deputy

Plans for the Taylor Creek and Tallac Restoration Project have been finalized and work in the area could start as early as May, 2017 according to an announcement Friday by the U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit (LTBMU).

The goal of the project is to restore the Taylor and Tallac creek ecosystems, maintenance and improvement of recreational facilities and enhance non-motorized access to the area.

The graphics and news released this week for the seasonal drought outlook for the Sierra Nevada and the rest of the west look rather grim for those wanting a big winter and extra water to replenish lakes, reservoirs and rivers.

According to the Climate Prediction Center (CPC), the drought ends for some parts of Northern California, but mild temperatures and below average precipitation will cause the drought to continue.

It was just another day of work for Chase, a K-9 who works with the Placer County Sheriff's Office. On Thursday, October 13, Chase and his handler, Deputy Josh Buckley, were called in to assist the California Highway Patrol with a traffic stop on Interstate 80, just west of Highway 267.

One there, Chase's nose took control and he ended up sniffing large vacuum sealed boxes which contained a total of 54 pounds of marijuana.

The driver of the vehicle was arrested by CHP.

A new deputy was sworn in on Monday for Douglas County Sheriff's Office.

Deputy Mariah West was sworn in by Sheriff Ron Perini during a ceremony attended by many of West's family and friends.

She grew up in Douglas County and attended Waynesburg University in Waynesburg, Pennsylvania after graduating from Sierra Lutheran High School. She has a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice.

The ceremony was a culminating event for a long term goal of becoming a deputy sheriff.

5:15 p.m. update: Weather is helping fire fighters on the fire burning south of Gardnerville.

Recommended evacuations have been lifted and residents can return to their homes in the Ruhenstroth area. The area on the west side of Highway 395, including Stone’s Throw, Frontage Road and the Riverview Mobile Home Park remain closed to the residents.

Highway 395 north and southbound will be opening soon, single lane only with a pilot vehicle.

“The conditions are improving due the light rain, decrease in the winds and cooler temperatures,” said Deputy Chief Dave Fogerson.

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The Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT) is inviting Nevada children in grades K-5 to enter their drawing contest about stormwater pollution prevention. They want to engage and inform the younger generation on this important topic.

Winners will become published artists, with the first place student’s artwork featured on the cover of the 2017 NDOT Stormwater Program brochure, and the second and third place students’ artwork featured inside of the brochure. All student artwork meeting contest requirements will be shared on the NDOT @loveNVwaters social media pages.

The owner of Advanced Financial Services (AFS) in Placerville pleaded guilty to filing more than 250 false claims for refunds from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) along with two of her employees. They all face large fines and years in jail.

It's been months of lawsuits, open arguments, censure of a councilperson, a community taking sides and a mounting legal tab. City Councilwoman JoAnn Conner, the City of South Lake Tahoe and City Manager Nancy Kerry have come to a compromise and have signed a settlement agreement.

In October of 2015, the City Council voted to censure Conner over what they said was "abusive, bullying and intolerant behavior."

The Placer County Sheriff's office arrested an out-of-state couple on July 28 and July 29 on several charges after they stayed at the Ritz-Carlton at Northstarusing fake credit cards which they manufactured in their room.

Cole Sonneman, a Carson Valley native, was sworn in on July 18 as the newest deputy with the Douglas County Sheriff's Office.

Sonnemann was raised in the Carson Valley and spent several years in the DCSO Explorer Program as a teenager with Deputies Teresa Duffy and Chris Griffith. Sonneman said he remembers attending DARE lessons taught by Griffith while attending Gardnerville Elementary School.

The most common misunderstanding about swimming in Lake Tahoe is that people can suffer from hypothermia, which leads to death. The real truth is that "cold water shock" will kill much quicker than hypothermia ever will.

"The sudden lowering of skin temperature on immersion in cold water represents one of the most profound stimuli that the body can encounter." Golden and Tipton in Essentials of Sea Survival

The Nevada Department of Wildlife is increasing their educational campaign for boaters and swimmers to understand the dangers of cold water at Lake Tahoe.

The following is a reprint of a story South Tahoe Now carried on the 4th of July weekend in 2015. With the anticipated traffic on roads headed out of the Lake Tahoe basin on Tuesday, we felt this information would be helpful.

Three new message signs were unveiled in South Lake Tahoe this week, just in time for the holiday weekend. Since the fourth of July is a big tourist draw, it is the perfect time to test out all the message signs can provide to those on the road.

As lawmakers grapple with how best to combat the nation’s prescription painkiller abuse crisis, a recent survey is shedding light on how patients who get these medications — drugs such as OxyContin, methadone or Vicodin — sometimes share or mishandle them.

Awards for outstanding contributions to their community were handed out during Friday's Law and Order Night for Douglas County law enforcement agencies.

