Reports of shots fired got Ukiah Police out on the westside. The report Sunday around midnight, according to Mendo Fever. But police say they couldn’t find any evidence of gunshots that night, but got reports from Low Gap Road to North Oak Street and “as far south as Pomolita School.” The news site reports police were out in the area looking for casings or damage, to no avail, and nobody who reported hearing the shots, saw anything.
After doing their entanglement assessment of marine life, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife decided commercial crabbing could go on, but with some restrictions. The assessment to find if Humpback whales had started to come back to Northern Calif. from winter breeding. They’ve been sighted offshore in Central Calif, but mostly out of fishing grounds. So the Dept. of Fish and Wildlife said there can be crab fishing at only 30 fathoms, or about 180 feet depth in Fishing Zones 1 and 2 (Oregon state line to the Sonoma/Mendocino county line). The agency says that will help minimize entanglement risk in those Fishing Zones.
After hundreds of crashes on the 101 in both Mendocino and Humboldt counties, the CHP’s Golden Gate Division are trying to change that. There were 1,740 crashes between 2018 and 2019 including over 600 injuries and the deaths of 36 people. The patrol says the main reasons were speed, reckless driving, unsafe lane changes, unsafe turning movements, following too close, distracted driving, and driving under the influence. More injuries and deaths happened they say, due to seat belt violations. So the CHP is promoting awareness and safe driving in the two counties with beefed up patrols. A statement says they will focus on public education which they feel will help contribute to improved safety for motorists on the highway.
After a traffic stop in Ukiah, a deputy arrested a man from Florida for having a ghost gun and on drugs and drinking while driving charges. The driver was identified as Anthony Fortner of Boca Raton. When the deputy approached, he says the driver got out, walked to the passenger side and seemed nervous and like he didn’t want the deputy to come near the driver side. But when the passenger opened that door, the deputy spotted a bunch of opened containers and admitted to drinking in the car. There was also some processed marijuana and a handgun without a serial number, known as a “Ghost Gun”. So Fortner was arrested for having a loaded unregistered firearm and released due to pandemic jail restrictions. The passenger was also released.
The Gov. gets some help from the courts, getting his emergency powers reinstated. A lower court ruled Gov. Newsom’s use of emergency powers for far-reaching pandemic policies were overstepping, but appellate judges tossed that. The 3 appeals court justices unanimously agreed the lower court judge, erred and it was not unconstitutional use of legislative power. The lower court ruling by a judge in Sutter County who said the Gov. unconstitutionally usurped the Legislature’s power. The case brought by a group of Republican lawmakers.
A man in Gualala has been arrested for beating on his girlfriend. The sheriff’s office reports arresting Stephen Ainsworth from Bartlett, NH after reports by a woman that her boyfriend got upset and slapped her across the face and tried choking her. Deputies say the woman had injuries consistent with her story so Ainsworth was arrested in a travel trailer on the same property. He was charged with domestic violence battery and held on $25,000.00 bail.
Two people from Nice busted with a bunch of guns, ammo and drugs. The Sheriff’s Dept. reports stopping a car in Redwood Valley, finding a man with an 18 year old woman, Brandon Maxfield and Avril Wright. They found Maxfield was on probation so searched the car, but before that they were told there was a firearm and percocet pills. A Glock pistol was also found, it had been stolen prior to the stop. The two were arrested on multiple charges including having meth and paraphernalia, possessing drugs while armed, having a stolen gun, and violating probation. Maxfield was held on $25,000 bail and Wright on $15,000.
Fort Bragg police report getting a call to someone experiencing mental distress. They say they’ve been working with Redwood Quality Management Company on calls for service, this one was last Friday. Officers say the person seemed confused and unstable so they contacted Redwood for help and within 15 minutes a crisis worker was sent to help police. The person was placed on a mental health hold and the officers helped get them to a Hospital E.R. The police department says this call was an indication of how they are allocating resources to improve the safety of the community and that the goal of the Fort Bragg Police Department is to continue their partnership with Redwood to provide resources, care, and treatment to service calls to individuals living with mental illnesses.
