Mendocino County Today: Friday, April 9, 2021

Breezy Days | 1 New Case | Reduced Supply | Vaccine Scene | Outdoor Grows | Mystery Painter | Crisis House | Photo Safari | Distraction Blows | Lifeless People | Local Beaver | Foppoli Allegations | Thatcher Hotel | Observatory Trail | Coast Highway | Ed Notes | Police Reports | Yesterday's Catch | Da Bomb | Dig Deeper | Masking Helps | Arcata Indian | Angry Person | Good Shape | Nature Hikes | Racial Justice | Grocery Stores | Conversation Tip | Military Spending | Joe Hawley

DRY WEATHER WITH BREEZY CONDITIONS are expected to continue along the coast with winds increasing for the weekend into Monday. Early morning frost will be possible in some of the interior valleys through the weekend. A few sprinkles are possible in the north early Saturday, mainly dry weather is expected to continue into next week. (NWS)

ONLY 1 NEW COVID CASE reported in Mendocino County yesterday afternoon.

REDUCTION IN VACCINE ALLOCATION

April 8, 2021

Last night (Wednesday night), the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) announced significant vaccine allocation changes. Unfortunately, the State is receiving a reduced supply of COVID-19 vaccines from the Federal Government for allocation to local health jurisdictions (LHJ) and providers. 

The Center for Disease Control (CDC) indicates there are approximately one (1) million first doses available for allocation by the State this week. This is a 33% decrease from last week. Specifically for Janssen, this is close to a 95% reduction from approximately 572,000 doses last week to 67,000 doses this week. 

This reduction is caused by near-term supply challenges at the national level, as well as increasing proportions of California’s vaccines being delivered through the federal direct allocation programs. 

The State plans to reduce first dose allocations across LHJ geographies proportionately across the board. This means that most LHJ areas and providers will see approximately 65-67% of their last week’s total. This reduction in first doses does not affect second doses. The County of Mendocino will focus on administering second doses, which continue to be timed 3-4 weeks, as applicable, after first dose allocations. The State plans, starting with next week’s allocation, to begin using both federal direct allocations and available inventory data, to adjust allocations at LHJ and provider levels. We continue to expect vaccine supply for State allocation to increase by the end of April. 

The State plans to reduce first dose allocations across LHJ geographies proportionately across the board. This means that most LHJ areas and providers will see approximately 65-67% of their last week’s total. This reduction in first doses does not affect second doses. The County of Mendocino will focus on administering second doses, which continue to be timed 3-4 weeks, as applicable, after first dose allocations.

The State plans, starting with next week’s allocation, to begin using both federal direct allocations and available inventory data, to adjust allocations at LHJ and provider levels.

We continue to expect vaccine supply for State allocation to increase by the end of April. 

OUTDOOR GROWS

Editor: 

There is a reason that of 58 California counties only 15 allow outdoor commercial cannabis. Impacts on neighborhoods are just too severe to offset with any mitigations.

Sonoma County started out with a use permit process, as is required by the California Environmental Quality Act, but the county is now attempting to go to a ministerial process to accommodate cannabis industry demands.

This is applying a cookie-cutter approach to land use. Our county is too diverse to assume all parcels are so much alike that you can apply the same imaginary check box solution to each one. Other counties have tried this scheme but have had to return to use permits after years of wasted time and lawsuits.

This attempt to bypass CEQA will not succeed, but county officials surge blindly ahead. Meanwhile the failed penalty relief program allows those who broke the law and avoided taxes for years to operate and even expand without consequences.

The commercial cannabis rollout is a failure and the only way forward is to abandon the Feb. 16 draft ordinance and go back to amending the previous ordinance so that the scuttled neighborhood compatibility phase will finally be fulfilled.

Marcy Meadows 

Graton

GUESS WHO PAINTED THIS?

FORT BRAGG ADVOCATE, APRIL 7, 1972: "The plans for development of a 24-hour mental health facility known as Crisis House have been temporarily halted. Staff from the Fort Bragg Mental Health Services have consulted with the County Mental Health Advisory Board and with the Mental Health Director and have determined that the mental health situation for the entire county is in a state of change."

SOME BACKGROUND/EXCERPTS ON “DISTRICTION BLOWS”

Distraction Blows/Compliance Strikes

Some of the force incidents we reviewed involved an officer using what some might refer to as a “distraction blow” or “compliance strike” while bringing an individual into custody. Distraction blows are strikes to a suspect’s body intended to “distract” him so that an officer can secure his hands or apply handcuffs. In our reviews of other police agencies, we have found confusion about what was allowable as a distraction blow. The use of distraction blows has proven controversial for other agencies, and we recommend that LPD consider its position and review its training in this area to ensure its officers’ understanding of whether and when such force is permissible aligns with the expectations of its executives and the community. At a minimum, a written policy should prohibit the use of blows to the head as distraction blows. 

