News Archive (6192)
Sheriff’s deputies arrest an Amador City man who allegedly pointed a shotgun in the face of a Jackso
Written by Tom
Amador County – The Amador County Sheriff’s Department announced the late December arrest of an Amador City man after he allegedly pointed a shotgun in the face of a Jackson man. He was later charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm, and also possessing a stolen gun.
Sheriff Martin Ryan’s office issued a release Wednesday saying Michael Shawn Smith, 35, of Jackson, reported going to the house of his ex-wife to check on her welfare because she had been ill. He visited the residence at about 11:30 p.m. on Dec. 30 on Highway 49 in Amador City.
“Smith reported that he was greeted by a Hispanic male,” who “pointed a shotgun at his face.”
Amador County Sheriff’s deputies responded to the home in Amador City, and deputies contacted Smith’s ex-wife, as well as Umberto Valencia, 28, of Amador City. The report said “Valencia denied brandishing a firearm at Smith, but admitted to possessing a shotgun, which was subsequently found hidden in his bedroom closet. The shotgun, a Mossberg pump action .12 gauge, was loaded with four rounds.”
The Sheriff’s Department said a “search of the Automated Firearm System showed the Mossberg shotgun was reported stolen from Modesto,” and “upon further investigation it was determined that Valencia is a convicted felon and as such precluded from possessing firearms.”
“Valencia was arrested and charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm and possession of a stolen firearm,” the Sheriff’s office said. “Additional investigation is being conducted by sheriff’s detectives “in relation to the allegations that Valencia brandished a firearm at Smith.”
Valencia was booked into the Amador County Jail, where bail was set at $45,000.
Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Amador County – The Amador County Unified School District board of trustees will be discussing its makeup Jan. 26, with the idea of moving to a five-member board, from the current seven members.
Superintendent Dick Glock said the board will be taking that up the 26th, and some interesting events have led the board to already have five members, while in the process of applying to make the board smaller.
Glock said Trustee Janelle Redkey resigned to relocate out of Amador County, and then in the previous election, only one person applied for candidacy in Ione, that being Trustee Rose Oneto, for the November election.
Glock said “through strange set of events,” the school board has moved toward “what our waiver request was for this summer,” to drop to a five-member board, with members representing Supervisorial Districts.
Since 2001, the Amador County trustee areas have been along the former school districts in the county, but the district allows everybody in the county to vote on all of the trustees. With the formal change by the state, that will change, so that only people in trustee areas can vote for their trustees. Those will be along the five supervisorial districts.
The current Amador County Unified School District board of Trustees is also the county Office of Education Board of Directors. They are President Wally Upper, and Trustees Mary Walser, Pat Miller, Rose Oneto, and Lynette Lipp.
Lipp was appointed when only one candidate filed for November, leaving a vacancy.
Walser and Upper both are in terms that expire next November, and Miller, Lipp and Oneto all are in terms of office that run through November 2014.
Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Sutter Creek Planning Commission picks Kirkley as chairman, Cunha as vice chairman
Written by Tom
Amador County – The Sutter Creek Planning Commission on Monday selected its chairman for 2011 as Mike Kirkley, and also selected its Vice Chairman to be Frank Cunha.
Kirkely is the appointee of Mayor Tim Murphy, and Cunha is the appointee of Vice Mayor Linda Rianda. The commission includes Ed Arata (appointed by Jim Swift), Robin Peters (appointed by Sandy Anderson), and Bob Olsen appointed by Gary Wooten.
The commission on Monday discussed and made a preliminary recommendation for a bridge design on the Main Street Bridge that crosses over Sutter Creek near City Hall.
City Manager Sean Rabe said the commission liked the slab bridge idea with a simulated truss on the sides to match the new walking bridge, but with a painted finish, rather than a rust look. Dokken Engineering gave a presentation on the bridge and took direction from the commission, for presentation to the council. Rabe said at least one more public meeting will be held on the issue.
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Amador Supervisors join the Sustainable Forest Action Coalition
Written by Tom
Amador County – The Amador County Board of Supervisors voted 5-0 last week to join the Sustainable Forest Action Coalition, with Supervisors Brian Oneto and Ted Novelli to represent the board and the county.
Recent past Chair Oneto said he brought the issue to the board to ask if it wanted to join, saying it was “a group advocating better use of the forest.”
Supervisor Richard Forster said if they joined and had Oneto or someone else represent the county, they “need to be careful about language they use,” such as using the term “thinning” for management of “forest health to avoid catastrophic wildfires,” instead of “cutting down a bunch of trees.” Oneto said if they don’t reduce fuels, they “will see catastrophic burns, like we have seen time and again.”
