How to resolve AdBlock issue? 
News
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – A fourth suspect in an Oct. 3 Lower Lake home invasion robbery has been arrested.
Angelita Jeanette Raffa, 28, of Clearlake, was arrested last Thursday, Oct. 10, by sheriff's officials, according to jail records.
She was arraigned on Tuesday, according to Chief Deputy District Attorney Rich Hinchcliff.
Three other suspects in the case were arrested on the same day as the incident, as Lake County News has reported.
They include James Robert Conaster, 38, and Jesse Gilbert Moncivaiz, 28, of Clearlake, and Lauren Astor Faumuina, 20, of Middletown.
Raffa, Conatser, Faumuina and Moncivaiz are alleged to have gone to a residence in the 9800 block of Rocky Creek Road in Lower Lake early on the morning of Oct. 3.
Authorities say the four beat and robbed the male victim and shot at him several times before leaving in a pickup and leading a sheriff's deputy on a high-speed chase.
Another deputy responding to the area, Scott Lewis, was involved in a vehicle crash on Highway 29 north of Diener Drive that killed 26-year-old Gabriela Rivas Garcia of Clearlake and injured a third driver, 66-year-old Charles Eagleton of Lakeport.
Later that morning, Clearlake Police officers arrested Conatser and Faumuina after they ditched the pickup in the 18th Avenue area in Clearlake, officials said. Moncivaiz was arrested that evening after he was found hiding in a residential complex located in the 8000 block of Lake Street in Lower Lake.
Hinchcliff said Raffa is charged with first-degree burglary, robbery, threatening crime with the intent to terrorize, and aiding and abetting.
She is due to return to court on Oct. 22 for appearance of her newly appointed defense counsel, Tom Quinn, and entry of plea, Hinchcliff said.
Raffa is being held on $1 million bail, the same amount set for each of her three codefendants, according to jail records.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – County education officials said Lake County preschools and after school programs have been hit hard by thefts and vandalism over the last four months.
Stolen toys and playground equipment, broken machinery and destroyed school equipment have been the result of the series of crimes, according to the Lake County Office of Education.
In May, the after school program at Pomo School lost art supplies, games and outdoor equipment when the supply shed was broken into, the Lake County Office of Education reported.
Then, the Burns Valley after school program was burglarized in July and lost a computer, other office equipment and food items, according to the report.
Pomo School was hit again in September, when vandals pried doors off the supply sheds, destroying the locks, sliding doors and building trim officials said.
The Lake County Office of Education's report said one storage shed was so badly damaged it had to be removed because the cost of repairs exceeded the value. They lost toys, outside play equipment and a karaoke machine.
On Oct. 1, the Burns Valley preschool found the hinges pried off the door, items thrown everywhere, and missing outdoor play toys and equipment, the Lake County Office of Education reported. Most disappointing to the preschool children was the fact that several new scooters were gone.
Then, earlier this week, on Monday, the Pomo School after school program was broken into again, and the locks were destroyed with bolt cutters, officials reported.
This destruction and loss would be difficult enough, but it is even more challenging, because of the budget challenges early education programs have faced over the last few years.
“We have trimmed our budget as tightly as we possibly can over the past five years, as more and more cuts reduced our operating costs,” said Cindy Adams, program director for the Lake County Office of Education Child Develop Programs. “We worked hard and managed to purchase quality, developmentally appropriate toys and equipment for our students. This barrage of break-ins have left our staff, children and parents discouraged and disappointed.”
The preschools and after school programs offered by Lake County Office of Education are available for low income and working families who rely on the programs to support children’s growth, development and education.
“The equipment and toys lost aren’t frivolous,” said Adams. “They are carefully chosen, developmentally appropriate materials that support the core instructional programs at the elementary schools, and prepare our young students for success. Replacement of everything we’ve lost isn’t possible.”
One young student shared the frustration of everyone, when he said, “Why would people do this to us? We’re just kids.”
Anyone with information about these break-ins is asked to call local law enforcement.
NORTH COAST, Calif. – A Sonoma County Sheriff's deputy arrested a Clearlake couple last weekend on drug-related charges.
