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UPPER LAKE, Calif. – The service of a search warrant by the Sheriff’s Narcotics Task Force on Friday in Upper Lake has resulted in three arrests, the seizure of methamphetamine and currency for asset forfeiture.
Last week, narcotics detectives secured a search warrant for the person, home and vehicles of 46-year-old Melanie Lee Combs of Upper Lake, according to Capt. James Bauman of the Lake County Sheriff's Office.
On Friday, April 8, at approximately 8:30 a.m., detectives served the search warrant at Combs’ home at the Meadow Point Trailer Park on Highway 20, Bauman said.
Bauman said that when narcotics detectives announced their presence at the front door, they received no response and had to force entry to serve the warrant.
Once inside the home, detectives encountered a locked bedroom door and again received no response when announcing their presence, Bauman said. When detectives forced entry into the bedroom, they located and detained Combs and 51-year-old Kevin Arthur Johnson, also of Upper Lake.
During a search of the bedroom, detectives located a small plastic food container concealed beneath the bed. Bauman said that inside of the container detectives found a total of 37 plastic baggies containing methamphetamine packaged for sales. A further search of the bedroom revealed digital scales, pipes, currency, marijuana and more methamphetamine concealed in a night stand.
Combs was arrested for possession of a controlled substance for sales, possession of narcotics paraphernalia and possession of marijuana. Bauman said Johnson was arrested for being under the influence of a controlled substance.
He said a total of 16 grams of methamphetamine was seized and $200 in currency was seized for asset forfeiture as the suspected profits of drug trafficking.
While detectives were searching Combs’ residence, another subject arrived at the home with the apparent intent to purchase narcotics, Bauman said.
He reported that 34-year-old Ira Jude Donelson of Upper Lake was detained and subsequently arrested for being under the influence of a controlled substance.
All three suspects were transported to the Lake County Hill Road Correctional Facility and booked. Bail for Donelson, Combs and Johnson was set at $1,000, $10,000 and $3,000, respectively. Jail records indicated all three posted bail and were released.
The Sheriff’s Narcotics Task Force anonymous tip line is 707-263-3663.
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The rulings were made on Thursday, April 7, in the cases of Timothy John Shaw, 46, and Paul Alva, 47, according to a report from Chief Deputy District Attorney Richard Hinchcliff.
The men were tried separately in trials presided over by Judge Richard Martin in Lake County Superior Court's Department 2. Hinchcliff said the cases were prosecuted by Deputy District Attorney Ed Borg, with defense attorney Doug Rhoades representing each of the men.
Hinchcliff said sexually violent predator proceedings are a form of civil commitment codified at Welfare and Institutions Code section 6600 et seq. All persons convicted of felony crimes of sexual violence are evaluated by the California Department of Mental Health prior to their release on parole to determine if the inmate meets the criteria to be deemed a sexually violent predator.
At trial, to establish that a person is a sexually violent predator, the prosecutor must show, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the inmate has been convicted of committing sexually violent offenses against one or more victims; the inmate has a diagnosed mental disorder; as a result of that diagnosed mental disorder, the inmate is a danger to the health and safety of others because it is likely that he will engage in sexually violent predatory criminal behavior; and that is necessary to keep him in custody in a secure facility to ensure the health and safety of others, Hinchcliff said.
Alva was convicted of two counts of committing a lewd and lascivious act with a child under the age of 14 on Sept. 9, 1993, in Santa Clara County, according to Hinchcliff.
Hinchcliff said that on June 19, 2000, Alva was convicted in Lake County of annoying or molesting a child – Penal Code section 647.6 – and sentenced to 12 years in state prison. Hinchcliff said Penal Code section 647.6 is typically a misdemeanor; however, because of Alva's prior convictions, the case was charged as a felony.
Prior to his parole eligibility date of Aug. 3, 2009, Alva was evaluated by two California Department of Mental Health physicians. Hinchcliff said each evaluator concluded that Alva suffered from a mental disorder – pedophilia – and that if released he was likely to engage in sexually violent predatory behavior.
