Category Archives: Articles

Articles, Infrastructure, Law, Local Government

Though Immediate Focus Will Be Juvenile Probation, Study To Determine Whether Del Norte Could House ‘Justice Services’ Separate From Courthouse

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Thumbnail photo: Though it’s owned by the state, the Del Norte County Courthouse houses the District Attorney’s Office and the Probation Department. | Amanda Dockter

Pointing out that Del Norte County has 23 youth under its supervision, according to her most recent statistics, District 2 Supervisor Valerie Starkey said a feasibility study to determine how their needs would be met during the rehabilitation of the county jail seemed unnecessary.

Coming about a month after she and her colleagues approved a proposal to house adult inmates at the Youth Opportunity Center building while the jail is under construction, Starkey said Tuesday she worried that having to go through a feasibility study would delay the process.

“I feel it’s one extra layer,” she said before voting against the county’s proposal. “And I don’t know necessarily why we’re doing this now and in this process.”

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Articles, Community News, Crescent City, Infrastructure

US Army Corps To Install New Warning Signs, Gate on the Crescent City Jetty

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Thumbnail photo by Amanda Dockter

If it wasn’t already obvious that the Crescent City jetty isn’t the safest place to explore, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers plans to double down on that message.

But it won’t be through allowing local law enforcement to issue citations, City Manager Eric Wier said Tuesday.

“There were some concerns with the implementation of citations with it being Army Corps property and [in the] sheriff’s jurisdiction,” he told Redwood Voice Community News. “The thought was let’s try to make it as safe as we can and then we’ll see what other avenues are needed.”

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Articles, Community News, Law, Local Government

Firefighters Lauded For Response During Officer-Involved Shooting Incident; New CHP Commander Introduces Himself

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Thumbnail photo: Crescent City firefighters Beau Smith, Dave Bowdish and Eugene Starkey received commendations from Fire Chief Kevin Carey for distinguished service after facing a dangerous subject armed with a “knife-type weapon.” | Screenshot

Crescent City Fire Chief Kevin Carey applauded three of his firefighters, not only for facing a dangerous subject armed with a “knife-type weapon,” but for providing aid to that person when law enforcement shot him.

Carey awarded distinguished service commendations to Capt. Beau Smith, Engineer Dave Bowdish and Firefighter Eugene Starkey, who had responded to a call for an individual covered in blood on the beach near Anchor Way on June 27. 

The chief praised their decision to call on law enforcement for help when the patient approached firefighters, saying it showed great courage and situational awareness.

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Articles, Infrastructure, Law, Local Government

Grand Jury Notes Improvement At Jail, Though Facility Is Still In Disrepair

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Thumbnail photo by Amanda Dockter

The Civil Grand Jury painted a rosier picture of the Del Norte County Jail this year, commending the sheriff’s office on steps taken to address the issues last year’s investigation uncovered.

However, after touring the facility in January, five Grand Jurors still had concerns ranging from stained and filthy walls and floors to an inmate property room that was so malodorous some members didn’t want to enter.

Much like last year, Del Norte County Sheriff Garrett Scott acknowledged the truth in the Grand Jury’s report, though he said addressing many of those concerns is outside of his control. As for the unsanitary property room, Scott said the Measure R Oversight Committee has already approved an emergency purchase of a vacuum sealer his staff can use to better store inmates’ belongings.

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Articles, Crime, Prison

Pelican Bay Inmate Who Escaped Minimum-Security Facility Is Back In Custody

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Thumbnail photo: Jamie R. Watson | Courtesy of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation

A 40-year-old Pelican Bay State Prison inmate is back in custody after he was reported missing from the minimum security facility at about 11:50 p.m. Friday.

Sheriff’s deputies arrested 40-year-old Jamie R. Watson at about 7:12 a.m. Saturday, Del Norte County Sheriff Garrett Scott told Redwood Voice Community News. According to the sheriff, Watson was spotted on Mud Hen Road near Lower Lake Road. The sheriff’s office arrested Watson and took him to the Del Norte County Jail before turning him back over to Pelican Bay authorities, Scott said.

“It sounded like the guy had an injured ankle so he couldn’t get away easily,” the sheriff said. “He was apprehended and the sheriff’s office took him back to Pelican Bay.”

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Articles, Crime, Curry

Curry County Woman Sues Gold Beach, Says Officer Used Excessive Force After Shooting Her Twice During A Traffic Stop

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Thumbnail image courtesy of the Gold Beach Police Department

A Curry County woman is suing the City of Gold Beach and one of its police officers, alleging that the officer, Kenneth Moore, exercised excessive force when he shot her twice during a traffic stop on Jan. 23, 2024.

