After more than 10 years, a transient man responsible for starting the Aug. 7, 2013, Silver Fire in the Poppet Flats area pleaded guilty to 14 counts of recklessly and unlawfully setting fire to and burning, “and cause to be burned, an inhabited structure and inhabited property.” Stephen Patrick Medlock, 58, entered into a plea…
After several years of being dark, the Mountain Area Safety Task Force (MAST) is planning meetings again this year. Participants have included fire agencies, water districts, nonprofit organizations and other groups that have a say in safety issues on the Hill. The public forums are from 11 a.m. to noon the Wednesdays of March 13,…
The Idyllwild Fire Protection District (IFPD) commissioners met for a special meeting Tuesday, Jan. 9. All commissioners were present to hear Chief Mark LaMont present a resolution regarding a grant application to be submitted to the state. The application asks for almost a million dollars to help IFPD complete work on the Bear Trap Fuels…
Oct. 13, 2023, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 446. Now cursive writing or joined italics will be included as part of the educational program for grades one through six. Although it was never formally dropped, writing instruction, particularly for cursive, waned as the use of laptop computers and tablets grew within the school environment….
At its first meeting in 2024, on Jan. 9, the Riverside County Board of Supervisors elected new officers for the year. 3rd District Supervisor Chuck Washington is the board’s chair for 2024 and 4th District Supervisor V. Manuel Perez is the new vice chair. He served as chair during 2020. Washington last served as chair…
The Pine Cove Water District (PCWD) held its regular board of directors meeting Wednesday, Jan. 10 with all directors present, although last month’s resignation of Diana Luther leaves an empty seat, one of the questions facing the board now. Other matters before the directors included a review of the first half of the financial year…
Gov. Gavin Newsom released his proposed fiscal year (FY) 2024-25 budget last week. Total expenditures will be nearly $291 billion, of which $208.7 billion will be the General Fund accounts. This is about $22.2 billion less than is available for the current fiscal year, which ends June 30. Throughout his news conference, Newsom stressed that…
Another lawsuit has been filed against Riverside County, the County’s Sheriff’s Department (RCSD) and Sheriff Chad Bianco over an in-custody death in the county’s jail. On April 28, 2022, Alicia Upton, 21, of San Jacinto, hung herself while in-custody at the Robert Presley Detention Center in Riverside. On Dec. 31, 2023, her parents filed a…
