LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Sunday brought rain to Lake County with more rain in the forecast this week.
Rain fell steadily on Sunday across parts of Northern California, based on National Weather Service rainfall totals.
The agency’s observation stations in Lake County recorded the following rainfall totals, in inches, for the 24-hour period ending at 12:30 a.m. Monday:
– Boggs Mountain: 0.72. – Cache Creek near Lower Lake: 0.31. – High Glade Lookout (Upper Lake): 0.91. – High Valley Road alert station: 0.39. – Indian Valley Reservoir: 0.43. – Kelseyville: 0.30. – Knoxville Creek: 0.39. – Lakeport: 0.47. – Mira Vista Road alert station in Sulphur fire area: 0.22. – Soda Creek at Lake Pillsbury: 1.55. – Upper Lake: 0.90. – Whispering Pines: 0.84.
The National Weather Service said more rain is expected on Monday, with a break from Monday night through Tuesday.
From Tuesday night through Thursday night, the agency is forecasting rain again, with conditions clearing through the weekend.
Daytime temperatures this week will top out in the high 50s, with nighttime lows into the high 20s, according to the forecast.
Temperatures are forecast to peak this weekend when sunny conditions are anticipated.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Pacific Gas and Electric Co. paid property taxes of more than $230 million this fall to the 50 counties where the energy company owns property and operates gas and electric infrastructure that serves 16 million Californians.
The tax payments help support essential public services like education and public safety.
The semi-annual property tax payments made recently cover the period from July 1 to Dec. 31, 2017.
First installment property taxes recently paid to counties included in PG&E’s Humboldt Division are:
– Humboldt County: $3,432,207; – Lake County - $862,779; – Mendocino County: $1,632,858.
“Property tax payments provide crucial resources to the many communities where we live and work, supporting everything from education to public safety. By continuing to make local investments in gas and electric infrastructure, we are not only creating one of the safest and most reliable energy systems in the country, we’re investing in the local economy and helping our communities thrive,” said Jason Wells, senior vice president and chief financial officer for PG&E.
Total payments for the full tax year of July 1, 2017 to June 30, 2018 are estimated to total more than $461 million – an increase of $50 million, or 12 percent, compared with the prior fiscal year.
The full breakdown to the 50 counties follows.
Alameda: $23,910,294 Alpine: $70,240 Amador: $1,078,087 Butte: $3,900,167 Calaveras: $993,921 Colusa: $4,305,964 Contra Costa: $18,704,718 El Dorado: $1,541,364 Fresno: $16,820,124 Glenn: $782,234 Humboldt: $3,432,207 Kern: $7,696,500 Kings: $1,666,050 Lake: $862,779 Lassen: $39,448 Madera: $2,286,005 Marin: $3,661,099 Mariposa: $269,255 Mendocino: $1,632,858 Merced: $3,411,694 Modoc: $227,973 Monterey: $3,607,815 Napa: $2,827,874 Nevada: $1,218,797 Placer: $5,456,991 Plumas: 2,339,038 Sacramento: $6,258,136 San Benito: $680,494 San Bernardino: $1,205,841 San Diego: $7,665 San Francisco: $14,353,617 San Joaquin: $11,260,063 San Luis Obispo: $14,910,000 San Mateo: $12,520,118 Santa Barbara: $1,108,093 Santa Clara: $26,041,456 Santa Cruz: $1,715,627 Shasta: $5,143,166 Sierra: $125,892 Siskiyou: $110,193 Solano: 5,905,000 Sonoma: $7,156,279 Stanislaus: $2,124,403 Sutter: $1,346,278 Tehama: $1,140,366 Trinity: $135,508 Tulare: $596,150 Tuolumne: $869,671 Yolo: $2,295,755 Yuba: $1,163,001
LAKEPORT, Calif. – A chase that was reported to have begun in Mendocino County ended in Lakeport early Sunday with one person said to be in custody.
Radio reports indicated the chase began in the Ukiah area and continued on Highway 20 into Lake County after midnight.
Mendocino County Sheriff’s deputies called for assistance in the area of the buffalo ranch on Highway 20, with Lake County Sheriff’s deputies joining the chase in the area of Witter Springs, based on scanner reports.