Jeremy White and Angela White, both age 32, were arrested following a traffic stop shortly before midnight last Saturday, Oct. 12, according to a report from Sgt. Dave Pedersen of the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office.
Pedersen said a deputy pulled the Whites over for equipment and moving violations on Dutton Avenue at Highway 12 in Santa Rosa.
During the stop the deputy identified the driver as Jeremy White, who was the registered owner of the vehicle. White's wife Angela also was in the vehicle, along with another male, Pedersen said. Jeremy White was on active parole with the California Department of Corrections.
During a parole search of Jeremy White, a small amount of methamphetamine was found hidden in his clothing, according to Pedersen.
A search of the vehicle revealed one-half pound of methamphetamine hidden in the engine compartment, which was seized. Pedersen said that methamphetamine was valued at $3,500.
The Whites were arrested while the second male in the car, who is from Middletown but whose name was not reported, was released, Pedersen said.
During a search of Angela White, a methamphetamine pipe was found hidden in her clothing, Pedersen reported.
Jeremy White was booked at Sonoma County Jail for possession of controlled substance for sale, transportation of a controlled substance and a parole hold. He has a no bail hold status, due to the parole violation, Pedersen said.
Angela White was booked for possession of a controlled substance for sale, transportation of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia. Pedersen said she was released after posting $40,000 bail.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The District Attorney's Office on Wednesday released a preliminary collision report regarding the Oct. 3 three-vehicle crash involving a deputy sheriff that killed a Clearlake woman.
District Attorney Don Anderson, whose office is conducting a joint investigation with the California Highway Patrol Northern Division's Multidisciplinary Accident Investigation Team, or MAIT, released the report on Wednesday afternoon.
The preliminary crash report identifies the deputy involved as James Scott Lewis, 53, of Lakeport.
Gabriela Rivas Garcia, 26, was killed in the crash. A third driver, Charles W. Eagleton, 66, of Lakeport, suffered minor injuries, according to the report.
A fund has been set up to help send the body of Garcia, who was from Mexico, home to her family. Donations can be made to the fund at Westamerica Bank, account number 0356061267.
Anderson said they did not have information on Lewis' condition on Wednesday. He had told Lake County News late last week that Lewis remained in the hospital at that point.
Lewis, who had reportedly been transported to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital via air ambulance with major injuries following the crash, was not in the hospital's care on Wednesday, according to spokesperson Katy Hillenmeyer.
Lewis was responding to a report of a home invasion robbery and pursuit in the Lower Lake area when he was involved in the head-on collision at approximately 6:21 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 3, according to the report.
He was traveling south on Highway 29 north of Diener Drive in his patrol vehicle, a 2009 Chevrolet Tahoe, at a high rate of speed with his lights on when he crossed the northbound lane, into the path of Garcia, who was driving a 1995 Honda, the report said.
Lewis' patrol vehicle and Garcia's Honda hit head-on, with the patrol vehicle overturning, based on the report. The rear of the Chevrolet then collided with the front of Eagleton's 1997 Geo, which had been traveling behind Garcia.
Altogether, Lewis has close to 30 years in fire and law enforcement experience, according to information he shared with Lake County News in an interview last year.
Born in Sacramento and raised in Woodland, Lewis worked first for a fire department before getting into law enforcement. He came to Lake County in March 2001 when he was hired by the Lake County Sheriff's Office.
To date, he has 21 years of service in the military, with 15 of those years as a reservist. In 2007, he was called up for a deployment to Virginia.
Lewis spent five years on that deployment, with his last position being in the protective services unit for the Defense Department secretary, working both with Robert Gates and Leon Panetta.
Lewis said Panetta gave him a Defense Meritorious Service Medal before he left to return to Lake County.
Lewis' crash occurred just days short of a year after he had returned to the Lake County Sheriff's Office on Oct. 7, 2012.
This past June, while responding to a civil standby in Anderson Springs, Lewis had been involved in a struggle with Yolpaqui Hernandez, who allegedly tried to take Lewis' weapon. That incident resulted in a responding CHP officer's rifle being discharged. No one was hurt.