It’s “CalFresh Awareness Month.” The program also known federally as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or SNAP, helps the needy with monthly food and provides economic benefits to the community. As you may know those using CalFresh get a card, like a debit card, to use at a grocery store or farmer’s market. They report after the pandemic an expanded need for their food benefits. In Lake County, they’ve helped over 12,700 individuals at a cost of $2.7 million/month. You can apply now if you’re in a very low income household. You might be able to access benefits within 3 days.
To apply anytime visit www.getcalfresh.org, or call (707) 995-4200 Monday to Friday, 8 am to 5 pm for information on other ways to apply.
A light airplane that crashed into Lake Mendocino has been located. The owner of the ultralight aircraft hired a man from Redwood Valley to find the plane, Kenny Purcell. Purcell says there was zero visibility underwater so a diver could not spot the plane. Purcell and another man, Mike Meyers, from Napa found the plane in a section away from where the pilot emerged from the water. A ski rope was used to tow it out of about 60 feet of water. The plane apparently had little damage, but was wheels up so it needed to be flipped over. Once they floated it to the surface with innertubes and tires, it was dragged out with a motorboat. Apparently the sheriff’s dept., nor the Army Corp of engineers didn’t have the equipment or available staff to get the airplane out of the lake.
A state lawmaker is proposing a bill for universal basic income. Assemblyman Evan Low’s bill would pay residents of the state, $1,000 per month if they’re in a certain income bracket. It’s to level the playing field, Low says, and end poverty for millions of Californians. State Sen. Scott Weiner has co-authored the bill. He says residents of the state for three years, not currently serving time, who earn less than 200% of the median per capita income for the county they reside in can qualify. The median state income between 2015 and 2019 for a Calif. household was $75,000.
Public Health and Sonoma County officials say even if the state reopens full in mid-June doesn’t mean it’ll be like before times. The Press Democrat reports public health guidelines would probably mostly stay in place. State officials are supposed to release more details tomorrow about what we all can expect. The rules for businesses currently include the 6 feet of social distancing, barriers or staggering break times; frequent handwashing; hand sanitizer nearby; constant disinfection of common surfaces; and of course, wearing a mask. Sonoma County could move to the yellow tier next week even still as half of the county’s residents 16 and over are fully vaccinated against COVID19. This all comes after the Gov. announced last month he would forego the colored-tiered reopening of the state mid-June for a full reopening, depending on equitable vaccine availability, and low hospitalization rates.
A group of North Coast lawmakers among more than 3 dozen who have sponsored a bill that just passed and became law with the governor’s signature. The Personal Income Tax Law and the Corporation Tax Law folded anything that was your income into “gross income”, no matter where it came from until now. So here, we’re considering the federal stimulus money into this package. This law will now conform with federal law, the Consolidated Appropriations Act. So that businesses that got money from any of the stimulus packages from the federal government cannot be taxed as gross income. The bill passed the Assembly and Senate unanimously and Gov. Newsom signed it into law last week. Assemblywoman Cecilia Aguiar-Curry, Assemblyman Jim Wood and Senators Mike McGuire and Bill Dodd among the group of lawmakers who sponsored the bill.
A homeless man from Oklahoma has been arrested for a burglary at a home in Fort Bragg. An elderly woman called in a burglary in progress at her home and that her husband was holding the intruder at gunpoint. Deputies reported to the home and identified the intruder as Michael James Robinson. They say he entered the home through the couple’s bedroom door while they were sleeping. The man took off all his clothes, then put on some of the man of the house’s clothing. They say he also took wine and food out of the kitchen but was caught by the homeowners. He’s charged with first degree burglary and held in the Mendocino County Jail on $50,000.00 bail.