Forster said they would get a lot more “buy in” if they frame language a certain way, and he noted a webinar on which Jim Branham wanted and had some “well-connected” environmental groups. Forster said: “I don’t want to be part of a group that is going to inflame the situation.”
Oneto said “it’s a bigger voice,” and he thought it noteworthy that he was supporting joining a group with the word “sustainable” in its title, a word he fought against in past board discussions. He said the coalition has a goal in making prospective members of Senators Boxer and Feinstein.
Plasse asked county consultant John Hofmann to comment on the county’s proposed membership to the coalition. Hofmann said if it was the business side trying to team with legislators, to “see what they can do to manage forests and help rural areas,” then it was a good coalition and worth a look.
Hofmann said if it was trying to “rebuild infrastructure,” to “build another sawmill that cuts 30- or 40- or 50-inch trees,” it was probably not a good coalition to join.
California Forestry Association lobbyist Steve Brink said “we are a member,” and SFAC was formed after the Wally Herger and Tom McClintock wildfire forums, which started with the wildfires of 2008.
Brink said the quarterly SFAC meetings have a lot to do with “active management on forests that are not reserved,” and they are “trying to get Feinstein engaged as well, since she holds the purse stings.” Forster asked about the cost, and Brink said it had no cost and was an all-volunteer organization.
One man in public comment said the best “way to see how a coalition speaks is to be a member of the coalition.” Forster asked for reports from the meetings, and wanted to see some information the coalition sends out.
The coalition next meets Feb. 23 in Sacramento.
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ACTC will discuss alternatives for the Highway 88 Pine Grove Improvement
Written by Tom
Amador County – Amador County Transportation Commission next week will consider 13 alternatives for the Highway 88 Pine Grove Improvement Project.
Project planner Neil Peacock said Monday he would recommend 10 for elimination for various reasons, including, having too high a cost (up to $100 million) or too big an impact on Pine Grove. The remaining three alternatives would be recommended for further study.
An evaluation matrix, based on public input and stakeholder concerns, was used to develop screening criteria, which guides all evaluation of alternatives. Of the 10, Peacock said they cannot afford five, while four do well and four did not do well with evaluation and had unacceptable impacts. All proposals would need final approval by Caltrans.
The three Peacock would recommend for further study include a “Northern Bypass” option passing partly through the Caltrans maintenance yard, through ACES transfer station, and part of Crestview. It would cross Volcano Road and come out near Mount Zion Road.
A “One-Way Couplet” proposal would tie in with existing or new roads on south side, starting just south of Pine Grove, and running roughly along the foot of the slope.
A “Through-Town” expansion would widen the road to 4 traffic lanes and a center turn lane, and require an 80-foot right-of-way, measured 40 feet from the center line to either side of the road.
Peacock said the Through-Town alternative “would not necessarily require full-takes, of a large number of businesses,” a “full-take” being removal of entire buildings. “However, it may result in individual full-take parcels.”
The main impact in the Through-Town route “is going to be on parking and access, due to the right of way width itself, and any safety requirements that Caltrans has us integrate into the designs,” Peacock said. That could mean creating some “no-left turn” areas, so vehicles do not turn across two lanes of traffic.
After identifying the top alternatives, they can “delve into the nitty gritty.” Part of the meeting next week will be, taking input on how they want to involve the public in the second phase process.
A 14th alternative in November from the Pine Grove Community Council proposes two one-way couplets as separate roads bypassing Pine Grove on northern and southern routes, leaving Highway 88 as a local Main Street.
Peacock said the route hasn’t been evaluated, but would get the same scrutiny as other alternatives. Its cost was estimated at $62 million, while the project has a cost limit of $40 million.
The meeting is 6 p.m. Jan. 19 at the county admin building.
Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Amador County – An Ione woman in custody and wearing handcuffs squeezed through a vent window and stole a Jackson Police car early Saturday morning, then led authorities on a 15-minute pursuit before the vehicle was stopped with spike strips, and forced into a ditch by another JPD vehicle in Calaveras County.
Jackson Police Captain Christy Stidger on Tuesday announced the arrest of Mary Bristow, 20, and her brother, David Bristow, 21, of Ione on various charges.
Mary Bristow was arrested for evading, stealing a vehicle, escape from custody and obstructing or resisting a peace officer. David Bristow was arrested for being under the influence of a controlled substance.