The Lake County District Attorney’s office filed a petition alleging that Alva was a sexually violent predator on Aug. 13, 2009, Hinchcliff said. Based on the evidence presented at the court trial, Judge Martin found that Borg had proven beyond a reasonable doubt that Alva was a sexually violent predator.
On Dec. 10, 1992, Shaw was convicted of four counts of committing a lewd and lascivious act with a child under the age of 14 by force against three separate victims. Hinchcliff said Shaw was sentenced to four consecutive prison terms of eight years each for an aggregate term of 32 years. He became eligible for parole on May 17, 2010.
Due to the nature of his underlying convictions, prior to his release Shaw also was evaluated by two California Department of Mental Health physicians to determine whether he met the criteria to be deemed a sexually violent predator, Hinchcliff said.
Like in Alva's case, Hinchcliff said the evaluators concluded that Shaw suffered from pedophilia and was likely to engage in sexually violent predatory behavior if released, which led the Lake County District Attorney’s office to file a petition on June 2, 2010, alleging that Shaw was a sexually violent predator.
As with Alva, Judge Martin concluded that Shaw was a sexually violent predator, Hinchcliff said.
Judge Martin ordered both Alva and Shaw committed to the State Hospital at Coalinga for an indeterminate term, according to Hinchcliff.
He said both Shaw and Alva will receive further treatment while incarcerated and will continue to be evaluated by medical and psychiatric staff at the California Department of Corrections.
Hinchcliff said both of the men will continue to be incarcerated indefinitely unless they are determined in the future by the Department of Mental Health to be safe to release into society.
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The National Weather Service in Sacramento had issued a hazardous weather outlook warning of the possibility of snow on Thursday thanks to a cold front moving down from the north.
The weather was definitely cooler and windier on Thursday, until the afternoon, when cloud cover blew in.
At around 3 p.m. the National Weather Service's Doppler radar picked up thunderstorms developing along an area from far southeast Lake County through Solano and Colusa counties, and moving toward Sacramento.
Reports from readers came in reporting a serious hail storm in the area of Highway 20 and Highway 16 in the county's southeast area.
After 4 p.m. pea-sized hail swept over areas of the county including Nice, Lucerne and Upper Lake, and hailstorms were later reported in Kelseyville, Clearlake, Hidden Valley Lake, Loch Lomond and Cobb.
Snow also was reported in Clearlake and Cobb late Thursday afternoon, although area residents reported that the snow didn't last for long.
The National Weather Service is predicting more sun and some wind over the weekend, with warmer temperatures at the start of next week and chances of showers in the middle of the week.
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NICE, Calif. – The US Army Corps of Engineers said it's negotiating with Robinson Rancheria regarding the agency's finding that the tribe violated the federal Clean Water Act in building its new gas station project on Highway 20.
Following a site visit earlier this year, Army Corps Regulatory Branch Manager Peck Ha said he made the final determination on the property, situated across the highway from the tribe's casino, which is located at 1545 E. Highway 20 in Nice.
The Army Corps notified the tribe in a letter, dated Feb. 9, that it found the tribe had discharged dredged or fill material into wetlands – which are “waters of the United States” – without a Department of the Army permit.
The Army Corps' letter to Robinson instructed the tribe to provide more information on the project, and also asked for comments from appropriate state, local and federal agencies, which were copied on the letter. Those agencies include the US Environmental Protection Agency, US Fish and Wildlife, California Department of Fish and Game and the California Regional Water Quality Control Board.
In 1999 the tribe had received Army Corps authorization for another, similar project in the area, which Ha said will be taken into consideration as it looks at the current case.
Lester Marston, Robinson Rancheria's Ukiah-based attorney, said the tribe doesn't agree with the determination.
“The tribe disputes the Army Corps' finding that there was a violation,” he said.
Army Corps spokesman John Prettyman said the tribe has verified receipt of the letter, noting that the tribe's formal response includes a denial that they've violated the Clean Water Act's Section 404, which has to do with wetlands, and that they will provide documentation.
