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The 79 stores on the list, released Thursday, include no California Kmarts, and only three California Sears stores.
Lakeport has one Kmart, and there are no full-line Sears stores in Lake County, only “hometown stores” in Lakeport and Clearlake, the corporation reported.
Sears Holdings Corp. had said Tuesday that it intended to close as many 120 stores in response to declining sales in some categories.
The move is expected to generate between $140 and $170 million as inventory is sold and real estate is sold or leased, as Lake County News has reported.
The Thursday closures list has only one West Coast Kmart – one in Lacey, Wash. – with most of the closures appearing to come in the Midwest and Southern states.
Among the Sears stores slated for closure, those in California are located in San Diego, where there will be two store closures, and El Monte.
A typical store slated for closure employs between 40 and 80 associates, the corporation reported.
“Employment varies by store and format and at this time we cannot provide the total number of impacted associates,” according to the statement.
Sears Holdings Corp. operates 1,307 Kmart stores across 49 states, Guam, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, and 890 full-line Sears stores.
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For the second straight year, law enforcement fatalities nationwide rose sharply with 173 federal, state and local officers killed in the line of duty during 2011, according to preliminary data compiled and released today by the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund.
This represents a 13 percent increase over the 153 officers killed in 2010 and an alarming 42 percent spike when compared to the 122 officers who lost their lives in the line of duty in 2009, the group reported.
The primary cause of death in 2011 was gunfire, which claimed the lives of 68 officers and nearly matched the decade-long high of 69 firearms-related deaths in 2007, the report showed.
For the past 13 years in a row, traffic-related incidents had been the primary cause of law enforcement fatalities.
In 2011, though, the number of officers killed on the roadway dropped by 10 percent. There were 64 traffic-related deaths among officers in 2011, which matched 2005 for the second-lowest total in the past 15 years.
Of that total, 44 died in automobile crashes, 11 were struck and killed while outside of their vehicles, seven died in motorcycle crashes and two were killed when their car was struck by a train.
“Drastic budget cuts affecting law enforcement agencies across the country have put our officers at grave risk,” declared National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund Chairman Craig W. Floyd. “At a time when officers are facing a more cold-blooded criminal element and fighting a war on terror, we are cutting vital resources necessary to ensure their safety and the safety of the innocent citizens they protect.”
Floyd also noted that the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund is partnering with the U.S. Department of Justice and the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration, among others, on a number of law enforcement safety initiatives to combat this growing problem.
Floyd cited a recent survey by the International Association of Chiefs of Police that found 60 percent of responding law enforcement agencies had cut back on training, 64 percent had cut back on buying or upgrading major equipment, and 58 percent had cut back on buying or upgrading technology.
A report issued in October by the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, stated that by year’s end, it is expected that nearly 12,000 police officers and sheriff’s deputies will have been laid off.
In addition to the officers killed by firearms or traffic-related incidents, 27 officers died as a result of job-related illnesses, four died as a result of falls, two drowned and two were stabbed.
One officer died due to each of the following causes: aircraft accident, beating, bomb-related incident, struck by a falling object, electrocution and strangulation, according to the report.
During the past year, more officers were killed in Florida, 14, than in any other state; followed by Texas with 13; New York with 11; and California and Georgia with 10 each.
Ten of the officers killed nationwide in 2011 served with federal law enforcement agencies. Seven of the officers who died during the past year served with correctional agencies. Eleven of the 173 fatalities were women.
On average, the officers who died in 2011 were 41 years old and had served for 13 years.
The preliminary 2011 law enforcement fatality report was released by the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund in conjunction with Concerns of Police Survivors (C.O.P.S.), a nonprofit organization that provides critical assistance to the surviving family members and loved ones of officers killed in the line of duty.
“The hard fact is that for the first time in 2011, more officers were killed in firearms-related incidents than traffic-related incidents,” said Linda Moon Gregory, national president of Concerns of Police Survivors.
“I’m deeply concerned that budget constraints may be compromising the safety of our remaining law enforcement officers due to cuts in personnel and reduced affordability of life saving equipment. At a time when criminals have the latest technology and weapons, we must ensure that our peace officers are adequately equipped and protected,” she stated.
Her brother, Officer James Homer Moon from the sheriff’s office in Jacksonville, Fla., was shot and killed in the line of duty in September 1971 and Gregory’s family continues to deal with parole issues related to her brother’s death.
The statistics released by the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund and C.O.P.S. are based on preliminary data compiled and do not represent a final or complete list of individual officers who will be added to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in 2011.
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One center of attention will be the manual survey scheduled for 11 a.m. off Highway 50 near Echo Summit. This and other manual and electronic surveys up and down the state will determine the amount of water in the early winter snowpack.
Statewide electronic readings indicate that Wednesday’s snowpack water content – near the end of an unusually dry December – is only 24 percent of normal for the date.
