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The Board of Prison Terms denied parole to Jane “Daisy” Benson, 61, on June 24.
Bensen currently is serving a 17-years-to-life sentence at the California Institute for Women in Chino, according to a Friday statement from the Lake County District Attorney's Office.
On April 1, 1988, Benson was convicted of the second-degree murder of Elaine Wright and of using a firearm to commit the crime, and sentenced to 17 years to life by Judge Robert L. Crone Jr. Stephen O. Hedstrom, who is currently a Superior Court Judge for Lake County, prosecuted Benson.
The murder occurred on June 16, 1987.
Benson went to Wright's residence on Manchester Street in Clearlake to confront her and her boyfriend, because the boyfriend had stolen some property from Benson, according to the case background.
Benson entered the victim’s bedroom with a handgun, where the victim and her boyfriend were lying in bed, and fired two shots into the floor. Both the boyfriend and Benson exited the bedroom briefly, then Benson re-entered the bedroom to again confront the victim.
Witnesses inside the residence heard another shot, and found the victim in bed shot once in the heart.
Benson claimed that she accidentally shot the victim when she was bumped from behind by someone causing the gun to discharge. However, all witnesses at the scene stated that at the time the victim was shot, the only two people in the room were Benson and the victim.
Deputy District Attorney Edward M. Borg participated in the parole hearing from Lake County by video-conferencing to argue against Benson’s release. The video conferencing was arranged by the District Attorney’s Office to avoid having to send a representative to the prison facility. This saved the county and taxpayers funds that would have had to be spent for motel, air flight, car rental and meals for a deputy district attorney to make an in-person appearance at the hearing in Chino.
During the video conference hearing, Borg argued that the time Benson had spent in custody was not sufficient punishment considering the callousness of the crime and Benson’s consistent unwillingness to accept full responsibility for the murder.
Borg further argued that, based upon prison psychiatric reports, Benson still presented an unreasonable risk of danger to others if released because of her lack of insight into her actions and her lack of strategies to avoid re-offending if she were released.
At the parole hearing, Benson continued to claim that the shooting was accidental.
The Board of Prison Terms ruled Benson was unsuitable for parole.
She first became eligible for parole in 1999. This was Benson’s sixth appearance before the Board of Prison Terms to request parole.
Her last parole hearing was on June 26, 2008. The Board of Prison Terms found Benson to be suitable for parole after that hearing; however, that decision was subsequently overturned by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.
The first fire, in grass along Highway 53 near Anderson Marsh State Historic Park, was reported about 3:30 p.m. Friday, according to the California Highway Patrol.
That fire was small and quickly contained; Cal Fire didn't have information on its size.
Later, another fire was reported north of Lakeport at Bridge Arbor Drive.
That fire, contained just after 6 p.m., burned about three acres, according to Cal Fire.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
The metal building burned late Tuesday afternoon at the Scotts Valley Road property of Doug Patten, as Lake County News has reported.
“The preliminary report is that it's going to be electrical,” said Lakeport Fire Protection District Chief Ken Wells.
Wells said the building itself is “the only ignition source in that area.”
Wells and his department were on scene Tuesday along with personnel from Cal Fire, the US Department of Forestry and Kelseyville Fire, as Lake County News has reported.
Patten had done a controlled burn on his property that afternoon, but that fire had been out before Patten left his property to attend a funeral, according to reports from the initial scene.
“It was just a fluke that earlier on that day he was doing an economic variance burn,” said Wells.
Although a general burn ban is on, Doug Gearhart, pollution control officer with the Lake County Air Quality Management District, said Patten had a valid economic exemption permit that allowed him to legally burn as part of his agricultural operation.
He said the burn site for the economic exemption had been inspected by Lakeport Fire for fire safety prior to the burn.
All economic exemption burn sites have to be inspected and declared fire safe by the appropriate fire agency before the air district will process a request for an economic exemption, said Gearhart.
He added that the economic exemption burn at this site was approved for the hours of 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at which time the fire was required to be dead out.
