After City CouncilmemberTony Madrigal failed to appear for his original court date, a judge sentenced him to three days in jail and a $774 fine for reckless driving. Madrigal was stopped by a CHP officer for driving erratically in his Prius. According to police, he was driving north on Highway 1 near Mar Monte when another driver called 911 to report him. He was not speeding or driving drunk, police say; instead he was texting and typing on his laptop while driving, which was causing him to swerve between lanes and endanger other drivers.
Articles by Danny Wool
Downtown Security to Increase Hours
First Alarm security personnel will patrol downtown Santa Cruz until 8pm every night during the holidays, starting Nov. 26.
Social Service Funds Under Scrutiny
With the recession and the annual deficit, Santa Cruz has been forced to cut social service funding by 50 percent from what it was a decade ago. Still, the city offers about $1 million every year to a variety of programs that assist the needy. Few people contest that the programs are necessary, but some contest the lack of oversight in the distribution of funds. According to some City Council members, Santa Cruz has become a “magnet” for homeless people and others seeking aid.
Homing Pigeons Looking For A Home
Fifteen homing pigeons were found abandoned outside Paradise Park Masonic Lodge off Highway 9 on Monday. Now Animal Services is looking for the person who left them there. According to reports, the birds, which were likely pets, were starving and infested with parasites. Had they not been found, they would have probably died of exposure or been eaten by other animals. According to animal rescue services, the animals did not know how to forage for themselves.
Downtown Business Picking Up
There’s good news for Santa Cruz small business owners. Business seems to be picking up, as evidenced by the number of small shops that have recently opened up. Real figures, needed to determine whether the evidence is reliable or anecdotal, are scheduled to be released tomorrow, but Chip-of-one-name, who heads the Downtown Association, says, “We’re starting to see people with bags in their hands.”
Second Assault in Santa Cruz
Yesterday SantaCruz.com reported that a teenage girl was assaulted in Ocean View Park on Saturday. A second attack occurred in Arana Gulch Sunday evening. The victim, an 18-year-old girl, was walking in the area at about 6:30pm when a man approached her from behind with a knife and attempted to attack her. She said that something startled him and he fled into an adjacent wooded area.
Prisoner Takes Advantage of Get Out of Jail Free Card
Antonio Morales is serving time for burglary at the Santa Cruz County Jail. Or at least he was. On Friday, Morales received a pass, allowing him to leave jail to go for a medical appointment. Morales left the jail but never returned.
North Coast Locals Take Action to Save Fish
Pescadero Marsh, at the confluence of Pescadero and Butano creeks, has long been known as a thriving habitat for migratory and native wildlife. That’s all changing, local residents say, and the coho salmon and steelhead trout that spawn there have been disappearing. “The frogs, the snakes and gobies—they’ll come back. But once the fish are gone, they won’t come back. They’re extinct,” one local angler, Steve Simms, told the Santa Cruz Sentinel. Then there are the red-legged frogs. The largest population in state live there too, and it has been declining rapidly as well.
Teen Assaulted in Ocean View Park
Ocean View Park has long been considered one of the safer places for young people in the city. That’s why a 15-year-old local girl had no qualms going there alone at 6:30am Saturday to enjoy the sunrise. According to police, a stranger approached her and started making lewd comments. He then tried to grab her, but she managed to run off. “This is something I’ve never heard of happening at this park before,” said Scott Guthman, who lives near the park and uses crosses through it frequently to get downtown and to the beach.
Human Remains Found at Pogonip
Yesterday, SantaCruz.com reported on the number of unsolved murders in the county, and how local police are sometimes hard-pressed to identify even the remains of the victims. Now they have another mystery to handle. The badly decomposed remains of a man were found in a remote area of Pogonip yesterday afternoon. Police Spokesman Zach Friend was quick to point out that there were no signs of foul play, and the death may have been the result of a drug overdose. According to him, drugs were found at the scene.