On Dec. 27, 2010, the statewide snowpack water content was 202 percent of average.
Despite the low early readings, the snowpack and its water content can be expected to increase through the winter months to April 1, when melting snow begins flowing into streams and reservoirs.
“Thanks to good reservoir storage left over from last winter’s storms, we anticipate an adequate water supply next summer,” said DWR Director Mark Cowin. “Our initial estimate is that we’ll be able to deliver 60 percent of the slightly more than 4 million acre-feet of water requested from the State Water Project, and we hope to increase the percentage as winter storms develop.”
The initial delivery estimate for this calendar year was only 25 percent of the slightly more than 4 million acre-feet requested by the 29 public agencies that distribute State Water Project water to 25 million Californians and nearly a million acres of irrigated farmland.
As winter took hold, a near-record snowpack and heavy rains sweeping the state resulted in deliveries of 80 percent of requests in 2011.
The final allocation was 50 percent in 2010, 40 percent in 2009, 35 percent in 2008, and 60 percent 2007. The last 100 percent allocation – difficult to achieve even in wet years because of Delta pumping restrictions to protect threatened and endangered fish – was in 2006.
DWR and cooperating agencies conduct manual snow surveys around the first of the month from January to May. The manual surveys supplement and check the accuracy of real-time electronic readings as the snowpack builds then melts in spring and summer.
Most of the state’s major reservoirs are above normal storage for the date.
Lake Oroville in Butte County, the State Water Project’s principal storage reservoir, is at 115 percent of average for the date, or 72 percent of its 3.5 million acre-foot capacity.
Lake Shasta north of Redding, the federal Central Valley Project’s largest reservoir with a capacity of 4.5 million acre-feet, is 108 percent of average for the date, or 68 percent of capacity.
San Luis Reservoir in Merced County, an important storage reservoir south of the Delta, is at 139 percent of average for the date, or 94 percent of capacity.
San Luis, with a capacity of 2,027,840 acre-feet, is a critically important source of water for both the State Water Project and the Central Valley Project when pumping from the Delta is restricted or interrupted. An acre-foot is 325,851 gallons, enough to cover one acre to a depth of one foot.
The mountain snowpack that melts into reservoirs, streams and aquifers provides approximately one-third of the water for California’s households, industries and farms.
Statewide snowpack readings are available on the Internet at http://cdec.water.ca.gov/cgi-progs/snow/DLYSWEQ.
Electronic reservoir level readings may be found at http://cdec.water.ca.gov/cdecapp/resapp/getResGraphsMain.action.
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LUCERNE, Calif. – A Lucerne man who resisted arrest and fought with a deputy on Tuesday was finally arrested with the help of a sheriff’s K9.
Michael Sean Shaffer, 27, was arrested for a felony parole violation and resisting arrest, according to his booking sheet.
At approximately 11:45 p.m. Tuesday Lake County Sheriff’s deputies and a K9 responded to an address on Ogden Road in Lucerne in an attempt to contact Shaffer, who had a felony arrest warrant, according to Sgt. Steve Brooks of the Lake County Sheriff’s Office.
Brooks said Shaffer is a known escape risk and had a history of resisting arrest and possessing prohibited weapons.
When deputies knocked on the door of the Ogden Road home and announced themselves, Shaffer exited the house and started running toward Country Club Drive, Brooks said.
The K9 deputy identified himself and told Shaffer to stop or he was going to send the dog. Brooks said Shaffer continued to run and the deputy deployed his K9.
The K9 engaged Shaffer as he collided with a garbage can and fell to the ground. Brooks said Shaffer continued to resist as the deputy struggled to gain control of his hands.
The K9 engaged Shaffer again and he was taken into custody moments later, Brooks said.
Shaffer was transported to the hospital where he received medical treatment for some abrasions, puncture wounds and a laceration behind his right ear which required several stitches, according to Brooks.
Brooks said Shaffer was arrested and transported to the Lake County Hill Road Correctional Facility and booked.
Shaffer remained in custody on Wednesday due to a no bail hold, according to his booking records.
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William J. Adams, 59, was transported via REACH air ambulance to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital following the crash, which occurred at 8:20 a.m., according to the California Highway Patrol.
The other driver in the crash, 35-year-old Christopher Genho Jr. of Clearlake Oaks, claimed no initial injury but may have possibly suffered shock, the CHP said.
The CHP report said Adams was driving his 2002 Saturn coupe eastbound on Highway 20 at an unknown speed through a series of “S” curves in Lucerne and passing Country Club Drive, with Genho traveling westbound at between 40 and 45 miles per hour in his full-size GMC 2500 panel van.
As Genho was approaching Ogden Road, Adams reportedly drifted across the double yellow lines into Genho’s path, the CHP said.
The crash’s cause is still under investigation, but the CHP report suggested that, based on a brief statement Adams was able to provide as well as that of an independent witness following his vehicle prior to the crash, Adams may have fallen asleep while driving.