Employees from Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, Juvenile Probation, China Springs Youth Camp, DCSO Youth Explorers, Citizen Patrol, Posse, Search and Rescue, Reserves, 911 Communications, as well as State of Nevada Department of Corrections, and Nevada Highway Patrol were all honored.

Lifesaving medals
Deputies Geoff Marshall, Jesse McKone, Scott Battcher, Tyler Jones, and Les Video

Douglas County Sheriff's Office deputies were called out to the Sunridge area of Douglas County on Monday night at 5:55 p.m., and once there found a man who had been stabbed in the hand.

Jacob Bernard, 26, was combative with East For Fire personnel and DCSO deputies as they attempted to render aide. Bernard was also uncooperative, and during the investigation, kicked a deputy. The deputy was not injured.

Thanks to the U.S. Forest Service employees from the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit, the Bread & Broth diners on Monday night May 2nd enjoyed a festive Mexican dinner at St. Theresa Church Grace Hall. With funds from the Forest Service employee association’s Wellness, Recreation and Morale fund, the B&B cooks prepared beef tacos, Mexican black beans and Spanish rice to celebrate the upcoming Cino de Mayo holiday.

Over one hundred community members will gather on May 14 as the League to Save Lake Tahoe organizes the year’s largest single-day, hands-on citizens science effort to capture a snapshot of the water quality health of South Shore streams feeding into Lake Tahoe.

“By participating in the 16th annual Snapshot Day, volunteers are building on years of data gathered in these streams to provide valuable data information we can use to help protect Lake Tahoe,” said Jesse Patterson, deputy director for the League to Save Lake Tahoe.

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.

4/17

12:50 a.m. - Vacation Rental Issue - Player Drive

8:03 a.m. - Contempt of Court - Melba Drive - 24-YEAR-OLD WOMAN ARRESTED FOR A VIOLATION OF A COURT ORDER OCCURRED.

12:50 p.m. - Petty Theft - Black Bart Ave - R/P REPORTED A PETTY THEFT REPORT FROM HER VEHICLE.

As a follow-up to their February 16 meeting, the South Lake Tahoe City Council Tuesday looked at proposed changes to the Vacation Home Rental Ordinance that are meant to streamline City Code, remove duplicate language and make it easier to read.

Hilary Roverud, the SLT Deputy Director of Development Services, made the presentation that covered self-limiting occupancy, parking standards and apartments being used as vacation rentals.

The Tahoe Prosperity Center received an award on Thursday, March 31, 2016 from the Placer County Economic Development Board for “Best Collaboration to Encourage a Prosperous, Sustainable and Healthy Lake Tahoe Basin.”

Certificates of recognition were also presented to the Tahoe Prosperity Center from Assemblywoman Beth Gaines, Senators Ted Gaines and Jim Nelson, and Congressma=en Tom McClintock and Douglas LaMalfa.

Visitors to Lake Tahoe’s east shore could soon have a new bike path linking upscale Incline Village to Nevada’s Sand Harbor State Park, but the price tag might induce sticker shock: $12.5 million for the 3-mile project.

Yes, that is more than $4 million a mile in taxpayer dollars for a 10-foot-wide bike path traveling just about 16,000 feet along the picturesque mountain lake.

Not to mention another $7 million to $9 million that the Nevada Transportation Department plans to spend in state gas taxes in conjunction with the project on related environmental and safety needs.

South Tahoe High's Performing Arts Department is presenting Neil Simon's RUMORS, a fast paced comic farce set in the home of Charlie and Myra Brock in the late 1980’s.

The guests have arrived for the 10th wedding anniversary of the couple but they are met with mayhem. Charlie, the Deputy Mayor of New York, has shot himself and his wife, Myra, is missing. Although Charley’s injury is minor, misunderstandings and rumors abound in this fast paced sophisticated farce.

Location

John "Tony" Broadfoot, a deputy with the El Dorado County Sheriff's Department, was arrested by the California Highway Patrol on March 4 on charges of driving under the influence after an accident in the Shingle Springs area. This was Broadfoot's third DUI arrest in as many months.

On December 8, 2015, Broadfoot was placed on administrative leave after being arrested on DUI charges by the CHP in South Lake Tahoe. Then on February 25, 2016, he was arrested, again by CHP officers, when found to be under the influence after rolling his vehicle near Ice House Road and Highway 50.

Erica Mirich has been hired by the League to Save Lake Tahoe to be their new Director of Development.

A competitive national search brought Mirich back to Lake Tahoe previously served as director of development for the Lake Tahoe School in Incline Village. Most recently she served as senior director of annual giving for the Stevenson School in Pebble Beach, Calif.

Mirich holds a master’s degree in science education from Harvard and brings classroom experience as a science educator.