MCT: Thursday, October 17, 2019

• Wettish
• Saner Guilty
• Galvan Released
• Dylan Sighted
• Dysfunctional Bathroom
• Pool Trouble
• Behnke Retires
• Holiday Casualties
• Energy Breakup
• Fort Point
• Quizless
• Sunset
• Debate Impressions
• Second Units
• Airbnb Scapegoats
• Yesterday's Catch
• Leonard Matlovich
• Hopland Auction
• Commie Lads
• AV Village
• Nice Boy
• FB Boxers
• Black Fox
• Director DeGraff
• Ophidiophobia
• Midwife Falatoonzadeh
• Chief Parker
• Lawless People
• New Dolly
• Crosswords
• KZYX Birthday
• Painting Class
• My Yovanovitch
• Techno Learning
• Found Object

OCCASIONAL SHOWERS are expected through tonight, mainly north of Cape Mendocino. More rain will occur Friday night through Saturday morning. Warmer and drier weather is expected for the first half of next week. (National Weather Service)

MICHAEL SANER: GUILTY OF MURDER ONE

A Navarro man was found guilty of a 2017 murder late Tuesday afternoon by a Mendocino County Superior Court jury.

Michael Jay Saner, 60, of Navarro, was found guilty of murder in the first degree, meaning a murder that was willful, deliberate, and premeditated.

The jury also found true a sentencing enhancement that the defendant personally and intentionally discharged a shotgun causing the untimely death of William Martinez. The evidence at trial showed that the victim was shot in the back. The jury also found the defendant personally used tear gas during the commission of the murder, a sentencing enhancement.

After jurors were thanked and excused, the defendant's matter was referred to the Adult Probation Department for a background study and sentencing recommendation. The defendant will be formally sentenced on Nov. 21 at 9 a.m. in Department B at the county courthouse in downtown Ukiah.

The 1st degree murder conviction carries an indeterminate sentence in the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation of 25 years to life. The firearm allegation carries a separate indeterminate sentence of 25 years to life. The use of the tear gas carries an additional one year determinate term in the CDCR.

The law enforcement agencies that investigated and developed the evidence used to prosecute the defendant were the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office, the California Department of Justice forensic laboratory, and the District Attorney's own investigators.

The attorney who presented the People's evidence to the jury was Senior Deputy District Attorney Elizabeth Norman.

Mendocino County Superior Court Judge Cindee Mayfield presided over the multi-week trial.

ALLEGED RAPIST RELEASED AFTER FOUR DAYS

(Original Press Release from Fort Bragg PD)

ON OCTOBER 10, 2019 at approximately 11:03 p.m., Officers were dispatched to the Mendocino Coast District Hospital Emergency Room for the report of a female sexual assault victim. Officers conducted a preliminary interview with the female victim who stated she had been sexually assaulted in the restrooms on the South Coastal Trail. The Officers learned that the victim had known the suspect, Vincent Galvan, for several months intermittently.

During the day prior to the assault, Galvan and the victim had been together several hours before deciding to camp in the restrooms for the evening. The alleged sexual assault occurred while both parties were camping in the restroom, and the victim was able to fight off her attacker and escape.

Officers responded to the South Coastal Trail and discovered that the suspect had locked himself inside the restroom. Officers worked along with City of Fort Bragg Public Works in order to access the suspect safely. Once Officers gained access to the restroom, the suspect failed to obey Officers’ verbal commands and he had to be forcefully extracted.

The suspect received minor injuries during the arrest. The suspect was transported to Mendocino County Jail on several charges including those listed above. All indications are that this was an isolated incident and our investigation is continuing.

Questions regarding this press release or information related to the case may be forwarded to Sergeant O’Neal at (707) 961-2800 ext. 120 or e-mailed to toneal@fortbragg.com.

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A READER NOTES: "He’s already out of jail and back on the street. And no bail paid? I don’t understand how that can be the case.”

ED NOTE: A mysterious case. How can a man accused of rape like this who sleeps in a public bathroom come up with $10k for a $100k bond?

Part of the answer came in the following Fort Bragg City Press release issued late Wednesday afternoon.

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SAFETY MEASURES ON COASTAL TRAIL

The suspect, Vincent Galvan, in the recent Rape by Force and False Imprisonment arrest, was released from the Mendocino County Jail on Tuesday, October 15. The District Attorney needs a more detailed victim statement in order to charge the suspect with sexual assault. One key to successful prosecution in sexual assault cases is the victim’s cooperation. Cooperating with police after a sexual assault is a traumatic, invasive and an emotionally difficult experience. Many victims choose not to fully cooperate and that is their choice, but it makes charging and prosecuting in rape and sexual assault cases more difficult for law enforcement.

This incident occurred in the late evening on October 10 in the restroom at the South Coastal Trail parking area also known as the Noyo Headlands Park. Those restrooms, like all of the restrooms on the Coastal Trail have automatic locking mechanisms on the outer doors that lock around dusk and unlock around dawn. Like other public restrooms in the City, there is an ongoing challenge to keep these safe, clean and unoccupied at night. Many transients use the restrooms for temporary shelter by jamming or breaking the locking mechanisms or entering prior to dusk and “camping out.” As a regular part of their nightly shift, time allowing, the police patrol these public facilities to ensure they are secured and unoccupied.

