Wally Holbrook takes the oath of office from Lake County Clerk/Auditor-Controller Pam Cochrane on Wednesday, September 1, 2010. Photo courtesy of Shelly Mascari.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – As board of education trustees and office of education staff looked on, Wally Holbrook was sworn in as the new Lake County superintendent of schools on Wednesday afternoon.

Holbrook won the office in the June primary.

Outgoing Superintendent of Schools David Geck retired early, and will be assisting Holbrook's transition in an unpaid, volunteer capacity, as Lake County News has reported.

Holbrook has said he plans to begin a review of the Lake County Office of Education's programs and services, and will share the results with the community in the months ahead.

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From left, Lake County Board of Education Trustee Dr. David Browning, newly sworn in Lake County Superintendent of Schools Wally Holbrook, Trustee Madelene Lyon and retiring Superintendent of Schools David Geck. Photo courtesy of Shelly Mascari.

During the swearing-in ceremony on Wednesday, September 1, 2010, new Lake County Superintendent of Schools Wally Holbrook signs the paperwork to complete the process of taking office. Photo courtesy of Shelly Mascari.

Sheriff Larry Jones had ordered the inquest into the death of Ivan “Bud” Foglesong, who died as the result of burns suffered in the fire of a hunting cabin, located on the Holzapfel Ranch, owned by current Glenn County District Attorney Robert Holzapfel, a relative by marriage.

On Monday morning the coroner's inquest began in Glenn County Superior Court in Willows, according to Jones.

A jury was sworn in and listened to two days of sworn testimony. On Tuesday the jury ruled 9-6 that Foglesong’s death was “at the hands of another person, other than by accident,” according to Jones' report.

Jones said the manner of death will be changed to reflect the jury’s findings and an amended death certificate will be filed.

The case file will now be forwarded to the California Attorney General’s Office for review and further action, Jones said. The Attorney General's Office is reportedly handling the matter because of Holzapfel's connections to the case.

The story of the 59-year-old Foglesong has been featured by Sacramento Valley Mirror Publisher and Editor Tim Crews and by the Citizens Against Homicide newsletter.

The family of the retired Air Force lieutenant colonel has contended that he was murdered despite the initial ruling that it was a suicide and, later, that it was an accident, according to articles on Foglesong's death.

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Gloria Nelson, 77, of Nice was among eight original defendants in the case, which involves an alleged embezzlement of more than $102,000 from the casino, as Lake County News has reported. Charges against the defendants included embezzlement and grand theft.

The lead defendant in the group, Joan Pickron, 42, of Ukiah, is alleged by officials to have used her position as a casino shift manager to create and authorize false jackpots in the casino's online accounting system, and then to pay out the money to her alleged accomplices.

Nelson's defense attorney, Keith Faulder, did not return a call seeking comment.

Assistant Mendocino County District Attorney Beth Norman said she worked with Faulder to consider the case, and she decided there wasn't sufficient evidence to proceed in prosecuting Nelson.

She said Faulder made it very clear that Nelson's defense would be that she wasn't at the casino and hadn't been involved in taking the money.

A signature on one of the evidentiary documents that was alleged to have been Nelson's had some discrepancies, which Norman said led to a reasonable doubt about Nelson's involvement.

“Our evidence was based on signatures alone,” she said.

Norman said she doesn't know who signed Nelson's name, and added, “There's no way to know who signed it.”

The remaining seven defendants are scheduled to be in court on Sept. 20, at which time they'll start to set hearing dates, said Norman.

“We've had a bit of a challenge coordinating all of the defendants, getting them all to court,” she said.

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Thomas Lee Carter, 59, was arrested by agents with the Drug Enforcement Administration, according to Sheriff Rod Mitchell.

Mitchell, whose deputies also were on scene during the operation, said Carter was arrested on a federal warrant, but was not able to provide additional details.

Lake County News left several phone and e-mail messages for the DEA's San Francisco division spokesperson on Wednesday, but none of the messages were returned.