The fleeing vehicle, described as a white Honda Accord, continued onto Highway 29. At some point during the chase, Lake County Sheriff’s deputies were reported to have deployed spike strips.
In the area of Hill Road scanner traffic indicated the Honda lost a tire but continued traveling to Lakeport.
Sometime after 12:30 a.m. the car arrived in Lakeport, where the driver getting off the highway at 11th Street before reentering the highway, according to the radio.
Radio traffic reported that the Honda finally wrecked on an embankment at Highway 29 and Lakeport Boulevard, where the driver fled.
At that point, Mendocino and Lake County deputies, along with the California Highway Patrol and Lakeport Police pursued the driver and caught the individual in some brush shortly before 12:45 a.m., according to a witness at the scene.
Details about what led to the chase and the driver’s identity were not available immediately after the chase early Sunday.
Additional information will be posted as it becomes available.
Tyler Elsa contributed to this report.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
Law enforcement officers chased a white Honda to Lakeport, Calif., where the suspect fled on foot and was arrested. Photo by Tyler Elsa.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The search is on to find the 2018-2020 Lake County Poet Laureate.
Applications will be evaluated by the former and current Lake County Poets Laureate.
The application deadline is March 4, at 5 p.m.
Sponsored by Middletown Art Center and the Lake County Arts Council, the selection event will be held at Middletown Art Center, 21456 State Highway 175, on April 29, at 4 p.m., and is free to the public.
Interviews of finalists will be scheduled to take place that day. The selection event will feature readings by the finalists, and several of the Lake County Poets Laureate.
The new Lake County Poet Laureate, 2018-2020 will be announced at the conclusion of the readings.
The role of a poet laureate is to promote poetry, writing and literacy in the community they represent. The position requires strong organizational, communication and clerical skills.
Officiated by the Lake County Board of Supervisors, the tradition began in Lake County in 1998 with the installation of the first Lake County Poet Laureate, Jim Lyle.
Each successive poet laureate has found their own way to fulfill the role, with many of them currently active in Lake County’s vibrant literary community.
In Lake County, the poet laureate is a volunteer position. However, some laureates have applied for and received grants to support their community activities.
Any Lake County resident can apply for the position, or nominate a resident that they consider a viable candidate.
To apply: Collect up to eight of your original poems (10 pages maximum). Submit seven sets which contain each poem; one set with your name on each poem, and the other six sets without your name attached to the poems.
Provide a letter of recommendation written by a community member on your behalf. Write a mission statement describing how you would serve Lake County’s literary community, including any current or previous activities or involvement. Include your name, address, email, telephone number and best time to call.
If any of your poems have been published, list the titles, names of the publication and dates they were published. Be available on April 29 for the interview process and public reading at the selection event.
Send copies of the above listed materials to: Julie Adams, P.O. Box 11, Middletown, CA 95461, and email a copy of the poems with your name attached, and your mission statement to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
If you do not have Internet access, mail eight copies of the listed items, including only one set of poetry with your name attached.
Local residents may nominate someone for the position by sending an email or letter to current Lake County Poet Laureate Julie Adams at the above addresses. Include the person’s contact information, phone number and a short statement about why you are nominating them.
Casey Carney is a Lake County Poet Laureate emerita.
LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Poetry Out Loud Lake County Competition takes place at the Soper Reese Theatre on Sunday, Feb. 11.
The event will begin at 2 p.m.
It will feature competitors from Clear Lake High School, Middletown High School and Carlé Continuation High School.
Winners at this event will go on to compete at the state level.
The public is invited to attend; entry is free of charge.
The event is supported and promoted by the Lake County Arts Council, the National Endowment for the Arts, Poetry Foundation and the California Arts Council.
Poetry Out Loud is national program intended to help students master public speaking skills, build self-confidence, learn about their literary heritage and compete for college scholarship funding.
Millions of high school students participate across the country with California as one of the largest.
Students begin with poetry recitations at the classroom level. Classroom winners advance to a schoolwide competition and each school’s champion competes at the county level.
