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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – In concert with this Saturday's statewide Coastal Cleanup, Lake County Water Resources is hosting a cleanup of Clear Lake and local watersheds.
The Coastal Commission reported that tens of thousands of volunteers are expected to take part in the 29th annual Coastal Cleanup this Saturday, Sept. 21.
At the same time, Lake County Water Resources is inviting Lake County residents to pitch in to clean up local creeks and lakes on the same day from 9 a.m. to noon, according to county invasive species program coordinator Carolyn Ruttan.
For the county cleanup, Ruttan said there will be two staging points: the Lake County Fire Protection District fire station, 14815 Olympic Drive in Clearlake, and the Bachelor Valley Grange, 9355 Government St. in Upper Lake.
Ruttan said volunteers should visit one of the two staging points where they must sign a waiver to participate. Also at the staging points, volunteers can get trash and recycling bags, and water and snacks, all of which have been donated for the event.
Statewide, cleanups will take place at more than 850 sites on California beaches, bays, rivers, creeks, parks, roadsides and highways, the Coastal Commission reported.
The commission said that in 2012, 65,544 Coastal Cleanup volunteers collected more than 769,000 pounds of trash and recyclables from 54 of California’s 58 counties. Almost 20 percent of that debris was recycled.
The Coastal Commission said the annual event isn't just about cleaning beaches but also focuses attention on the serious problem of trash entering the state's waterways.
Ruttan emphasized the importance of cleaning up trash in local waterways, which improves watershed health and also discourages other dumping.
On a statewide level, officials with the State Water Resources Control Board said this week that they also will be participating in the event to bring more attention to the importance of keeping waterways clean.
“Beach cleanups have had an enormous impact on the quality of California’s coasts not only for the trash they remove, but for the statement they have made to politicians and policymakers about how much the public cares about their coast,” said Felicia Marcus, chair of the State Water Resources Control Board.
“The cleanups played a catalytic role in the 80s when they transformed the local dialogue on environmental issues, and that they continue is a testament to how precious a resource the coasts are and how determined the public is to keep this issue front and center,” Marcus added.
Officials said the State Water Board also is developing a statewide trash policy to prevent debris from entering the water in the first place.
“Coastal cleanups and river cleanups are important, and they get people thinking about the problem. It’s visible, it’s something we all see and the public can understand,” said water board member Steven Moore.
But officials said that new trash policy is necessary because cleanups and litter laws haven't solved the problem.
This Coastal Cleanup Day comes at the end of California Coastal Protection Week, a designation passed by the legislature in 2012 in honor of the 40th Anniversary of the Coastal Act.
Coastal Cleanup Day also marks the beginning of COASTWEEKS, a three-week celebration of our coastal resources that takes place across the United States.
The Coastal Commission maintains a calendar of COASTWEEKS events, as well as more information about the cleanup at its Web site, www.coastalcleanupday.org .
Lake County Water Resources can be contacted at 707-263-2344.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The 23rd annual Konocti Challenge cycling event is rapidly approaching, and organizers are urging cycling enthusiasts to get their entries submitted quickly.
The Konocti Challenge is a fun-filled cycling event for all ages that takes place this year on Saturday, Oct. 5.
It's sponsored by the Rotary Club of Lakeport, with all proceeds benefiting the club's local and international projects.
The challenging 65- and 100-mile routes encircle beautiful Clear Lake while the more subdued 40 mile route travels up Lakeshore Boulevard through Scotts Valley and then around gorgeous Big Valley. They also have a family friendly 20 mile ride that children enjoy.
There are seven well placed and fully stocked rest stops located around Lake County. All stops are manned by local nonprofit groups that are competing for your votes and their share of a $5,000 prize pool. This equates to themes, decorations and all sorts of crazy antics to get your vote.
The organizations participating this year are People Services, Lake County Theater Co., Middletown Rotary and Boy Scouts, Clear Lake High School and Kelseyville High mountain biking clubs, Scotts Valley Womens Civic Club, Lake Family Resource Center and Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 951.
In addition, riders will have available to them support and gear help on all routes, with an end-of-ride barbecue on the shores of beautiful Clear Lake at the Lakeport Yacht Club and a Sunday guided wine adventure, all of which is included in the registration price.
Be sure to check out www.konoctichallenge.com for more information on these organizations as well as photos from last year’s ride.
For more information or to register, go to www.konoctichallenge.com , or contact Jennifer Strong at
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – A San Francisco man wanted in connection to the June home invasion robbery of a Clearlake Oaks family has been arrested.
Dexter Lee Currington, 22, was arrested on two counts of attempted murder for his alleged part in the June 26 robbery at the home of Ronnie and Janeane Bogner.
Currington was booked into the Lake County Jail on Tuesday night. His bail is set at $1 million.