In the wake of this event, those patrols are a priority and will occur every evening and every morning. The City’s Public Works department is inspecting all of the locks and repairing any locks or doors that may be damaged or not fully functional. The safety of our Community is a priority for the City Council, City Hall and the Police Department. Please help us move this effort forward. If you find a City restroom in need of repair, or observe any incident that indicates abuse or potential assault, call dispatch at (707) 964-0200 and report it. As always, if you see something say something.

Locally, Project Sanctuary provides free services to victims of sexual assault and their families; call (707) 961-1507 for information. Project Sanctuary is hosting a self-defense class this Saturday, October 19 in the gymnasium at City Hall. Anyone interested may call Project Sanctuary to pre-register.

Questions regarding this information should be directed to Tabatha Miller, City Manager, at (707) 961-2823.

UPDATE: MISSING SANTA ROSA MAN SIGHTED IN SONOMA’S MISSION HIGHLANDS NEIGHBORHOOD LAST FRIDAY

Dylan Elias Kurtek, the 27-year-old who went missing from the Santa Rosa Plaza Mall last Thursday, October 10, was sighted the following day in the town of Sonoma’s Mission Highlands neighborhood.

coldcasemendocino.wordpress.com/2019/10/16/update-missing-santa-rosa-man-sighted-in-sonomas-mission-highlands-neighborhood-last-friday/

A VISITOR to Mendo Planning and Building headquarters in Ukiah writes: "The County building department does not know how to build a workable bathroom. In the women’s bathroom there are 3 stalls. One large one for wheelchair. The normal size ones were meant for children or midgets. So shallow you can not actually go in and get the door to actually close. There is not enough room between the toilet and the door. Then of the 3 sinks only one faucet worked. And there were no paper towels. It was, however, squeaky clean. Just totally dysfunctional."

THURSDAY AT TEN MILE COURT: Cutler Crowell vs. Rec and Park District:

THE INTRIGUING episode described below appeared first at MSP. We've asked the DA's office for a clarification. If Mr. Cutler Crowell smacked the child, well, he can't do that, but he seems to feel he is somehow the injured party and has brought a small claims action against Coast Rec and Parks for $10,000. Stay tuned.

Ed note:

FOLLOWUP COMMENT FROM LISA WHITESIDE: "This is about supporting our Parks and Rec Dept. My son has healed and moved on but this man has tried to cancel the program that teaches 2nd graders to swim and has tried to get the kudos kids from swimming on early release days...this is a great resource for the youth in our area and if he doesn’t like kids he should choose another place to swim."

BEHNKE RETIRES TO A LIFE OF PENURY AND WANT

Judge John Behnke To Retire

Superior Court Judge John Behnke has announced that he will not seek reelection to a fourth term as judge of the Superior Court of California for the County of Mendocino. He plans on retiring from full time judging at the end of the year.

Judge Behnke was appointed to the bench by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2005. Prior to his appointment, he practiced law for nearly 28 years and served as a named partner in a prominent local firm. After his appointment, he sat in the Willits Branch for two years followed by a five year assignment in Department E of the Ukiah Court handling all civil matters. Since 2012, he has worked in adult criminal court handling felony matters from arraignment through trial. Judge Behnke served as the Assistant Presiding Judge during 2014-2015 and as the Presiding Judge during 2016-2017.

Judge Behnke said, “It has been a privilege to serve as a judge of this court. Mendocino County has always had a strong bench. Previous judges such as Bev Broaddus, Timothy O’Brien, James Luther, and Conrad Cox were outstanding role models for me. It has been a pleasure to serve with the other members of the bench, both current and retired, as well as our hard-working staff. I thank the citizens of Mendocino County for giving me the opportunity to serve and I thank the thousands of jurors who assisted the court during my tenure.”

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GREAT MOMENTS IN THE COURTOOM

Featuring the wit and wisdom of Judge John Behnke

The Great Escape

by Bruce McEwen (March 25, 2015)

A long dull week in the tedious administration of justice ended in a violent clap of excitement Friday morning when Dustin Henderson, in custody, was suddenly out of custody, bursting out of Judge David Nelson’s courtroom on the top floor, flying down the back stairs, kicking open an emergency exit, and disappearing north on State Street.

As the bailiffs scrambled out after the fugitive, investigators for the DA’s office – housed in the back of the CPS building a block away — and police officers from Ukiah Police Department three blocks south and west of the Courthouse, rushed to secure the courtrooms. Duty sergeants, lieutenants, and captains were roused from their desks at the Sheriff’s Office on Low Gap Road and pressed into action. Cops were running around downtown Ukiah from all directions. As one officer later commented, “It was a lot of excitement for some of us old guys.”

Bailiff Art Barclay has been in uniform since 1975, and he’d earlier confided to me that after 38 years of service the weeks were getting longer and longer. I had complained that I didn’t have a story for the week and Art said, “Well, I guess we’ll just have to create something then.”

Little did he know.

Dustin Henderson, a big athletic kid, had been charged with assault with a deadly weapon in a road rage incident when he allegedly fired a high-powered pellet gun at a fellow motorist out on the Covelo Road. These new air guns are extremely accurate and can easily punch through a man’s skull – they’re not exactly your old Red Rider BB guns. Henderson had posted bail to appear on the assault charge, but when he got to Nelson’s arraignment court, the prosecutor, Deputy DA Dan Madow, had amended the charge against Henderson to attempted murder and upped his bail to $225,000. That’s when Henderson hit the door with a bang, thundered down the stairs, slamming doors shut behind him, and left a spider web in the shatter-proof glass of the emergency exit, setting off the alarm.