Winners of Feb. 11 Lake County competition advance to the state finals to be held on the State Assembly floor in Sacramento on March 18 and 19. The state competition is also webcast and televised via the California Channel.
The county champions are honored with a dinner reception and each receives a certificate of recognition from their legislative representative.
The National Finals will be held in Washington D.C., April 23 to 25. Check out www.poetryoutloud.org for more information.
The Soper Reese Theatre is located at 275 S. Main St. in Lakeport and can be reached at 707-263-0577.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Eight dogs are waiting for new homes at Lake County Animal Care and Control as this new week begins.
The dogs offered adoption this week include mixes of Akita, German Shepherd, golden retriever, mastiff, pit bull, shepherd and terrier.
Dogs that are adopted from Lake County Animal Care and Control are either neutered or spayed, microchipped and, if old enough, given a rabies shot and county license before being released to their new owner. License fees do not apply to residents of the cities of Lakeport or Clearlake.
If you're looking for a new companion, visit the shelter. There are many great pets hoping you'll choose them.
The following dogs at the Lake County Animal Care and Control shelter have been cleared for adoption (additional dogs on the animal control Web site not listed are still “on hold”).
This female pit bull terrier is in kennel No. 6, ID No. 9235. Photo courtesy of Lake County Animal Care and Control. Female pit bull
This female pit bull terrier has a short white and brown coat.
Shelter staff said she is good with other dogs.
She’s in kennel No. 6, ID No. 9235.
This male golden retriever is in kennel No. 7, ID No.9302. Photo courtesy of Lake County Animal Care and Control. Golden retriever
This male golden retriever
Has a medium-length golden coat.
He already has been neutered.
He’s in kennel No. 7, ID No.9302.
This male pit bull-mastiff mix is in kennel No. 10, ID No. 9289. Photo courtesy of Lake County Animal Care and Control. Pit bull-mastiff mix
This male pit bull-mastiff mix has a short brindle coat.
He’s in kennel No. 10, ID No. 9289.
This female German Shepherd-Akita mix is in kennel No. 22, ID No. 9219. Photo courtesy of Lake County Animal Care and Control. German Shepherd-Akita mix
This female German Shepherd-Akita mix has a short black and tan coat.
She’s in kennel No. 22, ID No. 9219.
This female pit bull terrier is in kennel No. 23, ID No. 9082. Photo courtesy of Lake County Animal Care and Control. Pit bull terrier
This female pit bull terrier has a short gray and white coat.
Shelter staff said she is good with other dogs.
She’s in kennel No. 23, ID No. 9082.
This male pit bull terrier is in kennel No. 25, ID No. 9149. Photo courtesy of Lake County Animal Care and Control. Male pit bull
This male pit bull terrier has a short tan and white coat.
He already has been neutered.
He’s in kennel No. 25, ID No. 9149.
This male pit bull terrier is in kennel No. 31, ID No. 9160. Photo courtesy of Lake County Animal Care and Control. Male pit bull
This male pit bull terrier has a short brown and white coat.
He’s in kennel No. 31, ID No. 9160.
This male terrier-shepherd mix is in kennel No. 31, ID No. 9222. Photo courtesy of Lake County Animal Care and Control. Terrier-shepherd mix
This male terrier-shepherd mix has a short brown coat.
Shelter staff said he is good with other dogs.
He’s in kennel No. 31, ID No. 9222.
Lake County Animal Care and Control is located at 4949 Helbush in Lakeport, next to the Hill Road Correctional Facility.
Office hours are Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday. The shelter is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday and on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
For more information call Lake County Animal Care and Control at 707-263-0278.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
Earth’s global surface temperatures in 2017 ranked as the second warmest since 1880, according to an analysis by NASA.
Continuing the planet's long-term warming trend, globally averaged temperatures in 2017 were 1.62 degrees Fahrenheit (0.90 degrees Celsius) warmer than the 1951 to 1980 mean, according to scientists at NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) in New York. That is second only to global temperatures in 2016.
In a separate, independent analysis, scientists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) concluded that 2017 was the third-warmest year in their record.