The burn, Wells explained, was conducted so Patten could remove a pile of of debris from his pasture. But he had flooded it with water to make sure it was out.
Wells had no estimate for the total cost of damages, which included a vintage Jeep parked in the building, as well as tools.
Patten did have defensible space – which is 100 feet of clearance from brush and weeds – around his buildings, which Wells emphasized is crucial at this time of year.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
Friday's high temperatures should be in the low- to mid- 90s, according to the National Weather Service (NWS) in Sacramento, with slight southerly breezes. Overnight temperatures are expected to reach the upper 50s.
On Saturday, Independence Day, NWS forecasts that the highs should top out around 94, with calm winds early that become breezier with westerly winds in the afternoon and early evening. Lows are predicted to reach the mid-50s.
Temperatures on Sunday will usher in a short cooling trend, with highs in the mid- to upper-80s and overnight lows in the mid-50s.
Monday through Wednesday, the NWS is forecasting daytimes highs to be in the low 80s to mid-70s, however The Weather Channel (TWC) predicts temperatures to remain closer to normal, in the mid- to upper 80s. Both agree that lows will remain in the mid-50s Monday through Wednesday.
Whatever the temperature, remember to have a safe July 4th weekend and enjoy the legal fireworks surrounding Clear Lake this weekend.
E-mail Terre Logsdon at
“Plan ahead and allow extra time for travel on busy roads, buckle up before you head out and don’t speed,” reminded CHP Commissioner Joe Farrow. “Speeding reduces a driver's ability to steer safely around curves or react to hazards in the roadway.”
Fourth of July weekend is a Maximum Enforcement Period (MEP) for the CHP.
All available officers will patrol the roadways during the MEP, which begins at 6 p.m. Friday, July 3, and extends until midnight on Sunday, July 5.
Last year over the three-day, Fourth of July weekend, 41 people died on California’s roadways; nearly half of those killed in CHP jurisdiction were not wearing a seatbelt at the time of the crash, and one motorcyclist who died was without a helmet.
“Many of those deaths could have been easily avoided by taking a moment to buckle a seat belt,” stated Commissioner Farrow. “Proper safety equipment takes a moment to secure and can make all the difference between walking away from a crash, or being carried away on a stretcher.”
In addition to speeders and those who fail to buckle up, officers will be looking for drivers under the influence.
Last year, over the Fourth of July holiday, CHP officers statewide arrested 1,684 people for DUI.
“If you’re going to drink, do not drive,” urged Commissioner Farrow. “And equally important, don't get into a vehicle with a driver who has been drinking. Plan ahead and designate a non-drinking driver.”
The Independence Day MEP is also an Operation Combined Accident Reduction Effort (CARE) holiday.
Operation CARE is a joint program of the nation’s highway patrols that places special safety emphasis on interstate highways during holiday periods.
CARE highways in California include Interstates 80, 40, 15 and 5.
The US Geological Survey reported that the earthquake occurred at 5:42 a.m. at a depth of 2.4 miles.
The quake's epicenter was located one mile northeast of The Geysers, four miles west southwest of Cobb and six miles west northwest of Anderson Springs, the US Geological Survey reported.
Shake reports were made to the US Geological Survey from as close as Middletown and Calistoga and as far away as Pleasanton.
The quake's ground motion places it at level IV on the Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale, which means it was felt by many and caused damage.
“I do have some damage,” said longtime Anderson Springs resident Meriel Medrano. “I have a huge crack in my living room.”
Medrano said she also had a new crack in her bathroom.
The quake was the second in two days measuring 3.0 or above in magnitude. A Tuesday morning earthquake measuring 3.8 on the Richter scale and V on the Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale.
Medrano said she thinks her damage could have resulted from the effects of both quakes.
The Wednesday quake was “a pretty good doozy,” said Medrano, noting that it woke her up.
Medrano and other Anderson Springs and Cobb residents are concerned that AltaRock Energy's new geothermal drilling project – located up the mountain from her home – will increase seismicity in the already earthquake-prone area, as Lake County News reported earlier this week.
The company already has started drilling and is expected to start fracturing deep bedrock in August.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at