News 3/26/12

WEATHER ALERTS JKB 3/26/12

· THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN MENDOCINO COUNTY FOR ELEVATIONS ABOVE 4000 FEET THAT WILL GO INTO EFFECT AT 1 AM TOMORROW MORNING AND CONTINUE UNTIL 1 PM TUESDAY AFTERNOON.

4 TO 9 INCHES OF SNOW IS EXPECTED FOR ELEVATIONS ABOVE 4000 FEET LATE TONIGHT AND INTO TOMORROW AFTERNOON IN TRINITY COUNTY. ACCUMULATIONS OF 1 TO 3 INCHES ARE POSSIBLE AS LOW AS 3000 FEET IN MENDOCINO COUNTY.

IN LAKE COUNTY A WINTER STORM WATCH HAS BEEN ISSUED FOR ELEVATIONS ABOVE 3000 FEET THAT WILL GO INTO EFFECT THIS EVENING AND CONTINUE THROUGH TUESDAY NIGHT. SNOW ACCUMULATIONS OF 4 TO 8 INCHES ABOVE 4000 FEET WITH 8 TO 12 INCHES ABOVE 6000 FEET ARE POSSIBLE, AND THAT COULD LEAD TO HAZARDOUS DRIVING CONDITIONS.

ANYONE TRAVELING INTO THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS IS ADVISED TO BE PREPARED FOR EXTREME WINTER WEATHER DRIVING.

ATTEMPTED ARMED POT ROBBERY JKB 3/26/12

· THREE MEN WERE ARRESTED AFTER A TRANSACTION TO BUY MARIJUANA WENT SOUTH AT A WILLITS MOTEL MARCH 16TH.

A WILLITS POLICE SGT WAS ON ROUTINE PATROL WHEN HE SPOTTED 24 YEAR OLD TERRY MOORE, 23 YEAR OLD RYAN BURTON, AND 25 YEAR OLD CHAD WOOD, ALL FROM STOCKTON RUNNING TOWARD A PARKED VEHICLE ON BAECHTEL ROAD AT AROUND 2 AM. BURTON FLED WHEN HE SAW THE POLICE CAR, BUT MOORE AND WOOD CAME OVER TO TALK WITH THE OFFICER. THEY CLAIMED THEY HAD BEEN AT A PARTY AT THE LARK MOTEL, BUT LEFT BECAUSE THEY DIDNT WANT TO GET JUMPED. WOOD WAS FOUND WITH A LOADED PISTOL IN HIS POCKET AND BOTH MEN WERE ARRESTED. AN INVESTIGATION REVEALED THE THREE MEN FROM STOCKTON MADE ARRANGEMENTS TO MEET 49 YEAR OLD DARRYL OPLINGER OF EUREKA TO BUY 15 POUNDS OF MARIJUANA AT THE MOTEL, BUT HAD PLANNED TO ROB HIM ALL ALONG. OPLINGER FLED WITH THE POT AFTER WOOD PULLED THE GUN. OPLINGER WAS ARRESTED AFTER BEING PULLED OVER BY SHERIFFS DEPUTIES A SHORT TIME LATER. HE ADMITTED TO STEALING THE MARIJUANA FROM A LOCATION IN KNEELAND. BURTON, WHO RAN WHEN HE FIRST SAW POLICE, SAID HE JUST PROVIDED THE RIDE FROM STOCKTON AND HAD NO IDEA WOOD AND MOORE WERE PLANNING A ROBBERY. HE WAS RELEASED WITHOUT BEING ARRESTED.

EUREKA SAILOR CHARGED WITH RAPE JKB 3/26/12

• A NAVY SAILOR FROM EUREKA STATIONED ON GUAM, HAS BEEN CHARGED WITH RAPE, MOLESTATION AND CHILD ABUSE.

30 YEAR OLD BRADFORD LAURENCE LUNG WAS JAILED AFTER AUTHORITIES RECEIVED EVIDENCE THAT HE HAD ALLEGEDLY BEEN ABUSING A YOUNG GIRL SEVERAL TIMES A WEEK SINCE AUGUST OF 2010. THE ALLEGED VICTIM IS CURRENTLY 10 YEARS OLD. LUNG HAS BEEN SERVING AT THE U.S. NAVAL BASE ON GUAM SINCE 2009.

S.F MAN ARRESTED FOR FIVE MURDERS JKB 3/26/12

• AUTHORITIES ARRESTED A SAN FRANCISCO MAN YESTERDAY ON CHARGES OF MURDER FOR ALLEGEDLY KILLING FIVE PEOPLE AT A HOME IN THE INGLESIDE DISTRICT LATE LAST WEEK.

35 YEAR OLD BINH THAI LUC WAS ARRESTED SUNDAY MORNING. THE BODIES OF THREE WOMEN AND TWO MEN WERE FOUND ON FRIDAY. INVESTIGATORS SAY THE BODIES OF THE VICTIMS WERE SO BADLY DAMAGED THAT NONE HAVE YET BEEN IDENTIFIED. ALL OF THE VICTIMS WERE ASIAN AMERICAN ADULTS. AUTHORITIES SAY THEY ALSO HAVE NO MOTIVE FOR THE ATTACK. INVESTIGATORS BELIEVE THE VICTIMS WERE RELATED AND THAT THE KILLINGS WERE NOT CONNECTED TO GANG ACTIVITY.