Recommendation 20: LPD should consider its training protocols and policy regarding the use of “distraction blows.” If distraction blows are to be authorized, officers should be provided more guidance on the allowable uses of force under such category. Any distraction blows policy should prohibit strikes to the head. 

by Michael Gennaco and Julie Ruhlin 323-821-0586
7142 Trask Avenue | Playa del Rey, CA 90293 OIRGroup.com 

from their “Review of Force and Internal Investigations” for Lompoc Police Department, 2020

* * *

California law authorizes “any peace officer who has reasonable cause to believe that the person to be arrested has committed a public offense to use reasonable force to effect the arrest, to prevent escape or to overcome resistance” (P.C. 835a). Police agencies are required to adopt use-of-force policies consistent with this statute. For example, the Riverside Police Department considers kicking (along with punching, batons and less-than-lethal munitions) appropriate when facing “threatening actions of an aggressive suspect.” Even then officers are cautioned to “avoid striking those areas such as the head, throat, neck, spine or groin which may cause serious injury to the suspect.” (Distraction blows aren’t mentioned.)

https://www.policeissues.org/html/use_of_force_09.html

* * *

Assistant Sheriff Thayer explained, distraction blows are a maneuver taught in Police Academy. It's meant to stun or startle so that deputies can grab the person's hands.

https://kmph.com/news/local/we-know-its-not-pretty-kings-co-sheriffs-office-explains-use-of-force-in-arrest-video

* * *

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

Opinion:

“…On the other hand, "[w]hile the existence of less forceful options to achieve the governmental purpose is relevant, '[p]olice officers . . . are not required to use the least intrusive degree of force possible.'" Marquez v. City of Phoenix, 693 F.3d 1167, 1174 (9th Cir. 2012), as amended on denial of reh'g (Oct. 4, 2012) (citations omitted). Cf. Blankenhorn, 485 F.3d at 477 ("Neither tackling nor punching a suspect to make an arrest necessarily constitutes excessive force."); Barber v. Santa Maria Police Dep't, 2010 WL 5559708, at *9 (C.D. Cal. Sept. 1, 2010) (during traffic stop, officers' use of three "distraction strikes" to plaintiff's face and neck were objectively reasonable given that the plaintiff was refusing to comply with the officers' verbal commands, was attempting to destroy evidence, and was physically resisting attempts to handcuff him.).”

I DON'T LIKE PEOPLE who have never fallen or stumbled. Their virtue is lifeless and it isn't of much value. Life hasn't revealed its beauty to them. 

― Boris Pasternak

MENDO’S OWN BEAVER

This isn’t a baby beaver, it’s a Point Arena mountain beaver! 

Considered the most primitive living rodent, these beavers average about one foot in length and weigh around two to four pounds. While mountain beavers occur in many areas throughout Pacific Northwest, the endangered Point Arena subspecies is only found within Mendocino County. 

They also spend up to 23 hours resting underground.

More photos: http://ow.ly/8RR150EiZPg

US Fish & Wildlife Service

SONOMA COUNTY WINERY OWNER has been accused of sexually assaulting four women. Here’s why it matters

by Esther Mobley

Today, my colleagues at The Chronicle published a story about allegations of sexual assault against Dominic Foppoli, mayor of the Sonoma County town of Windsor and owner of Christopher Creek Winery. The account that investigative reporters Alexandria Bordas and Cynthia Dizikes sketch is harrowing, with alleged incidents involving four women, including rape, that occurred between 2003 and 2019. In one case, a 21-year-old who was interning at a nearby Sonoma County winery claimed that Foppoli attacked her after they met at a party he was hosting at Christopher Creek.

For anyone who follows California wine or local Wine Country politics, this is essential reading. It’s not just about one alleged bad actor. It’s about a system that allows bad behavior to occur and to go unpunished — where an alleged rapist can not only wield influence through his businesses, but can also gain political power.

The investigation into Foppoli is also noteworthy because it’s one of the few published accounts of alleged sexual misconduct within the US wine industry. When there have been high-profile allegations in the wine world in recent years, they have mostly pertained to the restaurant side of things, not wineries themselves. The New York Times published accusations against the New York sommelier Anthony Cailan in 2019, and last year published a series of claims against powerful players involved in the Court of Master Sommeliers including Geoff Kruth and Devon Broglie.

But when it comes to wineries — the places where wine is made, not served with meals — there have been just a handful of public reckonings. Years before #MeToo, Napa vintner Mike Grgich was sued by three former employees for sexually inappropriate behavior; the lawsuits were settled out of court. In 2018, more than 20 people described instances of sexual harassment by Canadian winemaker Norman Hardie to the Globe and Mail.

And over the last week, Vermont winemaker Krista Scruggs, a star in the natural-wine world, has faced accusations of sexual misconduct, a saga that’s mostly played out on Instagram. Scruggs has denied any wrongdoing. (A more detailed account of the Scruggs story can be found in the VTDigger.)

Each of these episodes contains its own uniquely complicated universe. None of them comes close to conveying the full picture of the American wine industry, which, like many industries, has struggled to shake sexist dynamics. Though studies show women and men drink wine at comparable rates, women are less likely to be in leadership positions in the winemaking industry here. Just 4% of California wineries are owned by a woman, according to Santa Clara University.

I’ve thought a lot about this over the last few years — about the ways in which sexual harassment or violence, as well as other forms of exploitation, may be able to appear in wine-centric settings. That becomes especially true when vulnerable people are present, like an undocumented worker or a young foreign intern, who may not be able to easily access resources if something goes wrong. There are more stories to tell; we’re already working on some of them. If you have thoughts or experiences that you think could inform this conversation, feel free to get in touch.

In the meantime, I hope you’ll read Alexandria and Cynthia’s investigation into the mayor of Windsor.

---

SONOMA COUNTY SUPERVISOR, LINDA HOPKINS had something to say about it. 

