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Posts published by “Bruce McEwen”

Escareno Trial Begins

The Marcos Escareno murder trial got underway early Monday morning, November 30th, with a Native American prayer ceremony in front of the Ukiah Courthouse. Escareno is a member of the Manchester-Point Arena band of Pomo…

He Should Have Stayed In The Deli

Apologies to Mr. Jayson Kain of Albion and Minne­sota, a bi-coastal pot person whose travails were described here last week. But something got lost in translation; Mr. Kain's “appetite” for marijuana had nothing to do…

Weed Whackers Win One

The whisper came from behind me. “How might one have an opinion on the facts witout having heard the facts?” I looked up from jotting down Judge Henderson’s opinion to see the defense lawyer smiling.…

Give Us The Dope Or We’ll Take Your Kids

Every time a judge denies a motion to suppress evidence, the judge is saying to the cop, “Good job, your methods are perfectly legal, no room for improvement; keep up the good work.” As in……

Judge Lehan Speaks

Note: Before I left my assignment at the Ten Mile Court in Fort Bragg I asked Judge Jonathan Lehan for an interview. The judge agreed to answer written questions in writing. Here's how it turned…

Getting Away With Murder

It was a perfect early afternoon in May when a young Mexican couple saw the car under the overpass with the man holding a knife to a terrified woman's throat. The young Mexican couple got…

Guns, Germs & Steel

James Stephens, felon, up on charges that he was in possession of a .22 rifle and a 12 gauge shotgun, nar­rowly missed four more years in state prison because, apparently, he's a non-violent felon and…

La Familia In Boonville?

The Mexican drug cartel La Familia went down last week, big time, with kingpins arrested in 19 states and 750 pounds of meth seized and Michoacan, the birthplace of most Mendocino County immigrants, much in…

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