The minor difference in rankings is due to the different methods used by the two agencies to analyze global temperatures, although over the long-term the agencies’ records remain in strong agreement. Both analyses show that the five warmest years on record all have taken place since 2010.
Because weather station locations and measurement practices change over time, there are uncertainties in the interpretation of specific year-to-year global mean temperature differences.
Taking this into account, NASA estimates that 2017’s global mean change is accurate to within 0.1 degree Fahrenheit, with a 95 percent certainty level.
“Despite colder than average temperatures in any one part of the world, temperatures over the planet as a whole continue the rapid warming trend we’ve seen over the last 40 years,” said GISS Director Gavin Schmidt.
The planet’s average surface temperature has risen about 2 degrees Fahrenheit (a little more than 1 degree Celsius) during the last century or so, a change driven largely by increased carbon dioxide and other human-made emissions into the atmosphere.
Last year was the third consecutive year in which global temperatures were more than 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit (1 degree Celsius) above late nineteenth-century levels.
Phenomena such as El Niño or La Niña, which warm or cool the upper tropical Pacific Ocean and cause corresponding variations in global wind and weather patterns, contribute to short-term variations in global average temperature.
A warming El Niño event was in effect for most of 2015 and the first third of 2016. Even without an El Niño event – and with a La Niña starting in the later months of 2017 – last year’s temperatures ranked between 2015 and 2016 in NASA’s records.
In an analysis where the effects of the recent El Niño and La Niña patterns were statistically removed from the record, 2017 would have been the warmest year on record.
Weather dynamics often affect regional temperatures, so not every region on Earth experienced similar amounts of warming. NOAA found the 2017 annual mean temperature for the contiguous 48 United States was the third warmest on record.
Warming trends are strongest in the Arctic regions, where 2017 saw the continued loss of sea ice.
NASA’s temperature analyses incorporate surface temperature measurements from 6,300 weather stations, ship- and buoy-based observations of sea surface temperatures, and temperature measurements from Antarctic research stations.
These raw measurements are analyzed using an algorithm that considers the varied spacing of temperature stations around the globe and urban heating effects that could skew the conclusions. These calculations produce the global average temperature deviations from the baseline period of 1951 to 1980.
NOAA scientists used much of the same raw temperature data, but with a different baseline period, and different methods to analyze Earth’s polar regions and global temperatures.
The full 2017 surface temperature data set and the complete methodology used to make the temperature calculation are available at https://data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp .
GISS is a laboratory within the Earth Sciences Division of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. The laboratory is affiliated with Columbia University’s Earth Institute and School of Engineering and Applied Science in New York.
NASA uses the unique vantage point of space to better understand Earth as an interconnected system. The agency also uses airborne and ground-based monitoring, and develops new ways to observe and study Earth with long-term data records and computer analysis tools to better see how our planet is changing. NASA shares this knowledge with the global community and works with institutions in the United States and around the world that contribute to understanding and protecting our home planet.
LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lakeport City Council this week honored a retiring Lakeport Fire captain for his decades of service, approved fees for processing commercial marijuana permit applications and held its midyear budget review.
The council started off the Tuesday evening with a proclamation commending retiring Fire Captain Bob Ray for his 45 years of service.
Mayor Mireya Turner read the proclamation, which explained that Ray was born and raised in Lakeport, received a degree from Santa Rosa Junior College and then became a volunteer for Lakeport Fire.
As soon as the agency had a full-time opening, he immediately applied and was hired. Since then, Ray has extinguished blazes and served residents within a 70-square mile radius, Turner said.
He was the first Fireman/EMT II at the department to transition to a firefighter/paramedic after the department was authorized to upgrade their program to recruit and hire paramedics in the late 1980s. “This was a groundbreaking approach at that time, as previously the EMT II certification was the highest level authorized by the North Coast EMS,” Turner said.
Turner said Ray also took charge of EMS-related calls while his colleagues assisted in the Valley, Clayton and Sulphur fires, and had served in Southern California in 2003 as part of Lake County’s response to the Cedar fire in San Diego, which killed 15 people, including one firefighter.