“I read the Chronicle article on Mayor Foppoli this morning and went through a familiar set of emotions: shock, disgust, revulsion, the return of a particular pit in my stomach, and sadness and sorrow for the assault survivors. The allegations of multiple women — backed by the accounts of friends, as well as contemporaneous social media postings and private messages — are credible. The reporting was extensive and well-researched. The thread that connected these women was trauma, and one person: Dominic Foppoli.

Too many of us have experienced sexual misconduct and assault. For too many of us, the stories we read in the Chronicle today are our stories. They took us back to a time and a place where a man held some form of power over us — physical, hierarchical, cultural, or political — and flexed that power in pursuit of his own sexual pleasure. Instances in which we weren’t looked at as a fellow human being, but as an object or a conquest.

Do I believe these women? Yes. I do. So did a well-respected news publication, and professional journalists who likely invested hundreds of hours of their time on this thorough, well-researched investigative story. 

Some people might suggest that Dominic is being convicted without a fair trial. When the statute of limitations has expired… when women fear retaliation or retribution or personal attack for speaking the truth… when women struggle with the intense trauma of an experience that engenders feelings of guilt and shame… when women live in a world where sexual misconduct is too often dismissed as a normal part of culture… “fair trials” aren’t always possible. I do hope, however, that further investigation is possible. It is certainly warranted.

But here’s the other thing: Elected officials are held to a higher standard. Our lives are, and should be, subject to greater scrutiny. Our ability to lead depends in large part on whether we are trusted by others, and whether we can work alongside and with our communities. 

I believe that Mayor Foppoli has lost the ability to lead his community. He certainly should not be someone who represents all of Sonoma County as an appointee to the Golden Gate Bridge District.

I regret both my former endorsement of Mayor Foppoli, and the vote I cast on Tuesday to advance the recommendation of the Mayors and Councilmembers to appoint Mayor Foppoli to the Golden Gate Bridge District. Had I known about these allegations, I would neither have endorsed him nor voted in favor of his appointment. I believe Dominic Foppoli should step down as Mayor, and as Sonoma County’s Golden Gate Bridge District representative.

I do not make this statement as the Chair of the Board of Supervisors. I make it as a woman, a survivor, and a mother of two daughters and one son… As someone who believes that we cannot and must not accept this kind of behavior in our community, let alone in our leaders. We have to do better.“

THE MENDOCINO COAST CYCLISTS (MCC) along with Cal Fire, is excited to announce the completion of a brand new stretch of multi-use trail, in the Jackson State Demonstration Forest (JDSF). This new trail known as Observatory Trail, is 2.2 miles in length, and adds a very important linkage allowing pedestrians, cyclists, and equestrians to avoid the hazardous section of road from the intersection of Road 408 and Road 700, enroute to Forest History and Manly Gulch trails. Observatory Trail has connected and expanded JDSF’s existing trail system, building towards a more cohesive trail experience. This beautiful new trail weaves through a stand of second growth forest consisting of redwoods and douglas fir. It has two climbs totaling 1000’ of elevation gain from bottom to top, and the trail can be enjoyed equally moving in either direction. Within the body of the trail are groupings of sweeping turns that give the trail a playful nature while allowing for elevation gain and loss. This trail is approachable for trail users of all skill levels.

The opening of Observatory Trail is a milestone in many ways. Getting the green light to build this trail took a year of pre-planning for environmental assessments, and trail line layout and approval. The trail line was thoughtfully laid out and flagged with several design constraints being considered at all times, by local trail designer and MCC Trail Boss Nick Taylor, along with critical input from Erik Wahl of CalFire. Notably, this is the first machine-built trail in JDSF. Progressive Trail Design was hired as the main trail building entity; they are experts in the field of recreational trail building and pride themselves on solely building single track trails with small machines. Observatory Trail was constructed using two low-impact mini excavators, which are specialized low-impact machines that have a variable track width of only 30-36”, thereby keeping the trail bed narrow and significantly minimizing disturbance. Using these small machines allowed this trail to be built in a record-setting time frame, seven weeks in total, from start to finish. Mr.Taylor said that had we not been fortunate enough to have a trail sponsor providing funding to hire a trail building entity such as Progressive Trail Design, that it would have taken our trail building club which meets one day per month, several years to build this trail. Progressive Trail Design took the lead on building the trail, and the Steam Donkey’s– MCC’s volunteer trail crew– lended collectively hundreds of hours of their time to finesse the freshly cut trail line by removing roots from the trail bed, removing trash from illegal dumping off of road 408, and raking the trail bed for a smooth surface with out-sloping for proper drainage.

This trail was built through the generous sponsorship from the foundation, One Track Mind (OTM). OTM funds the building and maintenance of world-class trails across the United States. OTM and MCC are proud to be partners with their shared goal of advocating for, building, and maintaining incredible trail systems.

One Track Mind has been extremely generous in providing all of the funds to build this trail, and with trusting that MCC would design and manage its construction to the fullest extent.

The trail was completed in September of 2020, but it was closed to users in the winter to protect the trail while the season’s rains helped to compact the soil, ensuring a longer trail lifetime once re-opened. It is with great anticipation that we are able to finally announce that this truly special trail is now open for all users to enjoy!

This trail has a brand new sign marking its beginning point, as seen in the enclosed picture. This beginning point can be found at the intersection of Road 408 and Road 700. For a point of reference Road 700, is the road that takes visitors to the Woodlands camp. There is a turnout at this intersection.

