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LAKEPORT, Calif. – Authorities are at the scene of a Tuesday afternoon assault that turned deadly outside of Lakeport.
Shortly before 2:30 p.m. deputies and firefighters were dispatched to the area of Robin Hill Drive and Lakeshore Boulevard on the report of a male assault victim.
Witnesses said the male victim was thrown from an older white SUV and run over, with a white male getting out of the vehicle and also assaulting the victim, according to radio reports.
The victim suffered stab wounds to the neck and chest, head lacerations and a compound leg fracture, and lost consciousness, based on reports from dispatch.
REACH and CalStar air ambulances both declined to transport the victim due to concerns over the weather, with fire units canceling a short time later after it was determined the man had died, according to reports from the scene.
Central Dispatch issued two “be on the lookouts” to law enforcement for the suspect vehicle, which was described as a white 1997 Chevrolet Tahoe SUV with damage to the passenger side. It was last seen heading toward Lakeshore Boulevard at approximately 2:20 p.m.
It was unknown how many occupants were in the vehicle besides the white male adult who, according to radio reports, had been seen assaulting the victim.
However, multiple subjects are believed to be involved, with one described as wearing a white sweatshirt with blue jeans, based on information from Central Dispatch.
Lake County Public Works confirmed that it was closing a portion of Robin Hill Drive at Lakeshore Boulevard based on a request from the sheriff's office to close the road while detectives work at the crime scene, and a Public Works truck was at the scene.
Public Works said the road closure will be in place until further notice, with a detour around the closure currently in place. If weather conditions worsen, the detour may not be accessible.
The Lake County Sheriff's Office has numerous units on scene as well as its mobile emergency operations center and a number of unmarked vehicles.
The California Highway Patrol confirmed that it is assisting with traffic control, and helping direct residents around the scene.
Sheriff's officials have not responded to requests for information on the incident.
Additional information will be posted as it becomes available.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
CLEARLAKE, Calif. – An investigation into a reported auto burglary last weekend led police to a Clearlake home where they made three arrests on various charges – including child endangerment – and discovered drugs and weapons.
Middletown resident Franklin O. Rockwell, 35, and Clearlake residents Eddie Mario Duran, 28, and 31-year-old Sean Michael Brooks were arrested in the case, according to Sgt. Tim Hobbs of the Clearlake Police Department.
At 8 a.m. Sunday Clearlake Police officers responded to the 14800 block of Palmer Avenue for a report of a male subject trying to steal parts from a parked vehicle, according to Hobbs.
Upon the officers' arrival, Rockwell – who was standing by the parked vehicle – ran from officers. Hobbs said officers lost sight of Rockwell on Pearl Avenue, directly behind a residence in the 14600 block of Uhl Avenue that was easily accessible from Pearl Avenue.
Officers had knowledge this residence was occupied by Christina Poplin, who is on active searchable felony probation out of Lake County, Hobbs said.
Hobbs said officers responded to the residence to conduct a probation search after confirming Poplin’s probation status through dispatch. Once inside the residence, officers located nine subjects, one of them being Rockwell.
Rockwell was arrested and found to be in possession of methamphetamine, Hobbs said. He was charged with felony possession of a controlled substance and misdemeanor resisting arrest.
Duran was one of the other subjects located in the residence, Hobbs said, and he was found to have an outstanding warrant for his arrest.
Poplin, the homeowner, stated she was the only person that lived in the residence and the rest of the subjects were visiting her, Hobbs said.
During a protective sweep of the residence, Brooks and his 9-year-old daughter were located in an unlocked bedroom. Hobbs said officers located a 12-gauge shotgun inside the room while looking into an open access area to the attic. Brooks is a convicted felon and is prohibited from owning or possessing firearms.
It was then determined that Brooks and his daughter were the only ones who had access to the bedroom and that Brooks actually lived in the room, Hobbs said. Due to this reason and Brooks not being on probation or parole, officers secured the residence in anticipation of a search warrant being obtained for the bedroom.
A detective was called in to assist and then prepared and obtained a search warrant for Brooks' bedroom, Hobbs said.
During the service of the search warrant, officers located the following items in Brooks bedroom, according to Hobbs: One 12-gauge shotgun, one .357 revolver, 40 grams of methamphetamine, several pounds of processed marijuana, a large amount of narcotic prescription medication, approximately $800 in currency, packaging material and a digital scale.
Hobbs said Brooks' daughter had the ability to access some of the marijuana and crystal methamphetamine because of where it was located.
