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The two juveniles, whose names were not released because of their minor status, were arrested late Wednesday, June 8, according to a report from Sgt. Rodd Joseph of the Clearlake Police Department.
Joseph said Clearlake Police officer responded to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, located at 14972 Lakeview Way, at about 9 p.m. Wednesday on a report of two subjects spray painting the church.
The same church has been a victim of several recent vandalisms, Joseph said.
He said three Clearlake police officers responded to the scene while the Clearlake Police dispatcher kept the witness on the phone so officers could get real-time updates on the suspects’ activities.
The three officers took different routes to the church in hopes of cutting off any escape routes for the two suspects. Joseph said the officers arrived at the church within minutes of the call.
Officers Mike Carpenter and Alan Collier located two juvenile suspects – one 10 years old, the other 15 years old – on the church property, Joseph said.
Joseph said both suspects were found to have fresh, blue-colored spray paint on their hands and the 10-year-old was found to be in possession of a can of blue spray paint.
Officers located blue spray painted graffiti in numerous areas in and around the church property. Joseph said the graffiti appeared to be gang-related and was still wet to the touch.
He said several witnesses were located in the area and interviewed. The two juveniles were arrested and charged with vandalism to a church, minor in possession of aerosol paint with intent to vandalize, conspiracy to commit a crime and participation in a criminal street gang.
Both suspects were transported and booked into the Lake County Juvenile Hall, Joseph said.
The Clearlake Police Department thanked those residents who came forward with information which led to the arrests of these two juveniles. The agency said that the community, working in partnership with the police department, can make a difference.
Anyone with information on any crime is urged to contact the Clearlake Police Department at 707-994-8251. You may remain anonymous.
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Unofficially, Northern California has three seasons, not four – the dry season, the wet season and the wildflower season, according to author and naturalist Glen Schneider.
This year in Lake County, the wet and wildflower season occurred simultaneously for more than eight months.
Rain began falling in earnest in October, snow storms began in November and the wet season saw Clear Lake reaching flood stage on March 25, with some areas still recording snow and frost into the first week of June.
Although Lake County did have a “faux spring” most of January – when average daytime highs are expected to be in the 50s, but days were recorded with highs in the 60s and 70s to tide us over. However, that was five months ago.
On May 15 – the last official frost date of the year for Lake County, which means there is a 90 percent chance that no more frost will occur – rain, hail, frost and snow were recorded throughout the county.
However, summer weather now seems to have finally arrived, with temperatures finally returning to normal. Lows in the upper 40s and highs in the low 80s are expected to continue throughout the weekend.
Forecasters with The Weather Channel and Western Weather Group predict that the warming trend will continue throughout the weekend, with daytime highs inching up towards the mid- to upper-80s by Sunday with abundant sunshine and a slight possibility of some clouds on Friday and Saturday.
Overnight lows will continue to drop back to the upper 40s and low 50s each night, according to forecasts.
As tempting as swimming may be this weekend, please remember that water temperatures in lakes, streams, and rivers, throughout Lake County and Northern California are still quite cold and can induce hypothermia rapidly.
For up-to-the-minute weather information, please visit the Lake County News homepage.
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UPPER LAKE, Calif. – The service of a search warrant by the Sheriff’s Narcotics Task Force on Thursday afternoon resulted in two arrests and the seizure of methamphetamine and marijuana.
On June 3, narcotics detectives secured a search warrant for the person, home and vehicles of 47-year-old Melanie Lee Combs, according to Capt. James Bauman of the Lake County Sheriff's Office.
On Thursday, June 9, detectives conducted surveillance on Combs’ residence at the Meadow Point Mobile Home Park in Upper Lake, Bauman said.
At approximately 12 p.m., detectives observed a blue Ford pickup truck leaving the area of Combs’ residence. Bauman said Combs was identified as a passenger in the truck and pursuant to the search warrant, detectives stopped the truck on Highway 20 near Old Lucerne Road.
The driver of the truck, identified as 44-year-old Connie Coleen McCowen of Upper Lake, was determined to be under the influence of a controlled substance and arrested. Bauman said McCowen and Combs were both transported back to Combs’ residence where detectives completed their service of the search warrant.
While searching Combs' residence, detectives located methamphetamine and two “meth” pipes in her bedroom, Bauman said. Two plastic storage bins also located in her bedroom were found to contain several plastic bags full of processed marijuana and a balancing scale. Combs had no recommendation for medical marijuana.
Combs was arrested and both she and McCowen were transported to the Lake County Hill Road Correctional Facility for booking. Bauman said Combs was charged with possession of a controlled substance, possession of narcotics paraphernalia and possession of marijuana. McCowen was charged with being under the influence of a controlled substance.
The Sheriff’s Narcotics Task Force can be contacted through its anonymous tip line at 707-263-3663.
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Attorney General Kamala D. Harris on Thursday reported the arrest of 30 gang members in the Tracy area.
The arrests came a day after Harris announced the arrests of 101 leaders and members of two transnational gangs operating violent criminal enterprises in the Central Valley cities of Madera, Los Banos, Livingston, Merced, Atwater and Dos Palos.