“It must have occurred to him [Henderson] that he was about to be remanded into custody,” Madow said, tautologically.

All this was learned later. At the time Henderson bolted, all that was known was that some emergency was afoot. The courtrooms were being locked down, alarms were blaring, and I barely made it outside myself before I was locked in. Out on the street, cops were scurrying in every direction. A black and white patrol car pulled up, lights flashing, and the driver asked a Corrections Officer with a van full of prisoners what he knew. The CO pointed at a woman crossing the street and said she might know something. Apparently she was Henderson’s significant other, but she wasn’t telling, if she knew, where her boyfriend had gone.

I went back inside to look for eyewitnesses. The civilian court attendant was talking into his microphone, giving the search party Henderson’s name and physical description. In Department B – which was locked down, due to the lack of a bailiff — the corrections officers had their radios turned up so everyone could hear the play-by-play. This I learned later, over a drink after the day was done, the long week at an end, from a lawyer who had been present.

“He’s been spotted by the law office of Duncan James,” came one report. Then, a few minutes later, “Somebody just saw him run by Justin Petersen’s law office.” It seemed pretty clear that the cops all knew where the defense lawyers were housed, and that these were readily recognizable landmarks.

But then an alternate theory was offered.

“He might just be looking for a good lawyer,” Judge John Behnke observed with deadpanned irony.

BREAKING UP IS HARD TO DO

by Marilyn Davin

When I lived in Turkey in the mid-70s I sometimes stood on the balcony of my in-law’s apartment on the coast of Izmir and watched the electricity come toward me as lights flickered on sequentially along the water’s edge. It happened twice a day when it was our neighborhood’s turn to get electricity for a couple of hours, during which time we filled all available buckets with water and planned for the daily outage hours ahead until the next time the lights came back on.

That was a long time ago and I know that Izmir’s electric supply is no longer the sporadic affair it was back then. And Turks today undoubtedly view their electricity as Americans do: that it’s virtually a God-given right that it be instantly available on demand, at the mere flip of a switch.

But we best remember that it’s not magic; electricity has to be generated, transmitted first over transmission then distribution lines, and finally delivered, at the speed of light, to your wall switch. But with the double whammy of mounting hysteria about breaking up utilities into small independent entities and an entitled population that thinks for some reason that anybody can just walk in off the street and run a utility, I offer the following perspective.

The electricity that turns on your lights comes via the Western Electricity Coordinating Council, the largest of six such U.S. regional entities responsible for overseeing transmission reliability – in the WECC’s case for all or portions of the 14 western states and parts of Canada and Mexico. Generators in all of those places tie into this transmission grid. That electricity racing toward your house at the speed of light comes from a transmission mix that includes nuclear from Arizona, coal from Montana and Wyoming, hydro from Washington State and California, geothermal from Northern California, and fossil-fueled plants from everywhere, and will soon include electricity sold to PG&E from Rossmoor’s under-construction solar array. There’s no such thing as choosing what actually comes into your house unless you’re using a generator, which of course is powered by fossil fuel. California is improving this mix through statutory requirements to gradually replace fossil-fueled generation with renewables, but there’s still plenty of fossil-fueled generation coming our way.

Those proselytizing for mini-utilities instead of the large investor-owned utilities that currently serve us just love the mantra. “Break ‘em up!” But what does that really mean? Be careful what you wish for. In the case of PG&E, which provides gas and electric service to more than 16 million customers from the northern edge of Santa Barbara to the Oregon border, who’s going to do the work that is far more complicated than adding an energy resource to the mix? The utility’s half dozen or so call centers and the 1,000 employees who staff them answer about 30,000 customer calls and about 1,000 emails every day.

In a break-up scenario, would there be a call center for every newly designated utility area? What about the other employees who work on the system-wide rate cases, who argue and settle the hundreds of lawsuits filed every year? Who do the billing, also centralized? Who runs the over 50 hydroelectric plants, run by the utility but operated under regulations promulgated by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission? How much would it cost to duplicate all of those services? And how come nobody is asking those questions?

Perhaps most importantly, who do you call when the power goes out? PG&E gas and electric field employees have been represented by the IBEW since the 1950s, and have wage and other protections that fewer and fewer Americans enjoy. Under a break-up scenario would wealthy areas like San Francisco (currently flogging the dead-horse of utility take-over for the fourth time that I know of) allow those workers to keep those union benefits? Maybe, it is San Francisco. But what if poor areas like, say, Trinity or Lake counties decide to follow the siren call of utility break-up. Would regional utilities in areas like these, that already barely make their meager payrolls, opt to keep those employee benefits? Gas and electric workers are highly skilled, and collectively represent some of the last well-paid, secure union jobs still around in our new, dominant, poorly paid service economy.

Finally, what about the obligation to serve? By statute, investor-owned utilities have to serve anyone who requests it in their vast service territories. If you as a customer opt in to a small, regional utility and it went belly-up, should the big utilities you decided to dump, which regularly estimate their electricity loads based upon population and other factors, be forced to take you back? At what if any cost?