District Attorney Don Anderson said authorities had been trying to get Currington to turn himself in, but he wouldn't do it.
“San Francisco Police Department arrested him based on our warrant,” Anderson said.
Currington is the fifth – and final – suspect to be arrested in the case.
The same day as the robbery, four others were arrested – Sean Douglas Foss, 20, and Tyler Christopher Gallon, 18, both of Clearlake, and San Franciscans Dion Andre Davis II, 26, and Jenaya Drevelyn Jelinek, 22.
At their June arraignment the first four suspects arrested were charged with the attempted murder of the Bogners' adult son Jacob, robbery, burglary of an inhabited residence, assault with a firearm, assault with a semiautomatic firearm, grand theft of a firearm, and conspiracy to commit robbery and burglary.
Authorities have identified Davis as the alleged gunman and additionally charged him with personal use of a firearm causing serious bodily injury, mayhem, negligent discharge of a firearm and a felon in possession of a firearm.
Davis, Gallon and Foss also were charged with assault with a semiautomatic weapon and the attempted murder of a peace officer, specifically, Lt. Tim Celli of the Clearlake Police Department, as well as using threats of violence to deter an officer from doing their duties, vehicle theft and vandalism. Jelinek is charged with being an accessory after the fact.
In July, the four entered not guilty pleas to the charges as originally filed, as Lake County News has reported.
The suspects are alleged to have forced their way into the Bogners' home, shot Jacob Bogner in the leg and pistol-whipped him, and took handguns and a Cadillac Escalade, later ditching the totaled vehicle in the Clearlake Oaks area.
Davis, Foss, Gallon and Jelinek fled the scene and encountered Clearlake Police Chief Craig Clausen and Celli, who had been out looking for the suspect vehicle in the city limits, with all but Jelinek fleeing into a nearby home after allegedly shooting at Celli.
Jelinek was taken into custody first, with the other three taken into custody later in the day with the help of the county's SWAT team.
Janeane Bogner had reported that the first suspect who had tried to break down her door was a man with dreadlocks, whose hoodie she had pulled back.
The first suspects taken into custody didn't match that description. However, Ronnie Bogner said his wife recognized Currington as that suspect wearing the hoodie, although he no longer has dreadlocks, based on his Tuesday booking photo.
Anderson said Currington is due to be arraigned Thursday by a visiting judge.
He said all of the local superior court judges have recused themselves from the case because of their acquaintance with the Bogners, who own a business and are involved in a number of local organizations, with Janeane Bogner being president of the Lake County Fair Board.
During the last week of August, at Anderson's request, a criminal grand jury was impaneled to consider the charges against the suspects.
On Sept. 3, with retired Mendocino County Judge Galen Hathaway presiding, the grand jury returned an indictment on all of the suspects, including Currington, Anderson said.
The charges in the grand jury indictment were the same as those originally filed against all of the suspects, with some minor language changes, according to Anderson.
Anderson, who is personally handling the prosecution, said he pursued the grand jury route – one that reportedly hasn't been used in Lake County for a criminal case in well over a decade – because it streamlined and simplified a process that involves multiple defendants and attorneys.
“It eliminates a lot of delays,” he said.
It also offers some secrecy and protection of case information early on; normally most information submitted for a case immediately becomes public when filed as part of the court record. Anderson expects all of the case documents to be made public within the next two weeks.
In addition, the grand jury indictment eliminates the preliminary hearing process, said Anderson.
The case is set for Oct. 11 for further arraignment, he said.
Anderson said that at that point, it's expected the defendants will enter their pleas in response to the indictment and the court will set a trial date.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
NORTH COAST, Calif. – Authorities took a Clearlake man into custody on Wednesday for allegedly setting wildland fires in Mendocino County last summer.
Kevin Louis Benback-Calhoun, 23, was arrested for allegedly starting two wildfires in the Cow Mountain area of Mendocino County between June and July 2012, according to Cal Fire.
Officials said Benback-Calhoun will be charged with at least two felony counts of arson to forest lands.
Benback-Calhoun was booked into the Lake County Jail shortly after noon on Wednesday, according to jail records. He was arrested by Shawn Zimmermaker, a Cal Fire investigator.
His booking sheet shows he's being held on $50,000 bail.
Cal Fire spokesperson Julie Cooley said the investigation is ongoing and further details about it were not available on Wednesday afternoon.
The Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office, Clearlake Police Department and the California Highway Patrol's Ukiah office assisted Cal Fire with the fire investigation.
Cal Fire urged area residents to be vigilant in their preparedness and aware of suspicious persons when a fire does start.
If you witness someone suspicious make note of the time, his or her physical description, as well as any vehicle description, including the license plate number. Always contact law enforcement and never approach a suspicious person.
