Tag Archives: del norte news

Articles, Crime, Health, Local Government

County Elected Officials Working With Sutter On Ensuring Sexual Assault Exams Can Be Conducted At the ER

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Thumbnail photo by Persephone Rose

A week after allegations came to light that local emergency room doctors were refusing to treat sexual assault victims, District 2 Supervisor Valerie Starkey said she and other officials are working with Sutter Coast Hospital to find a resolution.

A resolution may be forthcoming in the form of a memorandum of understanding between the hospital and the North Coast Rape Crisis Team, Starkey said. The MOU may also involve Del Norte County Public Health Officer Dr. Stutz, though it’s still being finalized, Starkey told Redwood Voice Community News on Monday.

“I asked for our county counsel to take a look at that (agreement) as well,” she said, adding that another meeting is scheduled for this week. “I don’t know that it’s necessary, but that was my suggestion at the last meeting.”

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Articles, Crime, Fort Dick

Crescent City Man Faces Murder Charge In Connection With Fort Dick Shooting

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A Crescent City man faces a murder charge in connection with the shooting death of a 25-year-old man in Fort Dick early Saturday morning.

Del Norte County Sheriff’s deputies responded to a call of a gunshot wound on the 1500 block of Morehead Road at about 4:56 a.m. Saturday. When they arrived, they found the victim, Merrick Goodman, injured. Goodman was transported to Sutter Coast Hospital where he succumbed to his injuries, according to DNSO Undersheriff Devin Perry.

Deputies arrested Joshua Janssen, 25, of Crescent City on a charge of murder in the first degree and booked him into the Del Norte County Jail, Perry told Redwood Voice Community News on Monday.

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Articles, Law, Local Government

Unable to hire a chief public defender, Del Norte County Supes shift tactics, call for traditional indigent defense office

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With Del Norte County still lacking a chief public defender despite creating the position three years ago, District 2 Supervisor Valerie Starkey urged her colleagues to consider a different model.

Instead of the managed-assigned counsel model the Board of Supervisors approved in 2023, which consisted of a county public defender overseeing a department of contracted attorneys, Starkey hoped that establishing a traditional office would attract more applicants.

“We’ve leaned into a different model that hasn’t really been effective for us. We’ve recruited for it, but we haven’t been able to find someone,” she said Tuesday. “If we were to lean into a new traditional office — and that is the notice that’s going out, that’s what we’re marketing (for) — I feel we would get more of an applicant pool of people that have those career ambitions, to come in and create an office and establish permanency.”

Continue reading Unable to hire a chief public defender, Del Norte County Supes shift tactics, call for traditional indigent defense office →
Articles, Infrastructure, Local Government

Del Norte County To Inspect Sewer Lines North of Crescent City Limits, Initiate a Rate Study

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Thumbnail image: The red triangles are areas within the sewage system within County Service Area 1 north of Crescent City limits that have defects. Image courtesy of Del Norte County Engineer Jon Olson

Noting that staff has identified more than 100 defects in the sewer collection system north of the city limits, Del Norte County Engineer Jon Olson got the green light to get an inside view of the pipes using closed circuit television.

Olson told supervisors on Tuesday that his goal is to document the location of each defect in Assessment District 2 of the County Service Area, or CSA. Assessment District 2 includes the unincorporated part of Crescent City North as well as Northcrest Drive north of Washington Boulevard and the area surrounding Sutter Coast Hospital and Walmart. 

The county engineer showed a picture of one of the classic defects — a mowed-over sewer cleanout cap in a low area of the yard. That defect allows rainwater to enter the system, Olson said. Another photo was from the outside of a commercial building, he said.

Continue reading Del Norte County To Inspect Sewer Lines North of Crescent City Limits, Initiate a Rate Study →
Articles, Crime, Local Government

Del Norte Supervisors Greenlight Narcotics Enforcement Position at the Sheriff’s Office; 33-year Employee Norma Williams Retires; SEIU 1021 Raise Concerns About ICE

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Thumbnail photo by Paul Critz

District 2 Supervisor Valerie Starkey joined her colleagues in approving the creation of a narcotics enforcement position at the Del Norte County Sheriff’s Office.

But after questioning County Administrative Officer Neal Lopez and Human Resources Director Kerri Vue about the cost and how it will be paid for, Starkey noted that there’s no guarantee the position will be permanent after the three year funding commitment was up.

“I think they were going to do a year-by-year assessment to see the benefits of this particular position,” Starkey said Tuesday, referring to the Community Corrections Partnership.

Continue reading Del Norte Supervisors Greenlight Narcotics Enforcement Position at the Sheriff’s Office; 33-year Employee Norma Williams Retires; SEIU 1021 Raise Concerns About ICE →
Articles, Crime

Sheriff Disputes Use Of Excessive Force Allegation Against Bailiff, Says Woman Caused A Disturbance At Courthouse

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The Del Norte County sheriff is disputing an excessive use of force accusation against one of his bailiffs. 