“All the tribe did was put rock over an existing dirt road that is a public easement or right-of-way that was dedicated to the county to prevent soil erosion and siltation into the ditch,” said Marston, noting that rock isn't a pollutant under federal regulations, although sand and gravel are.
Marston said it's the tribe's intention to make sure the area where the rock was put down was restored to its original condition.
According to Ha, however, the riprap or placement of fill across the roadway is just one part of the violation.
His finding also included grading for the gas station platform closest to the detention basin where runoff is contained. Ha said both the riprap and the grading of the gas station platform activities resulted in impacts to approximately 0.23 acre of waters of the U.S. including wetlands.
Marston didn't respond to followup questions about those additional findings in the determination.
Prettyman said in the response the tribe's attorney stated that if there was a violation, the tribe would mitigate for the wetlands loss.
“Right now we are waiting on that documentation,” Prettyman said this week.
He said Army Corps officials spoke with Marston in the middle of March.
“They seem to be open to working with us,” Prettyman said, noting the Army Corps is working to find the best solution.
Federal officials aren't seeking punitive measures, but are instead are wanting to work with the tribe. Because there are “minor impacts” to the wetlands, Ha said the Army Corps is recommending that the tribe seek an after-the-fact permit.
“The tribe has no problem applying for a permit if a permit is needed,” said Marston.
Ha said the Army Corps also will ask the tribe to mitigate the damage to the wetlands, which can be done in a variety of ways, or the tribe can propose to conduct a mitigation on its own property to make up for the impacts.
Marston said the tribe had studied the area more than a decade ago when applying for the 1999 permit.
“The tribe went out and did a wetlands study for the specific purpose of delineating the wetlands,” he said.
That earlier project would have included construction in the wetlands area. “This project was designed so there would be no construction in the wetlands,” Marston said.
That original map was provided to the Army Corps, said Marston, who noted that he's also personally walked every inch of the property. Since the 1999 permit, the wetlands haven't changed or expanded, he said.
Regarding when the matter could be resolved, Prettyman noted, “As to right now there is no specific time line.”
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Although the numbers have improved from the previous year, in 2009, more than 700 people in the state were killed in a crash where the primary collision factor was driving under the influence (DUI); another 19,805 people were injured under similar circumstances.
“These are more than statistics, they are real people killed in collisions that were entirely preventable,” said California Highway Patrol (CHP) Commissioner Joe Farrow. “Impaired driving is an issue that crosses all segments of society.”
Driving with a measurable blood alcohol content of .08 percent or more for motorists 21 years old or older is illegal in California.
In 2009, law enforcement throughout the state made more than 210,000 arrests for driving under the influence. The CHP accounted for 44 percent of those arrests.
Enforcement alone will not halt this overwhelming problem in California, the CHP.
That's why, during the next several months, the CHP will conduct a grant-funded public education and awareness program with a focus on educating drivers about the dangers of DUI and the devastation it
causes.
The “Designated Driver Education Program” grant will fund the production of public service announcements; educational materials will be also produced and distributed statewide.
“Nobody ever thinks it’s going to happen to them,” said Farrow. “They think it happens to other people. Anytime an impaired motorist is on the road, not only do they put themselves at risk, they’re putting the lives of everyone else around them in danger.”
Funding for this program was provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
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The theft occurred at the Gualala Chevron on South Highway One, according to Capt. Kurt Smallcomb of the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office.
At 2 p.m. on Saturday, April 2, Mendocino County Sheriff's deputies were dispatched to the station regarding the theft, Smallcomb said.
On arrival deputies learned that at 4:30 a.m. that day a U-Haul truck and an unknown type of two-door sedan arrived at the Chevron Station, Smallcomb said.
It's believed that through some type of electronic manipulation the pumps were unlocked, which allowed the gas to be taken, according to Smallcomb.
He said the estimated value of the theft is $5,500.
Anyone with information investigating Mendocino County Sheriff's Deputy Mike Gander at 707-463- 4086.
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