One Year Later
Twelve months after David Josiah Lawson’s death, his killing remains unsolved, sparking protests, pleas for help and an effort to heal.
Cover Stories
Arcata Chief Abruptly Resigns Amid Growing Frustrations and the Looming Anniversary of an HSU Student’s Slaying
Arcata Police Chief Tom Chapman abruptly resigned his post April 10, sending a departmentwide email saying he felt the timing was right “not only for [him] but for the department.” He offered no reason for his sudden departure, which was effective immediately. However, the Journal has learned that Chapman’s resignation followed that of a consultant…
Students Launch Targeted #JusticeforJosiah Social Media Campaign
They sat in a group in the small living room of an Arcata apartment one afternoon in late March, scattered across a couch and the floor. They were all in their early 20s, students at either College of the Redwoods or Humboldt State University. With laptops and cellphones at their hands, they tapped away in…
A Student Project Seeks to Bridge Humboldt’s Campus-Community Divide
At first blush, Erin Youngblood-Smith and Amy Mathieson couldn’t be more different. And that could have been a problem. A white woman born and raised in rural Montana, Mathieson moved with her family to McKinleyville at 16 when her father, a pastor in the Baptist church, got a job there. She never really experienced diversity…
Jerk Chicken on the Plaza
There are those who hit the Arcata Farmers Market as the first pop-up tents are snapping into place, stuffing their canvas bags with the week’s produce and heading home to, I don’t know, cook ahead for the week or whatever it is efficient people do. The rest of us arrive late and linger, circling the…
Party in a Crepe
As you circle the hors d’oeuvre tables and snatch deviled eggs and skewered shrimp from passing servers at parties and openings, spare a thought for our introverted friends missing the spread. Even for the most outgoing among us, there are some people whose company is a high price to pay for a well-laid cheese platter. But…
From a Shaky Start to an Uncertain Future
Today marks the 112th anniversary of the Great 1906 San Francisco Earthquake, a magnitude-7.9, which still ranks as one of “the most significant of all time,” according to the U.S. Geological Survey. While more than 200 miles away, Humboldt County also shook that day with enough force to cause significant damage in the area. It…
Glamping at Campground
Going for woodland chic in Humboldt risks redundancy but the vibe at Campground (865 Ninth St., Arcata), the landlocked cousin of Salt, is a bit more Swedish cabin hotel, with its deconstructed forest of birch stalks separating the bar from the tables and the homey blue and white tile flooring. Blackout curtains obscure the Bret…
Mercer-Fraser Co. Withdraws Controversial Glendale Site Plans
A controversial project that would have created a marijuana extraction plant near the Mad River at Glendale has been withdrawn, John Ford, director of the County Planning and Building Department, confirmed this afternoon. The project, which came before the Humboldt County Planning Commission in January, would have rezoned a parcel of land near the Mad…
Stolen Succulents Replanted at Stone Lagoon
More than 1,000 succulents pilfered for sale overseas in by what the California Department of Fish and Wildlife described as an “international conspiracy” were returned to nature on Tuesday by a team of volunteers who planted them along the bluffs at Stone Lagoon. Those plants were among some 2.300 taken from near Trinidad by a…
Music Tonight: Wednesday, April 18
Stones Throw Records artist and founder of tastemakers the Klipmode Collective, MNDSGN is a tough artist to define. Part hip-hop producer and part composer/brainiac, the Los Angeles-based beat farmer has made a name for himself on the fringes of the game for a decade now. He brings a brand new trio to the Van Duzer…
The Kids Are All Right
Humboldt State University film students are at it again. Every year since 1967, they’ve solicited independent filmmakers from around the world to show them their shorts — those of the animated, experimental, documentary and narrative variety. The students judge the entries from September to March, narrow them down to the finalists and then present them…
Music Tonight: Tuesday, April 17
Instrumental funk eight-piece Polyrhythmics plays a fusion of Afrobeat-influenced tightness tonight at Humbrews at 9 p.m. ($15). Paired perfectly with this fusion machine is Ghost Note, an offshoot of Brooklyn-based jazz and jam master act Snarky Puppy and led by the latter’s beat makers, drummer Sput Searight and percussionist Nate Werth.