And it’s time to give “shareholder value” a rest. PG&E’s share price has fallen to something like 10 percent of what it was before the last two years of wildfires. You want rich shareholders? Call Apple (though that ship may have already sailed).

NO QUIZ IN BOONVILLE THIS WEEK. It’s been raining, and more is on the way, so, as with a number of previous threats of rain, the Valley will be in shutdown/panic mode. Schools will be closed, Facebook will be inundated with fear-stricken messages about PG&E shutdowns, and inevitably the Japanese will invade… Most importantly of all, there will be no General Knowledge and Trivia Quiz at Lauren’s. Hahaha… You will hopefully be well aware that this is the third Thursday of the month and we never have Quizzes on that day - rain or shine. We do the 2nd and 4th Thursdays and shall therefore return next week, assuming the invaders have been repelled. BTW: Excellent Quiz last week. Won by “The Three Elderly Gentlemen,” aka BBM, aka Sites, Jankula, and Scaramella, aka “Just Kidding,” who held off strong challenges by “Sid and The Sister Wives” along with “The Young Know-Alots-but-Not-It-All.” Cheers, Steve Sparks, The Fear-Mongering Quiz Master

"SUNSET OVER WIND RIVER MOUNTAINS"

TUESDAY NIGHT'S DEBATE, IMPRESSIONS OF

by Bruce Anderson

I was a few minutes late tuning in, but I almost immediately tuned out when Anderson Cooper hoved into view along with a semi-black guy who squeaked when he talked and the obligatory attractive woman with phosphorescent teeth. Jake Tapper's truculent puss also flitted across the screen, always a sure sign we're in for some grade-a jive. A large live audience of well nourished libs looked on.

So, we had this trio of heavy hitters lobbing the soft ball questions, which the ten candidates seemed to have seen well before the New York Times-sponsored event kicked off with Mark Lacey, the castrati-sounding black guy from the Times, Erin Burnett with big white teeth from CNN, and the inevitable Cooper who seems to be on tv round the clock. I was hoping for Wolf Blitzer, CNN's great comic figure, spinning from global catastrophe to global catastrophe in his big swivel chair in CNN's Situation Room.

Immediate ironies included Tom Steyer, a Frisco-based billionaire, who bought his way on stage. To qualify as a candidate you have to have many millions of dollars, but the only candidate who has legitimately raised money from enthusiastic little guy supporters is Bernie Sanders. The rest of them are funded by THE PROBLEM, which all the candidates, including Steyer, duly complained about. Steyer, who bears a strong resemblance to legendary Mendo counter-culture figure, Troll Brandon, also said he wanted to get money out of politics.

The site of the debate was Westerville, Ohio and was beamed out into the world from CNN's Spin Room. (I'll say!)

Trump got worked over all night, and the first half-hour was devoted to ritually bashing him, easily the most derided figure in world history but there he is in all his orange splendor.

Elizabeth Warren sagely pointed out that some issues are bigger than Trump and will still be with us when His Orangeness finally retreats to his tanning bed and bathroom with the gold fixtures. Warren said she'd read "all 442 pages of the Mueller Report,” citing its equivocating findings as more proof that Trump got help from the Russians to defeat Hillary, who only got help from Wall Street and the major corporations all the candidates said they want to rein in. "No one is above the law," Warren declared while millions of abused Americans looked on and silently recited the names of big shots they personally know who are above the law.

Bernie was on message all night, and he looked healthy, too. He said Trump was the most corrupt president in the history of the country, but that claim has some serious competition. Nixon? Warren Harding? Bernie concluded his first remarks by saying, "Mitch McConnell has got to do the right thing," the only unreal remark he made all night.

Biden was often incoherent, losing his train of thought three or four times. He's a hundred years older than Sanders, two hundred years older than Warren.

Kamala Harris did better than she usually does but remains fuzzy on most issues except for abortion rights, a big issue for sure, but if we're doomed as a species from global warming one would expect that issue would over-ride everything else, but it got barely a mention.

Cory Booker roused himself with his usual energetic moral uplift spiel.

Amy Klobuchar got off some witty one-liners, including, "Trump is making Russia great again!"

Julien Castro always induces in me spasms of narcoleptic unconsciousness. Whatever he said wasn't vivid enough to keep me awake.

Mayor Pete is a cunning, articulate little hustler who seems to have great appeal to the fuzzy warms to whom his promises "to bring us together" never fail to resonate with the dewey-eyed. Of all the candidates he and Klobuchar are echoes of Hillary and Bill.

Tulsi Gabbard rightly pointed out that we never should have intervened in Syria in the first place, an observation that has gotten her torrents of abuse from the talking heads at CNN, MSNBC as "a Russian agent."

As the candidates promised to crack down on Big Biz, I remembered Jesse Unruh's famous remark when he was California's go-to guy in the state legislature: "If you can't eat their food, drink their booze, screw their women and then vote against them you've got no business being up here."

All the candidates denounced Trump's treachery vis-a-vis the Kurds who, it is reported, wisely have had the Russians lined up as their back-up muscle against the Turks.

Steyer made the dubious statement that "Every candidate on this stage is better than Trump" and went on to say, "I started the impeachment movement."

Yang, a liberal libertarian, didn't like Bernie's and Liz's plans to tax the rich to pay for health care.

