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NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – On Monday, state Senate leaders made good on their promise to vote on an amended state budget rider that removed provisions damaging to the state's public records act law.
The Senate voted 28-11 to pass SB 71 with amendments that concurred with changes implemented by the Assembly last week.
Week before last, legislators had passed SB 71 in the Senate and AB 76 in the Assembly, budget riders with provisions that would have removed the requirements for local agencies and governments to adhere to the California Public Records Act, as Lake County News has reported.
Legislators and Gov. Jerry Brown targeted the 45-year-old law, considered a pillar in the effort to keep governments at all levels transparent, because of a mandate that requires the state government to reimburse local jurisdictions for fulfilling public records act requests from journalists and everyday citizens.
Outside of a projected savings of “millions of dollars,” state officials gave no specific amount of savings anticipated from the changes.
Open government advocates countered that the damage to government transparency would be far more expensive, and rallied last week against the budget bills.
As a result, the Assembly changed course and agreed to amend the bill, with the Senate at first balking before also agreeing to revisit and amend SB 71.
Last Friday, Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento) and Sen. Mark Leno (D-San Francisco) introduced a constitutional amendment to put before voters in June 2014.
SCA 3 would require all local government agencies to comply with the California Public Records Act and the Ralph M. Brown Act and removes the mandate that the state reimburse local entities for the costs of following these laws.
It must pass the Legislature by a two-thirds vote in order to go to next June's ballot. The governor has signaled his support for such a constitutional amendment.
SCA 3 already is working its way through committee, according to legislative records, and could make its way to the Senate floor for a vote later this week.
During Monday's Senate vote, Sen. Noreen Evans, whose constituency includes Lake County, voted for the revised bill after having voted against the previous incarnation of SB 71 due to her concerns that it made the California Public Records Act unenforceable.
Lake County's other representative in the Legislature, Assemblymember Mariko Yamada, voted for the revised budget bill last week after initially voting for the original version.
The updated budget bill now goes to Gov. Brown for signing.
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KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – A Kelseyville woman suffered major injuries in a Saturday afternoon crash when she went off the road and hit a tree while reaching to pick up a cell phone.
Jeanne Marie Rixen, 70, was flown to a regional trauma center after she crashed her 2006 Lincoln, according to the California Highway Patrol.
The CHP said the crash occurred at 2:10 p.m. Saturday on Kelsey Creek Drive north of Rose Way.
Rixen, who was alone in the car, was driving eastbound at an unknown rate of speed when she took her eyes of the road to retrieve a ringing cell phone, the CHP said.
She drifted off the road and into a walnut orchard, where she crashed head-on into a walnut tree, the CHP said.
Due to the extensive damage to the car as a result of the crash, Kelseyville Fire personnel had to use the jaws of life to extricate Rixen, according to CHP and reports from the scene.
Kelseyville Fire personnel transported Rixen to the Kelseyville High School football field, where a REACH air ambulance picked her up for transport. Radio reports indicated she had a severe injury to her lower leg, possibly a compound fracture.
The CHP said Rixen was transported to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital for treatment of her injuries.
Alcohol and drugs were not believed to be factors in the crash, and Rixen was wearing her lap and shoulder belts, the CHP said.
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LAKEPORT, Calif. – Young tribal members are invited to come out and put their athletic prowess to work at an annual competition set to take place this week.
The Native Youth Olympics will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday, June 28, at the Lake County Fairgrounds, 401 Martin St. in Lakeport.
The day offers friendly competition for ages 4 through 17.
Main events include T-ball, water balloon toss, softball throw, sack race, three-on-three basketball, the 25-yard run and, the day's finale, the tug-of-war.
Lake County Tribal Health Consortium sponsors the event, which is meant to encourage better health – with a view to helping tribal members avoid diabetes – and offer alcohol- and drug-free fun.
For more information, call the consortium at 707-263-8382, Extension 186.
In observance of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Awareness Month, the Department of Veterans Affairs National Center for PTSD invites the public to participate in its “Take the Step” campaign.
“Every day of the year, we should focus on assisting those who have served our nation,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki. “In June, during PTSD Awareness Month, we take special care to help veterans with PTSD. VA is a leader in providing state-of-the-art, high-quality mental health care that improves and saves veterans’ lives. PTSD treatment can help and there is hope for recovery for veterans who need mental health services.”
Throughout the month, online at www.PTSD.va.gov , the campaign has highlighted different topics so visitors can “Take the Step” to: know more about PTSD; challenge their beliefs; explore the treatment options available; and reach out to make a difference.
