How to resolve AdBlock issue? 
News
UPPER LAKE, Calif. – A man who authorities believe struck and killed an elderly man in a wheelchair with his vehicle early Thursday morning has been arrested for felony hit and run.
Manuel Herrera, 30, was arrested in Nice Thursday afternoon, according to California Highway Patrol Officer Joe Wind.
Herrera's arrest followed an investigation that began when the crash victim's body was found around 9 a.m. Thursday along Highway 20 near Reclamation Road, not far from the Bloody Island historical marker, Wind said.
“Caltrans was out there this morning to do some road maintenance and Caltrans workers found him in the bushes,” he said.
The debris from the man's destroyed wheelchair was found adjacent to the shoulder. Wind said the man's body wasn't visible from the roadway, but had been thrown into the brush by the impact.
He said investigators are narrowing down the time frame for the crash, which they believe happened in the dark early morning hours Thursday.
An online CHP report from around 2:30 a.m. Thursday described a subject in a wheelchair who was traveling westbound from Robinson Rancheria. The person was said to be close to the highway's white fog line and couldn't be seen until close up.
Wind said they believe the crash victim was “well on the shoulder” of the westbound highway lane when he was hit.
“I don't know at this point in time what caused the suspect to drive onto the shoulder,” Wind said, adding that Herrera is alleged to have not stopped or rendered any kind of aid.
Wind said the investigation had been handled quietly during the day.
The CHP was reported to have taken aerial photos of the crash location, and Capt. James Bauman of the Lake County Sheriff's Office said that agency had investigators on scene.
Late in the morning, the CHP had put out a call for the community to be on the lookout for Herrera's vehicle, which they originally described as a 1993 to 1995 Honda Civic that had been repainted silver over a blue paint job and had damage to its right front section.
Investigators found the vehicle, which turned out to be a 1992 Honda Accord, in the Nice area and subsequently went to a residence, spoke with Herrera and arrested him, Wind said.
The CHP reported that Herrera was located at 3364 E. Highway 20, the location of the Cloverleaf Apartments in Nice. Sheriff's deputies and CHP deputies were on scene at the apartment complex late in the day Thursday.
Wind said the coroner has not yet been able to do a positive identification of the victim.
The roadway near where the collision occurred was finally cleared of law enforcement units shortly before 7:30 p.m., the CHP reported.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
Thomas Lee Carter, 59, was released on a $200,000 appearance bond, according to US Attorney's Office spokesman Jack Gillund.
Gillund said Carter's release was secured by property at 1622 Hunter Point Road in Upper Lake.
Carter was arrested by Drug Enforcement Administration agents on Sept. 1 on allegations of possession with intent to distribute marijuana and violation of previous release terms, as Lake County News has reported.
He had been arrested on another count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute marijuana and two counts of distributing or possessing with intent to distribute marijuana in August 2009 along with several co-defendants. Carter also was released last year on a $200,000 bond secured by the same Hunter Point Road property.
The government is alleging he is part of distributing marijuana in Lake County, as well as San Diego and Los Angeles.
According to a redacted complaint filed by the US Attorney's Office, DEA Special Agent Brandon Burkhart stated that two sources had come forward in June to accuse Carter of growing marijuana, which would have violated the terms of his release.
Burkhart was involved in the August 2009 arrests and, previous to that, had provided evidence against Upper Lake marijuana grower Eddy Lepp, now serving a federal prison term.
Both of the informants were said to be former employees of Carter, who also runs a construction company. One had left after a disagreement, the other after being treated unfairly, according to Burkhart's statement.
One of the informants claimed to have seen Carter grading an area in Upper Lake in June with no grading permit issued, with the informant stating that he believed Carter was clearing the land to grow marijuana. Burkhart's affidavit also included the allegations by informants that Carter was affiliated with illicit grows
In August a deputy sheriff and a county probation officer took part in an overflight of Upper Lake around Carter's various properties, and they recorded coordinates for several marijuana grow locations and observed marijuana plants growing on parcels near Carter's residence, the documents stated.
