan in close proximity to where Conrad Velez and Burrows were contacted.
Lake County Sheriff’s Office personnel responded and took custody of both Conrad Velez and Burrows, transporting them back to Lake County, where Brooks said they were interviewed.
Burrows and Conrad Velez subsequently were arrested and transported to the Lake County Hill Road Correctional Facility, where they were booked. Brooks said detectives anticipate charging both with additional crimes as the investigation continues.
At 5:20 p.m. Wednesday, Dakota Velez was arrested by the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office after he was located with the assistance of the Lake County Sheriff’s Major Crimes Unit, Brooks said.
Brooks said Lake County Sheriff’s detectives subsequently transported Dakota Velez to the Lake County Hill Road Correctional Facility, where he was booked for murder.
Chief Deputy District Attorney Richard Hinchcliff said the only previous cases Burrows has had in the local courts were misdemeanors for driving under the influence and petty theft, which she pleaded no contest to in March 2010 and April 2013, respectively.
Conrad Velez was paroled from state prison just within the last few weeks, Hinchcliff said.
Additional information on Conrad Velez's prison term and on Dakota Velez's criminal history was not immediately available.
Hinchcliff said he didn't yet have the case files, which he expected to receive Thursday.
He said Burrows is set to be arraigned on Thursday at 1:15 p.m.
Anyone with additional information regarding this case is asked to call the Lake County Sheriff’s Office at 707-263-2690.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – Law enforcement's pursuit of a suspect on Wednesday morning led to a brief lockdown at Riviera Elementary School.
The school, located at 10505 Fairway Drive, was notified by Lake County Central Dispatch at 11:15 a.m. that a foot pursuit was taking place near the campus, according to school Principal Diana Davidson.
Davidson said the school's lockdown protocol was immediately implemented and the campus was secured in about 45 seconds.
She said the campus remained in lockdown briefly, estimating it lasted only about two to three minutes.
Shortly afterward, Central Dispatch called the school to say the person who deputies had been chasing was apprehended, Davidson said.
Davidson said the lockdown protocols were followed quickly by students, staff, parents and substitute teachers.
“It was very impressive,” she said.
The Lake County Sheriff's Office did not immediately respond to a request from Lake County News for information about the incident.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – President Barack Obama laid out priorities, challenges and opportunities in his annual State of the Union address on Tuesday night.
President Obama said he believes the United States is poised for opportunity after five years of struggling through the Great Recession.
He discussed expanding opportunity to middle class families, creating more jobs, making college more affordable, tapping into available energy resources, fixing the broken immigration system, equal pay for women and raising the federal minimum wage to $10.10 an hour.
Obama also took on climate change, noting, “The debate is settled. Climate change is a fact. And when our children’s children look us in the eye and ask if we did all we could to leave them a safer, more stable world, with new sources of energy, I want us to be able to say yes, we did.”
One of the evening's most notable moments was when Obama paid tribute to Army Ranger Cory Remsburg, who he had met at Omaha Beach on the 65th anniversary of D-Day. Months later, Remsburg – while on his 10th deployment – was nearly killed by a roadside bomb in Afghanistan.
Remsburg – who was found with shrapnel in his brain – has struggled with numerous surgeries, struggles with his left side and is blind in one eye.
He was present for the speech, and he received a two-minute standing ovation. A smiling Remsburg was helped to his feet by his father, and gave a thumbs up to the president.
“My fellow Americans, men and women like Cory remind us that America has never come easy. Our freedom, our democracy, has never been easy. Sometimes we stumble; we make mistakes; we get frustrated or discouraged. But for more than two hundred years, we have put those things aside and placed our collective shoulder to the wheel of progress – to create and build and expand the possibilities of individual achievement; to free other nations from tyranny and fear; to promote justice, and fairness, and equality under the law, so that the words set to paper by our founders are made real for every citizen,” Obama said.
“The America we want for our kids – a rising America where honest work is plentiful and communities are strong; where prosperity is widely shared and opportunity for all lets us go as far as our dreams and toil will take us – none of it is easy. But if we work together; if we summon what is best in us, with our feet planted firmly in today but our eyes cast towards tomorrow – I know it’s within our reach.”
The president's full address can be seen at http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2014/01/28/president-barack-obamas-state-union-address . The speech also can be viewed above.
Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Washington, chair of the Republican Conference, delivered the Republican response.