Ray has been serving the Lakeport Fire Protection District as fire captain since 1985, with a 10-year stint as assistant chief from 1989 to 1999, Turner said.
Ray received a standing ovation from the council, city staff and the audience, which included many friends and colleagues.
“It’s been an absolute pleasure to serve our community. I’ll tell you, those years went really fast. I tell people now that I always knew I’d retire someday, but I had no idea it would come this fast,” he said.
He said he has met and worked with many great people and made a lot of friends not just in his agency but in many others, and throughout the county.
In other business on Tuesday, the council approved a resolution setting fees for processing commercial marijuana, or cannabis, permit applications.
Community Development Director Kevin Ingram said the new ordinance the council accepted on Jan. 2 that would allow for commercial cannabis operations in the city will go into effect on Jan. 31.
He said the ordinance has several parts that would involve fees, including background checks, which requires review by the police department, the Live Scan process and checking for consistency with the ordinance; submission of applications, which requires review by the city and sending it out to the police department, planning, building and the fire department; and final review by the city manager.
Ingram said the proposed fee for application submittals for cultivation, testing, distribution and retail is $1,025; manufacturing is $1,1185; background checks will cost $354 per individual; an appeal for a rejected application is $1,030; and the annual review and inspection cost is $1,100.
Councilman Kenny Parlet asked if staff had checked the fee amounts in other areas. Ingram said yes. “We’re very competitive,” Ingram said, noting the city is actually probably at the lower end when it costs to costs.
There was no public comment and the council approved the resolution unanimously.
Also on Tuesday, Finance Director Nick Walker presented the midyear budget review, and asked for and received the council’s approval of an amendment to the 2017-18 city budget.
The main changes to the budget requested on Tuesday night were from the Lakeport Police Department. The council approved a $52,000 increase in appropriations, which included $12,000 for two new HVAC units and $40,000 for technology upgrades, including new body cameras, mobile audio visual units for several patrol vehicles, software for downloading and retaining footage, and an additional server for backup.
The request came at the midyear budget review rather than in the new budget because the Lakeport Police Department is getting two new patrol vehicles, which presented the need to get the technology in several other vehicles upgraded, according to Lakeport Police Chief Brad Rasmussen.
Rasmussen said the new technology will be more efficient and will download automatically, a big time saver as the agency’s evidence technician now spends much of her time downloading and categorizing the video.
Only a few vehicles and body cameras will still need upgraded technology, which Rasmussen said they can address in the new fiscal year.
The council also approved the purchase of a Weco Industries multi-conductor main line TV van for $242,672.04, which will be used to monitor the sewer collection system. City Manager Margaret Silveira said the equipment is especially needed after last year’s storms.
When the city has had to rent such equipment it has cost $1,800 a day, and usually isn’t immediately available, according to Public Works Director Doug Grider’s written report to the council.
As part of the purchase, staff said the city will receive a four-day onsite training to use the equipment.
Also on Tuesday, the council, sitting as the successor agency to the former Lakeport Redevelopment Agency, approved the Recognized Obligation Payment Schedule 18-19 for the period of July 1, 2018, through June 30, 2019, for presentation and adoption by the Lakeport Redevelopment Oversight Board.
Council members also approved a resolution creating and affirming the city’s master pay schedule for all represented employee classifications and all unrepresented employees covered by a compensation plan, which puts the city in compliance with California Public Employees’ Retirement System requirements.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
CLEARLAKE, Calif. – The city of Clearlake invites the community to an open house next week to offer input on an upcoming road project.
The event will take place beginning at 10 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 24, in the council chambers at Clearlake City Hall, 14050 Olympic Drive.
The community open house’s topic will be the future Country Club Drive road rehabilitation project.
This open house is an opportunity for residents to hear about the upcoming project as well as provide their thoughts and ideas.
For more information contact Adeline Brown at 707-994-8201, Extension 341, or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
NORTH COAST, Calif. – After about five hours of deliberations, a Mendocino County jury on Friday convicted a San Jose man of the attempted murder of a California Highway Patrol officer during a December 2016 high speed chase.
Defendant Ryan Joseph Maxstadt, 28, of San Jose, committed the felony in Willits on the night of Dec. 20, 2016.
The Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office said its deputies had responded to a report of stolen mail on a rural mail route near Ukiah that night, with their investigation identifying Maxstadt as the driver of a vehicle involved in the thefts.
The deputies, working with Ukiah Police and the CHP, located the vehicle Maxstadt was driving and attempted to stop it, but it fled, leading them on a pursuit northbound on Highway 101 at speeds of about 100 miles per hour, authorities said.
It was when he was attempting to evade authorities in Willits that he was reported to have shot at the CHP officer with a handgun.
Maxstadt would eventually abandon the vehicle – the tires of which had gone flat due to spike strips – and was apprehended with the help of a sheriff’s K9 in a creek bed in the 1100 block of South Main Street in Willits.
In addition to the attempted murder charge, on Friday the jury also found true special findings that the attempted murder was willful, deliberate and premeditated; that when Maxstadt made his attempt to kill he knew or should have known that the CHP officer was a peace officer performing his duties; and that during his attempt to kill the defendant personally and intentionally discharged his revolver at the officer, according to the Mendocino County District Attorney’s Office.
What the jury was not told during the course of this week's trial was that Maxstadt had already been convicted last August of assault with a firearm on a peace officer, a felony; personally using a firearm during the assault, a sentencing enhancement; recklessly evading a peace officer, a felony; being a felon in possession of a firearm, a felony; vehicle theft, a felony; and true findings that defendant Maxstadt has previously served two prior prison terms.
The jury that heard basically the same evidence in August ended up being hung on the single charge of attempted murder – 11 for guilt to one – setting the stage for this week's retrial on that single count and associated special findings.
Once this week's jury was thanked and excused, the defendant and all of his convictions were referred to the Adult Probation Department for a background study and sentencing recommendation.
Authorities said Maxstadt is not eligible for probation and any sentence imposed will be served in state prison. He remains in the Low Gap jail facility with a no bail hold.
The court scheduled a future sentencing hearing for Feb. 20 at 9 a.m. in Department G of the Ukiah courthouse. Any person interested in the facts of this case, this defendant, and/or the sentencing outcome is welcome to attend that February sentencing hearing.
The prosecutor who handled the August trial, this week's single count retrial, and who will appear to argue the people's sentencing position in February is District Attorney David Eyster.
The law enforcement agencies who assisted in the investigation of the underlying crimes were the Ukiah Police Department, the California Highway Patrol, the Willits Police Department, the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office, the California Department of Justice crime laboratory, and the District Attorney's own investigators. Additional technical forensic assistance and expert testimony was ably provided by Stutchman Forensic Laboratory in Napa.
The judge who presided over the August jury trial, this week's five-day retrial, and who will be the sentencing judge on February 20th is Mendocino County Superior Court Presiding Judge Ann Moorman.
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – A Humboldt County man who attempted to shoot a California Department of Fish and Wildlife wildlife officer has been sentenced to 20 years in prison.
Shawn Eugene Hof, Jr., 25, was convicted in Humboldt County Superior Court of assault with a firearm upon a peace officer with an enhancement of personally using a firearm, being a felon in possession of a firearm, using threats and violence upon an executive officer, negligently discharging a firearm at an occupied vehicle, and one misdemeanor violation of "spotlighting" (using artificial light to poach wildlife).
On Jan. 16, Humboldt County Superior Court Judge John T. Feeney issued the 20-year sentence. By law, Hof must serve at least 85 percent of his sentence because of the serious nature of the offenses.
In the early morning hours of Aug. 21, 2016, a CDFW wildlife officer was patrolling in Carlotta, Humboldt County.
The officer saw a pickup truck with two occupants using spotlights on Redwood House Road near Highway 36. The driver sped away when the officer attempted an enforcement stop.
During the subsequent pursuit, Hof began shooting at the wildlife officer from the truck. The suspects crashed their vehicle into a tree and escaped into the woods. Hof was on the run for more than a year.
The Humboldt County Sheriff's Office and Humboldt District Attorney's Office led the initial investigation into the shooting incident and, working with the CDFW Law Enforcement Division, applied intensive pressure to locate and arrest Hof.