Sonoma County Jail officials confirmed late Wednesday that Carter was being held in their main detention center on a detainer until he is picked up for transport to a facility in San Francisco.

He was booked into the Sonoma County Jail at 2:49 p.m. on a no-bail hold, according to jail records.

Carter and several other people – including one of his own employees – were arrested by the DEA in August 2009 and have since been charged with a battery of felonies related to the alleged production and sale of illicit marijuana, as Lake County News has reported.

In addition to Carter, arrested last year were Scott Feil, 44, and his wife, Diana, 29, of Upper Lake and Redwood Valley; Steven Swanson, 60, of Sebastopol; and Brett Bassignani, 44, of Nice, who works for Carter.

Court documents show that the government is alleging that the defendants in the case were conspiring to sell marijuana in an operation that began with growing and some sales in Lake County, and stretched to medical marijuana dispensaries in Los Angeles and San Diego. More than 100,000 pages of discovery have been submitted in the case.

The case filed by the US Attorney's Office alleges that Bassignani agreed to sell 500 marijuana clones to undercover DEA agents and an informant in May of 2006, and that he told investigators that part of his income with Carter's business came from marijuana sales.

Carter is facing a single count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute marijuana, which carries a minimum 10-year sentence and $4 million fine, and two counts of distributing or possessing with intent to distribute marijuana, which carry a five-year minimum and a $2 million fine for each conviction, according to court documents.

Bassignani is charged with two counts of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute marijuana and one count of distributing or possessing with intent to distribute marijuana.

The charges against the men appear not to have changed as the result of a superseding indictment a federal grand jury handed down in the case on July 22.

Scott and Diana Feil and Steven Swanson, Diana Feil's stepfather, also are charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute marijuana, distributing or possessing with intent to distribute marijuana, conspiracy to launder money, engaging in monetary transactions in property derived from specific unlawful activity.

The superseding indictment additionally accused Scott Feil of two counts of filing false tax returns, and Swanson of two counts of tax evasion.

The new indictment also added another defendant, Mark Leonard Garcia, in connection to a San Diego dispensary. Garcia is charged with two counts of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute marijuana.

The government is seeking forfeiture of millions of dollars in land, vehicles and other assets used or derived from proceeds of the alleged counts. That includes several hotels the Feils own around the North Coast and property belonging to Carter in Upper Lake.

Carter was released after posting $200,000 bail in August 2009, using his property at 1622 Hunter Point Road in Upper Lake to secure the bail, according to the conditions of his release.

The same document showed that he was subject to numerous conditions in order to remain out of jail, including not committing any federal, state or local crimes; not harassing, threatening or intimidating witnesses, victims or officers of the court; submitting to warrantless searches; and making all court appearances.

A criminal minute order from an Aug. 26 status conference in the case showed that motions are due in December, with the case continued to Jan. 27, 2011.

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Janet Lynn Barber, 45, was the victim of the fatal fire in her mobile home at Lakeside Resort in Clearlake, according to Capt. James Bauman of the Lake County Sheriff's Office, which conducted coroner duties on the case.

Clearlake Police Chief Allan McClain said police officers and Lake County Fire Protection District firefighters were dispatched to the fire just after 3 a.m. Wednesday.

Barber's home was located in space No. 14 at Lakeside Resort, located at 5775 Old Highway 53, he said.

McClain said by the time firefighters and police units arrived, the mobile home was fully engulfed.

Lake County Fire Battalion Chief Willie Sapeta said firefighters along with four engines, a rescue unit, two medic units and two battalion fought the blaze, which was contained at 3:40 a.m. The firefighters didn't return to quarters until 9:40 a.m.

It was after the fire was out that the fatality was confirmed, Sapeta said.

McClain said the Lake County Fire Arson team responded to investigate the fire, which was determined to be accidental in nature, possibly from Barber smoking in bed.

He said the fire was enhanced by Barber's oxygen machine, which was located near her bed.

A witness told investigators that Barber was attempting to put the fire out herself and was not able to get out of the residence, according to McClain.

Barber's death comes just days after another home fire claimed an elderly Clearlake Oaks man's life.