Presser from the Mendocino Coast Cyclists (MCC)

ED NOTES

A POIGNANT PLEA from a young working guy of the type both our former resident deputies, Squires and Walker, would have wrapped up without even leaving their homes: "Whoever took my truck for a joyride last night please return my keys. My name is jason Killilia and I’m the welder at the brewery. Please!"

AT LAST a morning tv person who not only looks like a real person, but delivers the information with verve, even joy. Ladies and Germs, especially you Germs, introducing Ms. Reyna Harvey KRON 4 weather lady. 

SOMEONE IMPERSONATING the police is using the ava's phone number as their call back number. “Hello, thank you for calling back. I'm the fake police. Send me money and I won't arrest you.” In sophistication this one reminds me of the slow kid who called the Ukiah PD years ago to say he was holding a woman hostage at the old Kentucky Fried Chicken place next door to the Ukiah Theater. “You better tell these people to give me some free chicken or bad things will happen.” The upshot? Police Chief Johnson brought the boy into his office and, looking sternly at him, “Son, we have a lot of weirdos in this town and we don't need any young ones. Don't you dare do this again.” 

STILL NOT SURE what it is, but something has wiped me out since last Sunday, something totally enervating whose symptoms mimic covid. But I've been double vaxxed with the moderna potion, and assumed whatever had knocked me out would pass. It got worse. My machinery ached, no appetite, body heat felt positively malarial, hurt to swallow, cough, neck swelled to bullfrog dimensions, voice became a consistent amphibian croak. Family insisted I get checked out. I don't exactly distrust the medical profession, but ever since on my third visit to a Frisco doctor who asked, "Excuse me, but what was your name again?" I watch them all closely for attention lag. I considered hauling myself to the Adventist's emergency room in Ukiah, but I have an enemy on staff there and feared not emerging to the inspirational sights of West Perkins. I imagined the announcement: “Mr. Anderson is nearly 82 years old, and although be brags about doing a lot of push-ups (250 every day in sets of 50, 75 if there's money on it) and hill-walking, he's at the age where he finally gets his ticket punched, and today he got it punched. Adventists ‘a vegetarian cult’? it's about goddam time we were free of him and his insults.” 

I DIDN'T want to fight either Ukiah or the medical vegetarians, so I called the Anderson Valley Health Center, where I was asked to describe my symptoms. I described them. They called me back to invite me to come on in. The Center's reception area is a half dozen attractive Catholic ladies, one of whom bustled out to meet me at the door. My hearing's poor in aurally perfect circumstances, so I just said Yes to all her questions, and when the young woman asked, “Do you have any of these symptoms?” I replied, “All of them.” She ushered me inside where, as I stood reading the entrance way plaque with all the names of the locals who had made the Health Center possible, most of them gone to their reward, another young woman, this one Anglo and rather anxious, approached me to ask me to wait outside, please, “and you can sit down while you wait if you want.” She was nice about it, but who would have stopped me from sitting?

SHE RETURNED to say, “What we would like you to do is get in your car and pull around behind the back door.” I did as directed, imagining the visual poignance of an old man in a battered Honda with 313,825 miles on it, a vehicle his wife refuses to ride in because of its untidy interior — “This is a work vehicle, dear” — an old wheeze considered so toxic in his home town its medical center could not hazard him inside, well hell, nothing poignant about it, I was getting curb service! Soon, another young woman in hockey-like protective gear was sticking a device in my ear, a piece of wood in my throat, a third gizmo attached to a little finger. And then a man appeared pushing what appeared to be a lunch cart with what looked like battlefield supplies on it. It was Dr. R, who I've begun to consider my personal caregiver, hoping his chagrin is not too great if he happens to see his new responsibility. Dr. R stuck another piece of wood down my throat, briefly throttled me to check my swollen neck, took a long look down my gullet and said, “I think it's strep,” which I always thought was a sore throat, not a full body assault. He asked me to call him if the thing persisted, and I drove the one mile back to my office, locked the door, and slept. As of Thursday late afternoon, the symptoms are beginning to recede.

JIM AND LETICIA & A BAG OF SMACK

On Monday, April 5, 2021 at 8:45 P.M. a Mendocino County Sheriff's Deputy was on routine patrol when they observed a red sedan with expired registration in the 1000 block of South State Street in Ukiah.

The sedan turned into a parking lot as the Deputy conducted a traffic stop for the listed violation.

The Deputy contacted the occupants and requested their identifying information.

The driver was identified as James Hill, 26, of Clearlake and the front passenger provided a name and date of birth; however when asked how old she was, the passenger provided an age that did not match the date of birth she provided.

After further investigation, the Deputy was able to determine the passenger provided the identifying information of a family member. The passenger was subsequently identified as Leticia Contreras, 32, of Covelo.

Hill was on probation with search terms. A probation search of Hill's person revealed suspected heroin and a straw used to ingest heroin.

Hill was cited to appear in the Ukiah Superior court for Possession of a Controlled Substance Narcotic and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia.

Contreras was arrested for Felony False Impersonation of Another. A warrants check revealed Contreras had an active out of county felony arrest warrant.

Contreras was arrested and booked into the Mendocino County Jail where she was held with no-bail status.

========================

VISITING FROM FORT JONES… MR. RICK CASE!