“Today the Department of Justice delivered another blow to the criminal gangs that have been making inroads into California's Central Valley,” said Attorney General Harris. “The arrests we have made over the past few days send a message to the individuals who are bringing drugs and guns into our communities. This conduct will receive swift and certain consequences.”
The operation in Tracy was dubbed “Operation Gateway” because of the centralization of three interstates, the 205, 580 and 5, connecting Sacramento, the Bay Area and the Central Valley.
During the operation, Department of Justice agents served 28 state arrest warrants and 24 state search warrants in the Tracy area. The investigation has resulted in 30 arrests, 11 guns and approximately ¼ ounce of methamphetamine. Everyone arrested was booked into the San Joaquin County Jail.
“Operation Gateway” is a spinoff from Operation Crimson Tide into the criminal activities of the Nuestra Familia gang.
The investigation, a collaborative effort led by California Department of Justice Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement, and assisted by the Tracy Police Department, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation's Special Services Unit and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Safe Streets Task Force. The operation involved more than 200 law enforcement officers and 28 locations.
“The community of Tracy is safer today because of the hard work and dedication of the multiple law enforcement agencies involved in this 11-month investigation,” said Tracy Police Chief Janet Thiessen. “Designed to identify, arrest and prosecute individuals and gangs responsible for violent crime and narcotics trafficking in Tracy, we are confident today's arrests will have a significant positive impact on crime in our city today and in the future.”
The operation is the latest in a series of actions by Harris that are designed to attack gang violence.
In February, agents arrested three associates of a Tijuana drug cartel in a murder-for-hire plot in Southern California.
In March, Harris brought law enforcement leaders from across the state to California's border with Mexico to see firsthand the problem of transnational gangs smuggling guns, drugs and human beings across the border.
In April, the attorney general announced the creation of the first multiagency gang task force in Tulare County.
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The request was made on Wednesday by the United States Forest Service. The aircraft, Tanker 911, took off Thursday morning to help in Arizona from its base in Victorville.
The Forest Service is accessing the DC-10 through a call when needed contract CAL FIRE has with 10 Tanker, the company that operates the only two DC-10 Very Large Airtankers in the world.
During peak fire season, CAL FIRE has an exclusive use contract with 10 Tanker to enhance its aerial firefighting fleet.
The DC-10 aerial firefighting aircraft made its fire fighting debut in 2006 on the Sawtooth fire in San Bernardino County.
The DC-10’s operate with a flight crew of three, a pilot, co-pilot and a flight engineer. The tanker works with a lead plane and can be an effective tool in combating wildfires when working directly with ground resources.
The DC-10 firefighting aircraft are fitted with three external tanks that are mounted along the centerline of the plane.
Together, the tanks hold 50 tons of water or retardant. The tanker can drop as much as 12,000 U.S. gallons of retardant in as little as eight seconds through its computerized gravity fed water dump system. It is used primarily to lay down long lines of retardant.
“California is no stranger to wildfires and Arizona was one of many states that sent assistance to help us during the devastating 2008 lightning fire siege,” said Chief Ken Pimlott, CAL FIRE acting director. “We are grateful that our relationship with 10 Tanker enables us to assist our neighbors during their time of need.”
Aerial firefighting resources are one of the many tools available to incident commanders to fight wildfires when and where the aircraft can be effective.
For more information on the DC 10 and its relationship with CAL FIRE, visit www.fire.ca.gov/fire_protection/fire_protection_air_program_dc10.php.
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The “Power to the Youth” event will take place from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, June 11, in Clearlake's Austin Park, 14077 Lakeshore Drive.
Bruno Sabatier, one of the event's organizers, said the daylong event will offer live music, vendors, information booths, games and competitions.
The entire Lake County community is invited to the free event, he said.
The community response to the event so far has been “fantastic,” according to Sabatier.
Sabatier was part of the Clear Lake Associated Students leadership at Yuba College's Clearlake campus.
The group organized events and was looking to do something larger, to illustrate what the community has to offer and to engage children and families, he said.
Sabatier said the idea formed last fall, and the organizing has mostly taken place over the last two months.
The event partnered with the nonprofit Lake Community Pride Foundation, the umbrella organization for the county's teen safe house and Clearlake's youth center. Sabatier said the group also supports performing arts programs at Lower Lake High School.
The main target group for the Saturday event is young people ages 5 to 25, but Sabatier said the organizers decided to broaden it to the entire community. “We want to make this a family event.”
Throughout the day there will be live music from groups such as Without a Net, Escapulario Norteno and Praises of Zion Church choir, with Konocti Dance Academy also performing, he said.
Sports competitions, including two-on-two basketball, inline skating, skateboarding and BMX riding will begin to organize at around 10 a.m., with the games set to be under way by 10:30 a.m. and finished by mid-afternoon, Sabatier said. There will be cash prizes for first place winners.
A tug-of-war competition is planned between local firefighters and police officers, Sabatier said.
The planned booths will include voting information, education – from preschool to college – plus local sports clubs, several scouting groups and community service organizations.
Sabatier said one of the main goals is to inspire people and show them what services are available to make their lives better.
“It's been really amazing as far as what we’ve found and who has offered to come out,” he said.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at