The pandering, demagogic Beto, thanked Mayor Pete and Ms. Gabbard for their "service and sacrifice" and bashed Trump.

Biden said, "My son did nothing wrong, I did nothing wrong. I rooted out corruption in the Ukraine, and this why it is so important we remove this man from office," deftly changing the subject in mid-sentence from his influence peddling in the Ukraine to Trump.

Bernie: We can't focus totally on Trump and ignore the real issues. Without Trump, the Democrats would be speechless.

Warren: "I've had 140 town hall meetings. I've been out there. Americans shouldn't have to worry about healthcare costs." She and Bernie want to tax the super-rich to pay for a version of single payer. The other candidates say their plans won't work. Mayor Pete seems panicked at the idea the rich would be fairly taxed. "There's essentially a multi-trillion hole in the middle" of Warren's plan.

There were long arguments about healthcare, with Klobuchar wanting to "improve" ObamaCare to prepare for "the silver tsunami," meaning the baby boomers as they move from hot tubs to walkers.

Bernie said Americans are tired of a bankrupt, corrupt system, a bracing statement of the obvious we hear only from him on the rare occasions he gets a fair hearing from media at places like CNN and the New York Times. "Do Democrats have the guts to stand up to the insurance and pharmaceutical industries?" No, as the coming election will again prove as Bernie and Liz are shoved aside for the "more reasonable" Democrats like Harris et al.

Bernie stands up for public jobs via a Green New Deal, which Yang responds to by declaring he's for a "trickle up economy."

Booker, temporarly taking leave of his senses, thundered, "Our moral leadership has turned into a dumpster fire." Moral leadership from whom?

Biden said he's spent time alone with Putin and Erdogan, suggesting he's got the experience and all-round savvy to deal with these two thugs. Which he doesn't, obviously, and neither does Trump, obviously. "Isis will come here!" Biden shouted. (I ran to check on my shotgun ammo. Bring it on, Isis. Boonville is ready!)

Asked how he's going to confiscate the combat weapons of the Camo Buddies, Beto said he expects "Americans to do the right thing."

Mayor Pete said, "We can't wait to do proposed gun control reforms" without saying how to get it done immediately.

Kamala Harris said there are 5 million assault rifles in America.

The opioid crisis was lamented by all. Klobuchar said she's seen an email wherein a pharma exec exults, "They're eating them like Doritos!"

Yang observed that there are more prescriptions for opioids in Ohio than there are people. Says we should decriminalize prescription dope for hospitalization and therapy.

Kamala Harris gets a round of applause when she says," High level dope dealers should go to jail."

As the debate rumbles on, what's most depressing about it is that none of the reforms invoked will happen — can happen, given the givens. Bernie or Liz would try but they are unlikely to get the nod from Democrat big funders and the super-delegates.

The debate was sponsored by Ford; dumb movies; McDonalds; a company that promises to expedite crackdowns on "illegal" workers; the evil octopus Amazon; ADT alarm devices; a couple more bad movies; CNN; UBS bank/insurance; and an ad for a drug whose side effects are worse than the disease it allegedly conquers.

Back to the blab.

Break up bit tech? Yes, from all of them.

Kamala calls out Liz for not supporting her proposal to ban Trump's twitter account.

The night wrapped up, unsuprisingly, with David Muir-Scott Simon-quality idiocy. Rather than discuss immigration or global warming, which went unaddressed, Anderson Cooper, grinning, asked, "What friendship have you had that would surprise us, and what impact has it had on you and your beliefs?"

Beto said he once drove from El Paso to Washington with a Republican.

Booker: I got along with Republicans.

Yang said he met a tough guy Trumper named Fred who moved from Trump to Yang during their 30-minute car ride.

Kamala Harris said she liked Rand Paul.

Mayor Pete? Army mates.

Bernie: John McCain and a Utah Republican.

Warren: Charles Freed, a guy who worked for Bush the First.

Biden: McCain.

Conclusion: Stockpile rice and potable water. We are doomed.

CONCERNING AIRBNB RENTALS. We rent out our house part time via airbnb. We live in Ukiah which is probably very different from AV – less tourism, fewer long distance owners. But you overlook some of the ways communities benefit from airbnb. For example I was surprised to learn that most of our renters are out of area workers here on temp jobs: utility crews, medical locums, and legal professionals. For these people our place was much more affordable and comfortable than, say, a motel on State Street. Additionally we pay a fat 10% tax off the top to local government. As recent retirees we want to travel while we still can. We don’t want our home to sit empty and neither do our neighbors. Airbnb provided flexibility, a screening and feedback process, and other forms of help unavailable to us otherwise. The arguments against Airbnb center around greed, but that’s a broad brush. You would be surprised, shocked even, at how little we netted after renting our home for six months. But it was worth it to us to have our home lived in, appreciated and cared for. I would also point out how the anti Airbnb arguments dovetail with the always popular anti-tourism bias. But looking back at our rental history every tenant had some connection to the community, either the aforementioned temp employees, or Ukiah expats returning for family events. So community benefits abound, and should be weighed against the counter arguments, which seem to me largely of the scapegoat variety. (Michael Turner)

CATCH OF THE DAY, OCTOBER 16, 2019

SUSAN ARRANTS, Fort Bragg. DUI.

CHRISTOPHER GARCIA, Ukiah. Robbery, conspiracy.

