Authorities are investigating a suspicious death on Highway 101 near the Sonoma County border. This morning someone found a dead man in the southbound lane of the highway between Cloverdale and Hopland. KymKemp reports the body was found near the Geysers Road exit off-ramp. Hopland Fire Chief Mitch Franklin confirmed the situation around 7:30am. The Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office reports they don’t believe foul play was the cause. The Sheriff’s Department and CHP Ukiah are investigating the case and the coroner is working to identify the victim.
This week is national Crash Responder Safety Week according to the International Association of Firefighters. KRCR reports once a week a first responder is struck by a passing vehicle while attempting to do their urgent duties. Northern California fire crews say the first thing an engine does when responding to a crash is to angle the vehicles so that their crews and victims are shielded from passing traffic. The agency says drivers need to stay alert, slow down and move over.
The Jackson Demonstration State Forest Advisory Group has a temporary facilitator going into a day-long meeting today. Cal Fire’s new Deputy Chief Emily Smith will lead the group after what MendoVoice called a chaotic meeting in September, when the previous leader, Kim Rodriguez resigned in protest. Smith says today, they will follow protocol with items timed down to the minute. Cal Fire’s Mendocino Unit Chief Luke Kendall is retiring this Friday, and a new Chief will be named. They plan to go over the THP or Timber Harvest Plan that didn’t happen at the last meeting. The plan includes using fire as a tool in controlling wildfire threats. The agenda includes looking forward to the 2024 schedule. The group plans to discuss the Wildfire Resilience Project, continued from last months meeting.
The Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office has released more information on the body found on Ten Mile Dunes near Fort Bragg. Last Friday they found a capsized boat and the body of Charles Case washed ashore. Authorities found out that another victim, Kenneth Silva was also aboard the boat when it launched from Noyo Harbor on Friday. The US Coast Guard searched the ocean around the area, but was unable to find Silva. The Sheriff’s Department continues to look for Silva with the investigation ongoing.
There have been several fatal accidents in Mendocino County recently. Saturday, a man out of San Jose was killed when hit by another driver early in the morning near the Cal Fire Howard Forest Station. A woman driving a Subaru appeared to have hit the man who’d left his truck after losing control. In updated information from the CHP Ukiah office, poor visibility was reported with fog and drizzle and may have contributed to the crash. CHP explained the truck ended up facing north in the southbound lane after going up a dirt embankment. The pickup driver was pronounced dead at the scene. The Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office and Coroner are investigating and will identify the fatality. CHP says drugs and alcohol were not likely a factor in the death. The second driver stayed at the site and cooperated with authorities.
There is a Native American Heritage Celebration set for today at the Pomo Plaza in Ukiah. Music begins at noon with vendors and more. Elders of the Pomo Tribe will be there as well as workshops and discussions among local agencies and tribes. There will be Native dancers and dinner. Mendocino College and the Redwood Coast Regional Center will be on hand supporting the celebration.
Mendocino Sheriff’s Department Deputies with the Mendo Lake Multi Agency Regional SWAT Team located fugitive Justin Bolton this week in Willits. The sheriff’s office used a K9 to help take Bolton into custody Monday on a homicide investigation out of Mariposa County. He is reportedly connected to the disappearance and murder of Wendy Lee Pullins who went missing over a year ago. The grandmother of nine went missing in the spring of 2022 and was found in September of last year down an embankment in her Jeep after what appeared to be an accident. Detectives from the California Department of Justice found her body and found she had been killed. Bolton was arrested on the felony warrant in a high risk enforcement stop around noon. He was booked into jail and is pending extradition to Mariposa County.
Lake County is getting $750,000 in federal funding to help finance the Middle Creek Flood Restoration Project. Lake County News reports it’s part of the 2023 appropriations government funding bill that will support the Burns Valley Sp0orts Complex and Recreation Center Project and the Lakeport Armory Facility Project. Congressman Mike Thompson presented the check to Lake County officials at the end of last month. The county has until the end of the year to work on restoration of 1,650 acres near Upper Lake in the confluence of Middle and Scotts creeks to the wetlands. The project includes removing phosphorus and reducing the concentration of chlorophyll by about a third in Clear Lake. The project also includes helping remove three miles of substandard levees and other infrastructure.
PG&E rates may be increased if the California Public Utilities Commission approves a rate increase tomorrow. Cal Matters reports it’s an unpopular trend, with the utility raising rates by over 90 percent within the last 10 years. PG&E requested an increase to help pay for safety upgrades and undergrounding power lines to decrease risk of wildfires. So far, this year the utility has worked to bury nearly 200 miles. They want a 26 percent increase from last year’s rates to over $15 billion. State regulators have tried to lower the cost by a couple billion to translate to a 9 to 13 percent increase. Residents already pay more than two times the national average. PG&E says they need to work on transmission and distribution upgrades to reduce sparking ignitions as they face a $45 million penalty for the Dixie Fire in 2021.
A convicted murderer from Point Arena has been tentatively approved for parole. Cameron Whitlock was sentenced over 30 years ago for killing Wallace Kuntz and convicted of murder in the second degree using a gun. KymKemp reports he was also found guilty of auto theft. Investigators say Whitlock shot Kuntz in the head. He then got into Kuntz’s truck, shot the man again and drove off. He then pulled the body out and set it on fire. He was sentenced to 21 years to life in state prison in the spring of 1990. Whitlock applied for parole 5 times in the years since, but was denied. Yesterday, Whitlock faced members of the Kuntz family at the hearing where he was approved for parole. There is a 120 day decision review period where the governor has the authority to review it with the ability to reverse or modify the decision.
Lake County authorities are investigating a medical emergency at the Lakeport Unified School District yesterday. The superintendent issued a statement via the Lakeport Police Department’s Nixle alert system. Lake County News reports toward the end of the school day Tuesday a student showed symptoms of a drug overdose or poisoning on campus. Emergency responders were called to the school and helped intervene in time. The school system plans to have counselors and support providers on campus for all affected by the traumatic event. The school district is working with Lakeport Police in a random search of the campus with drug sniffing dogs.
The Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit appears to be successful in strengthening communication between the US and China. The event in San Francisco is bringing Chinese President Xi Jinping to the table when it comes to the fentanyl crisis. CNN reports US officials are finalizing a deal today to crack down on the export of chemicals sourced from China to make the synthetic opioid. The agreement reportedly targets companies that make and export ingredients used to make the drug to Mexico where it’s distributed from. The deal is part of the conversation between the two world leaders in Xi’s fist visit to the US in 6 years.