A group of private donors, including the California Wildlife Officers Foundation, California Fish and Game Warden Supervisors and Managers Association, California Waterfowl Association, Defenders of Wildlife, Humane Society of the United States, The Nature Conservancy, Sportfishing Alliance and others collaborated on a $20,000 reward for information leading to his arrest.
Hof ultimately turned himself into police on Aug. 10, 2017.
"We are pleased with the sentence handed down by Judge Feeney," said David Bess, deputy director and chief of the Law Enforcement Division. "It took a dangerous felon out of the community making it safer for the citizens of Humboldt County. CDFW thanks our allied agency partners for their efforts since the moment the incident began and the coalition of donors who offered the reward money. We're relieved the situation was resolved without injuries to our officers or the public."
Hof's accomplice, Thomas Wheeler, 19, of Fortuna, was sentenced last month to a suspended sentence of eight years in state prison for the use of a firearm in aiding and abetting the assault on a peace officer, evading a peace officer with wanton and reckless disregard for person and property, two misdemeanor violations for allowing another person to shoot from a vehicle, and spotlighting.
The federal Revenue Reconciliation Act of 2017 (“2017 Tax Act”) increases the lifetime federal unified estate and gift tax exemption and the gift tax annual exclusion amounts applicable during the eight year period covering Jan. 1, 2018, through Dec. 31, 2025.
The federal estate tax exemption has effectively been doubled to more than $11 million in 2018. The exemption adjusts each year for inflation through 2025.
In 2026, unless new law is enacted that continues the 2017 Tax Act, it sunsets and the federal estate tax exemption returns to the prior exemption as indexed upwards for inflation using an adjusted Consumer Price Index; just over $5.5 million in 2017.
With a married couple, the $11 million federal estate tax exemption becomes $22 million from 2018 through 2025.
Thus, estates under $11 million for single persons, and estates under $22 million for married persons who die before Jan. 1, 2026, will not owe the Internal Revenue Service any federal estate tax.
Even though such estates do not owe any federal estate tax, the beneficiaries of these estates still receive an adjusted income tax basis equal to the appraised date of death value of all assets in the estate, excluding tax deferred retirement accounts.
The so-called “stepped-up basis” is a significant tax benefit enjoyed by beneficiaries who inherit assets that have appreciated over the life of the deceased former owner.
With a stepped-up basis capital gains tax is avoided with respect to the appreciation that occurred while the decedent owned the asset prior to death.
For example, consider a married couple who purchased their home in 1985 for $100,000. By the time the surviving spouse dies in 2020, their residence has appreciated in value to $400,000.
The parents’ children who inherit the residence receive a stepped-up basis of $400,000, provided it is substantiated by a qualified appraisal. When the children sell the residence they will only owe any capital gains tax if – and only to the extent that – the residence sells above the $400,000 basis.
The $11 million amount of the federal estate and gift tax exemption amount is not guaranteed to continue after 2025.
Anyone with a large estate that would thereafter become subject to federal estate tax were they to die after 2025 – presuming the exemption reverts to the current $5.5 million exemption – may want to consider substantial gifting prior to 2026 in order to use their unified federal estate and gift tax exemption while it lasts.
The gift tax annual exclusion amount has increased from $14,000 (2017) to $15,000 (2018).
Thus, persons can individually gift up to a total of $15,000, and married person together can gift up to a total of $30,000, in assets, in a given tax year, to any one individual – other than their spouse (who is covered by the unlimited interspousal exemption) – without having to file a federal gift tax return and without using any of their eleven million dollar lifetime unified federal estate and gift tax exemption amount.
While the federal estate tax only affects a very tiny fraction of the United States population, it is reassuring to see that the allowance for the stepped-up basis, which depends on the federal estate tax regime, is preserved. The capital gains tax, after all, affects everyone who sells appreciated assets.
Dennis A. Fordham, attorney, is a State Bar-Certified Specialist in estate planning, probate and trust law. His office is at 870 S. Main St., Lakeport, Calif. He can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and 707-263-3235. His Web site is www.DennisFordhamLaw.com.
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