Anderson said the CHP's MAIT team is doing the collision investigation and his office is doing the portion of the investigation pursuant to the Lake County Critical Incident Protocol.
The CHP told Lake County News last week that the final crash report is not expected until early next year due to the complexity of the work MAIT does.
On Wednesday Anderson said he doesn't expect to see that report until the early or middle part of 2014.
At that point, Anderson said he will use the report to finish his work and make his final conclusion on whether Lewis has criminal liability in the incident or if he should be cleared of any wrongdoing.
Regarding the alleged home invasion, three suspects – James Robert Conaster, 38, and Jesse Gilbert Moncivaiz, 28, of Clearlake, and Lauren Astor Faumuina, 20, of Middletown – were taken into custody the same day of the crash, as Lake County News has reported.
A fourth suspect, 28-year-old Angelita Jeanette Raffa of Clearlake, arrested on Oct. 10, according to the Lake County District Attorney's Office.
All four suspects are being held in the Lake County Jail, with bail for each set at $1 million, according to jail records.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – A Monday morning enforcement stop has resulted in one arrest and the seizure of processed marijuana.
Patrick William King, 44, of Cloverdale was arrested following the vehicle stop, according to Lt. Steve Brooks of the Lake County Sheriff's Office.
At 8 a.m. Monday a deputy was patrolling the Clearlake Oaks area when he noticed a black Ford Taurus that exhibited numerous vehicle code violations, Brooks said. Central Dispatch also advised the vehicle's registration was expired.
Brooks said the deputy conducted an enforcement stop on Highway 20, near New Long Valley Road, and contacted King, who was the driver.
The deputy deployed his drug detection K9 to conduct an exterior sniff of the vehicle. As the K9 approached the passenger’s side rear door, she produced a positive alert, indicating there was the odor of a controlled substance present, Brooks said.
The deputy had King step out of the vehicle and informed him about the dog alerting to the vehicle. Brooks said King told the deputy that he was not going to give consent to search his vehicle.
Brooks said the deputy opened the trunk and immediately smelled the odor of marijuana emitting from inside the trunk. Inside the trunk the deputy located a blue plastic 18 gallon drum, which appeared to be sealed.
The deputy asked King what was inside the drum and King replied, “You know what’s inside.” King then informed the deputy that if he had any additional questions, he could refer them to his lawyer, Brooks said.
Brooks said the deputy removed the container from inside the trunk and opened it. Inside he located 12 individually packaged, vacuum sealed bags. Each bag contained approximately one pound of processed marijuana which were seized as evidence. The deputy also seized $740 from King, pending asset forfeiture proceedings.
King was arrested for the transportation of marijuana and possession of marijuana for sales. He was transported to the Lake County Hill Road Correctional Facility and booked, with bail set at $20,000. Jail records indicated he later posted bail and was released.
The Sheriff’s Narcotics Task Force can be reached through its anonymous tip line at 707-263-3663.
LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Wellness Center at Sutter Lakeside Hospital in Lakeport is set to close at the end of next month.
Hospital spokesperson Rebecca Southwick said the center closes Nov. 30.
The center offers fitness classes, weight training and cardio equipment, personal training services, a stress reduction and relaxation clinic, and the “Lighten Up” eight-week weight management program to paying members.
While the Wellness Center is located on the Sutter Lakeside campus on Hill Road, it's actually operated by the Sutter Pacific Medical Foundation, a separate organization that has as its main function finding and retaining physicians for areas including Lake and Sonoma counties, according to Southwick.
Several years ago Sutter Pacific Medical Foundation took over the ownership of the Wellness Center and nearby Healing House, operating the facilities since that time, Southwick said.
The Wellness Center is closing because Southwick said Sutter Lakeside has decided that it's not economically feasible to operate a gym, and so won't take on the Wellness Center with the foundation pulling out.
“What we get reimbursed for is patient care,” which is what the community needs most, Southwick said.
Letters about he closure already have gone out to members, Southwick said, noting that members who have paid for facility use beyond the closure date will receive refunds.
Lakeport resident Dave Gebhard was one of the members who received a letter announcing the closure.
“A lot of us are elderly disabled, relying on the gym to stay alive,” he told Lake County News.
