The U.S. Department of Justice is taking California to court over alleged violations of religious beliefs. The feds contend the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation is violating the rights of Sikhs, Muslims, and others with a prohibition on wearing beards. The DOJ says California implemented a revised facial hair policy last year and since then, has denied several religious accommodation requests. Officers are now forced to shave their beards or lose their jobs. The department asks the Court to order CDCR to stop enforcing its facial hair policy against officers who request to wear a beard because of their religious beliefs.
Sunshine will give way to more rain and snow in Northern California by tomorrow. The National Weather Service says two more systems are heading this way with widespread rain, possible thunderstorms, and mountain snow. Less than an inch of rain is expected in the valley, but winds could gust up to 40 miles per hour Wednesday and again on Saturday. The heaviest snow is expected late Wednesday and again on Friday with a good chance of over a foot of new powder. Levels will start off around 55 hundred feet and drop to about 35 hundred by Friday.
It’s Tsunami Preparedness Week and the National Weather Service will be performing a full blown test of the tsunami warning system tomorrow in Mendocino County. Residents will hear the sirens and get alerts on TV and radio. The reverse 911 calling system will also be tested. You’ll be hearing these alerts between 11am and noon on Wednesday. You’ll also see a flyover by the Civil Air Patrol – those planes will broadcast the message that they’re testing the system. The air patrol will fly over the entire coast. If you have any questions about the scheduled tests, you can call the Mendocino County Office of Emergency Services. You can get more info at TsunamiZone.org
Ukiah Police arrested a woman in a stolen car. It happened on Friday afternoon when UPD got an alert from the FLOCK license plate readers. They tracked down the stolen vehicle near the intersection of North Orchard and East Perkins. Officers found the silver Honda Accord in the lot of the Pear Tree Shopping Center. They followed the driver and eventually pulled her over in the Home Depot Parking Lot. Karina Osorio was arrested for possession of stolen property, and several other charges. According to reports, the vehicle was stolen earlier in the day from Petaluma. Osorio was also found to have an outstanding warrant in Marin County. She’s been booked into the Mendocino County Jail and will eventually be sent back to Marin county.
Lakeport Police Department announced that it will stop using the Nixle platform next month. As of April 1st, they said they’ll change the way they send out advisories and emergency alert messages to the community. Lake County News reports LPD will begin using Nixle’s parent company, Everbridge which has more features and will allow the PD to send more focused messages. Lakeport PD says anyone who wants to use the new service can get signed up at Everbridge.net or download the Everbridge app in your app store.
California is watching the Supreme Court closely today before taking more action on an abortion pill. Justices will hear arguments on whether to keep mifepristone widely available. That’s one of two pills used to help end a pregnancy. The state stockpiled the other last year in case of a shortage on abortion drugs. All 250-thousand pills have already been distributed. Governor Newsom will consider resupplying the stockpile if the nation’s high court seems likely to ban or restrict the medication.