Cal Fire said its enforcement officers work diligently in arson cases to aggressively investigate and prosecute those suspected of intentionally starting fires.
Anyone with information about arson is urged to contact the Cal Fire Arson Hotline at 1-800-468-4408. Callers can remain anonymous.
Note: Jail booking logs indicated Benback-Calhoun was arrested by a US Forest Service law enforcement official when, in fact, he was arrested by a Cal Fire investigator, Cal Fire reported.
Feds give California near-record $155 million in extra funding for launching transportation projects
The California State Transportation Agency on Tuesday joined the California Department of Transportation in announcing that the federal government has rewarded California with a near-record $155 million in transportation funding after the state met all its 2013 transportation project federal deadlines.
“The federal government has rewarded Caltrans – yet again – for using all of its federal funding to launch new construction projects before federal deadlines,” said California Transportation Agency Secretary Brian Kelly. “This year’s funding increase enables Caltrans to build even more projects that create jobs and improve the state’s transportation system.”
Each year, some states fail to spend all of their federal transportation funding before federal deadlines, causing those funds to revert to a federal pool to be redistributed to states like California that have completed all requirements and can use the additional money.
This year, that federal pool totaled $1.6 billion of which California received $155 million, the most in the nation. New York was a distant second with $81 million.
“We will put these transportation dollars to work supporting jobs and making improvements that will benefit Californians for decades to come,” said Caltrans Director Malcolm Dougherty.
Caltrans will get roughly $97 million of this extra funding and local transportation agencies will receive approximately $58 million. The funding must be prioritized for projects that meet the federal deadline of Sept. 30, 2013.
California has maximized its federal funding and used the funds to launch key infrastructure projects.
Recent projects the state pointed to include the $391 million Caldecott Tunnel Project, which is building a new tunnel that will eliminate the need to reverse the traffic direction in the existing center bore twice a day; the $439 million Devil’s Slide Project, which features the state’s first new highway tunnels in nearly 50 years; the $122 million Interstate 5 North Stockton Improvement Project, which is adding 16 miles of new carpool lanes and rebuilding four miles of the highway; and Caltrans' investment of $3 billion to reduce congestion and improve safety on Interstate 5 in Los Angeles County.
Last month, Caltrans was nominated as a finalist to compete for the America’s Transportation Award for its work in completing the seismic retrofit of the Dumbarton Bridge.
In the Central Valley, Caltrans broke ground on a much-needed expansion of the Kings Canyon Expressway to build a faster and safer route for commuters, farmers hauling produce, and travelers visiting King Canyon and Sequoia National Parks.
Caltrans also completed work on one of the largest truck inspection facilities in the state, the $100 million Cordelia Truck Scales along Interstate 80 in Solano County, which will help the California Highway Patrol inspect tens of thousands of trucks to make California’s roads safer for everyone. State officials reported that, together, these projects are saving commuters precious time lost by traffic congestion while creating or supporting thousands of jobs.
For more information on how Caltrans' state transportation infrastructure projects visit www.dot.ca.gov .
LAKEPORT, Calif. – A Clearlake Oaks man who was involved in a standoff with law enforcement this past May entered pleas on Tuesday as part of an agreement with the District Attorney's Office.
Robert Scott Hisel, 52, entered a no contest plea to assault on a peace officer with a deadly weapon other than a firearm, according to Chief Deputy District Attorney Richard Hinchcliff.
Hisel's attorney, Tom Quinn, chose not to offer comment on the case.
On May 15 Hisel had shot a woman with a pellet gun at his Clearlake Oaks home. When veteran sheriff's Deputy Lyle Thomas arrived on scene, Hisel also shot at him with the weapon, which looked like a real gun, before retreating inside of his home, according to the official reports on the incident.
Initially, Thomas did not return fire. However, Hisel reemerged from his home and pulled out of his fanny pack another pellet gun that looked like a Glock pistol, aiming it at Thomas. At that point Thomas fired several rounds, officials said.
Hisel, who had a small leg wound, was taken into custody following a six-hour standoff, as Lake County News has reported.
Last week, District Attorney Don Anderson issued his final report on the officer-involved shooting, concluding that Thomas was justified in shooting at Hisel.
Hinchcliff said Hisel also entered a no contest plea in a second case involving his possession of a firearm on April 21.
Hisel, a convicted felon – in the 1980s he did state prison time for burglary and possession of stolen property – was found to be in possession of a .25-caliber semiautomatic handgun, Hinchcliff said.
Hisel is due to be sentenced on Nov. 25, Hinchcliff said.
At sentencing, Hisel faces a potential of five years and eight months in state prison, Hinchcliff said.
Email Elizabeth Larson at