On Tuesday, April 6, 2021 at about 12:28 AM a Mendocino County Sheriff's Deputy observed a Nissan Pathfinder traveling on Highway 162 near Highway 101 in Willits.

The Deputy noticed a traffic violation and conducted an traffic stop on the Nissan and contacted the driver who was identified as being Rick Case, 43, of Fort Jones.

The Deputy requested a records check on Case and discovered he had two (2) Felony warrants for his arrest for robbery from Siskiyou County.

Case was arrested and booked into the Mendocino County Jail and where he was to be held on a no-bail status.

========================

SEXUAL ATTACKER CONVICTED BY JURY.

A Mendocino County Superior Court jury returned from its deliberations Wednesday afternoon with a guilty verdict against the trial defendant. 

Lamont Alexander Dean, age 50, of Santa Rosa, was found guilty of assault with the intent to commit rape of an unconscious female, the crime having occurred in Ukiah during June of last year. 

The defendant also admitted a prior Strike conviction outside of the presence of the jury, said felony conviction having been entered into the records of the Solano County Superior Court in 1999.

The investigating law enforcement agencies were the Mendocino County Sheriff Department, the California Department of Justice {DNA} and the District Attorney’s own Bureau of Investigations. 

The prosecutor who has been handling this matter and presented the evidence to the jury is Deputy District Attorney Heidi Larson.

Mendocino County Superior Court Judge Keith Faulder presided over the six-day trial.

========================

LOPEZ'S NIGHT AT THE CASINO

On Wednesday, April 7, 2021 at about 11:30 hours, Mendocino County Sheriff's Deputies responded to assist California Highway Patrol with contacting a reported stolen vehicle that had been located at the Coyote Valley Gas Station in Redwood Valley.

The stolen vehicle was unoccupied and it was believed the suspect had fled the vehicle shortly before law enforcement arrival.

Deputies assisted with a canvass of the area. Upon entering the nearby casino, a Deputy observed a male, whom he immediately recognized as Juan Carlos Lopez, 32, of Ukiah.

The Deputy knew Lopez had multiple outstanding felony warrants for his arrest. The Deputy also knew Lopez to be an active criminal street gang participant who had reportedly been seen recently in possession of a firearm.

The Deputy contacted Lopez but he immediately fled, throwing a casino chair toward the Deputy to prevent the Deputy's pursuit. The Deputy continued to chase Lopez out of the casino and northbound through the parking lot. The Deputy broadcast his pursuit by radio and a perimeter was quickly formed around the path of the pursuit. Lopez continued running up a steep, wooded hill with the Deputy close behind, while continuing to verbally order Lopez to stop.

Knowing Lopez was likely armed with a deadly weapon and fearing he may harm civilians or other law enforcement, the Deputy deployed his Taser device. The Taser probes were unable to penetrate Lopez' thick, bulky clothing, rendering the deployment unsuccessful.

Shortly after, Lopez was seen throwing a large item onto the ground. The Deputy was able to apprehend Lopez a short distance later and Lopez was taken into custody without further incident.

Sheriff's Office K9 "Bo" was on duty and is trained in firearm/ammunition detection. K9 "Bo" was deployed to assist in searching the area where Lopez was seen throwing an item.

The search was successful and a loaded .44 Magnum revolver was discovered. Based on the condition and location of the revolver, it was obvious Lopez had discarded it while attempting to evade the Deputy. The revolver was seized as evidence.

At the conclusion of the incident, Lopez complained of stomach pain and shortness of breath and requested medical attention.

Emergency Medical Services personnel evaluated Lopez on scene. It was determined further evaluation was needed so Lopez was transported by Deputies to the Adventist Health Ukiah Valley Hospital.

Lopez was later medically cleared for incarceration and transported to the Mendocino County Jail where he was booked for:

Criminal Street Gang Participant Carrying a Loaded Firearm

Convicted Felon in Possession of a Firearm

Convicted Felon in Possession of Ammunition

Violation of Post Release Community Supervision

Possession a Controlled Substance while Armed with a Loaded Firearm

Resisting/Obstructing a Peace Officer

Felony Arrest Warrant

Two Misdemeanor Arrest Warrants

Due to the severity of the crimes and risk posed to the community, a bail enhancement was requested by Sheriff's Deputies. The request was granted and bail on all open charges was set at $150,000 by a Mendocino County Superior Court Judge.

Lopez was to be held at the Mendocino County Jail in lieu of $215,000 total bail.

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SEX OFFENDER HIGH CENTERS

On Monday, April 5, 2021 at about 8:30 PM, a Mendocino County Sheriff's Deputy was on patrol in the area of Highway 162 near Biggar Lane in Covelo.

The Deputy observed a green Subaru Outback drive past his location. The Deputy noticed the male driver, later identified as Allen Lee Wears, 41, of Covelo, ducked as he drove past. The Deputy noted several lighting equipment violations on the rear of the vehicle.

The Deputy initiated an traffic stop on the Subaru as it turned west onto Biggar Lane. The Subaru did not yield, instead accelerating and continuing westbound on Biggar Lane.

A vehicle pursuit ensued and continued onto Refuse Road. When the roadway transitioned to rough, unpaved surface, the Deputy lost visual contact with the Subaru due to dust. A short time later the Deputy regained visual contact with the Subaru, finding it had come to a stop. Other Deputies arrived to assist at this time.

