death

Mark Allen Smith, a 1982 graduate of South Tahoe High, was stabbed to death in Sparks, NV on March 9, 2015.

Sparks Police were called out to a home at 11 Vista de Lago at 3:00 a.m. on Monday morning. When they arrived they found Smith with a single stab wound to the chest. He was transported to Renown Medical Center where he died later that morning.

The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office confirmed Monday that a missing Carson City man, Bruce Hutter, has been found dead off of Kings Canyon Road in Douglas County.

The body of Hutter was found inside a white passenger car discovered Sunday by a couple four-wheel driving in a rugged area of Kings Canyon.

Dale Trembath said he and his wife were four-wheel driving at around 2:30 p.m. in the canyon when they decided to go down a steep area. He said he looked and saw the car that he described as a white Dodge Neon, and walked over to it.

Dan Rix, affectionately known as “Papa Dan” to his family, passed away peacefully at his home in South Lake Tahoe on February 11, 2015 at the age of 73 after a brave and courageous battle with a long illness. Dan was born December 30, 1941 in Pueblo, CO to Dorothy Mae and George Robert Rix and spent his childhood growing up in Daly City (CA). He eventually moved to Tulare (CA) with his family where he graduated from Tulare Union HS in 1959.

A Lake Tahoe woman is suing a longtime bear protection group after she says she got death threats for reporting an aggressive black bear to Nevada authorities, who then killed the animal.

Adrienne Evans, a professional mountain bike racer and high school science teacher, accuses the BEAR League of igniting an ugly social media campaign that turned into a vengeful attempt to run her and her husband out of town. She said she loves bears and wasn't trying to get the animal killed.

El Dorado County Sheriff's Office responds to calls throughout the county.

The following are calls that only pertain to the South Shore. There may be some missing calls due to sheriff's logs not being completed at press time and the story will be updated when provided.

2/8
8:55 a.m. - Marijuana Cultivation - Ojibwa Street - CONTACT MADE AT RESIDENCE REGARDING MARIJUANA CULTIVATION AND CHILD WELFARE. NO ARRESTS.

Horses in the middle of a years-long battle between banks, attorneys, an animal rescue center and others are now available for adoption. Their saga began at a ranch in Susanville, CA where 90 horses were found near death. The horses where brought to an El Dorado Hills group, Grace Foundation, after officials from Wells Fargo and Bank of America found them starving and uncared for on the property they where they held the note.

The word of the day: Pogonip.

That is what gave the top of South Lake Tahoe's Heavenly Mountain Resort the look of winter and fresh snow on Saturday morning.

According to the National Weather Service in Reno, a cloud deck around 8,000-9,000 feet was in place most of the night and the supercooled liquid droplets froze on the branches becoming a thick coating of frost.

Here is the definition of "pogonip" from Wikipedia:

El Dorado County Sheriff's Office responds to calls throughout the county.

The following are calls that only pertain to the South Shore. There may be some missing calls due to sheriff's logs not being completed at press time and the story will be updated when provided.

1/18
3:52 p.m. - Domestic Violence - Wasabe Way - DATING CO-HABITANTS ENGAGED IN VERBAL DISPUTE.

1/19
2:23 p.m. - Dogs off leash - Lily Ave - TWO 23-YEAR OLD MEN WERE CITED FOR HAVING DOGS OFF LEASH WHILE ON CONSERVANCY.

A 23-year old Carson Valley man is now facing first degree murder charges in the death of this two month old daughter Ava Getty.

The infant was brought into the Carson Valley Medical Center by her father, Trent Getty, on January 7 with serious injuries. According to Douglas County Sheriff's investigators, the infant died after suffering substantial injuries that were the result of traumatic abuse and inconsistent with the statement given by Getty regarding how the injury occurred.

1/10/15 11:45 a.m. update - The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a child abuse case involving a 2 month old infant.

On January 10, 2015 at 12:48 a.m., the two month old infant was taken off life support and died. The cause of death is pending autopsy.

Suspect Trent Getty was located in Sacramento, California at a Greyhound Bus Depot and was taken into custody by the Sacramento Police Department. Suspect Getty is in custody in the Sacramento County Jail and is awaiting extradition back to Douglas County, Nevada.

Investigation continues.

Author Jackie Boor will present 'LOGAN: The Honorable Life and Scandalous
Death of a Western Lawman'. Ms. Boor is the great granddaughter of this historic sheriff and has unearthed the untold story of his 1906 murder. Dealing with rowdy miners, drunken gamblers, and even Wild West legends like Wyatt Earp was a routine part of the job for onetime Nye County Sheriff Thomas Logan.

This is a story steeped in local history, presented it in an entertaining and informative way. There will be a question and answer session, book sale and signing to follow.

Location

Steve Berlack built a life around snow and skiing. He lived in Franconia, N.H. He taught at an exclusive ski academy – Burke Mountain Academy in Vermont.

His son, Ronnie, rose up the ski racing ranks, graduated from Burke, had recently made the U.S. "D" team and was still hoping to make it to the World Cup level within a few years.

But snow and skiing took Ronnie's life Monday.