VA provides effective PTSD treatment for veterans and conducts extensive research on PTSD, including prevention of stress disorders.
Veterans are encouraged to use VA’s PTSD resources so they are able to recognize symptoms and seek help if the need arises. VA also encourages veterans to share what they learn with someone they know to build awareness and support systems.
Following exposure to trauma, most people experience stress reactions but many do not develop PTSD. Mental health experts are not sure why some people develop PTSD and others do not.
However, if stress reactions do not improve over time and they disrupt everyday life, VA encourages veterans to seek help to determine if PTSD may be a factor.
“Many barriers keep people with PTSD from seeking the help they need,” said Dr. Matthew Friedman, executive director of VA’s National Center for PTSD. “Knowledge and awareness, however, are key to overcoming these barriers. For those living with PTSD, knowing there are treatments that work, for example, can lead them to seek needed care. Greater public awareness of PTSD can help reduce the stigma of this mental health problem and overcome negative stereotypes that may keep many people from pursuing treatment.”
PTSD Awareness Month highlights include:
- The purpose of PTSD Awareness Month is to raise public awareness of PTSD and its effective treatments so that everyone can help people affected by PTSD.
- Throughout June explore weekly features at www.ptsd.va.gov .
- “Ten Steps to Raise PTSD Awareness” provides links to materials that foster greater understanding of trauma, PTSD and treatment. It offers practical suggestions for the public to raise PTSD awareness in their own community.
- For continued involvement, please sign up for the PTSD Monthly Update, http://www.ptsd.va.gov/about/subscribe.asp . Stay up on new information about PTSD and trauma year round.
On June 3, VA announced it had hired a total of 1,607 mental health clinical providers to meet the goal of 1,600 new mental health professionals outlined in the President’s Aug. 31, 2012, executive order.
Additionally, VA had hired 2,005 mental health clinical providers to fill existing vacancies, as well as 318 new peer specialists towards the specific goal of 800 peer specialists by Dec. 31, 2013 as outlined in the executive order.
Throughout the summer, VA will hold mental health summits at each of its 152 medical centers across the nation to establish and enhance positive working relationships with their community partners. The summits will help encourage community engagement in order to better address and understand the broad mental health care needs of veterans and their families.
For more information about PTSD, professionals and the public can go to The National Center for PTSD Web site at www.ptsd.va.gov . The site offers resources such as:
- PTSD Coach mobile app, this award-winning app provides symptom-management strategies and it’s always with you when you need it.
- Continuing education opportunities for providers, including PTSD 101 courses, on the best practices in PTSD treatment (CEs/CMEs offered).
- AboutFace: An online video gallery of Veterans talking about PTSD and how treatment can turn your life around.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – A Lucerne woman died Monday morning from injuries she sustained after her car was hit head-on by a pickup whose driver lost control on Highway 20 due to rainy conditions.
Elizabeth Town, 37, died at Sutter Lakeside Hospital in Lakeport, where the California Highway Patrol said she was taken after the early morning crash.
The CHP said the collision that killed Town involved three vehicles and occurred at 7:15 a.m. on Highway 20 west of Henderson Drive near Clearlake Oaks.
The other drivers involved were Brian O'Rourke, 30, of Sacramento and Frank Hutton III, 50, of Lucerne, the CHP said.
O'Rourke was driving his 2012 Chevrolet pickup westbound on Highway 20 west of Henderson Drive, while Town was headed eastbound in a 2007 Kia Rio with Hutton, in a 2005 Chevrolet PT Cruiser, directly behind Town, according to the report.
The CHP said O'Rourke was driving too fast for the wet roadway conditions, causing him to lose control as he was negotiating a righthand curve in the highway. The pickup went over the highway's double-yellow lines and into the eastbound lane, hitting Town head-on.
Town's car was pushed off the roadway and onto the south shoulder, where it hit a tree, the CHP said.
After hitting Town, the CHP said O'Rourke's pickup continued in the eastbound lane and side-swiped the driver's side of Hutton's vehicle.
The CHP said both O'Rourke and Hutton had minor injuries, with O'Rourke reporting pain in his left foot and Hutton suffering neck pain.
All three drivers were wearing their seat belts, the CHP said.
The agency said alcohol and drugs were not factors in the crash, which is being investigated by CHP Officer Mark Crutcher.
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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Two men arrested last month in connection to a large marijuana cultivation operation also are facing human trafficking charges for having brought from Southern California a 15-year-old runaway girl who they allegedly kept at their remote grow location and sexually assaulted.