THIEF STEALS TRUCK WITH TWO YEAR OLD INSIDE JKB 3/26/12

• SANTA ROSA POLICE ARE CONTINUING TO SEARCH FOR A SUSPECT WHO STOLE A PICK UP TRUCK SATURDAY NIGHT, BUT QUICKLY ABANDONED IT AFTER REALIZING IT CONTAINED A 2 YEAR OLD BOY.

THE OWNER OF THE TRUCK AND FATHER OF THE CHILD TOLD POLICE HE HAD BRIEFLY LEFT HIS SON AND THE VEHICLE UNATTENDED WITH THE KEYS INSIDE AT AN APARTMENT COMPLEX NEAR YULUPA AVENUE AND BETHARDS DRIVE AT AROUND 5 PM. THE THIEF PARKED THE TRUCK A FEW BLOCKS AWAY AT ANOTHER APARTMENT COMPLEX AND FLED ON FOOT AFTER DISCOVERING THE CHILD INSIDE. A SHERIFFS DEPARTMENT HELICOPTER CREW SPOTTED THE STOLEN VEHICLE A SHORT WHILE LATER AND THE CHILD WAS RE-UNITED WITH HIS PARENTS UNHARMED.

FATAL STABBING CASE FINALLY TO COME TO TRIAL JKB 3/26/12

• AFTER MORE THAN FIVE YEARS OF DELAYS, A LAKEPORT MAN WILL FINALLY STAND TRIAL FOR THE STABBING DEATH OF HIS NEIGHBOR IN NOVEMBER OF 2007.

THE MURDER TRIAL FOR 34 YEAR OLD IVAN GARCIA OLIVER HAS BEEN SCHEDULED TO BEGIN MAY 23RD. GARCIA IS ACCUSED OF STABBING 67 YEAR OLD MICHAEL DODELE TO DEATH ON THE MISTAKEN BELIEF THAT HE WAS A CHILD MOLESTER. DODELE, A REGISTERED SEX OFFENDER, HAD JUST BEEN RELEASED FROM SERVING A 19 YEAR PRISON SENTENCE FOR A SONOMA COUNTY RAPE WHEN HE WAS KILLED. ACCORDING TO INVESTIGATORS, GARCIA SPOTTED DODELE ON THE MEGANS LAW WEBSITE AND WRONGLY ASSUMED THAT HIS VICTIM HAD BEEN A CHILD WHEN IN FACT SHE WAS AN ADULT. GARCIAS CASE HAS BEEN DELAYED BECAUSE OF ANOTHER LEGAL PROBLEM IN SAN DIEGO COUNTY AND SEVERAL PREVIOUS DEFENSE ATTORNEYS LEAVING HIS CASE.

CONTAMINATED SOIL AT FAIRGROUNDS JKB 3/26/12

• RACING AT UKIAH SPEEDWAY AT THE REDWOOD EMPIRE FAIRGROUNDS HAS BEEN SUSPENDED UNTIL LARGE PILES OF CONTAMINATED SOIL CAN BE REMOVED FROM THE RACETRACK GROUNDS.

MORE THAN 2500 CUBIC YARDS OF SOIL CONTAMINATED WITH DIESEL AND OIL WAS BROUGHT IN TO MAKE IMPROVEMENTS TO THE RACETRACK GROUNDS. THE SOIL HAD BEEN REMOVED FROM THE MENDOCINO TRANSIT AUTHORITY DURING THE CONSTRUCTION OF ITS NEW BUS BARN, BUT WAS NEVER TESTED BEFORE BEING BROUGHT TO THE FAIRGROUNDS. REDWOOD EMPIRE FAIR OFFICIALS SAY THEY WERE NOT AWARE THE SOIL WAS BEING BROUGHT IN. ALL RACING HAS BEEN SUSPENDED UNTIL THE SOIL IS REMOVED. THE FAIR GROUND BOARD OF DIRECTORS VOTED TO TERMINATE THEIR CURRENT CONTRACT WITH UKIAH SPEEDWAY PROMOTER BLAIR AIKEN AT THEIR MEETING LAST WEDNESDAY, BUT DID INDICATE THEY WOULD CONSIDER A NEW CONTRACT ONCE THE CONTAMINATION ISSUES ARE RESOLVED. ACCORDING TO OFFICIALS, THE TERMINATION FOR THE CONTRACT INVOLVED MORE ISSUES THAN JUST THE CONTAMINATED SOIL.

WATER MAIN FLUSHING IN WILLITS JKB 3/26/12

• THE CITY OF WILLITS WILL BEGAN ITS ANNUAL WATER MAIN FLUSHING AND VALVE OPERATING PROGRAM TODAY.

THE FLUSHING IS DESIGNED TO REMOVE ACCUMULATED SEDIMENTS THAT MAY HAVE COLLECTED DURING THE NORMAL OPERATION OF THE WATER SYSTEM. THE OPERATION IS EXPECTED TO TAKE ABOUT A MONTH. CUSTOMERS MAY EXPERIENCE A DROP IN PRESSURE ALONG WITH DISCOLORATION OF THEIR WATER FOR SHORT PERIODS IN THE AREAS BEING FLUSHED. ALTHOUGH THE WATER MAY BE BROWNISH, IT IS SAFE TO DRINK. CARE SHOULD BE TAKEN IN WASHING CLOTHES THAT COULD BE STAINED.