He said many members started there as a result of physical therapists “who made us reliant on the Wellness Center to keep ourselves ambulatory, much less alive.”
The center mostly has employed exercise instructors and contract employees, and has a small number of employes – two to three, Southwick estimated – who the hospital is looking to keep on or find positions for elsewhere in the Sutter system.
Jennifer Tompkins taught exercise classes at the center for several years, leaving in January after she moved out of county.
Thanks to the center's programs, “There were a lot of people who got transformed there,” she said.
Tompkins said the center offered great rates and a lot of classes, and had a wide-range age demographic. But with other gyms and classes opening in the area people were going elsewhere.
She said she made many lasting friendship there. “It was very comfortable. People didn't feel like they were being judged or sized up.”
The hospital is going to move its physical therapy and rehabilitation services – now housed in a very small space – to the Wellness Center, which is near the recently built mobility park, Southwick said.
The fitness equipment will be retained for physical therapy uses, and also will be available to Sutter Lakeside employees free of charge. Southwick said the hospital's rehabilitation services will continue to offer balance classes and classes for arthritis sufferers.
The Healing House on the campus also has been closed, with the practitioners transferring to a new location at 601 N. Main St. in Lakeport, located across the street from Chase Bank, effective Oct. 1, Southwick said.
Kimberley Curtis, one of the practitioners at the Healing House, offers herbology and acupuncture, while Mary Miche offers marriage and family counseling, and massage therapist Gina Slater provides different modalities. Curtis said they can be reached at 415-264-0685.
It's not yet been decided what will happen with the Healing House on the main campus; Southwick said Sutter Pacific Medical Foundation and Sutter Lakeside are still discussing that. “It's a wonderful space,” with a great vibe, she said.
The closure of the Wellness Center is the latest in a series of change that have taken place at Sutter Lakeside over the last several years.
In 2008 Sutter Lakeside reduced its beds from 69 to 25 in order to become a Critical Access hospital.
The following year Sutter Health reorganized into five regions, with Sutter Lakeside grouped into the five-member Sutter Health West Bay Region, which also includes Sutter Pacific Medical Foundation, California Pacific Medical Center, Novato Community Hospital and Sutter Medical Center of Santa Rosa.
The “regionalization” process has been a controversial one – staff at Sutter Coast Hospital in Crescent City are fighting the effort there, which they say is really a transfer of ownership – because of their concerns for decreased services and loss of local control.
Southwick said Sutter Lakeside's partnership with Sutter hospitals in the West Bay Region is “invaluable.” She said it offers patients immediate access to the California Pacific Medical Center’s campuses, Sutter Medical Center of Santa Rosa or any affiliates that offer expertise when higher levels of care are required.
Last year, Sutter Lakeside laid off 10 percent of its staff, and closed its pain clinic on the hospital's main campus and the Upper Lake Community Health Clinic on the grounds of Upper Lake High School, as Lake County News has reported.
Those measures were taken in response to the hospital facing revenue reductions and more underinsured and uninsured patients, hospital officials said at the time.
Southwick said the hospital continues to deal with a very high number of uninsured patients. “We are doing an enormous amount of charity care.”
She added, “In the face of that we have to make really hard choices.”
Southwick said the Wellness Center closure is based on the need for Sutter Lakeside to allocate its resources the best it can, and make sure it is working within its skill sets.
She said the hospital's main goal is to sustain itself financially, which means they cannot fulfill every health care need in Lake County.
In 2012, the Sutter Lakeside Emergency Department had more than 19,157 visits. For comparison, she said Virginia Mason, an urban hospital in Seattle with 292 beds, had 22,186 emergency department visits last year.
“We are fully focused on allocating our resources towards doing what we do best: providing excellent basic medical care to the many people who need us in Lake County,” she said.
Southwick said the response from Wellness Center members has been marked by disappointment.
Over the last several years the hospital has focused strongly on prevention – an important approach for Lake County, which health studies have shown has poor health statistics and outcomes – with the Wellness Center being an outgrowth of that effort, she said.
“This is the end of an era,” Southwick said. “This isn't just a gym and we understand that, we really do.”
Email Elizabeth Larson at