Early Sunday morning, 83-year-old Eugene Throop died in a fire at his home on Old Long Valley Road, as Lake County News has reported.

Throop, a retired Cal Fire dozer operator, and his wife had initially escaped but he is reported to have gone back to look for his dog, according to officials.

In addition to those tragedies, fire calls have been on the rise. Sapeta said firefighters have been inundated with calls in recent weeks, taking as many as 45 calls in a recent two-day period.

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Ruby Glebe has been named grand marshal of the 2010 Lake County Fair. Lake County file photo.

LAKEPORT – Lake County historian Ruby Glebe has been named this 2010 Lake County Fair's grand marshal by the fair's board of directors.

Glebe will preside over the fair parade this Thursday and help officially open the event, which runs through Sunday.

“Ruby has seen so much Lake County history, and been so involved in it,” said Fair Board Member Janeane Bogner. “She's worked really hard to preserve it, and she's incredibly deserving of being named grand marshal. We're so glad she accepted the honor.”

Born in 1914 in the Vacaville area, Glebe visited the Kelseyville area in the late 1930s for a couple of months, and, for all practical purposes, has lived in Lake County ever since.

A Kelseyville fixture for more than 70 years, Glebe has been active in preserving memories of the Lake County for most of that time.

She has served Lake County in various capacities over the years, having been involved in the 1961 centennial celebration, the Lake County Museum advisory board (now known as the Heritage Commission), a president of the Lake County Historical Society and was active on the committee driving the development of the Courthouse Museum in Lakeport, which opened in 1978.

Along the way, Glebe also found time for farming a pear orchard outside Kelseyville, having a son with her first husband, George, farming a prune orchard in Finley, working for the California Fruit Exchange, working for the county of Lake's social services department, working for the soils conservation office, and mentoring numerous individuals who today are involved with many of these same organizations in the preservation of Lake County history.

She's been involved in the Clear Lake Grange, the Presbyterian Church, the Trowel and Trellis Club, the Kelseyville Lioness Club and various other service groups.

Glebe also made some history along the way, having survived the 1918 influenza epidemic at the age of 4, anti-German sentiment directed towards her immigrant family during World War I, and being the very last patient ever operated on in the county hospital on Armstrong Street in Lakeport in 1948. She has been honored by having a building named after her, Glebe Hall in Kelseyville, dedicated in 1989.

Each year the board of directors selects an individual or couple who have had a large and significant impact on Lake County and the Lake County Fair.

The grand marshal leads the parade up Main Street in Lakeport on Thursday at 5:30 p.m., and arriving at the main gate on Martin Street, cuts the ribbon and declares the Lake County Fair open for another year.

Regular admission for the 2010 Lake County Fair is $9, with $6 tickets for seniors 60 and over and $5 tickets for children ages 6 through 11. Children under 6 years old are admitted free everyday. Children through age 11 are admitted for $2 on Thursday, Sept. 2, only, for "Kid's Day."

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Lake County Model Railroad Club members Bill Cossey and Dennis Burke check out operations for the club's open house during the Lake County Fair. Photo by Dave Fromer.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – There was a time when names such as Empire Builder, Coast Daylight and City of New Orleans prompted images of luxurious hotels on wheels. Those were the days when the railroads ruled and massive steam locomotives were king.

Those days are still alive, although on a much smaller scale, thanks to the members of the Lake County Model Railroad Club, who have recreated the early 1950s in their miniature empire located in the old Armory Building at the rear of the Lake County Fairgrounds in Lakeport.

“We’ve attempted to capture small glimpses of what California was like when the railroad was still the major mover of people and goods,” longtime club member Bill Cossey said. “We combine our hobby with a lesson in history to tell a story.”

While Cossey mentioned that all the major trackwork has been completed on their layout that just about completely fills the 40- by 60-foot building, the members are focusing their attention to the scenery and other details that bring the empire to life.

Visitors can imagine seeing a large freight or passenger train leaving Los Angeles working its way through the Sierra Nevada mountains before ending it’s journey in Sacramento.

