How to resolve AdBlock issue? 
News
- Details
- Written by: Lake County News reports
In a historical appointment, the California Highway Patrol has appointed the first African American woman to hold its second-in-command post.
On Friday, CHP Commissioner Warren Stanley announced his appointment of Assistant Commissioner Amanda L. Ray as deputy commissioner.
The appointment makes Deputy Commissioner Ray the first African American woman in the department’s 91-year history to hold the position of second in command of the nation’s largest state police agency.
Gov. Gavin Newsom, who last year reappointed Commissioner Stanley – who also is African American – to his post, applauded Friday’s announcement.
“The CHP is one of the most respected law enforcement agencies in California, if not the nation. As we mark Black History Month and Women’s History Month in March, I couldn’t be prouder of Deputy Commissioner Ray’s accomplishments and contributions to making the CHP the best of the best. Californians have every reason to be confident in the leadership of the CHP,” Newsom said.
Deputy Commissioner Ray stated she was “honored and humbled” to be appointed to her new post.
“I am grateful to continue to serve alongside the amazing women and men who each day are dedicated to providing the highest level of Safety, Service, and Security to the people of California,” she said. “I look forward to continuing to make the Department one that our employees and the people of this great state can admire and be proud of.”
A native of Oakland, Deputy Commissioner Ray, 53, is a 30-year member of the department, rising through the ranks and serving in assignments of increasing responsibility from cadet to assistant commissioner, staff, where she oversaw the administrative functions of the department, to include a $2.8 billion budget, departmental training, information technology, and personnel administration of a statewide organization of 11,000 women and men.
In her new role, Deputy Commissioner Ray will oversee the day to day operations, the administrative and field operations of the CHP as well as the Offices of Legal Affairs, Internal Affairs, Equal Employment Opportunity, Risk Management, the Office of Accreditation, and Community Outreach and Media Relations.
Deputy Commissioner Ray succeeds Scott Silsbee, who retired from the CHP in December.
California Highway Patrol Deputy Commissioner Amanda L. Ray career highlights:
CHP / Academy: 03/12/90, cadet
CHP / South Los Angeles Area: 08/09/90, officer
CHP / Santa Fe Springs Area: 12/02/99, sergeant
CHP / Santa Fe Springs Area: 04/01/03, lieutenant
CHP / Riverside Area: 07/01/06, lieutenant
CHP / Hayward Area: 09/01/11, captain
CHP / Riverside Area: 10/31/12, captain
CHP / Golden Gate Division: 09/01/15, assistant chief
CHP / Inland Division: 03/02/17, assistant chief
CHP / Assistant Commissioner, staff: 10/01/17, chief
CHP / Assistant Commissioner, staff: 04/01/18, assistant commissioner, staff
- Details
- Written by: Lake County News reports
California will immediately receive an additional shipment of kits to test up to 1,200 people.
“These new testing protocols and resources will help California medical experts identify and treat COVID-19 cases, trace potential exposures and better protect public health,” said Gov. Gavin Newsom. “I am grateful to the CDC and federal government for quickly heeding our state’s requests and assisting California’s response to this evolving situation.”
“The availability to test at California’s public health laboratories is a significant step forward in our ability to respond rapidly to this evolving situation,” said Dr. Sonia Angell, director of the California Department of Public Health and State Health Officer. “As we face the likelihood of community transmission here in California, having this resource where we need it, is essential to better inform public health response and protect our communities.”
The California Department of Public Health has been prepared and is continuing with the following actions as the situation surrounding COVID-19 evolves:
– Activating the Emergency Operations Center to coordinate response efforts across the state.
– Continuing to prepare and respond in coordination with federal and local partners, hospitals and physicians.
– Deploying staff to assist with contact tracing in Solano and Sacramento counties for a patient whose source of infection is unknown.
– Providing information, guidance documents, and technical support to local health departments, health care facilities, providers, schools, universities, colleges, and childcare facilities across California.
– Coordinating with federal authorities and local health departments that have implemented screening, monitoring and, in some cases quarantine.
– Engaging with local health departments in managing suspect and confirmed cases of COVID-19 patients over the past several weeks.
Beyond the work of health officials, each and every person can take steps to reduce the risk of becoming infected with this virus.
– Washing hands with soap and water.
– Avoiding touching eyes, nose or mouth with unwashed hands.
– Avoiding close contact with people who are sick.