Upon approaching the Subaru, it was discovered the vehicle had collided with a large rock and became high centered along the bank of the creek. The Subaru was unoccupied and it was learned Wears had fled on foot, northbound along Mill Creek.

Sheriff's Office K9 "Bo" was deployed a short time later to search for Wears. K9 "Bo" searched the rugged terrain extensively, following a track to an area that was deemed unsafe to continue.

During the search, it was learned that Wears was a registered sex offender and was on active CDC Parole. Wears was out of compliance with 290 PC registration requirements and had an outstanding warrant for his arrest for violating the conditions of his Parole. The Subaru was later towed and the search was suspended.

On 04-06-2021 at about 10:30 AM, a Deputy contacted Wears at a residence on Logan Lane in Covelo.

Wears was arrested for his Parole violation warrant, Sex Offender Failure to Register, and Reckless Driving while Evading a Peace Officer.

Wears was booked into the Mendocino County Jail where he was to be held on a no-bail status.

CATCH OF THE DAY, April 8, 2021

RICK CASE, Fort Jones/Ukiah. Robbery, felon-addict with firearm.

CAYTLIN COLLICOTT, Willits. Paraphernalia, parole violation.

LETICIA CONTRERAS, Covelo. Stolen vehicle, false personation of another.

ANTHONY DAHL, Controlled substance, probation revocation.

WESLEY DICKSON, Ukiah. DUI, Petty theft, controlled substance, suspended license, forgery of vehicle registration, failure to appear, probation revocation.

LAURA DOUGLAS, Willits. Failure to appear.

LANCE ESSEX, Laytonville. Failure to appear.

URIEL HERNANDEZ, Willits. Protective order violation, resisting, battery on peace officer.

RACHEL HUNT, Fort Bragg. Taking vehicle without owner’s consnt, failure to appear, probation revocation.

JUAN LOPEZ, Ukiah. Controlled substance while armed, convict with firearm, ammo possession by prohibited person, County parole violation, interfering with police communications, criminal street gang member with firearm, resisting.

DAVID MAIRS, Willits. Failure to appear.

MICHAEL MEEKINS, Healdsburg/Ukiah. DUI-alcohol&drugs, under influence, suspended license, failure to appear.

KELLY MILLER, Willits. Probation revocation.

TASHA ORNELAS, Ukiah. Disorderly conduct-alcohol. (Frequent Flyer)

BYRON PETERS, Covelo. DUI with priors, carjacking, county parole violation.

DAVID PETERS, Covelo. No license, suspended license for DUI.

JAVIER RAMIREZ, Ukiah. Probation revocation.

EDWARD STEELE, Ukiah. County parole violation.

WHO MADE THE POTATO SALAD? KISS THE BLOND BABY.

Marco here. I was reading an article about so-called Black movies, with a list of like fifty of them. One that caught my eye was Who Made The Potato Salad. It's about a man who goes to his girlfriend's family's house for a holiday dinner. Here's a three-minute scene from it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c6GUltF4FUM

And then, literally the next thing after seeing that, I read the latest Announce listserv posts, just now. Try to tell me you don't see an uncanny similarity there, between the tone and progression of the posts and the dinner, above. Isn't that weird? 

IN OTHER NEWS: In real life one time like fifteen or twenty years ago Juanita and I were with her brother Chris and his girlfriend and maybe a couple of other people at Juanita's mother's house for Thanksgiving. Chris bit into a turkey leg and made an appreciative noise, Mm-mm, or nNNNnn, something like that. His girlfriend said to the air in front of her, "Kiss the blond baby." Chris said, "It's a little dry for that." I required an explanation of what just happened. 

It turned out, she asked, "'Zit the bomb, baby?" I had never heard that term before: if something is good it's the bomb. Is the turkey the bomb, baby? Almost but not quite. It is a little dry to be the bomb. 

Now I want potato salad.

Marco McClean, memo@mcn.org

ON LINE COMMENT OF THE DAY

So much wrongness.

Any mask – cloth, surgical, etc. – catch some or most of the little droplets of spittle that exit your piehole when you breath or talk. If you have the virus in your airway, those droplets are infectious. This can be true even when you are pre-symptomatic, or never develop symptoms. Masks contain these tiny droplets and keep them out of the air.

Covid virus doesn’t float around on its own, the virus particles stay stuck to the little dried out remains of those mucous droplets that you breathed out. Lucky for us because the virus particles are quite small (50-200 nanometers) but the “droplet nuclei” are 25-100 larger (5 microns or less) which can be filtered out by an N95 respirators which is, as the name suggests, 95% effective at 2.5 microns and pretty good below that. Facemasks still filter the majority, and cloth masks about half. Anything is better than nothing.

Masks and respirators don’t catch everything that you exhale, nor everything in the air you inhale, but even still they can keep you from getting sick by reducing the overall viral load. Whether you get sick or not and how bad depends in part on how many virus particles you breath in and how far down they lodge in the mucous membranes of your airway.

Folks, masks and respirators serve two purposes and are proven to be effective at both. One is keeping your snot from infecting other people. The other is filtering out whatever is unavoidably floating in the air, including the dried up snot from people who are exercising their “patriotic freedoms”.