Sharon Johnston-Corson sustained two bullet wounds in her shoulder, according to the complaint filed on her behalf in the United States District Court in Medford on Wednesday. One of those shots caused a pulmonary contusion and resulted in bullet fragments being lodged inside her left lung. 

The complaint also states that after shooting her, Moore pulled Johnston-Corson out of her Subaru and forced her face-down on the ground to handcuff her in violation of Gold Beach Police Department policy stating that “individuals subject to force ‘should not be placed on their stomachs for an extended period of time as this could impair their ability to breathe.’” 

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Articles, Elections, Local Government

County Clerk-Recorder Invited Grand Jury To Observe Election Night Proceedings

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Photos by Paul Critz

On its face, the Del Norte County Civil Grand Jury’s report on Alissia Northrup’s office might appear mundane.

Unlike other agencies the citizen-led watchdog group delved into, there were no alleged violations of state law to investigate nor were they acting upon a citizen complaint. Del Norte’ county clerk-recorder said she invited the Civil Grand Jury to observe the counting process for mail-in ballots on Nov. 5, 2024

“I wanted to make sure I had someone completely unbiased, someone there that could report out if they saw anything they thought was wrong or inappropriate,” Northrup told Redwood Voice Community News on Wednesday. “It’s another layer of transparency.”

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Articles, CC Harbor, Local Government

Davis-Based Attorney Accuses Triplicate Editor of Bias, Says Roger Gitlin Published ‘False Statements of Fact’ About CCHD Commissioner Annie Nehmer

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Thumbnail photo: Roger Gitlin, editor of the Del Norte Triplicate, comments at a June 2 Crescent City Council meeting. | Screenshot

Annie Nehmer

Editor’s note: The author of this article worked for the Del Norte Triplicate from 2012 to 2019. Her employment with the Triplicate ended when Country Media became the newspaper’s owners.

Paul Nicholas Boylan says his job is to make sure his client, Crescent City Harbor Commissioner Annie Nehmer, gets a fair shake in the local press and, up until last week, the Davis-based attorney thought that would be achieved.

Those hopes were dashed, however, after Del Norte Triplicate editor Roger Gitlin published an article July 9 under the headline “Harbor Commissioner Sues Herself.” The article came after Boylan raised concerns about the appearance of bias in Gitlin’s questions to his client.

Boylan says he had also received assurances from Joe Warren, chief executive of Country Media Inc., which owns the Triplicate, that Gitlin would submit questions to Nehmer, providing her with a chance to comment before publishing further pieces. This never happened, the attorney said.

Continue reading Davis-Based Attorney Accuses Triplicate Editor of Bias, Says Roger Gitlin Published ‘False Statements of Fact’ About CCHD Commissioner Annie Nehmer →
Articles, Environment, Science

Del Norter Who Spearheaded Fight to Reopen Rockfish Fishery Optimistic About Future Seasons

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Thumbnail photo courtesy of California Department of Fish and Wildlife

Andrea Spahn brought a rare piece of good news to the Del Norte County Board of Supervisors and the Crescent City Harbor District last month — the quillback rockfish is “not even close to being overfished.”

New data NOAA scientists presented at the Pacific Fishery Management Council’s Stock Assessment Review, or STAR, panel in June may mean local fishermen can pursue rockfish up to 30 fathoms from shore, further than the current 20-fathom boundary they’re limited to, Spahn told Redwood Voice Community News on July 1.

The STAR panel must finalize the data and the PFMC still needs to view it, but Spahn was confident that Del Norte anglers would win back what they lost nearly two years ago.

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Articles, Crescent City, Infrastructure, Local Government, Tribal Affairs

Crescent City Officials Say $2 Million Grant Will Complete Tolowa Interpretive Trail

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Thumbnail photo: A $2 million grant from the Mellon Foundation will allow Crescent City to finish the Tolowa Interpretive Trail, city officials said Wednesday. | Screenshot

Crescent City received a $2 million grant that officials say will extend the Tolowa Cultural Trail in Beachfront Park to Battery Point where many Tolowa were imprisoned in the 1850s.

Councilors unanimously accepted the grant from the Mellon Foundation at a special meeting Wednesday. They also approved an agreement with T.B. Penick & Sons Inc. to install lithomosaic basket patterns at the entrance to the visitor center and as a welcome to the Tolowa Cultural Trail.

T.B. Penick & Sons will also create a special lithomosaic pebble pattern at the Tolowa Cultural Trail welcome station, City Manager Eric Wier said.

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