DANIEL KOWALSKY, Ukiah. Failure to appear.

JUAN LICEA, Ukiah. Domestic abuse, probation revocation.

KELLY LORETZ, Grass Valley/Ukiah. Petty theft with priors, contempt of court, suspended license, [probation revocation.

HEATHER MARSH-HAAS, Willits. Controlled substance, paraphernalia, parole violation, probation revocation.

ANDREW MAYNARD, Fort Bragg. Disorderly conduct-alcohol. (Frequent flyer.)

MARTIN MCGEE, Fort Bragg. Disorderly conduct-alcohol.

KELSEY PIERCE, Assault with deadly weapon, domestic abuse, probation revocation.

NORBERTO QUEZADA-ZARAGOZA, Potter Valley. DUI, no license.

RYAN RAYA, Ukiah. Parole violation.

IRA REYES, Willits. County parole violation.

THOMAS TICE, Ukiah. Disorderly conduct-alcohol, resisting.

IN 1975, LEONARD MATLOVICH, a Purple Heart-decorated member of the Air Force, became the first gay member of the U.S. military to publicly out himself. His fight to keep his military job made the cover of Time magazine in 1975. When he found out he had AIDS in 1986, Matlovich wrote his own epitaph and arranged to be buried at the Congressional Cemetery in Washington, D.C. Both became a reality when he died two years later.

UC HOPLAND RESEARCH AND EXTENSION CENTER SURPLUS AUCTION

Including: Electric motors, gas motors, pumps of all sizes, building supplies and fixtures, lighting new and used, off-road utility vehicles and quads, various tractor implements, large heavy equipment tires, tools, vehicles, dried oak firewood, nuts, bolts, screws, turnbuckles, nails etc.…

Viewing and bidding: 10/22-10/25, 8am-3pm

Final bidding: 10/26, 8am-10am

Sales announced: 10/26, 10am-12pm

Items must be picked up and loaded by 2pm 10/26

Location: 4070 University Road, Hopland CA 95449

Contact: hbird@ucanr.edu or (707) 744 1424 ext. 105

Register for updates at http://bit.ly/HRECSurplus

Visit our website for more pictures and details: http://hrec.ucanr.edu/?calitem=465665&g=61984

UPCOMING AV VILLAGE VOLUNTEER TRAINING and Announcements

AV Village Volunteer training Sunday Nov 10th.

Thank you for your interest in volunteering with the AV Village — we are grateful for the much needed support! Our next training will be Sunday Nov 10, 3 to 4 pm at Lauren's Restaurant (will be right before our monthly gathering). Please let me (andersonvalleyvillage@gmail.com) know if you plan to attend. Thank you!

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Free Mind Body Relaxation Community Group, Monday, Nov 4th

AV Village Member and Volunteer Lucinda Walker, MSW/ILS, has graciously offered to lead a Mind Body Relaxation Community Group - This is a technique that is very basic. The emphasis is not on meditation but on overall relaxation to assist our overall health. After a few months of attendance you should be able to apply this technique in your own living room, car, or anywhere, anytime you feel you need to unwind your body and quiet your mind. It meets in Boonville every Monday at 4 pm, starting November 4th, 2019 and runs to the end January 2020 with TBD for holiday weeks. Contact; Lucinda Walker, MSW/ILS at mscwalker@att.net to sign up or for further information.

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AV Village Cultural Outing on Friday Nov 8th

Note from Mary O’Brien: Our fall event will be a trip to the Green Center to hear the Danish String Quartet at Weill Hall on the Sonoma State University (Santa Rosa) campus on Friday, November 8th at 7:30 p.m. Tickets in the Orchestra Section run $55 each, but if there are 11-20 of us, we’ll get a 20% discount. Since it is a night performance, we will need drivers who are comfortable with night driving. (Are there any of us left??) Please let me know ASAP if you’re interested in attending. I’d like to place the order by Friday, 10/18. I realize I’m not giving you much lead time; the next two events I will! Tunefully yours, Mary O'Brien mheobrien@gmail.com

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Free Well-being Consultation

Deborah Kanani, AV Village volunteer and well-being consultant, is offering the following free of charge (contact her if you are interested

weare@theharmonyranch.com:

"Take possession of your health" — Deborah will provide a well-being consultation up to 2 hours per session free of charge. This is usually a consultation regarding the persons current or ongoing health concerns.

This is not a substitute for medical advice and I do not prescribe pharmaceuticals.