Burkhart reviewed the GPS coordinates and found they fell within the lines of Carter's properties. He also compared the photographs taken of the area to GPS locations and identified a garden with 85 to 100 plants. He later took part in an overflight himself and saw what he believed were the same marijuana plants.
He stated that he believed Carter was planning to distribute the plants and he requested Carter be arrested and that searches take place of five locations.
Federal public defenders Barry Portman and Geoffrey Hansen filed documents that challenged Burkhart's assertions, stating that Carter denied knowing marijuana was being grown on the property
They also pointed out that one of the informants was a convicted felon, which they said led to questions about his prior conviction status. The other informant has two prior convictions and currently grows marijuana, they stated.
During the Sept. 1 raid, 70 marijuana plants were found at 1545 Hunter Point Road, owned by Carter but leased to another individual and located three miles from his residence, where no plants were found, according to the defense motion.
At another Carter-owned property leased to a couple 29 plants were found, the attorneys stated. Carter, who denied knowing of that grow, was not charged for those plants.
Carter's attorneys also asserted that Carter had complied with his pretrial directives and has been regularly drug tested, with no dirty tests submitted. A pretrial services officer who visits Carter regularly “has found no evidence that Mr. Carter uses, possesses or sells marijuana,” the filing stated.
In a followup filing on Tuesday, the defense attorneys demanded to be able to cross-examine the informants as part of a hearing on whether or not to release Carter, who they said had a Sixth Amendment right to confront the witnesses against him.
Despite the government's arguments to keep Carter in custody, the hour-and-a-half-long hearing Wednesday morning resulted in his release. His wife, Jamie Ceridono, is ordered to sign onto the bond on Sept. 14, according to court documents.
Carter and co-defendants Brett Bassignani, Scott and Diana Feil, Steven Swanson and Mark Garcia are scheduled to return in January for continued proceedings in the case arising from the August 2009 arrests.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
Cal Fire and Northshore Fire Protection District firefighters responded to a report of a blown transformer on Sulphur Bank Drive and Highway 20 just after 8:30 p.m. Saturday night, according to radio reports.
A small fire was triggered but quickly put out, and Pacific Gas and Electric was called in, officials reported from the scene.
PG&E spokesman Brandi Ehlers said the equipment failure led to a power outage that ran from 8:41 p.m. to 11:55 p.m. Friday.
She said approximately 4,009 customers in Clearlake, Clearlake Oaks, Clearlake Park and Lower Lake lost power.
Businesses in the area either closed early or tried to use candlelight, according to a report Lake County News received from a community member.
The outage also led to an issue for the Southeast Regional Wastewater Collection System in Clearlake, according to Special Districts Administrator Mark Dellinger.
Dellinger said the loss of power caused a backup on Lakeshore Drive in which two manholes discharged.
He said 70 gallons of sewage was discharged, and all of it was contained and removed.
No sewage flowed into Clear Lake, Dellinger said.
“We were directed by Lake County Environmental Health to disinfect and post the area affected by both manholes,” he said.
Dellinger said the health department later directed that the signs be removed, which took place on Tuesday.
Special Districts sent the spill notification to the state, as required, on Saturday, he said.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
Daytime high temperatures yesterday reached the mid-80s around Lake County, but the National Weather Service in Sacramento has dialed down the forecast with the arrival Tuesday of an unseasonably strong low-pressure system.
Average temperatures for this time of year should reach in to the upper-80s, but Wednesday's forecast high is predicted to only top out in the upper 60s, with a 20-percent chance of rain into the evening before 11 p.m., with mostly cloudy skies.
A red flag warning was issued for Wednesday in the Sierra Nevada mountains and Nevada due to high winds with this low pressure system.
Thursday should be slightly warmer as the low pressure system moves out, with daytime highs in the mid-70s, with temperatures climbing back in to the 80s by the weekend.
For up-to-the-minute weather information, please visit the Lake County News homepage.
E-mail Terre Logsdon at
Steven Chiriboga, 50, was taken into custody in Sea Ranch on Monday, according to a report from Capt. Kurt Smallcomb.
