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- Written by: Lake County News reports
NORTH COAST, Calif. — A Mendocino County judge on Thursday convicted a Fort Bragg woman of a felony in the 2019 death of a skateboarder.
Gina Rae Bean, 43, was found guilty after a trial in front of Presiding Judge Ann Moorman.
Bean was convicted of a felony, leaving the scene of an accident resulting in the death of another person, in this case, 21-year-old Calum Pulido, also known as Calum Hunnicutt.
The state Vehicle Code mandates that the driver of a vehicle involved in an accident resulting in the injury or death of a person must immediately stop the vehicle and render aid including summoning emergency help.
State law also requires a driver to report the accident without delay to the nearest law enforcement agency.
Criminal charges accused Bean of failing on the night of July 18, 2019, to stop, render aid or notify law enforcement of a crash on Highway 1 at the intersection with Little Lake Road.
Pulido was skateboarding with a friend at about 10:45 p.m. July 18. He was heading west on Little Lake Road when he was struck and killed by a northbound vehicle driven by Bean.
Court proceedings were delayed for a year because of a variety of reasons including COVID restrictions.
Eventually Bean and her private attorney waived her right to a jury trial and agreed to a trial before Judge Moorman in Mendocino County Superior Court.
The court trial began on Sept. 20 and over a total of five days prosecution and defense witnesses testified in front of Judge Moorman.
Bean testified on her own behalf at the court trial. Judge Moorman heard final arguments on Tuesday and took the case under submission.
Judge Moorman announced the guilty verdict on Thursday. Sentencing of Bean is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Dec. 3.
The Mendocino County District Attorney’s Office said Bean faces up to four years in state prison.
Bean also could be placed on supervised probation for no more than two years. Under law, however, Bean must serve county jail time. With credits, Bean could serve between 45 and 180 actual days in jail.
The California Highway Patrol and the state Department of Justice crime laboratories in Eureka and Sacramento developed evidence after the vehicle involved in the fatal accident was found hidden, and already under repair.
District Attorney investigators assisted prosecutor Eloise Kelsey in the trial preparation and developing additional evidence.
Judge Moorman found co-defendant, Ricky Faustino Santos, 37, also of Fort Bragg, was not guilty of being an accessory after the fact. Santos faces no further court proceedings, the District Attorney’s Office reported.
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- Written by: Lake County News reports
“With Big Coal trying to do an end run on the North Coast, the State of California is standing strong for the Great Redwood Trail. We won’t be intimidated, we’re certainly not going to back down. We will win this fight against Big Coal and the signing of SB 69 today is a massive step forward,” said McGuire.
He added, “I’m grateful to the governor for signing this historic legislation that will once and for all, close down the defunct and bankrupt North Coast Railroad Authority and transition the organization into a world class trails agency.”
The bill puts the organization, the funding, and the expert staff in place to fight what McGuire said are “midwestern coal barons” and to continue the progress on the Great Redwood Trail.
“We’ll kick off the Trail’s fully funded Master Plan in early 2022 and we couldn’t be more excited,” said McGuire.
Due to the passage and signing of SB 69, NCRA will transition to the Great Redwood Trail Agency on March 1, 2022, and the State Coastal Conservancy will take over oversight and management of the organization no later than July 1, 2022.
The Great Redwood Trail Agency’s mission is to master plan, design, construct, operate, and maintain the Great Redwood Trail.
They will begin the community outreach and master planning process the first part of the new year.
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
The California Highway Patrol’s Ukiah Area office said the crash occurred at 3:50 p.m. Monday on Highway 1 south of Frog Pond Road near Little River.
It did not release the name of the 39-year-old man who died pending notification of next of kin.
The CHP said the man was driving a 1982 Dodge pickup northbound on Highway 1 at a high rate of speed.
Because of his speed, the driver was unable to safely negotiate a sharp turn and drove across both lanes of Highway 1, going off the roadway and down a steep hill, the CHP said.
The CHP said the Dodge rolled over multiple times and landed on its roof appropriately 200 feet down the hill.
When the pickup landed on its roof, it was fully engulfed in flames, the CHP reported.
The man, who the CHP said was not wearing his seat belt, died at the scene of his injuries.
As of Monday night, the CHP said it was unknown if alcohol and/or drugs were factors in this collision, which remains under investigation.
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- Written by: Lake County News reports
California last week secured a Fire Management Assistance Grant, or FMAG, from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, to help ensure the availability of vital resources to suppress the Fawn fire.
Gov. Newsom has proclaimed a state of emergency in counties impacted by the Cache fire, Caldor Fire, McFarland and Monument fires, Antelope and River fires, Dixie, Fly and Tamarack fires and the Lava fire and Beckwourth Complex fire.
The governor has also signed executive orders to support impacted communities and bolster wildfire response and recovery efforts.
The state previously secured FMAGs to support the response to the Dixie Fire in Lassen, Butte and Plumas counties and the response to the French fire, Caldor fire, Monument fire, River fire and Lava fire.
The White House earlier this month approved a Presidential Major Disaster Declaration and Presidential Emergency Declaration to support the Caldor fire response, and previously approved a Presidential Major Disaster Declaration to support counties impacted by the Dixie and River fires.