Thank you,

Anica Williams

Anderson Valley Village Coordinator

Cell: 707-684-9829

Email: andersonvalleyvillage@gmail.com

BOXING IN FORT BRAGG

“Lights Out” Fort Bragg boxers head to SR for first-ever USA tournament

On Oct. 12, a pair of young Fort Bragg boxers heads to their first-ever USA Boxing Tournament, the 11th annual Harvest Rumble, sponsored and put on by Double Punches Boxing Club of Santa Rosa. The two boxers heading down to the tournament with head coach Tom Jelen and assistant coach Scott McKinney are 14-year-old Bodie Davis, fighting at 125 pounds, and 22-year-old Kylie Whipple, fighting at 120 pounds. This will be the first USA Boxing sanctioned event either of these young warriors have competed in and they are very excited. The “Lights Out” boxing club runs their training program from the Mendocino Sports Club gym, on Cypress Street in Fort Bragg. Whipple has been training with the Lights Out boxing club for the past two years. As a young Native American woman, Kylie brings true commitment and nose-down dedication to her sport. She has worked hard to prepare for this match and brings her little hands of stone to the ring for this bout. Davis has only been training for about six months and has come a long way. He now brings a dedication and ferocity rarely seen in such a young boxer. As a young man who was quite shy and uncertain about his abilities in the beginning, Bodie has turned into a real powerhouse who is ready for the ring. Fort Bragg always stands behind its young athletes with support and admiration and we at Lights Out and MSC hope our community will rally behind our boxers. Contact Mendocino Sports Club for more information, 707-964-6290. The action, and a full day of boxing, starts at 2 p.m. Double Punches Boxing Club is located at 93 Stony Circle, Santa Rosa, and tickets are available from the club. Boxing program hours at the Mendocino Sports Club are Tuesday and Thursday from 5 to 6 p.m. There is no additional charge for instruction, beyond membership or punch pass fees and boxing equipment is available at the gym.

COURTNEY TAKES COMMAND

The Anderson Valley Winegrowers Association (AVWA) has announced the appointment of Courtney DeGraff as new Executive Director. DeGraff will lead the 62-winery organization, spearheading strategic initiatives, trade partnerships and consumer-oriented events.

Previously a Sales and Marketing Manager at Foursight Winery, DeGraff has worked closely with the AVWA for the past year. Before moving from Boston to Anderson Valley and joining the wine industry, she worked for 14 years in the financial services industry, in both product development and strategic project management. Kristy Charles, current President of the AVWA board, said of DeGraff’s appointment, “We look forward to having someone with Courtney’s background leading the organization. Her experience and enthusiasm for Anderson Valley will help foster strong relationships, in and outside of the Valley.” In addition to her accomplished business background and a Master of Science in Communication Management, DeGraff also took advanced coursework in wine business and is a Certified Specialist of Wine.

While expanding trade relations outside of the Valley, DeGraff will also lead the organization in revolutionizing its two main consumer events. The Winter White Wine Festival, previously called the International Alsace Varietals Festival, will invoke the spirit of a European winter market. Held Feb. 22-23, the festival hosts Anderson Valley’s best white wine producers in addition to several guest producers. To pay respect to the Alsatian grape varieties of the valley, this year the event will showcase Riesling. Each of the guest producers will exclusively pour Riesling, with the special varietal changing from year to year. In addition to the guest producers, a technical seminar will focus on “Why Riesling?” In May, the AVWA will also upgrade its Pinot Noir Festival. This year’s event will be held at Scharffenberger Cellars with a VIP lounge featuring exclusive sparkling wine from Anderson Valley and Champagne.

HERE’S LAILI

Hillside Health Center Welcomes New Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner, Laili Falatoonzadeh

Ukiah, CA — As part of its continual effort to meet the healthcare needs of local women, Hillside Health Center’s women’s health department, Care for Her, has recruited UCSF-trained Laili Falatoonzadeh, who is both a certified nurse-midwife and a women’s health nurse practitioner. She will provide gynecological and prenatal care at Hillside Health Center.

Falatoonzadeh is passionate about reproductive health care and wants to support people in making informed choices about their health. She was inspired to pursue a career in healthcare after encountering providers who prioritized issues of equity, diversity and inclusion with their patients and in the broader healthcare system. Falatoonzadeh believes that alongside clinical care, it is her role to serve as an advocate for her patients.

After graduating with a B.A. from UC Berkeley, Falatoonzadeh worked at Planned Parenthood and later became a doula. She provided doula services through the Birth Justice Project for four years, caring for pregnant women incarcerated at San Francisco County Jail throughout their pregnancies and births. As part of her nursing and midwifery training, Falatoonzadeh provided reproductive healthcare to patients in community clinics and hospitals throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. She has assisted in the care of transgender, non-binary, and gender non-conforming patients.

In addition to an intensive clinical education, Falatoonzadeh has broadened her healthcare knowledge with elements of alternative medicine, such as the use of herbs and considering how diet impacts her patients’ health. She speaks conversational Spanish and looks forward to supporting Latinx patients.

“I hope to provide a listening ear for patients, to validate their experience, facilitate their care and help them navigate the healthcare system. I hope to create a welcoming space and be a trusted partner in their healthcare journey,” she said. ”I am fortunate to work under the mentorship of [women’s health nurse practitioner] Carolyn Wyatt at Care for Her. Carolyn has a wealth of experience and is really generous in how she shares it.”

When Falatoonzadeh isn’t busy caring for patients, she enjoys spending time with her family and cats, gardening, doing building projects and hiking. Falatoonzadeh also meditates regularly and loves to spend time with friends. MCHC Health Centers provides comprehensive health services including primary medical care, pediatrics, dentistry, women’s health, obstetrical care, counseling, psychiatry, and specialty care, and looks forward to growing to meet the ever-expanding needs of the communities it serves. MCHC Health Centers includes Hillside Health Center and Dora Street Health Center in Ukiah, Little Lake Health Center in Willits and Lakeview Health Center in Lakeport. Learn more at www.mchcinc.org.

CHIEF QUANAH PARKER, Comanche, 1892

PUBLIC SAFETY AND ENFORCEMENT OF THE LAW

Editor,

Have you ever seen, heard of or read about the Oakland police giving a ticket to someone illegally riding a bicycle or a skateboard on the sidewalk or illegally allowing their dog to run unleashed on the sidewalk or in the park? Well neither have I.