That witness and Genho both told the CHP that Adams drifted across the double yellow lines, with Genho attempting to take evasive action by veering the van toward the eastbound lane in order to avoid hitting Adams, the CHP said.
However, Adams unexpectedly swerved back toward the eastbound lane. The CHP said Genho then moved the van back toward the north, with Adams again changing direction.
The front left portion of Adams’ Saturn struck the van’s front left area, with both vehicles coming to rest within the westbound traffic lane. The CHP said the van was oriented in a westbound direction with the Saturn positioned eastbound.
Northshore Fire personnel had to extricate Adams from the Saturn due to his injuries and the vehicle’s condition, the CHP reported.
Reports from the scene indicated Highway 20 was closed briefly as firefighters and CHP worked at the scene.
Officer Nick Powell is investigating the crash.
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NICE, Calif. – In the days before the Christmas holiday, Luwana Quitiquit was tired.
The 70-year-old Quitiquit, a respected local Pomo elder and basket weaver, artist and activist, had been the lead plaintiff in a case filed against Robinson Rancheria, whose council was trying to evict her and several others from their homes on the reservation.
It was the latest assault on Quitiquit and her family, who in 2008 were disenrolled by the tribe. Also disenrolled at that time was her mother, who was posthumously removed from the tribe’s rolls.
Quitiquit, who had formerly served on the Robinson Rancheria tribal council, told Lake County News at the time that the move to force her family out of the tribe was purely political and retaliatory.
“I'm ready to fight,” she said in a December 2008 interview. “They're not going to make me cry. I'm going to fight all the way.”
She had continued to fight, even as the tribe attempted to push her from her home, signing up to be the lead plaintiff in a lawsuit to fight the evictions. A judge recently had granted a delay in the proceedings until March, according to her sister, Wanda Quitiquit.
But, as sister Wanda pointed out, Luwana Quitiquit was both busy and tired from the battle, and she was struggling with her health.
“You would not believe the stress she was under,” Wanda Quitiquit told Lake County News.
In order to pay for the retainer fee for the attorney representing her and others targeted for eviction, Luwana Quitiquit had just sold one of her exquisitely beaded American Indian dresses, Wanda Quitiquit said.
With money to pay the attorney, Luwana Quitiquit believed things were going to be all right, said her sister.
On Thursday, Dec. 22, she went to bed exhausted. The next morning, her son went to check on her.
“She died in her sleep and we should all be so lucky,” said Wanda Quitiquit, who called her sister her best friend.
Wanda Quitiquit said the fight to battle the evictions at Robinson Rancheria needs to continue on behalf of her sister.
“They can't touch her now,” she said of the tribal council.
Luwana Quitiquit was born in Isleton, Calif., on Nov. 13, 1941, to father Claro Quitiquit, of Filipino ancestry, and mother, Marie Boggs Quitiquit, who came from Robinson Rancheria.
She was from a big family, with a total of 15 siblings.
She grew up on Union Island in the Bay-Delta area near Stockton, where she and her family were employed as farm workers.
Her interests and activism took root there, but grew beyond the boundaries of a youth spent in farming.
While in her 20s she worked at the University of California, Berkeley, and in November 1969 she took part in an earlier “occupy” movement, when she and other American Indians decided to occupy Alcatraz Island in the San Francisco Bay.
Her family said she was one of the first Indians to step foot on the island as part of that occupation, remaining there until its end two years later, in 1971.
Her older brother Lawrence Thompson, who died in 2009, also had been involved in the Alcatraz occupation, captaining a boat that transported people from San Francisco Pier No. 40 to the island.
In the years that followed the Alcatraz occupation, Luwana Quitiquit continued her education. In 1977 she received her bachelor's degree in sociology from U.C. Berkeley.
Since then, she had become known as a talented scholar, researcher and grant writer, and worked to address challenges facing natives in Indian Country.
Her family said she even went on to visit New Zealand and Australia. Indigenous leaders there encouraged her to work to preserve her Pomo culture and heritage.
Luwana Quitiquit studied Pomo basketry – renowned weaver Mabel McKay was among her teachers – and owned and operated the Pomo Fine Art Gallery in Lucerne’s Harbor Village Artists complex.
She traveled around the state to share her talents, going to Albany last month to take part in an American Indian art show with her son, Alan Harrison.
“Luwana taught a cultural wellness class at the health clinic that became a class model for other tribal clinics in California,” said friend Sandy Elgin. “She was, and still is, a legend with a gentle spirit that will live on forever.”
Luwana Quitiquit is survived by her three children, four grandchildren and two great-grandchildren, 11 of her siblings, and numerous nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her son, Tyrone A. Douglas; her parents and four of her brothers.
Quitiquit's obituary can be viewed here: Luwana Quitiquit, 1941-2011 .
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