At 4 p.m. Saturday deputies were dispatched to 13865 Mountain House Road in Hopland regarding an attempted murder and arson in progress, Smallcomb said.
When they arrived at the scene the deputies observed that the residence was completely engulfed in flames and firefighters were in the process of putting out the blaze, according to Smallcomb's report.
Smallcomb said deputies contacted the victim and learned that Chiriboga had allegedly led his 50-year-old wife into the house where he had opened the kitchen gas lines. He then is alleged to have set fire to the residence and grabbed and prevented his wife from leaving while the house continued to burn.
The couple's neighbors were able to break into house, which Chiriboga had been previously barricaded shut, Smallcomb said. Upon entering the house the neighbors were able to drag Chiriboga and his wife out of the house.
Chiriboga then fled the scene in his Chevy Silverado pickup truck prior to the deputies' arrival, and Smallcomb said a be on the lookout was issued for his arrest.
On Monday Mendocino County Sheriff's detectives trying to locate Chiriboga learned – with the assistance of the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office – that he was somewhere in the Sea Ranch area of Sonoma County, according to Smallcomb.
Smallcomb said Chiriboga was located driving his pickup in Sea Ranch and a traffic stop was conducted.
Chiriboga was arrested without incident and released to the custody of Mendocino County Sheriff's detectives, who Smallcomb said transported Chiriboga to the Mendocino County Jail where he was booked on charges of attempted murder, corporal injury of a spouse and arson, with bail set at $1 million.
Follow Lake County News on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LakeCoNews and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lake-County-News/143156775604?ref=mf .
LAKEPORT, Calif. – Two hopeful “citizen legislators” are challenging the region's incumbent state and federal representatives for a shot at putting to work their vision of how to govern the region.
Loren Hanks, a major in the Air Force Reserve who is running for the First Congressional District seat currently held by Congressman Mike Thompson, and Karen Brooks, who is seeking the First State Assembly District seat Wes Chesbro has so far held for a term, were in Lakeport last week, hosted by the Lake County Republican Party.
About two dozen people came to hear what Hanks and Brooks had in store should they buck tough odds to win the federal and state seats, respectively.
Hanks and Brooks, both Republicans with that party's nominations, have been traveling around the North Coast, speaking to voters, knocking on doors and trying to win over the heavily Democratic area.
Strong Republican-run campaigns are known to the area. One example – Lake County's own Rob Brown finished second to Patty Berg in the 2002 Assembly race, with an 8-percent difference that amounted to less than 10,000 votes, a thin margin of victory in what's been considered a Democratic stronghold in recent years.
This year, the campaigns of Hanks and Brooks are gaining some momentum from what Hanks called “a reinvigorated silent majority,” some of which has been given a voice in the Tea Party.
But they're facing unique challenges that come partially from being outside of the political machine, having smaller war chests than their opponents and what some people in the room at the Republican Party event blamed on a liberal media bias that favors the Democratic incumbents.
Hanks, a military reservist since 1984 who has worked in intelligence and counter intelligence, said he wanted to start looking at the government and its problems from within. Born in Washington state, his family moved to California when he was a child, and he's since lived in Sonoma, Humboldt and Marin counties. Hanks said he lives today in Sonoma county.
When he decided to run, “It seemed to me that the gravest threat we had was a Congress that was not providing advice and consent and, quite frankly, an administration that is inexperienced and immature and has made some very bad decisions.”
He proposes to hold three, two-year terms and then step aside, with another citizen legislator on deck to take over from him. That's the better alternative, he suggested, than establishing term limits in the US Constitution, a document he didn't want to see changed or altered.
“I think we've got a shot at it this year,” he said, explaining that the Tea Party is “an amazing wild card” that the Democratic Party leadership initially discounted.
Hanks wants to see legislation revamped so amendments unrelated to the main bill can't be added. In addition, he wants to see citizen summary sheets that include the bill's intent, cost and constitutional authority, as well as the legislation's expiration date.