Ryan Alan Balletto, 30, of Lakeport and Patrick Steven Pearmain, 24, of Clearlake, both remain in the Lake County Jail on no-bail holds following their arrests on May 1.
Since the May arrests investigators have found evidence that the two men had kept a Southern California teenager at the location and sexually assaulted her, according to court documents.
The men also are alleged at one point to have kept the girl in a large box as a punishment, according to District Attorney Don Anderson.
Pearmain’s attorney, Tom Quinn, declined comment at this stage in the case, and Balletto’s attorney, Mitch Hauptman, did not respond to messages seeking comment.
Deputy District Attorney Ed Borg, who is handling the sex crimes case against the men, said they are facing charges of human trafficking, statutory rape, oral copulation on a person under age 16, sodomy, false imprisonment, annoying or molesting a child. Balletto also is charged with lewd and lascivious acts on a child under age 14 or 15.
They could each face nearly 16 years in prison if convicted of all the charges, Borg said.
While the California Attorney General's Office has put increased focus on fighting human trafficking, which the agency said is the world's fastest growing enterprise, human trafficking cases are rare in Lake County, Borg said.
“It’s the first time I’ve ever charged it,” he said.
Balletto and Pearmain were arrested during the service of a search warrant on Balletto’s 681-acre property near Clearlake Oaks, where the Lake County Sheriff’s Office SWAT Team, Narcotics Task Force and Major Crimes Unit found nearly 1,500 marijuana plants and more than $4,000 in cash, as Lake County News has reported.
Also seized at that time was as a large cache of weapons, including high-powered military grade sniper and assault rifles, automatic assault rifles and pistols, and ammunition, high capacity magazines, military grade body armor and military grade scopes.
Lake County Sheriff’s officials said it was the largest and most sophisticated bulk of weapons seized in the agency’s recent history.
According to court documents, it's estimated that the street value of Balletto's marijuana cultivation operation was $22 million annually.
Originally, Balletto was booked with bail set at $10 million, with Pearmain's bail set at $1 million. They've since had holds put on them preventing them from posting bail.
Balletto’s girlfriend, Christa McConnell, also arrested on May 1 for weapons and child endangerment charges, pleaded earlier this month to a misdemeanor child endangerment arising from a weapon having been found in proximity to her children at the Lakeport home she shares with Balletto. Borg said McConnell had no record to speak of previously.
At the time of Balletto and Pearmain’s arrest the sheriff’s office had indicated the men were being investigated for numerous sex crimes, with that work leading to the second case.
Borg said the marijuana cultivation and weapons case against the men is being handled separate from the case involving human trafficking and sex crimes.
Both cases are scheduled for preliminary hearing July 10, according to court records.
Borg said there may be an effort at some point to join both cases against Pearmain and Balletto.
Human trafficking allegations come to light
A number of different agencies are involved in the human trafficking case, Borg said.
He said the human trafficking charge alleges that the teen girl was brought from some distance to Lake County.
“It’s not clear to me she had any real idea where she was,” he said.
Borg said Los Angeles County officials contacted local authorities about the missing girl. Court documents relate that Los Angeles authorities had information that Balletto had brought the girl to Northern California to use in a child pornography operation.
Borg said it doesn’t appear as if the girl initially was coerced to come to the area.
It’s believed the girl was on the property for about a month before she and Pearmain were picked up in another county on April 30, Borg said. He did not divulge where that April encounter with law enforcement occurred, other than to say it happened in Northern California.
The girl has since gone into protective custody outside of Lake County, Borg said.
The situation involving the girl also involves a third suspect.
Eric George Edgar, 45, was arrested on May 16 in connection with the case, Borg said.
Edgar is charged with statutory rape for having allegedly raped the teenage girl when they were alone together on the property. He's also facing charges for making criminal threats and attempting to dissuade a witness, Borg said.
The girl was being kept in a small group of trailers on the property, while Edgar was staying in a trailer more than an hour’s hike across a canyon. Edgar is alleged to have happened upon the girl and raped her, Borg said.
Edgar’s bail originally was set at $1 million, but jail records indicated he has since been released.
His attorney, Lisa Proffitt, said the case against her client isn’t a strong one.
“There’s no forensic evidence connecting him to the incident in any way, shape or form,” she said.
The only evidence so far is the girl’s recorded statements against Edgar, according to Proffitt, who said it’s unusual in a case of such gravity to not have witnesses or forensic evidence to back up the allegations.
Borg said Edgar also is alleged to have been involved in the marijuana cultivation taking place on the property, but he hasn’t been charged in that separate case and probably won’t be.
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