She said Republicans and the president want to improve the lives of Americans, but they part ways on how that should happen.
Instead, she offered a vision emphasizing free markets that she said will protect families while making Washington, DC play by the same rules as the rest of America.
She blamed the Obama Administration for opportunity gaps and allowing for too many people to fall further behind. “The president’s policies are making people’s lives harder,” through unprecedented spending, higher taxes and fewer jobs, McMorris Rodgers said.
McMorris Rodgers also took the opportunity to fault the Affordable Care Act, another administration policy the Republicans believe is creating hardships not opportunities.
The members of Congress who represent Lake County gave Obama high marks for the agenda he presented.
“The president spoke to almost every concern, hope and aspiration of the American people. It was a humble speech because he really credited the American people for how far we’ve come from the depths of the Great Recession,” said U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA).
“Tonight the President laid out a clear agenda to expand economic opportunities, create jobs and strengthen the middle class. Many of the steps being taken by President will further this agenda, and as the President said, these actions must be met by a year of action from Congress,” said Congressman Mike Thompson (D-St. Helena)
“Right now, people across our country feel like no matter how hard they work, they can’t get ahead,” he said. “Though our economy continues to recover, the middle class has seen their wages stall and their bills soar. When these hard working families look to Washington for answers, all they see is partisan fighting.”
Like Obama, Thompson called for an end to partisan gridlock in Congress. “We need to work across the aisle to raise the minimum wage, pass immigration reform, expand affordable educational opportunities, and make job-creating investments in infrastructure, manufacturing and renewable energy. By taking these actions we can strengthen our middle class, lower our deficit and grow our economy.”
Thompson also wants to see more done to protect against gun violence, noting that since the shooting at Newtown, Conn., in December 2012, more than 12,000 people have been killed by someone using a gun. “Too many lives are being cut short and Congress is doing nothing.”
He added, “America has always been place where, if you work hard and play by the rules, you get a job, buy a house, send your kids to college and save for retirement. That’s the American Dream, and our top goal must be to make sure everyone has an equal opportunity to achieve that dream, no matter on what side of the aisle we sit.”
Congressman John Garamendi (D-Fairfield, CA) said he was pleased that the president is focused on shaping an economy that creates more opportunity for hardworking Americans.
“Today, President Obama touched on three key themes that should resonate with every American: opportunity, action, and optimism,” Congressman Garamendi said.
“Opportunity: we must provide ladders of mobility to the middle class. Action: Congress and the Administration should work together on behalf of the American people. Optimism: Since the Great Recession, we’ve been through a rough patch in our country, but America’s best days are still to come,” Garamendi said.
“I still believe that there is nothing wrong with America that can’t be fixed by what is right with America, and I will do all I can to work with the president and my colleagues to build the middle class,” he said.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
With unseasonably high temperatures, limited rainfall and moisture levels resembling the state’s peak fire season, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire, announced that it has hired 125 supplemental firefighters in Northern California and extended seasonal firefighting forces in Southern California due to dry winter conditions.
The announcement follows Gov. Edmund G. Brown Jr.’s drought State of Emergency earlier this month.
“In order to maintain a sufficient depth of resources to address the prolonged, elevated threat of wildfire due to drought, we have staffed 25 additional fire engines and have retained aerial firefighting assets at five air attack bases that would normally be closed this time of year,” said Chief Ken Pimlott, director of Cal Fire.
“We have a well exercised mechanism for addressing short term elevations in the threat of wildfire, but these prolonged conditions warrant an even more aggressive action in order for us to be prepared to protect the people, property and natural resources of California,” Pimlott said.
In Northern California, Cal Fire is adding two additional fire engines in each of the 12 northern administrative units plus a third fire engine in the Shasta-Trinity Unit. In addition, the Chico Air Attack Base has been reopened with two fixed wing aircraft.
The additional firefighters have been assigned to the following areas: Amador-El Dorado Unit, 10; Butte Unit, 12; San Mateo-Santa Cruz Unit, 12; Humboldt Unit, 10; Lassen-Modoc, 10; Sonoma-Lake-Napa Unit, five; Mendocino Unit, 10; Nevada-Yuba-Placer Unit, 12; Santa Clara Unit, 12; Shasta-Trinity Unit, 10; Siskiyou Unit, 10; Tehama-Glenn Unit, 12.