The allegation was posted on Facebook on Tuesday and is related to the removal of a Reno, Nev. woman from a family court hearing at the Del Norte County Courthouse on Monday. Sheriff Garrett Scott told Redwood Voice Community News on Wednesday that he is asking the Del Norte County District Attorney to criminally charge Amanda Dutton and Jordan Dutton. 

According to Scott, Amanda Dutton was disrupting the proceedings in the courtroom and refused to leave when one of his deputies, Luisa Ahumada, ordered her to. Ahumada escorted Amanda Dutton from the courtroom and into the hallway where they were met by Ahumada’s colleague, Dep. Jeremy Sutton, the sheriff said. 

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Articles, Crime, Health

Healthcare District Is Investigating Allegations That Sutter Coast ER Doctors Are Refusing To Test, Treat Sexual Assault Victims

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Thumbnail photo by Persephone Rose

Editor’s note: The following article includes a reference to the sexual assault of a minor.

Del Norte Healthcare District officials are investigating allegations that Sutter Coast Hospital emergency room doctors have refused to examine sexual assault victims, including those who are minors.

The initial complaint came from Del Norte County Sheriff’s Office Det. Maia Mello, a member of the Sexual Assault Response Team. At the DNHCD’s July 28 meeting, Mello asked the Healthcare District Board to provide the hospital with a “letter of encouragement to follow established federal and state law, locally established and agreed upon protocols and the best practices in the treatment of victims of sexual assault and domestic violence.”

“Sutter Coast is the best place for our victims to receive treatment for their acute injuries and conditions,” she said, according to meeting minutes for July. 

Continue reading Healthcare District Is Investigating Allegations That Sutter Coast ER Doctors Are Refusing To Test, Treat Sexual Assault Victims →
Articles, Health, Housing

Last Week’s DNSO Operation To Get Waldo Area Homeless To Move On Raises Questions; Advocates Say It Came On Short Notice

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Thumbnail photo: Unhoused people living in Waldo area encampments were told to pack their belongings and move along during a Del Norte County Sheriff’s Office operation on Oct. 2. The DNSO went to the area with Behavioral Health Branch staff and Del Norte Mission Possible representatives. | submitted photo

Del Norte County Sheriff’s Capt. Melanie Currie said an operation last week to urge people living in the encampments near Waldo Street to move along wasn’t about kicking them out.

Deputies didn’t arrest anyone on Oct. 2, she said. They arrived with the Del Norte County Sheriff’s Office chaplain, specialists with the Behavioral Health Branch and Daphne Lambert, Del Norte Mission Possible’s director of homeless services. The intent, Currie said, was to offer services and get people help.

“Daphne came out with a truck and we were helping people call family members that could come and help them pack,” she told Redwood Voice Community News on Tuesday. “Daphne was offering totes for people to put their belongings in and transportation, the same with Behavioral Health.”

Continue reading Last Week’s DNSO Operation To Get Waldo Area Homeless To Move On Raises Questions; Advocates Say It Came On Short Notice →
Articles, Crime, Prison

PBSP Officials Investigating Inmate’s Death As A Homicide

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Thumbnail photo: Pelican Bay State Prison inmate Javier Torres (right) died following an altercation with Jose Zapian (left). | Photos courtesy of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation

From the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation:

CRESCENT CITY – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation officials are investigating the death of an incarcerated person at Pelican Bay State Prison (PBSP) as a homicide.

On Oct. 4, 2026, at approximately 8:24 a.m., correctional staff observed incarcerated person Jose Zapian attack incarcerated person, Javier Torres in the lower yard. Responding staff immediately intervened, quelling the attack.

Staff activated 911 and initiated life-saving measures. An improvised weapon was recovered at the scene.

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Articles, CC Harbor, Infrastructure

Crescent City Harbor Aims To Have H Dock’s Water And Electric Systems Operable By Crab Season, Harbormaster Says

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Thumbnail photo: H Dock in the Crescent City Harbor District’s marina bore the brunt of the wave energy from the July 30, 2025 Kamchatka tsunami. | Photo courtesy of Mike Rademaker

More than a year after an 8.8 magnitude earthquake on the other side of the ocean sent a tsunami into Crescent City, the Harbor District is working to have H Dock available to the fishing community.

The goal is to allow vessels to tie up to H Dock and to access water and electricity by the start of the Dungeness crab season tentatively scheduled for Jan. 1, Harbormaster Mike Rademaker told Redwood Voice Community News on Monday.

The Crescent City Harbor District Board of Commissioners on Wednesday heard a report from GHD Senior Marine Structural Engineer Marc Percher on temporary and permanent fixes to H Dock, which sustained the most damage from the July 30, 2025 Kamchatka earthquake and tsunami.

But before Percher gave his presentation, CCHD Board President Rick Shepherd said he felt the proposed temporary solution would be too expensive. He suggested taking steps to allow vessels to tie up to H Dock and to tap into its water and electricity systems, thereby freeing up the port’s repair dock. 

Continue reading Crescent City Harbor Aims To Have H Dock’s Water And Electric Systems Operable By Crab Season, Harbormaster Says →