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- Written by: Lake County News reports
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Following an early morning traffic stop on Tuesday, a Lake County Sheriff’s deputy arrested an East Coast man who was found with more than 30 pounds of marijuana in his car and a suitcase filled with a large amount of cash.
Lt. Corey Paulich said Mehir Patel, 26, of Charlotte, North Carolina was arrested following the stop.
At 12:20 a.m. Tuesday, a Lake County Sheriff’s deputy was patrolling the area of Highway 20 near New Long Valley Road in Clearlake Oaks when he observed a Toyota Rav4 that was exceeding the posted speed limit and traveling east on Highway 20, Paulich said.
Paulich said the deputy conducted a traffic stop on the vehicle for the speeding violation and contacted the driver and only occupant of the vehicle, identified as Patel.
While the deputy was speaking to Patel, he could smell an overwhelming odor of marijuana coming from inside the vehicle. Paulich said Patel told the deputy he had been visiting friends in Willits and was returning home.
When questioned about marijuana in the vehicle Patel first told the deputy he did not have any, but upon further questioning admitted to having approximately 30 pounds in the vehicle. Paulich said Patel told the deputy he planned to transport the marijuana to Los Angeles where he would sell it for a $100 per pound profit.
Paulich said the deputy searched the vehicle and located 32 individually wrapped one-pound packages of marijuana as well as $151,000 in a suitcase.
Patel told the deputy he had planned on purchasing more marijuana in Willits but the price was not low enough, Paulich said.
Due to COVID-19 restrictions, Patel was not able to be booked at the Lake County Jail, Paulich said.
Paulich said the marijuana and money were seized and the case will be forwarded to the Lake County District Attorney’s Office for review.
The sheriff’s office is requesting the district attorney charge Patel with possessing over $100,000 for the purchase of marijuana, possession of marijuana for sale and transportation of marijuana for sale, Paulich said.
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
The National Weather Service has issued the red flag warning, which will be in effect from 2 p.m. Thursday to 8 p.m. Friday.
The agency said a red flag warning means that critical fire weather conditions – including strong winds, low relative humidity and warm temperatures – are either occurring now or will shortly, and can contribute to extreme fire behavior.
At the same time, California ISO, the agency that operates the state’s energy grid, is calling a statewide flex alert for power conservation between 3 and 10 p.m. Thursday.
The forecast calls for north to northwest winds of 10 to 20 miles per hour that will become gusty – with gusts of up to 25 miles per hour – Thursday afternoon through Friday evening across southern Mendocino County and portions of western and southern Lake County.
“Those winds combined with afternoon humidity values in the teens, poor overnight humidity recoveries, warm temperatures, and dry vegetation will yield a critical fire weather threat,” the National Weather Service said.
In the specific Lake County, forecasters said temperatures will be close to the century mark on Friday, with nighttime temperatures in the high 50s.
Over the weekend, temperatures will drop into the high 80s and nighttime temperatures will be in the mid to high 50s, the forecast said.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
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- Written by: Lake County News reports
With high temperatures in the forecast, the power grid operator is predicting an increase in electricity demand, primarily from air conditioning use. Reduced capacity, along with fire activity and heat, has led to a potential shortage of energy supply on Thursday evening.
On Wednesday afternoon, a grid alert was issued for a possible electricity shortage in the day-ahead market, for one hour beginning at 6 p.m. Thursday, and a Restricted Maintenance Operations (RMO) notice was issued for the period 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Thursday.
The Grid Alert will allow operators to call up demand response supply, while the RMO allows operators to call all available generation onto the system and bring back transmission that may be offline for planned maintenance.
Consumers are urged to conserve electricity, especially during the late afternoon and early evening, when the grid is most stressed due to higher demand and solar energy production falling. Consumers are also asked to turn off unnecessary lights, delay using major appliances until after 10 p.m., and set air conditioner thermostats to 78 degrees or higher.
The conservation measures can help the power grid during a time of tight demand and supply, and avoid power interruptions. Energy reduction during a Flex Alert can prevent further emergency measures, including rotating power outages.
Between 3 p.m. and 10 p.m., the ISO is urging consumers to:
– Set air conditioning thermostats to 78 degrees, if health permits.
– Defer use of major appliances.
– Turn off unnecessary lights.
– Unplug unused electrical devices.
– Close blinds and drapes.
– Use fans when possible.
– Limit time the refrigerator door is open.