The Bristows were initially detained about 12:30 a.m. Saturday when JPD officers investigated a suspicious vehicle parked at the south end of the Jackson Gate Plaza and discovered them in a 1991 white Chevy pickup truck.
Stidger said the “officers became aware of a handgun in the cab of the vehicle” and “extracted both of the occupants from the vehicle.” The gun was “later determined to be a plastic replica.”
Stidger said “Mary Bristow was handcuffed and placed in the back seat of a Jackson patrol vehicle. While officers continued their investigation, David Bristow began to choke on what officers believed to be illegal drugs.”
She said “while officers were tending to David Bristow, Mary Bristow was able to maneuver her handcuffed hands from behind her back to her front. Mary Bristow then crawled through an approximately 9-inch by 9-inch ventilation opening, in the partition that closes off the backseat from the driver’s area of the patrol vehicle.”
Driving away in the patrol vehicle, Mary Bristow led authorities on a 15-minute pursuit, involving JPD, Amador County Sheriff’s Department, Calaveras County Sheriff’s Department, and California Highway Patrol officers from Amador and Calaveras counties. Stidger said: “During the course of the pursuit, Mary Bristow utilized the police radio, taunting pursuing law enforcement.”
“The pursuit ended in Calaveras County at the intersection of highways 49 and 12, when spike strips set up by the Calaveras CHP were deployed.” The “spike strips damaged the tires to the stolen police vehicle,” but Mary Bristow continued driving, although at “considerably lower speeds. This allowed Jackson Police Officer Jeff Courtney to perform a Pursuit Intervention Technique maneuver on the stolen vehicle, causing it to spin out of control and into a ditch.”
After the stolen vehicle was in the ditch, Jackson K9 officer Al Lewis and his canine partner, Condor, were deployed on the vehicle. Stidger said that Mary Bristow, knowing the canine was being deployed, surrendered, requesting that he not “let the dog get her.”
Both Mary and David Bristow were treated at Sutter Amador Hospital and booked into the Amador County Jail.
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Amador School Trustees will try to finalize a $155,000 bus replacement grant application
Written by Tom
Amador County – The Amador County Office of Education board of trustees will hold a special meeting Thursday to consider an application for a grant for a school bus replacement program.
The board canceled its regular meeting Wednesday, but set the special meeting, and must meet a Friday deadline for the grant application. The district seeks to replace a 1990 Ford bus used for transporting special education students, with 12 seats and two spaces for wheelchairs. The bus has 414,000 miles and was purchased in 1990, according to documents, and it was driven 1,516 miles last school year.
Barbara Murray, assistant superintendent of business services said in a report to trustees for Thursday’s meeting that the district qualifies for a maximum possible award of $155,000, and “there is no match for this grant.”
She said the district qualifies for the “Small School District and County Office of Education Bus Replacement Program” for the current fiscal year by its average daily attendance, given to any school with fewer than 2,501 students, based on the previous school year’s attendance.
Murray said the award “may include the cost of the bus plus taxes, excluding registration. Recipients will be responsible for paying for specifications that are not standard.” She said where “unique needs occur,” the California Department of Education “may cover some additional options, but awarded agencies should, ‘build’ their buses with the expectation that non-stock options, will be out-of-pocket costs.”
The California Department of Education runs the grant and “after receiving the required quotes, the CDE will notify agencies of their total award.” Murray said the district office has all information required by the grant. The application is due Friday, Jan. 14, and awards will be listed March 1.
The transportation department will build the bus to the district’s required specifications, Murray said, and “if there are additional costs that the grant does not cover, we will bring the item to the board for approval before we proceed with the purchase.”
Murray said staff does “not anticipate a major cost to the county office,” and recommended approval of the application for the bus replacement grant.
The special meeting is 10 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 13 at the district office conference room, at 217 Rex Avenue in Jackson.
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ACRA plans MLK Disc Golf Tourney, ribbon cutting at Mollie Joyce Park on Sunday
Written by Tom
Amador County – Amador County Recreation Agency this week announced plans for a ceremonial ribbon cutting for its new flying disc golf course at Mollie Joyce Park in Pioneer.
The ribbon cutting is set for 9:30 a.m. Sunday, Jan. 16, and precedes the planned first tournament on the new course, which has nine holes.
ACRA Director Tracey Towner-Yep announced the ribbon cutting, and said “a lot of good work is happening up there.” The ceremony includes coffee, hot chocolate and donuts, “along with enthusiastic disc golfers.”