“We’ve even captured the flavor of the old narrow gauge railroads that served the logging and mining areas of the state,” Cossey said. “You might even spot buildings you recognize.”

Cossey said the club’s plans include modeling a section of downtown Petaluma because of its railroad history and members Dennis Burke and Dave Fromer plan to model historic Lake County structures as well.

“You might find yourself staring at the Stonehouse from Hidden Valley or the Prather Brother’s lumber company in Lakeport,” Cossey said. “We model whatever catches our interest.”

Club members also belong to the larger National Model Railroad Association and its Redwood Empire Division that includes the coastal counties from Marin to the Oregon border.

“We host the annual fall meeting in November at our club,” Cossey said of the daylong event that features modeling classes and ends in a large operating session.

The club has been in existence for close to 20 years although in its infancy it lacked a permanent home and had to settle on a more portable operation that the members set up and took down every night.

“We needed a permanent home and fortunately nearly eight years ago the Lake County Fair made are dreams come true when we moved into the old armory building and began planning our new railroad,” Cossey said.

Noting that the club has made substantial progress during the eight years they’ve been at the fairgrounds, there is still the time consuming process of recreating the towns and countryside in miniature.

Those interested in viewing the club’s operation may do so during its annual open house held in conjunction with the Lake County Fair, which begins Thursday, Sept. 2, and runs through Sunday, Sept. 5.

The club also welcomes visitors and new members every Wednesday from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Contact Dave Fromer at 707-987-3542 for further information about the group.

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Lake County Model Railroad Club member Dennis Burke fine tunes the trains that will be running during this year's Lake County Fair which opens Thursday, September 2, 2010. Photo by Dave Fromer.

CLEARLAKE OAKS – After not seeing baby grebes for several years, a resident of Pirates Cove got a big surprise this week.

Marni Johnson spotted a family of grebes off her dock while drinking her morning coffee on Tuesday.

Seeing the babies and the dancing adults was a nice sight apart from “all the doom and gloom going on in the world,” Johnson said.

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A Saturday night crash and vehicle fire claimed the life of 21-year-old Geronimo Mateos-Hernandez of Stockton, and 83-year-old Eugene Milton Throop died when his home burned early Saturday morning, according to the report from Capt. James Bauman.

On Saturday at about 11:40 p.m. sheriff’s deputies responded to the scene of an auto accident on Highway 29, near Kelseyville Auto Salvage in Kelseyville, he said.

The California Highway Patrol had determined the driver of the single vehicle involved in the accident was deceased and requested a deputy coroner to investigate the death, according to Bauman.

While the driver's exact cause of death and positive identification are both pending the outcome of an autopsy, Bauman said officials believe the man to be Mateos-Hernandez of Stockton.

On Sunday at about 8 a.m. sheriff’s deputies responded to the scene of a residential structure fire on Old Long Valley Road in Clearlake Oaks, Bauman said.

Subsequent to containing the fire, Northshore Fire Protection District personnel had located a body

inside the home and requested a deputy coroner respond to investigate the death, he said.

Bauman said Throop's exact cause of death and final positive identification also are pending an autopsy.

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The sample was collected on August 24 southeast of Kelseyville. A previous sample that tested positive was collected near Upper Lake, as Lake County News has reported.

With many outdoor activities planned during the upcoming Lake County Fair and Labor Day holiday, health officials are encouraging people to take precautions including using mosquito repellents, combined with protective clothing (long sleeves and pants), which are especially important in the evening and early morning hours, go a long way to prevent West Nile virus infection, according to Lake County Health Officer Dr. Karen Tait.

“The recent high temperatures allow mosquitoes to reproduce more quickly, and the virus to replicate more quickly, which means that there is more West Nile virus out there,” said Dr. Jamesina Scott, district manager and research director for the Lake County Vector Control District.

Scott said the district has increased its surveillance and control activities in response to the recent positive mosquito samples.

She asked that community members remember the “three Ds of protection” – drain any standing water that may produce mosquitoes, defend yourself and your home by using an effective insect repellent; dressing protectively when outside, and making sure screens on doors and windows are in good condition.

