Riverside County Superior Court disposed of a transient’s mental health diversion and probation suitability filings, and decided to move ahead with a jury trial for the man charged with starting the 2013 Silver Fire. Stephen Patrick Medlock, 56, was arrested and charged with starting the fire that burned more than 20,000 acres in Poppet Flats,…

The Riverside County Planning Commission has scheduled a public hearing next week on the conditional use permit for the Idyllwild Community Center planned for the parcel between Highway 243 and Strawberry Creek. It is now known as the Butterfield Commons on Strawberry Creek, named for the family who donated the land and funds to begin…

Karen Epperly appeared in court Monday, Aug. 3. Pursuant to her agreement with the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office, she began paying fines, penalties and restitution for her embezzlement. Epperly, 50, of Idyllwild, pleaded guilty to embezzlement on July 21. Sentencing was scheduled for Aug. 3. She was initially charged in December 2013. With the…

There were two vehicle crashes on hill roads over the last week, California Highway Patrol Public Information Officer Darren Meyer reports. At 7:15 a.m. on Tuesday, July 2, Margaret Moore, 68, from Cathedral City, was driving a silver 2012 Lexus eastbound on Highway 74 with black 2016 Dodge Challenger approaching from behind. The driver of…