This weeks Jackson City Council meeting was well attended by local law enforcement as most of the Jackson Police Department was present as well as Sheriff Martin Ryan and Under Sheriff Jim Wegner from the Sheriff’s Office. The men and women in uniform turned out for a special ceremony honoring two members of the Jackson Police force.  Jackson Police Officer Chris Rice was recognized for receiving the Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) California Hero Award for DUI enforcement. Jackson Chief of Police Scott Morrison said that while Officer Rice is young in his career he has been doing a tremendous job. He said Officer Rice was recently recognized by MADD for his efforts in combating drunk driving.

An extension of the Powder House Estates tentative map appeared before the Sutter Creek Planning Commission Monday night. The developer Stan Gamble, the same developer who is developing Golden Hills, asked for a 24 month extension on the tentative map.  The project previously known as the Oak Knolls was approved as Oak Knolls in 1993 for 94 single family residential lots and 17.3 acres of open space. The map was due to expire in November of 2005, but a new project was submitted under the name of the Powder House Estates and in April of 2003 the Planning Commission determined that the EIR originally prepared for Oak Knolls was no longer adequate based on CEQA guidelines. The EIR was updated and subsequently appealed. In April of 2004 the Vesting Tentative Subdivision map for the project was approved.

This Wednesday the Amador County Unified School District Board of Trustees will consider facility usage fees to be charged for the use of all District facilities. Currently, the main venue for community athletics and also heavily used by other community groups, the district has been absorbing much of the costs of the community usage and now, facing budget cuts, the district is looking to capitalize on its assets; its facilities. Under law the district must differentiate the fees that it charges to groups based on the category of the group requesting facilities.

Congressman Dan Lungren (R-CA), has introduced legislation, HR 1654, to amend the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA). This bill will require the Secretary of the Interior to determine that a gaming establishment will not cause harm to the surrounding community in order for any lands to be designated newly as exempt from the general prohibition on new tribal gaming.

A Pioneer man was injured on Saturday afternoon when another vehicle crossed into his lane and hit his vehicle head on. Thankfully the man observed the impending accident and reacted in such a way that the accident wasn’t as bad as it could have been.  Elizabeth Fry of Pine Grove was traveling east bound on Hwy. 88 west of Rossbridge Rd at a stated speed of 45-50 mph. William Hemenway, 69 and of Pioneer was traveling west bound on 88 at a stated speed of 50 mph. According to Officer Melissa Scobee’s report Fry took her eyes off the roadway for a moment to remove her glasses and wipe her eyes. Her 2002 Toyota Sienna began to drift into the opposing lane of traffic. Hemenway observed the Toyota drifting across the roadway and into his lane, he immediately applied his brakes and steered his 2005 Kia Sedona towards the north roadway edge in an effort to avoid a collision. Subsequently, Fry was unaware that her vehicle had drifted across the roadway and the left front of Fry’s Toyota struck the left front of the Kia. Hemenway suffered a laceration to his left forearm and Fry was uninjured in the accident.

Early this morning a serious accident occurred on New York Ranch Rd just north of China Graveyard Rd. The accident occurred around 12:30 as the driver of a 1999 Ford lost control of the vehicle after driving in a reckless manner. According to the CHP report written by Officer Craig Zaragoza an unidentified 28 year old driver from Sutter Creek ran off the roadway, hit an embankment and subsequently rolled the vehicle. The 28 year old then fled the scene with one of the passengers, age 20, who was later found unconscious in a ditch. The driver also left a second injured passenger, 19 years old, trapped in the car. The driver was subsequently identified through the CHP investigation and is considered wanted and at large.

Local law enforcement’s presence in the Raley’s shopping center startled many local shoppers Monday morning. Apparently, the Golden One Credit Union in the Raley’s Shopping Center attempted to conduct an alarm test around 10 am and according to Jackson Police Officer Jeff Courtney that test failed. Officer Courtney said Golden One’s alarms communication failed to alert local law enforcement authorities of the alarm test so when the alarm sounded the signal came through as an actual holdup alarm at the Golden One Credit Union. The Jackson Police Department along with backup assistance from the Sutter Creek Police Department responded to find that it was only a test.