Scott said mosquitoes develop in standing water, and a common mosquito source now that school has started is wading pools and swimming pools that are left filled and unmaintained. Residents should drain or dump out the wading pools and store them indoors or upside-down so that they won’t collect water.

The most recent data posted by California Department of Public Health showed that 34 human cases of West Nile virus have been reported from a total of 10 counties in California.

No human cases have been reported in Lake County this year, according to officials.

West Nile virus is transmitted by mosquitoes to a variety of animals and to humans. Mosquito and Vector Control agencies usually detect the virus in mosquitoes, birds and sometimes tree squirrels before human cases appear.

Most people who become infected with West Nile virus do not show symptoms and will recover uneventfully, according to the health department. Up to 20 percent of people will develop fever, headache, and other nonspecific symptoms that may last several weeks.

Approximately one in 150 people will develop severe illness known as neuroinvasive disease. People over age 50 and diabetics appear to be at most risk for the more severe forms of disease. There is no vaccine for humans.

A vaccine is available for horses and is strongly recommended because West Nile virus can also cause serious infections in horses. This year in California, eleven horses have become ill from West Nile virus, and three have died as a result of the infection.

Contact vector control for help controlling mosquitoes around your home, or to report potential mosquito sources, such as neglected swimming pools. Residents can request service, get mosquitofish, or report neglected swimming pools by calling 707-263-4770 or sending an e-mail to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

To report a dead bird or squirrel, call 1-877-WNV-BIRD (1-877-968-2473) or visit the Lake County Vector Control District’s website at www.lcvcd.org and click on the green “Report a Dead Bird” link.

For additional information on West Nile virus, visit www.westnile.ca.gov, www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/wnv_factsheet.htm or http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/RepellentUpdates.htm.

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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – In an effort to avert a strike of local transit workers, a federal mediator has asked the employees union and the company that provides transit services for the Lake Transit Authority to come to the table for a meeting Wednesday.

Both sides have agreed to the meeting, set to take place beginning at 10 a.m. at the Best Western El Grande Inn in Clearlake.

Santa Rosa-based Teamsters Local 624, which has represented about 35 Lake Transit employees since 2007, had set an Aug. 26 deadline to come to an agreement with Paratransit Services – which holds the Lake Transit contract – or else take strike action, as Lake County News has reported.

But a federal mediator, who entered the negotiations earlier in the summer, asked the union if it would postpone a strike and again meet with Paratransit Services, and the union agreed, said union spokesman Ralph Miranda.

“Hopefully we're going to resolve this,” said Miranda.

Randy Grove, Paratransit's director of operations and human resources, said the two sides met on Aug. 12 and Paratransit made what they considered was a fair offer, which included a 1-percent wage increase across the board.

He said they offered a total three-year package representing a potential of between 10 and 18 percent in increased wages over three years. Paratransit Services also offered to pick up half of any increases in the cost of medical plan premiums, and made offers of work shift and vacation provisions.

The union rejected that offer a few days later, and Grove said Paratransit is still not certain why.

Grove said the union is asking for wage and benefit increases that would amount to more than $500,000 in costs to the community.

Sticking points appear to be related to health benefits and wages, with the sides offering conflicting details about what's being offered.

Miranda said previously that Paratransit Services had asked the employees to begin paying half of their insurance, which Grove disputed.

“We haven't asked anything like that,” he said, adding that Paratransit Services wants to continue the current practice of cost-sharing health insurance with employees. He said the company pays medical premiums that total $7,200 annually for each eligible employee.

Miranda also had said that the offered wage increase wasn't enough to cover the expected impacts of health care premium increases.

Paratransit Services currently offers a Blue Shield insurance plan that, according to an employee who contacted Lake County News, requires them to travel out of county for most of their medical care because of a dearth of local providers, which Miranda confirmed.

Grove, however, said the company offers a “premium comprehensive medical plan,” along with dental, vision, life insurance, and a retirement plan.