Brooks was arrested for felony possession of a controlled substance for sales, possession of marijuana for sales, possession of a narcotic controlled substance for sales, felon in possession of a firearm, felon in possession of ammunition and child endangerment, misdemeanor possession of controlled substance paraphernalia and two misdemeanor bench warrants.
Brooks' bail was set at $75,000 and he remained in custody on Tuesday, according to jail records.
Bail for Rockwell was set at $15,000, and he also remained in custody on Tuesday. Jail records indicated that Duran, whose bail was $5,000, later posted the required percentage and was released.
LAKEPORT, Calif. – Firefighters battling a late-night house fire near Lakeport discovered a body as they were working on the interior of the structure.
The fire in the 3800 block of Highland Springs Road was dispatched just before 10:30 p.m. Monday, according to radio traffic.
Lakeport Fire Chief Ken Wells said firefighters arrived to find the roughly 900-square-foot stick-built home fully involved.
The home had an attached carport and a few outbuildings that also burned, Wells said.
“The house was destroyed,” he said.
Firefighters got the fire on the exterior of the residence controlled and went inside to continue their work. That's when they found the body, according to Wells.
He declined to say where exactly in the home the body was located. No identification has yet been made, he added.
The Lake County Sheriff's Office and Lake County Arson Task Force will be involved in the investigation, which Wells expected would start at daybreak Tuesday.
“My units are going to remain on scene until the investigation starts,” he said early Tuesday.
Radio reports indicated it was just before 11:45 p.m. when the fire was contained in the structures and wildland.
The tall oak trees around the home also caught fire, and Wells said it was a challenge to get the flames knocked out due to the trees' height.
Wells said Lakeport Fire had three engines and a water tender on scene, with an engine and a water tender from Kelseyville Fire and Northshore Fire also sending a water tender and an engine. Pacific Gas and Electric also responded.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
CLEARLAKE, Calif. – A community celebration of Black History Month will take place on Saturday, Feb. 15, in Clearlake.
The event will take place from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the City Plaza Mall, located at 14090 Olympic Drive.
This year's event will have guest speakers ranging from community leaders to local pastors, and will include a potluck. For the children there will be a free bouncy house.
Black History Month, commemorated since 1976, offers a chance to discuss the country's past as well as its future.
In February 1976, President Gerald Ford urged Americans to mark the month in recognition of the long struggle of black Americans for equality and in recognition of their accomplishments.
“We can seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history,” President Ford said.
The Clearlake event is presented by Hair by Mz C in conjunction with the ColeTrain Transformation Foundation.
As California experiences one of the driest winters on record, the California Natural Resources Agency, the California Environmental Protection Agency, and the California Department of Food and Agriculture released the final California Water Action Plan, laying out goals and vision for the next five years.
The plan will guide state efforts to enhance water supply reliability, restore damaged and destroyed ecosystems, and improve the resilience of the state's infrastructure.
At the direction of Gov. Edmund G. Brown Jr., a collaborative effort of state agencies, and nearly 100 substantive public and stakeholder comments formed a plan to set direction for a host of near- and long-term actions on water issues for the state.
“It is a tall order. But it is what we must do to get through this drought and prepare for the next,” said Gov. Brown in his 2014 State of the State address last week.
The governor’s proposed 2014-15 budget lays a solid fiscal foundation for implementing near-term actions for the plan, recommending $618.7 million in funding for water efficiency projects, wetland and watershed restoration, groundwater programs, conservation, flood control and integrated water management.
“As we work on emergency actions to manage through one of the driest winters on record, we are also taking proactive, long-term steps to prepare California for future droughts and flood,” said Secretary for Natural Resources John Laird. “Each decade brings improvements, but also significantly highlights what we can do better. The California Water Action Plan gives us clear focus and vision for the next five years.”
Final revisions to the draft plan, released in October, include an expanded section on drought response and a new effort focused on better management of Sierra Nevada headwaters that helps water storage and quality, and ecosystems.
Public comment on the draft plan made it clear that California must better understand the economic and ecological harm of sustained dry weather.
The governor’s proposed budget would provide $472.5 million in Proposition 84 funds to the Department of Water Resources (DWR) for integrated regional water management.
The bond funds would leverage local and federal investment in projects that reduce demand, build supply, and offer additional benefits such as wildlife habitat and flood management.
The budget also placed immediate emphasis on water and energy use efficiency and wetlands and coastal watershed restoration to further support the resiliency of water supply and ecosystems during this dry weather period.