– Staying away from work, school or other people if you become sick with respiratory symptoms like fever and cough.
– Follow guidance from public health officials.
If a person develops symptoms of COVID-19 including fever, cough or shortness of breath, and has reason to believe they may have been exposed, they should call their health care provider or local health department before seeking care. Contacting them in advance will make sure that people can get the care they need without putting others at risk.
For more information about novel coronavirus including various resources, please visit the CDPH website.
- Details
- Written by: Lake County News reports
The fire, located 15 miles southeast of Covelo in Glenn and Mendocino counties, reached 140 acres on Friday, with containment at 50 percent, the forest reported.
Officials said the increase in acreage is the result of a firing operation on Thursday where crews burned the vegetation between the main fire and an established handline to contain the fire.
There are about 100 personnel on the incident including engines and crews from the Mendocino, Klamath and Six Rivers national forests and from Oregon.
On Friday, personnel continued to mop-up and patrol the fire, forest officials said.
It has been determined that the Baseball fire started on Tuesday from previous pile burning on the Baseball prescribed fire project.
The fire is burning in grass, brush and timber in steep, rugged terrain at a low to moderate rate in a mosaic pattern, similar to the desired effects from a prescribed fire.
There are no immediate threats to property or structures.
- Details
- Written by: DENNIS FORDHAM
Money on deposit in bank or brokerage accounts that are titled as “joint tenancy with right of survivorship” passes automatically at the death of a deceased joint tenant to the surviving joint tenants, if any, by operation of law; or does it?
Many times the money is deposited by one account holder only – often an elderly parent or a dependent spouse. The other joint tenant is added so that they can manage and use the account on behalf of the person who contributed the money.
In California, section 5302(a) of the Probate Code provides that, “(a) Sums remaining on deposit at the death of a party to a joint account belong to the surviving party or parties as against the estate of the decedent unless there is clear and convincing evidence of a different intent.”
Section 5302 (e) provides that, “A right of survivorship arising from the express terms of the [joint tenancy] account or under this section, a beneficiary designation in a Totten trust account, or a P.O.D. payee designation, cannot be changed by will.”
Section 5303 of the Probate Code, however, provides that a joint tenancy account can be changed in any of four ways; none of which involves a will.
Until now, I always understood that a decedent’s will had no relevance to a decedent’s joint tenancy bank account when there are surviving joint tenants. That is, unless the joint tenants died simultaneously the will of a deceased joint tenant was not relevant.
Recently, in Placencia v. Strazicich (2019) 42 CA 5th 730, however, California’s Fourth District Court of Appeals decided that the will of a deceased joint tenant can be used as “clear and convincing evidence of a different intent” to negate the right of survivorship, notwithstanding sections 5302 and 5303 (see above).
In Placencia v. Strazicich, a father named Ralph opened a joint Franklin Fund account with Lisa, one of his daughters.
Afterward, Ralph executed a will (11 days prior to his death) in which he said, “Remove Lisa Strazicich as sole beneficiary of my Franklin Fund. I want the beneficiaries to be Lisa Strazicich, Stephanie A. Placencia and Tina R. Placencia, … I want the Franklin Fund to be placed into my trust and then be used to pay off the mortgage curt of my home … .”
After Ralph died, Lisa retitled the money in the account into her own name for herself alone.
The court examined Probate Code sections 5302 and 5303 and decided that although the will could not change the right of survivorship it could nonetheless provide clear and convincing evidence of intent to negate the right of survivorship.
Having thus negated Lisa’s right of survivorship, the court then decided that, “… arguably, therefore, upon Ralph's death, his interest in the Franklin Fund account became part of his personal estate, which would need to be probated.”
In Placencia v. Strazicich, the Court of Appeals bent over backward to give effect to the decedent’s intent even though the statute says that a joint tenancy cannot be changed by a will.
The court justified its sleight of hand based on “… the modern trend in the law favoring the decedent’s intent over [legal] formalities.”
The foregoing legal authority is a California appellate court decision. As such, it is only binding in the Fourth District (certain counties including San Diego) and is not binding statewide.
Eventually, the California Supreme Court may get the opportunity to decide whether the same approach should become the law of California.
Dennis A. Fordham, attorney, is a State Bar-Certified Specialist in estate planning, probate and trust law. His office is at 870 S. Main St., Lakeport, Calif. He can be reached at