UPDATE: Mother of Slain HSU Student Files Claim Against Arcata, Council Responds
The civil rights attorney for the mother of slain Humboldt State University student David Josiah Lawson has filed a claim seeking at least $500,000 from the city of Arcata, alleging Charmaine Lawson suffered injuries including emotional distress and anxiety due to a “negligent” police investigation into her son’s death. The 13-page document, the precursor to…
UPDATE: Two Killed in Horrific 101 Crash ID’d
The Humboldt County Coroner’s Office has identified the two women killed in a horrific crash on U.S. 101 in Southern Humboldt on Friday. The driver, Emely Selina Carreno-Arenas, who was 20, and her passenger, Michelle Segundo, 19, both of Eureka, were pronounced dead at the scene. According to the CHP, they were in a 2007…
Retired FBI Agent: Lawson’s Murder Can and Should Be Solved
Tom Parker, a retired FBI agent who recently stepped down from assisting the Arcata Police Department’s investigation into David Josiah Lawson’s killing, says he’s convinced the case could be solved in just a few months, if not weeks, if he were able to bring the right people on board. “We’d have this thing finished up,”…
Music Tonight: Monday, April 16
At 8 p.m. the Arcata Playhouse hosts NYC musician Ryan Keberle and his quintet Catharsis for an evening of protest-charged jazz played by some of the very best and brightest on the scene (price TBA). An hour later at the Miniplex, you can dance your … well I don’t want to say dance your ass…
David Josiah Lawson Remembered
Two students stood alone in the middle of the Arcata Plaza in the pelting rain, redirecting mourners. Due to the weather, the vigil and memorial for David Josiah Lawson, a Humboldt State University student who was killed on April 15, 2017, was moved to the D Street Neighborhood Center near campus. By the time Charmaine…
The Journal Scores Nine California News Awards
The California News Publishers Association handed out its awards yesterday, of which the Journal, finalist for 12 categories, scored nine awards. We are crazy proud of our winning writers and designers, and of every person who makes each issue possible. Hearty thanks go the community of readers who support us. Awards include: First Place Coverage of…
Music Tonight: Sunday, April 15
The Outer Space has a really good rock show going on tonight at 7 p.m. when Seattle’s own grunged-out riff-lord power trio Wild Powwers comes to town. Local support is provided by Arcata’s perfect little “frog”-rock band Frog and Eureka’s own The Handies playing their first gig ($6).
Music Tonight: Saturday, April 14
Local singer-songwriter Melanie Barnett hosts a special album release show for her debut Grayscale at the Sanctuary tonight at 7 p.m. Just $10 gets you in the door with a CD in hand and do not worry, I am told by the artist that the album is named after the complex moral shades of gray…
CHP: Two Dead, One Injured in 101 Crash
Two people were killed and a third airlifted to Santa Rosa after a violent collision on U.S. Highway 101 in Southern Humboldt today. According to a CHP release, a 2007 Honda Civic was traveling southbound at 11:44 a.m. when the driver lost control of the car for unknown reasons and crossed into the path of…
Trump No Longer Just Saying No to Legal Pot
California’s fledgling recreational marijuana industry may soon be able to fully exhale after President Donald Trump indicated this week that he is willing to support federal legislation protecting legal cannabis businesses. Colorado U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner said in a statement today that he received a “commitment from the President that the Department of Justice’s rescission…
More RCMF Photos to Jazz up Your Day
Attendees at the 28th annual Redwood Coast Music Festival were greeted on Saturday and Sunday with bright sunshine to accompany the last two days of traditional festival jazz and new events. Saturday featured the second day of Redwood Coast Blues performances and the Saturday Swing Out dance special at the Sequoia Center. Look back at…
Mistrust Led to Ex-FBI Agent’s Departure from Lawson Case
The former FBI agent who had been consulting on the investigation into the homicide of David Josiah Lawson said his decision to step away from the case Monday was the result of his belief that the Arcata Police Department wasn’t being forthright with him or following his recommendations. Arcata City Manager Karen Diemer doesn’t dispute…
Fatal Accident Closes NB 101 in SoHum
Northbound U.S. Highway 101 is closed near Salmon Creek Bridge in Southern Humboldt due to a fatal car accident, according to Caltrans, with traffic being detoured onto the Avenue of the Giants. In a Facebook post this afternoon, the agency reports that it “is unknown when the highway will reopen.” According to news reports on…
Squireses Set to Step Back From Their Rentals, at Least for Now
A federal bankruptcy judge has approved an agreement forged — if somewhat begrudgingly — between landlords Floyd and Betty Squires and the city of Eureka that will essentially remove the couple from their property rental business, at least for the time being. Long story short, an “examiner with special powers” will be appointed to oversee…
Music Tonight: Friday, April 13
Apart from the spooky mumbo jumbo about Friday the 13th mentioned earlier, the day Friday itself is named after the Scando-Germanic goddess Freya (or Frigga or Frija) who, aside from being married to ultra-god Odin, was also considered to be a sort of barbarian version of the goddess Venus by the Romans. Love personified: What’s…
Music Tonight: Thursday, April 12
Remember all of the superstitious paranoia surrounding outer space? From the pre-space age fear of invasion that hit an apocryphal peak during Orson Welles’ War of the Worlds radio broadcast to the moon landing-era fear of returning spacecraft and satellites bringing game changing radiation back from the vacuum — watch George Romero’s Night of the…
Who’s Erasing History?