Ronnie Berlack, 20, and another U.S. ski team developmental athlete, Bryce Astle, 19, of Sandy, Utah, were killed in an avalanche in Soelden, Austria.

El Dorado County Sheriff's Office responds to calls throughout the county.
The following are calls that only pertain to the South Shore. There may be some missing calls due to sheriff's logs not being completed at press time and the story will be updated when provided.

12/27

The death of 19-year old Alyssa Byrne during the 2013 SnowGlobe event in South Lake Tahoe is still on people's minds, especially now that the temperatures have dropped into single digits with wind chills expected to take them down into negative figures.

Nick and Kadi Alfield wanted to do something this year in Byrne's memory, so they had a booth at SnowGlobe that not only charged cell phones but also gave away gloves, scarves and hats to attendees who were cold.

Plastic bags, driver's licenses, selfies, assisted living and teens are just a few of the subjects the new laws in California will address in 2015.

Here are just a few of the 930 new laws:

Unless you're not connected to social media or watching television news in the region you have most likely heard of accusations of racism on the part of the South Lake Tahoe Police Department (SLTPD) in their handling of the Dejon Smith missing person and subsequent death case. This claim and other rumors circulating around the case were discussed today with SLTPD Lt. Brian Williams who spoke to South Tahoe Now about the case

The administration team at South Tahoe High School met this weekend to prepare for the return of students on Monday, the first day of school after the death of their classmate, freshman Dejon Smith.

Principal Chad Houck sent out a phone and email message Sunday evening to all parents to inform them of the plan for Monday.

The news is still fresh and the whole story may not yet be known, but the tight knit community of South Lake Tahoe has been quick in it's offering of support to the family of Dejon Smith, the 14 year old whose body was found Saturday.

News of Smith's death has traveled quickly through social media and news outlets and people want to do something to help his family.

El Dorado County Sheriff's Office responds to calls throughout the county.

The following are calls that only pertain to the South Shore. There may be some missing calls due to sheriff's logs not being completed at press time and the story will be updated when provided.

11/23
1:11 p.m. - Lake Tahoe Blvd - AN 22-YEAR-OLD MAN WAS ARRESTED FOR DRIVING ON A SUSPENDED LICENSE.

1:18 p.m. - Al Tahoe Blvd - A 52-YEAR-OLD MAN WAS REPORTED MISSING. MISSING PERSON WAS ENTERED INTO THE MISSING/UNIDENTIFIED PERSON SYSTEM AND THE INCIDENT WAS DOCUMENTED.

The following is a recap of activity the South Lake Tahoe Police Department responded to between October 17 and October 23, 2014. They responded to 148 calls during the 7 day period.

Calls Resulting in Arrests:

10/17
Warrant in the 900 block of Poplar St
DUI in the 900 block of Los Angeles Ave

10/18
DUI at Lake Tahoe Blvd & Brockway Ave
Drunk in Public on Pioneer Trail
Spousal Abuse in the 2000 block of Kubel Ave
Robbery in the 4000 block of Lake Tahoe Blvd

10/19
Drug Offense in the 900 block of Biglar Ave

The Forest Service may have to close the Taylor Creek Visitor Center area if visitors continue to disregard the warnings to keep away from the bears frequenting the area in search of salmon.

Visitors are being asked to keep their distance when encountering bears. The Visitor Center staff routinely encounter unsafe situations as guests ignore their instructions and get too close to bears to take photos and videos.

Long time resident Esther Simpson, passed away on October 9, 2014 after a short illness.

She was well known as the owner of Simpson’s Jewelers in South Lake Tahoe since 1966, and was not only a fine businesswoman, but an amazing, beautiful soul who loved life to its fullest and a very generous person to so many.

The following is a recap of activity the South Lake Tahoe Police Department responded to between September 12 and September 18, 2014. They responded to 175 calls during the 7 day period.

Calls Resulting in Arrests:

9/12
"Other" Misdemeanor in the 4100 block of Manzanita

9/13
DUI at Lake Tahoe Blvd &* C Street
Spousal Abuse in the 2200 block of Eloise Ave

9/14
Unlicensed Driver in the 2000 block of Lake Tahoe Blvd
Petty Theft in the 4000 block of Lake Tahoe Blvd

El Dorado County Sheriff's Office responds to calls throughout the county.

The following are calls that only pertain to the South Shore.

8/7
3:21 p.m. - South Avenue: A 62 YEAR OLD FEMALE WAS TRANSPORTED TO BARTON HOSPITAL AFTER SHE ENTERED A LOCAL PET STORE ASKING FOR PARAMEDICS AND THEN COLLAPSED. LIFE SAVING MEASURES WERE ATTEMPTED WITH NEGATIVE RESULT. DUE TO THE FEMALE'S
UNEXPLAINED INJURIES SOUTH LAKE TAHOE POLICE DETECTIVE'S RESPONDED AS WELL.

4:12 p.m. - Johnson Blvd: A 47 YEAR OLD WOMAN WAS ARRESTED FOR BEING UNDER THE INFLUENCE

8/8