The governor's budget also would allow DWR to better monitor the groundwater resources that provide more than one-third of California's supplies in dry years, and supports the development of a state backstop for sustainable groundwater management practices by the State Water Resources Control Board, should local efforts to do so not materialize.
“Together, the governor’s proposed budget and this finalized plan provide the state with practical solutions to the state’s most critical problems; the proposals on groundwater are a good example,” said Cal/EPA Secretary Matt Rodriquez. “Data collection and monitoring are crucial to sustainable management of our unseen but incredibly important aquifers.”
All of the near-and long-term actions in the plan center on sustaining supplies of water for people, the environment, industry and agriculture. This year’s severe dry conditions highlight the stakes.
Drought threatens to force the fallowing of hundreds of thousands of acres of farmland, throw thousands of people out of work, and potentially raise supermarket food prices.
“Our severe dry conditions are alarming for California’s agricultural industry,” said California Department of Food and Agriculture Secretary Karen Ross. “In the near term, we must do all we can to keep our fields productive. In the long term, we have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to make the investments that will allow us to stay productive in the face of a changing climate.”
Key actions identified in the plan include:
- Make conservation a California way of life.
- Increase regional self-reliance and integrated water management across all levels of government.
- Achieve the co-equal goals for the Delta.
- Protect and restore important ecosystems.
- Manage and prepare for dry periods.
- Expand water storage capacity and improve groundwater management.
- Provide safe water for all communities.
- Increase flood protection.
- Increase operational and regulatory efficiency.
- Identify sustainable and integrated financing opportunities.
The final plan can be seen below.
NASA scientists say 2013 tied with 2009 and 2006 for the seventh warmest year since 1880, continuing a long-term trend of rising global temperatures.
With the exception of 1998, the 10 warmest years in the 134-year record all have occurred since 2000, with 2010 and 2005 ranking as the warmest years on record.
NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) in New York, which analyzes global surface temperatures on an ongoing basis, released an updated report Jan. 21 on temperatures around the globe in 2013.
The comparison shows how Earth continues to experience temperatures warmer than those measured several decades ago.
"Long-term trends in surface temperatures are unusual and 2013 adds to the evidence for ongoing climate change," GISS climatologist Gavin Schmidt said. "While one year or one season can be affected by random weather events, this analysis shows the necessity for continued, long-term monitoring."
The average temperature in 2013 was 58.3 degrees Fahrenheit (14.6 Celsius), which is 1.1 F (0.6 C) warmer than the mid-20th century baseline.
The average global temperature has risen about 1.4 degrees F (0.8 C) since 1880, according to the new analysis. Exact rankings for individual years are sensitive to data inputs and analysis methods.
Scientists emphasize that weather patterns always will cause fluctuations in average temperatures from year to year, but the continued increases in greenhouse gas levels in Earth's atmosphere are driving a long-term rise in global temperatures.
Each successive year will not necessarily be warmer than the year before, but with the current level of greenhouse gas emissions, scientists expect each successive decade to be warmer than the previous.
Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas that traps heat and plays a major role in controlling changes to Earth's climate. It occurs naturally and also is emitted by the burning of fossil fuels for energy.
Driven by increasing manmade emissions, the level of carbon dioxide in Earth's atmosphere presently is higher than at any time in the last 800,000 years.
The carbon dioxide level in the atmosphere was about 285 parts per million in 1880, the first year in the GISS temperature record.
By 1960, the atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration, measured at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii, was about 315 parts per million. This measurement peaked last year at more than 400 parts per million.
While the world experienced relatively warm temperatures in 2013, the continental United States experienced the 42nd warmest year on record, according to GISS analysis. For some other countries, such as Australia, 2013 was the hottest year on record.
The temperature analysis produced at GISS is compiled from weather data from more than 1,000 meteorological stations around the world, satellite observations of sea-surface temperature, and Antarctic research station measurements, taking into account station history and urban heat island effects.
Software is used to calculate the difference between surface temperature in a given month and the average temperature for the same place from 1951 to 1980.
This three-decade period functions as a baseline for the analysis. It has been 38 years since the recording of a year of cooler than average temperatures.
The GISS temperature record is one of several global temperature analyses, along with those produced by the Met Office Hadley Centre in the United Kingdom and NOAA's National Climatic Data Center in Asheville, N.C.
These three primary records use slightly different methods, but overall, their trends show close agreement.
Dr. Tony Phillips works for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.