THERE’S NOTHING MORE RELAXING than a nice round of golf. That is, unless, Donald Trump is getting in your face and screaming obscenities at you for the tiniest misunderstanding. In an extract from ex-House Speaker John Boehner’s book, he recounts a frosty end to a game of golf with Trump in the 2000s. As the round was set to begin, Trump asked Boehner’s staffer BJ for the names of the two insurance execs who were joining them. “‘I think they’re Joe and Jeff,” BJ told him. So Trump said hello to Joe and hello to Jeff and we set off,” Boehner wrote. However, at the end of the game, the execs revealed their names were actually Mike and David, and they shared an awkward laugh. “But Donald—well, Trump did not laugh,” Boehner wrote. “He marched over to BJ and got right in his face to the point that BJ might have had to take a step or two back. Then Trump shouted, ‘What are you, some kind of idiot?’ ... ‘You want to know how to remember somebody’s name?... You fucking LISTEN!’” The former speaker added: “This was real anger, over something very, very small. We had no idea then what that anger would do to our country.” (Daily Beast)

THE PEOPLE WHO CRITICIZE, I could care less. If you wake up on this side of the ground you're in good shape.

— Eric 'Butterbean' Esch

GUIDED FAMILY NATURE TOURS at Hopland REC Prepare for International City Nature Challenge

The UC Hopland Research and Extension Center (HREC) is hosting a series of family friendly, social pod, guided nature hikes as part of the international City Nature Challenge. Guided tours will be offered every Saturday from April 10-May 1, pre-registration is required.

Each hour-long visit will guide small social pods (maximum group size of 9) through woodlands, creeks and grasslands in search of wildlife. “Groups will have the chance to find birds, mammals, reptiles, plants and more. Our tour takes visitors to different habitats to find different species, we’ll be using scientific tools like wildlife trail cameras and coverboards to find critters large and small. We’ll also record our observations using the freeiNaturalist app, this free app uses artificial intelligence to help us to identify what we find and contribute to science simply by uploading a picture.” commented Hannah Bird, HREC Community Educator, who will help guide the tours. All experience levels and nature-curious people are welcome.

The guided nature tours will help prepare any visitors who are also interested in participating in the family friendly City Nature Challenge (CNC) taking place from April 30-May 3. The CNC embraces the healing power of nature and celebrates tens of thousands of people all around the world, searching for and documenting their local biodiversity, together in this event. Many Mendocino County non-profits and education institutions, will take part in the 2021 City Nature Challenge: http://bit.ly/cncmendo. A team of local nature experts from across the county, including HREC’s Hannah Bird, will host an optional orientation for the City Nature Challenge on Wednesday, April 21 via Zoom. Please register in advance at the link provided to receive the Zoom meeting info: http://bit.ly/zoomcncmendo. The City Nature Challenge is organized on a global scale by the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County and the California Academy of Sciences.

Guided nature tours will be offered at HREC every Saturday from April 10 - May 1, at 10am, 11am, 12pm and 1pm. Sliding scale of pricing from $10-$100, supported by Charlie and Joan Kelly and other donors to the Hopland Scholars Fund. Registration in advance is required at http://bit.ly/hrecbioblitz. All Mendocino County Health Orders will be followed including physical distancing, mask wearing and regular hand washing. For questions or comments please contact hbird@ucanr.edu. 

SHOPPING TIPS

Welcome to Grocery Outlet

Obsidian Monarch (Coast Listserve):

We drive to Willits to partake in their [Grocery Outlet] awesome prices and ever changing selection, lots of organic and imported goods that cost big $$$ here at Harvest.

Cheaper

Marco here. 

I like the FoodMaxx in Rohnert Park. It's like five minutes away from Juanita's apartment. Frozen pesto better and cheaper than I can make it myself. Frozen meatballs, family-size packs of pasta, good choice of spaghetti sauce. Cheap produce, including like seven kinds of apples. (One or the other kind of apples and one kind of oranges/tangerines is always on sale.) Only two kinds of lettuce but they are the only kind I like because they are normal lettuce and not disgusting bitter weeds. Discounted name-brand canned goods. Excellent off-brand Fruit Loops for like a third the price of real Fruit Loops. Olive oil. Pretty good frozen meatballs. Gallon of vinegar, often $2.50. Cheap ice cream, tea, hot chocolate, etc. They have the kind of perfume-free laundry detergent I like, for less than anywhere else (I hold my breath the whole way down that aisle), and also they have a household section where you can get a Faucet Queen flexible sink spigot nose, where nobody else anywhere around has those anymore. The workers are quirky and interesting, too. I can tell you a funny story about half of them -- that they have told me, at length. They're like people in a Carl Hiassen book. But I never buy non-frozen meat-case meat there or fish (except for honey-batter corndogs, yum); I got some fish there once and it had little pallid things wiggling in it. To be fair, that was twenty years ago, the fish thing. 

I don't have a problem with the Grocery Outlet in Rohnert Park, but I avoid it for some reason I have trouble forcing myself to examine closely. When I run out of granulated garlic I go in there and they always have giant and surprisingly cheap plastic shaker-pour-jars of it, enough to last more than a year, and it's not the kind that's cheap because of being half salt. They have canned nuts there that are almost-but-not-quite affordable; I look at them, imagine buying and eating them, and walk away; that seems to be enough. Nuts are expensive everywhere for reasons you know. 

In Fort Bragg I like Safeway. And the dollar store for candy and pencils. But the Harvest in Mendocino has good cheap fruit. And I'm in Mendocino so seldom in the daytime that I make an adventure treat out of getting my mail and walking over to Corners of the Mouth for a chunk of mozzarella cheese to eat in the car on the way home.