As a 40 year Oakland resident I have noticed a marked increase in the above illegal activity which violates the Oakland Municipal code, and is a threat to Public safety.

Only when heavy fines are given out to these lawless people will their behavior begin to change.

Dr. Nayvin Gordon

Oakland

IT IS A CURIOSITY of the crossword that it is the least current of all the things that appear in a newspaper. It has the longest lead times and the least imperative to be 'relevant.' Everything else in the paper is concerned with what has happened or is happening or is about to happen: the crossword is not. The crossword is about what is not happening. It is a magnificent folly in a forum of serious debate. It is almost anti-historical, although from time to time there are moments of serendipity when the crossword and history meet. Famous people appear at opportune -- or sometimes inopportune -- moments. Words that enjoy a brief currency suddenly appear, only to fade just as quickly from our collective memories. On the whole, however, the crossword puzzle is disconnected from world events. Many of us remember where we were when John F. Kennedy was shot or the day when the Berlin Wall came down. But the crossword does not. And yet, somehow, it has attained a certain status.

--Sandy Balfour, 2008; from "A Clue to Our Lives"

A GREAT MENDOCINO ART CENTER PAINTING CLASS

Artist/Instructor Ann McMillan will be leading a workshop, Tools for Painting, on Oct. 26 through 27, about using painting fundamentals to work fast and fresh in your choice of media. You may use acrylics, oils or pastes. She will guide you regarding composition and value for designing paintings that are strong and interesting. as well as doing a few color experiments with the focus on value which is key to making dynamic paintings. All levels are welcome.

A partial scholarship is available.

More information:

http://www.mendocinoartcenter.org/Fall19/McMillan.html

or you can call the register at 937-5818 ext 10.

BET?

My Yovanovitch?

Against ten of your Rudy’s?

Any time, buddy.

— James Luther

MENDOCINO COUNTY OFFICE OF EDUCATION: A PERSPECTIVE ON EDUCATION

Technology in Education—Preparing Students for the Future

by Michelle Hutchins, County Superintendent of Schools

During the 1900s, people’s livelihoods moved away from agriculture into jobs based on the industrial revolution, then from a products-based economy to a services-based economy. In the 21st Century, we’re transitioning from a services-based economy to an economy that understands and uses information to solve problems on an enterprise scale.

What does this mean for our schools? It means that rather than asking students to memorize facts they could find quickly in a Google search, we need to teach them to use the technology at hand to solve problems and to think critically so that whatever technology is developed, they can figure out how to embrace it.

Many schools have already begun this transition and are incorporating tools like Chromebooks into daily lessons. Because many of us educators grew up before the computer revolution, it can be difficult to re-imagine how to prepare today’s students for the future.

Thirty years ago, when we asked students to write a research paper, it required a trip to the library, learning to use a card catalog, possibly talking to a librarian, navigating through the stacks to find the desired books and then sometimes browsing around to see what else was available. As a result, students had to develop problem-solving and social skills to gather the information and then critical-thinking skills to synthesize the information. In our current world, if students have access to the Internet and a device, they can access all the information they need in moments.

The problem is, many students have difficulty filtering misleading information and struggle with thinking critically about how social media and other online venues are manipulating them. We are now in a position to help students navigate a world that many of us are not fluent in ourselves.

In response, forward-thinking teachers have begun to restructure learning, but it’s hard to shift decades’ worth of tradition. In California, new educational standards were adopted in recent years. They are a step in the right direction, but they are only standards—not curriculum. Developing engaging curriculum is where the rubber hits the road.

At the Mendocino County Office of Education (MCOE), we’ve been working with school districts to support them in their desire to move further and faster into technology-based learning. Last month, we supported a pilot project at one school district where students were taught to gather information, distill and analyze it, formulate solutions to the problems they identified, and present those solutions to garner broad public support, all while using available technology.

The students learned to ask probing questions to get to the root of the problems they were trying to solve: low student engagement/lack of school spirit, lack of adequate facilities for certain activities, racism, bullying, and low college-going rates. These were real problems at their school, not made-up problems out of a textbook.

The students who participated were identified not because they were leaders among their peers, but because they represented a cross section of regular students. The students used a variety of technology tools and found some truly creative solutions. As members of their target audience, they had a strong grasp on the types of messages and activities their peers would respond to. With some guidance, they learned how to put together technology-aided presentations to convince the adults in the room that their ideas had merit.

For example, they came up with ideas to increase interest in college. They developed recommendations, estimated budgets and included practical and achievable fundraising that they, the students, would be responsible for.

To inspire more technology-based problem solving, MCOE is bringing an Escape Bus to the county for a few days. It will visit many of our schools where students will have to solve age-appropriate puzzles using technology to escape the bus. Teachers will also give it a try. We’re partnering with a company called iSchool Initiative, a company led by a young, dynamic CEO who says that his introduction to online multi-player gaming as an adolescent helped him hone his problem-solving and business skills, which he employs daily as an adult.

It’s hard when growth is exponential rather than linear, but that is how technology is growing and we need to do what we can to anticipate and expand the skills our students will need to be successful in a dynamic and unpredictable future.

FOUND OBJECT