In Southern California, aircraft and staffing at Hemet (Riverside County), Ramona (San Diego County) Hollister (San Benito County) and Paso Robles (San Luis Obispo County) air attack bases have been kept on allowing for eight air tankers, and four air tactical planes to be immediately available.
The governor’s drought state of emergency directed Cal Fire to “hire additional seasonal firefighters to suppress wildfires and take other needed actions to protect public safety during this time of elevated fire risk.”
The increased staffing levels follow a series of actions from the administration to ensure that California is prepared for record dry conditions.
Earlier this week, the California Natural Resources Agency, the California Environmental Protection Agency and the California Department of Food and Agriculture released the California Water Action Plan, which will guide state efforts to enhance water supply reliability, restore damaged and destroyed ecosystems and improve the resilience of our infrastructure.
Gov. Brown has called on all Californians to reduce their water usage by 20 percent and last week, the Save Our Water campaign announced four new public service announcements that encourage residents to conserve.
Last December, the governor formed a Drought Task Force to review expected water allocations and California’s preparedness for water scarcity.
In May 2013, Gov. Brown issued an executive order to direct state water officials to expedite the review and processing of voluntary transfers of water and water rights.
Cal Fire is asking everyone to be extra cautious during the heightened fire danger period in order to prevent wildfires. One less spark means one less wildfire.
For more fire prevention tips visit www.PreventWildfireCA.org and for evacuation tips visit www.ReadyForWildfire.org .
As winter slips away, the Department of Water Resources expects to find far less snow that normal for the date when it conducts its second snow survey of the winter on Thursday.
California’s stubborn drought, pushing into its third year, has left the Sierra largely bare of snow and the state’s reservoirs low.
Storms finally breaking through a coastal high pressure ridge largely blamed for dry conditions are expected to bring some snow to higher elevations before Thursday’s snow survey, but not enough to dent the drought.
Still, conditions may be better than on Jan. 3 when the first survey of the season found more bare ground than snow.
Manual and electronic readings on Jan. 3 measured water content in the statewide snowpack at only about 20 percent of average for the date and a scant 7 percent of the April 1 average when it’s normally at its peak.
On Tuesday, before the anticipated moderate storms, electronic readings indicate that statewide, snowpack water content has dropped to 10 percent of normal for the date and 6 percent of the April 1 seasonal average.
The snowpack normally provides about a third of the water used by the state’s farms and cities.
California faces a triple threat of mostly dry forecasts, almost no mountain snow and low reservoirs.
“While we can only hope for wet weather,” said DWR Director Mark Cowin, “we can act positively to conserve as much water as possible. Water conservation today is an absolute must.”
The reservoir storage from winter 2012 storms that got most of California through last year’s record dry weather is depleted, with each day reducing the odds that this winter will bring drought-ending precipitation.
Lake Oroville in Butte County, the State Water Project’s (SWP) principal reservoir, is only at 36 percent of its 3.5 million acre-foot capacity (54 percent of its historical average for the date).
Shasta Lake north of Redding, California’s and the federal Central Valley Project’s (CVP) largest reservoir, also is at 36 percent of its 4.5 million acre-foot capacity and 54 percent of its historical average for this time of year.
San Luis Reservoir, a critical south-of-Delta pool for both the SWP and CVP, is at a mere 31 percent of its 2 million acre-foot capacity (39 percent of normal for the date).
On Jan. 17, Gov. Edmund G. Brown Jr. declared a state of drought emergency and called on local water suppliers and municipalities to implement their water shortage contingency plans.
He also directed state officials to respond to the state’s drought conditions by taking all necessary actions, including facilitating water transfers and reducing water use at government facilities.
NORTH COAST, Calif. – The cause of death for a Roseville businessman whose body was found in the ocean near Gualala last November has been classified “undetermined,” Mendocino County Sheriff's Officials said Tuesday.
Stephen Clark Pease, 57, the owner of several Sacramento-area businesses, was found in the ocean nearly a month after he was reported missing at the end of October, as Lake County News has reported.
The investigation into his disappearance revealed that he had checked out of a Fort Bragg area motel on Nov. 3. His body was found 20 days later, 50 to 60 miles from that hotel, authorities said.
Capt. Greg Van Patten reported that on Jan. 15 the Mendocino County chief deputy coroner classified Pease's death as being due to undetermined causes.
Van Patten said authorities have yet to locate the rental car Pease was driving, a silver 2014 Chevrolet Captiva with Oregon license plate 500GKN.