I can never seem to be in Fort Bragg or Mendocino when the Farmers Markets are on, and that's too bad, because it sounds great.

Marco McClean, memo@mcn.org

BIDEN’S ANNOUNCEMENT THAT TRUMP GOT MILITARY SPENDING JUST RIGHT IS DEAD WRONG

by David Swanson

President Joe Biden is proposing a level of Pentagon spending so close to that of Trump’s last year in office that Bloomberg calls it a 0.4% reduction adjusting for inflation while Politico calls it a 1.5% increase and “effectively an inflation-adjusted budget boost.” I call it a disgusting violation of the will of the public spent in the hypocritical name of a grand battle against autocracies by so-called democracies, driven in reality by the influence of war profiteers and contempt for the fate of the planet and the people on it.

The U.S. public, according to polling, would reduce military spending if it had something resembling a democracy.

Just five weapons dealers poured $60 million into U.S. election campaign bribery in 2020. These companies now sell more weapons abroad than to the U.S. government, with the U.S. State Department acting as a marketing firm, and with U.S. weapons and/or U.S. military training and/or U.S. government funding going to the militaries of 96% of the most oppressive governments on earth.

U.S. military spending is $1.25 trillion per year across numerous departments. Even just taking the $700 billion and change that goes to the Pentagon and stands in for the full amount in media coverage, U.S. military spending has been climbing for years, including during the Trump years, and is the equivalent of many of the world’s top military spenders combined, most of which are U.S. allies, NATO members, and U.S. weapons customers.

Still using that artificially reduced figure, China is at 37% of it, Russia at 8.9%, and Iran is spending 1.3%. These are, of course, comparisons of absolute amounts. Per capita comparisons are extreme as well. The United States, every year, takes $2,170 from every man, woman, and child for wars and war preparations, while Russia takes $439, China $189, and Iran $114.

“Takes” is the right word. President Eisenhower once admitted it out loud, saying, “Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed.”

When a mere $30 billion could end starvation on earth, there is no question that militarism kills first and foremost through the diversion of funds from where they are needed, while of course risking nuclear apocalypse and driving environmental collapse, justifying secrecy, fueling bigotry, and degrading culture.

The madness of militarism is not new, but it is always newly happening in an environmentally riskier world in more desperate need of a redirection of resources, and is happening now in the midst of a pandemic. Meanwhile President Biden proposes to pay for things he wants to spend money on with slight corporate taxes over 15 years, as if no other expenses will come up between now and 2036.

A bill in both houses of Congress called the ICBM Act would move funding from intercontinental ballistic missiles to vaccines. Dozens of Congress Members say they favor moving funding from militarism to human and environmental needs. Yet, not a single one has made a public commitment to voting against any bill that fails to reduce military spending, and not a single one has introduced a war powers resolution to end a single war, now that Trump’s veto cannot be relied on to render such an action harmless.

It is a real shame that President Biden is not a member of the Democratic Party whose 2020 Platform reads: “Democrats believe the measure of our security is not how much we spend on defense, but how we spend our defense dollars and in what proportion to other tools in our foreign policy toolbox and other urgent domestic investments. We believe we can and must ensure our security while restoring stability, predictability, and fiscal discipline in defense spending. We spend 13 times more on the military than we do on diplomacy. We spend five times more in Afghanistan each year than we do on global public health and preventing the next pandemic. We can maintain a strong defense and protect our safety and security for less.”

It’s just bad luck that President Biden does not subscribe to the religion professed by the Pope who remarked last Sunday: “The pandemic is still spreading, while the social and economic crisis remains severe, especially for the poor. Nonetheless – and this is scandalous – armed conflicts have not ended and military arsenals are being strengthened.”

According to Bloomberg, the U.S. military arsenal is being strengthened in a proper progressive manner: “The $715 billion Pentagon ‘topline’ is likely to be presented as a compromise to Democrats pressing for cuts in defense spending, as some of the money would be slated for the Pentagon’s environmental initiatives.”

With friends like the Pentagon, the environment has no need of enemies, real or imagined.

According to Politico, wildly out-of-control military spending that Biden believes Donald Trump got just about exactly right is actually a demonstration of restraint because “Pentagon budgeteers” have been hoping for more. Let us weep for them in our own private ways.

HOMAGE TO JOE HAWLEY, SCULPTOR

…homage – noun ∙ something given in acknowledgment of the worth of another. This definition inspired the Cloverdale Sculpture Trail to pay homage to local well-known ceramic sculptor, Joe Hawley, for his body of work, creativity, boldness in sculptures and public events during his 50 + years of sculpting. 

Homage to Joe Hawley will be the Trail’s contribution to the world-wide celebration of sculpture during the 7th annual International Sculpture Day on April 24th. Beginning April 24th at the Cloverdale Sculpture Trail, www.cloverdalesculpturetrail.org, the Homage to Joe Hawley will be illustrated through interviews, news articles, personal experiences and images.

International Sculpture Day

There are 364 National Days and sculptures have their day. International Sculpture Day is celebrated the last Saturday in April each year. This year it is April 24th and the Cloverdale Sculpture Trail plans to observe this special day with a series of Zoom interviews and articles on our website. 

This year the Sculpture Trail will be celebrating by featuring the life and works of a local artist, Joe Hawley. Join us on April 24th for a tribute to Joe.