She said “making the dream a reality,” and the course a reality, merited thanks to the Jackson Rancheria Hotel & Casino, Keith Lynch, Merzlak Signs, Play It Again Sports, Ferguson Plumbing, Augustin Custom Cabinetry, Disc Golf Association, numerous unnamed volunteers and ACRA Program Director Matt Nestor.
Nestor planned the Martin Luther King Disc Golf Tournament as part of the grand opening of the course. Registration begins at 9 a.m., the ribbon cutting is at 9:30 a.m., a players’ meeting is at 9:45 a.m. and tee off is at 10 a.m.
The 76-acre park was deeded to ACRA by Fred Joyce on February 5th, 2008, on condition the park be maintained for public recreation use. Towner-Yep, Nestor and others at ACRA have worked with local disc golfers, who volunteered to help design the course around Mollie Joyce Park’s hilly and wooded terrain. In addition to golfers, two Little League Baseball fields have been revitalized, and ballgames have become a regular fixture at the park again, after years of non-use.
The park is on Woodfern Drive, off Carson Drive, in Pioneer, about 15 minutes from Jackson, and 40 minutes from Kirkwood.
For information, call Matt Nestor at (209) 223-6349, or go online to goACRA.org.
Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Sutter Creek City Council picks Tim Murphy as Mayor and Linda Rianda as Vice Mayor
Written by Tom
Amador County – The Sutter Creek City Council selected its new leadership last week, selecting Mayor Pro Tem Tim Murphy to be the Mayor for 2011. The council also selected newly elected Councilwoman Linda Rianda as this year’s Mayor Pro Tempore.
Council members also made appointments to the Planning Commission. Councilwoman Sandy Anderson announced at the end of December that she would appoint Robin Peters, who was appointed by retiring Councilman Pat Crosby. Peters replaced Anderson’s former appointee to the commission, Corte Strandberg.
Rianda appointed Frank Cunha to again represent her on the commission, which she had done after being appointed to replace former Mayor Pro Tempore Bill Hepworth.
Newly elected Councilman Jim Swift appointed Ed Arata to the Planning Commission, joining Councilman Gary Wooten’s appointee, Robert Olson; and Murphy’s appointee, Mike Kirkley. On Monday, Kirkley was selected by the Planning Commission to be chairman for 2011, and Cunha was picked as vice chairman.
City Manager Sean Rabe said the city council in closed session last week agreed to appoint Interim Chief Brian Klier to be the full-time chief of the Sutter Creek Police Department. Rabe said he was instructed by the council to bring back a contract for the next meeting, and he is negotiating with Chief Klier. Rabe said he was confident that they would produce a “mutually agreeable contract.”
Also last week, the council moved toward consolidating three committees on budget, finance and personnel, into one committee. That consolidation and all committee assignments may be considered at the next council meeting.
The council also approved the draft policy city council minutes, in answer to some fallout from issues raised by the recent Grand Jury report. Rabe said the format of “action minutes” would be used, which includes minimal details of discussion, and chiefly makes note of actions taken.
The policy sets a 30-day time limit by which the minutes, must be completed after a meeting is held. Rabe said the draft policy will be brought back with an accompanying resolution of approval.
Rabe said he made an “inventory of the minutes that are missing,” and found that there were increments of as long as 6 months when no minutes were made. It also goes back about 3-4 years, and there is “no way we will be 100 percent caught up.”
He wasn’t sure how minutes would be updated, but didn’t support using recordings. He said former City Clerk Judy Allen’s notes from meetings would probably be used to make action minutes.
The council agreed to have a citywide vote to change the clerk position from elected to appointed, so a non-city resident could take the post. That election might come sooner than 2012, if a statewide budget election is held.
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El Dorado hosts a workshop on the prevention of the Yellow Starthistle
Written by Tom
El Dorado County will host a workshop on preventing the spread of Yellow Starthistle Jan. 28.
The free workshop includes biology, and mechanical, cultural and chemical control methods. Learn techniques specific to controlling Yellow Starthistle in orchard and vineyard settings. Learn to prevent introduction or further spread of Yellow Starthistle and other invasive weeds on property, and protect un-infested and priority or high-value areas.
Registration is recommended, not required. Call (530) 621-5503. The free workshop is 1:30 to 3 p.m. Friday, Jan. 28 at the El Dorado County Admin Building, in Placerville.
Sponsors are the El Dorado County Invasive Weeds Management Group, University of California Cooperative Extension and the El Dorado County Agriculture Department.
Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