Editor: You know all of “Humboldt County” is stolen land, right? This narrative (Mailbox, March 29) by white people about wanting to keep the McKinley statue where it’s located, or around town, even at the museum in Ohio, is some racist nonsense. Preference to white supremacy, which McKinley and the colonists who committed all sorts of…
‘Shining a Light’
Editor: Thank you for the great cover story about the successes of the brave individuals who triumphed over their addictions via drug court (“The Graduates,” April 5). Shining a light on the drug programs that are working gives we community members a more balanced look at what is possible when confronting the crisis of drug…
Shark Evidence
I should warn you that I own a large pack of imaginary dogs. They are all rescue dogs that needed a forever home, so it’s cool. And I’ve taught them not to bark. Instead, they shark. Whenever they see a stranger they go, “SHARK! SHARK! SHARK!” It scares the hell out of people. But I…
Don’t Smoke Fake Weed
The science of why smoking cannabis screws with your memory is kind of fascinating. Memory itself is kind of fascinating. The current understanding is that our brains are kind of like computer processors that take immediate, short-term data and processes it during sleep’s REM-cycle to be stored as long-term memories. Cool, huh? Anecdotally, we might…
Face/Off
In Dominique Birdsong’s painting “Temporality,” a young African-American woman appears from the neckline up against a luminous backdrop of 1980s teal. A mandala in a deeper shade of teal blooms behind her head, throwing the kinky strands of her short Afro into relief. Her face is rendered in flatly painted passages of acrylic paint, with…
Breakup Letter from President McKinley’s Statue
Dear Arcata, I didn’t want to do this by letter but I know if I try to get this all out in person, I’ll freeze up. We’ve had a good run together — a century! — and I just think it’s time to move on. For a while now I’ve felt — what’s the word?…
Power Struggles, Security Breaches, a Sexual Harassment Complaint and a Brown Act Violation Rock the Auditor-Controller's Office
Although it’s elected, the position of county auditor-controller is rarely the stuff of headlines. But the county’s top fiscal job, which involves financial oversight of county agencies, budgeting and disbursement of county funds, has recently garnered some controversy, thanks in part to Assistant Auditor Karen Paz Dominguez, who first stepped into the spotlight at a…
Arts! Arcata
Arts! Arcata is Arcata Main Street’s monthly celebration of visual and performing arts, held at locations in Arcata. Visit www.arcatamainstreet.com, Arts! Arcata on Facebook, or call 707-822-4500 for more information. ALCHEMY DISTILLERY 330 South G. St. Open from 6pm-9pm. Bring your sewing, knitting, crochet, drawing, or other art projects or they have adult coloring books…
HumBug: Beetles and Gadgets
It was cool and windy when my friend and I went for a walk at the Humboldt Bay Wildlife Refuge area. Large flocks of geese attested to the success of conservation efforts over recent decades. Egrets, grebes, ducks of several species, mud hens and one of my all time favorite song birds, bi-colored blackbirds put…
Poem by the Condominium President’s Council on Aging
Frequently things return when we’re older some forms of love and osteoarthritis. Love comes in memories, beyond reach after years. A euphoria of sensory moments. A skin whose texture we cannot recall, the tingle of welcome touch a taste of lips, caress of hair and a tongue which could destroy us. Arthritis, the joint freezing…
Knock, Knock, Knock on Wood
This is a special week because this one has — cue the Theremin music — a Friday the 13th in it! Ooooh. Ahhhh. Spooky. Why is Friday the 13th especially spooky exactly? Ask five different people and unless you get any overlap on the “I honestly have no idea” response, you are very likely to…
Charmaine Lawson: ‘Why Doesn’t My Son’s Life Matter Enough?’
It’s been a year since my son, David Josiah Lawson, was senselessly murdered and I’m still waiting for justice. His murderer or murderers are still walking free and this tragedy has sent me through a whirlwind of emotions. I’m sometimes left numb to what has happened but my fight for DJ’s justice has kept me…
Open House
With beer geekery on full display, the Humboldt Homebrew Festival might be the North Coast’s most interesting beer party. A showcase for a large and dedicated amateur brewing community in Humboldt County and beyond, the festival sees inventive and off-the-wall notions come to life, as well as solid examples of traditional beer and cider styles.…
We Are Humboldt — All of Us
We see it overtly in online comments sections, the sentiment that “if they don’t like it here, they should leave.” And we see it subtly in things like the recently minted Facebook page pushing for a public vote on the fate of President McKinley’s statue in the Arcata Plaza, which the city council voted to…
Silence is Golden
Reviews A QUIET PLACE. I’ve probably written more than one ought to about the state of contemporary horror movies and my on-again, off-again love affair with them. For a time, the genre seemed like it might be a bellwether of an upwelling of creativity in American cinema. It looked like a return to the rough…
‘The Bug Dude’
Editor: Hats off to the Bug Dude, Anthony Westkamper (HumBug, posts Sundays at www.northcoastjournal.com). I always enjoy the details in his columns, maybe because I’m a plant person: Bugs are part of the scene. Also, I like his self-deprecating humor. Zephyr Markowitz, Bayside
Dangerous Times
Mia McKenzie’s visit couldn’t come at a better time. The author of Black Girl Dangerous, will be doing a book signing at College of the Redwoods on Thursday, April 12 at 6 p.m. in Humanities Room 129 for a talk and Q&A. McKenzie’s novel, The Summer We Got Free won the 2013 Lambda Literary Award…