Pointing to Thompson's $1.5 million war chest, Hanks said he has been paying for his campaign out of his own pocket, and wants to see the kind of large spending that's typified congressional runs ended.
After walking portions of the district and hearing peoples' concerns, Hanks believes the race against Thompson is winnable through grassroots efforts.
“Let's start a movement here,” he said.
Brooks wants to take back state government
Brooks, like Hanks, has been spending a lot of time on the road to canvass her prospective district of 400,000 residents. The Humboldt County resident has driven more than 35,000 miles in doing so.
She said she finally had it and had to stand up, leave her family, home and business, and run for state Assembly.
“It's not because I have the money to do it,” she said, adding, “We just feel like this is our stand,” and as she's listened to peoples' stories around the district, “We know that it's your final stand, too.”
When Brooks found out that no one was going to run against Chesbro, “something just clicked” and she decided to run, springing the news on her family after dinner on a Sunday night following her husband's and son's return from a ski trip. Her husband didn't take the news well – he didn't speak to her for three days – but eventually he agreed to support her effort.
Brooks said there is a reason citizen candidates don't stand up – it's hard and they don't have a political machine behind them.
But Brooks, a businesswoman who prides herself on asking no one for handouts – not even her parents when she worked her way through college – was up to the challenge.
It's been an eye-opening experience being on the campaign trail, Brooks said. She's encountered many people home and unemployed as she's knocked doors during the day. She's also come upon plenty of marijuana grow houses.
She said the state is stealing dreams and livelihoods by overregulating businesses. Brooks, who assesses businesses for a living, said the biggest barrier for business owners is what the government will do next.
She would like to see the “alphabet soup” departments like the Air Resources Board and the State Water Resources Control Board go away, and also have a review of how the state handles worker's compensation and education.
Both candidates fielded questions from the audience, discussing everything from bringing funds to the district to immigration.
Brooks talked about public-private partnerships as a way of meeting needs. “Looking at the government to solve our problems, those days are over.”
She also anticipated the next few years will be even rougher economically, and said she has told faith-based organizations and service groups to be prepared to step up. “That's how we're going to ride this thing through.”
Hanks took the opportunity to criticize Thompson for reportedly having stated he was proud to be a member of the Democratic majority that would bring “fiscal sanity” to Congress. But Hanks alleged that it's been on the Democrats' watch that the national debt has risen from $8.6 trillion to $13.4 trillion.
He said he would like to share the video of Thompson's remarks on his Web site, but campaign laws prohibit it. “Look at this entrenchment that we've allowed these people to have.”
Hanks noted that such rules are discouraging for those wanting to run for office. “I did this against a lot of advice, let me tell you.”
They were asked about what can be done about the media, which one woman in the audience noted was one of their biggest enemies. Brooks said the media has let the country down by failing to expose corruption and ask tough questions.
Hanks said his effort with the media is a “work in progress,” with his message getting out in some outlets. Mainly, he's focusing on the Internet and radio as important avenues.
The candidates also were asked about how to fix infrastructure like roads and what to do about border security.
Hanks said he is a proponent of the border fence, adding that as for immigration policy, “The front door works just fine,” but people must be required to follow the rules.
Brooks said she supports guest worker programs, but doesn't want to see bad behavior rewarded. She's also a “tough love proponent” who wants to help people who truly need it, not those who use the system.
Both also expressed their support for the Second Amendment, and plans to cover their districts in person if elected.
Hanks said later that he thought it was “a real solid event.”
He's also looking forward to having more town halls and would like to host a telephone town hall at a future date to be determined, with what he guarantees will be unfiltered questions. The Hanks camp also is pushing for a debate with Thompson.
Lake County News has extended interview invitations to both Chesbro and Thompson regarding this fall's campaigns.
For more information about the candidates, visit Brooks' Web site at www.karenbrooks2010.com/ or her Facebook page, www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=112768748740990&ref=mf; and Hanks' site at www.hanksforcongress.com/ or Facebook page at www.facebook.com/pages/Hanks-for-Congress/351342586968.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at