Miranda said the goal is to get the employees on a Teamsters health plan instead. However, Miranda said they're willing to back off of that request and keep the current plan if they can reopen wage and medical insurance changes at the ends of the second and third years of the proposed new contract.

The union wants to be able to negotiate any changes to the plan, which Paratransit Services can change at any time based on the current agreement. Miranda said that contract was negotiated with the company's predecessor, Laidlaw.

Grove said Paratransit Services currently starts its drivers at $9.88 per hour, compared to $12.24 in Mendocino County, where there is twice the funding available for transit services based on sales tax.

Despite having less dollars, Grove said, “We're actually very competitive.”

Union members had begun telling riders several weeks ago that a strike could occur, according to Miranda.

Should no agreement be reached and a strike result, “We do have plans to sustain bus services,” Grove said.

Services in that case would initially be more limited, he said.

Miranda stated previously that if the union's terms aren't met, a strike is inevitable.

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OAKLAND – State officials on Tuesday announced a major takedown of key members of the Nuestra Familia gang who allegedly commit murders and other violent crimes “orchestrated in prison” by gang leaders using cell phones.

As part of an operation code-named "Street Sweeper," a joint task force of 250 state and local law enforcement agents led by Attorney General Jerry Brown's Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement concluded a year-long series of arrests attacking the hierarchy of prison gangs.

On Tuesday in Visalia and surrounding areas, agents arrested 34 gang members, including four local gang leaders. Five other Nuestra Familia leaders were incarcerated in earlier operations.

“Operation Street Sweeper represents a big step forward in reducing vicious street crimes orchestrated in prison by the Nuestra Familia hierarchy,” Brown said.

He said Tuesday's operation “has stripped the dangerous Nuestra Familia gang of key managers who carry out orders from its imprisoned leaders.”

Launched in Folsom Prison in 1968, Nuestra Familia is one of seven prison gangs in the state. Through top-down leadership, Nuestra Familia controls illegal activities inside several prisons, as well as most of the Nortenos gangs who operate in central California from Yuba City to Bakersfield and from Salinas to the Sierra foothills.

With a sombrero resting on a dagger as its symbol, Nuestra Familia is believed to have hundreds of members inside state prisons, tens of thousands in communities and many more associates, according to gang investigators.

Three gang leaders serving life sentences direct Nuestra Familia activities from inside Pelican Bay's Secure Housing Unit, also known as the "Shu," which isolates prisoners 24 hours a day. While such confinement places some limits on the gang's ability to communicate, gang leaders are still able to direct gang members on the streets through cell phones smuggled into the prison.

"In addition to arresting street gang leaders through efforts like Operation Street Sweeper," Brown said, "we must cut imprisoned gang leaders' ability to communicate with cell phones by blocking that communication through an electronic net over Pelican Bay."

Sophisticated technology exists to jam cell phones, even selectively, within prisons, but federal law must be changed to allow that to happen. The "Safe Prisons Communications Act" has passed the Senate, and a companion bill by Rep. Kevin Brady of Texas is in committee in the House. Brown called on members of the House to approve this legislation, which is essential to cracking down on one of California's most feared prison gangs.

Gang violence has recently spiked in Central Valley communities, officials reported. So far this year, Visalia's serious gang-related murders, assaults and drive-by shootings have doubled compared to the same period last year.

"History was made today in Visalia," said Colleen Mestas, chief of the Visalia Police Department. She thanked the 300 officers from 20 law enforcement agencies that took part in the operation. "With their help, our police department has been able to make an impact on our local gang crime."

Other law enforcement agencies that assisted with Tuesday's operation are the Central Valley Regional SWAT team, Delano Police Department, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of California, federal Drug Enforcement Administration, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Fresno Methamphetamine Task Force, High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas - Central Valley and Southern Tri County, Kings County Sheriff's Department, Madera County Gang Enforcement Task Force, Madera County Narcotic Enforcement Team, Porterville Police Department, Salinas Police Department, Tulare Police Department, Tulare County Sheriff's Department and Visalia Police Department.

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