Consumers can also take steps to prepare for the Flex Alert by doing the following
before 3 p.m.:
– “Pre-cool” their homes, or lower air conditioning thermostats.
– Charge electric vehicles.
– Charge mobile devices and laptops.
– Run dishwashers, washing machines and other major appliances.
– Set pool pumps to run in the early morning or late at night.
- Details
- Written by: Lake County News reports
Delivering on his promise this summer to sign a bill ending the use of the carotid restraint, Gov. Newsom signed AB 1196 by Assemblymember Mike Gipson (D-Carson) which bans the practice statewide, and signed AB 1506 by Assemblymember Kevin McCarty (D-Sacramento) requiring the California Attorney General to conduct investigations into officer-involved shootings of unarmed individuals that result in death.
He also took action on legislation that reforms the juvenile justice system to put more emphasis on rehabilitation and education, as well as creating a more just probation system.
“Americans across the country took to the streets this summer rightfully demanding more and better of our criminal justice system – and of ourselves,” said Gov. Newsom. “We heard those calls for action loud and clear and today are advancing reforms to improve policing practices by ending the carotid hold and requiring independent investigations in officer-involved shootings. We are also taking important steps to break the school-to-prison pipeline. Still, we can and must do more. Working with our youth, faith and community leaders, law enforcement, the Legislature and countless others demanding change, my Administration remains committed to the important work ahead to make our criminal and juvenile justice systems fairer and safer for all Californians.”
Newsom has enacted major change on criminal justice reform during his first years in office – from enacting one of the nation’s strongest police use-of-force standards, to putting a moratorium on the death penalty and shutting down California’s execution chamber, to closing prisons.
Newsom’s office said the administration will continue to work with the Legislature on additional reforms, including efforts to increase transparency in peace officer records and broader decertification measures to create accountability for officers with a history of misconduct.
Gov. Newsom also took action on Wednesday on important juvenile justice reforms.
He signed several bills to support young people coming out of the criminal justice system and to disrupt the school-to-prison pipeline.
SB 823 by the Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review takes the first, formal step of closing the Division of Juvenile Justice, which will help to provide youth rehabilitative services closer to home.
Other bills the governor signed Wednesday that support youth include AB 901 by Assemblymember Mike Gipson (D-Carson), which will end the practice of referring youth who are having problems at school to probation programs.
Additionally, SB 203 by Senator Steven Bradford (D-Gardena) requires that children under age 17 have an opportunity to consult with legal counsel before interrogation, and SB 1290 by Senator Maria Elena Durazo (D-Los Angeles) will cancel certain fees assessed on juvenile offenders and their families.
Finally, Gov. Newsom signed AB 1950 by Assemblymember Sydney Kamlager (D-Los Angeles), which caps probation terms to a maximum of one year for misdemeanor offenses and two years for felonies.
Governor Newsom also signed:
AB 646 by Assemblymember Kevin McCarty (D-Sacramento) – Elections: voter eligibility.
AB 732 by Assemblymember Rob Bonta (D-Alameda) – County jails: prisons: incarcerated pregnant persons.
AB 846 by Assemblymember Autumn Burke (D-Inglewood) and Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin (D-Thousand Oaks) – Public employment: public officers or employees declared by law to be peace officers.
AB 1304 by Assemblymember Marie Waldron (R-Escondido) – California MAT Re-Entry Incentive Program. A signing message can be found here.
AB 1775 by Assemblymember Reginald Byron Jones-Sawyer, Sr. (D-Los Angeles) – False reports and harassment.
AB 2321 by Assemblymember Reginald Byron Jones-Sawyer, Sr. (D-Los Angeles) – Juvenile court records: access.
AB 2425 by Assemblymember Mark Stone (D-Scotts Valley) – Juvenile police records.
AB 2512 by Assemblymember Mark Stone (D-Scotts Valley) – Death penalty: person with an intellectual disability.
AB 2606 by Assemblymember Sabrina Cervantes (D-Riverside) – Criminal justice: supervised release file.
AB 3043 by Assemblymember Reginald Byron Jones-Sawyer, Sr. (D-Los Angeles) – Corrections: confidential calls.
AB 3234 by Assemblymember Philip Ting (D-San Francisco) – Public Safety. A signing message can be found here.
SB 480 by Senator Bob Archuleta (D-Pico Rivera) – Law enforcement uniforms.
SB 1126 by Senator Brian W. Jones (R-Santee) – Juvenile court records.
SB 1196 by Senator Thomas Umberg (D-Santa Ana) – Price gouging.