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Gabrielle Rachel Varney, 18, is facing charges of murder and a special allegation of using a knife in the June 5 death of 17-year-old Heather Valdez. Varney pleaded not guilty to the charges last month.
Her attorney, Stephen Carter, said Varney went before Judge Richard Freeborn in Lake County Superior Court's Department 4 Friday afternoon.
Carter said Varney's preliminary hearing in the case will be held Tuesday, Sept. 30.
He said the case will be called on Sept. 26 for the purpose of assigning the preliminary hearing to a specific department.
Varney and Valdez allegedly were involved in a confrontation after getting off the school bus from Carlé High School, where they were both students, as Lake County News has reported.
Police said the girls had been involved in a feud for months before the fight occurred.
Varney remains in the Lake County Jail.
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LAKE COUNTY – A multimillion-dollar road improvement project which state officials believe will increase highway safety is continuing in the south county.
The Walker Ridge curve realignment is taking place along Highway 20. The project is likely familiar to drivers who have experienced stops in the area while road crews continue their work.
Caltrans spokesman Phil Frisbie said the $16 million project was awarded to Argonaut Construction in September of 2006, when some minor prep work was performed. Major work didn't begin until April of 2007.
It's the largest Caltrans project under construction in Lake County at this time, said Frisbie.
The project, which Frisbie said is expected to be completed this fall, includes a large retaining wall where the highway has been widened.
“It's realigning some of the curves to increase sight distance and it's also widening the shoulders and installing some new drainage systems,” he said.
The project, said Frisbie, is meant to increase safety along the stretch of highway.
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The Soda Complex reached 79-percent containment on Friday, according to Forest Service spokesman Marc Peebles.
The fires, located in the vicinity of Lake Pillsbury on the Mendocino National Forest's Upper Lake Ranger District, have burned 8,360 acres, Peebles said.
Approximately 722 firefighters are assigned to the complex, about 70 more than the previous day.
Of the original four fires the only one still burning is the Mill Fire, which has burned 2,751 acres and is itself 64-percent contained. Peebles reported that total containment is estimated to take place July 23.
On Friday firefighters continued building containment line and dousing hot spots on all areas of the fire with the aid of aircraft and fresh crews. The fire, said Peebles, continues to burn actively on its western, southwestern and southeastern flanks.
He reported that one firefighter suffered a heat-related illness on Thursday and was temporarily removed from the fire line for recovery. The firefighter returned to duty Friday.
Elsewhere in the Mendocino National Forest, the Vinegar Fire has reached 30-percent containment after burning 10,070 acres, according to Forest Service spokesperson Phebe Brown. The Vinegar Fire is part of the complex burning in the Yolla Bolly-Middle Eel Wilderness, now managed under the Lime Complex.
In other areas of the North Coast, the Mendocino Lightning Complex was contained Thursday night, but residents in the northern part of Lake County reported Friday that thick smoke was still coming into the area.
Doug Gearhart, deputy air pollution control officer at the Air Quality Management District said that smoke is from the Mendocino County fires, with the winds carrying the fires to Lake County, where it's becoming trapped in some of the area's confined valleys.
Gearhart reported that Lake County's air quality is supposed to be in the good to moderate range through Monday, although residual smoke can be expected to remain throughout all areas of Northern California, including Lake County, until the wildfires are completely contained.
For more information about the forest fires visit Forest Service Web site at www.fs.fed.us/r5/mendocino or www.inciweb.org. For information about other fires around the state, visit www.cdf.ca.gov.
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The crash took place at 6:30 a.m. on Seigler Canyon Road, three miles west of Highway 29, California Highway Patrol Officer Adam Garcia reported.
Garcia said 40-year-old Michael Rhode of Clearlake was driving a 2003 Ford Taurus westbound on Seigler Canyon Road when he lost control of his vehicle, apparently due to a medical condition. He collided head-on with Barbara Dwyer, 36, of Cobb, driving a 2006 Honda Civic in the eastbound lane.
The crash sent Dwyer's car off the roadway, where it came to rest in a creek bed approximately 15 feet off the roadway, according to Garcia.
Dwyer sustained major injuries and was flown by REACH air ambulance to UC Davis Medical Center. Garcia said it wasn't yet known on Thursday if her injuries were life-threatening.
Her front passenger, 53-year-old Cobb resident Sharon Anderson, suffered moderate injuries and was taken by Kelseyville Fire ambulance to Sutter Lakeside Hospital, Garcia reported.
Garcia said Rhode also was taken to Sutter lakeside Hospital for moderate injuries by Kelseyville Fire ambulance.
Officer Dallas Richey is investigating the incident, Garcia said.
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