The Sequoia Park Zoo had an unexpected visitor today. A wild black bear was spotted inside the facility by a staff member during a routine morning check of the Redwood Sky Walk but later made its way back into the surrounding woods with a little encouragement, according to a news release. And yes, the wanderer […]
Kimberly Wear
Kimberly Wear is the assistant editor of the North Coast Journal.
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To the Ballot Box
Elections office has a suddenly busy schedule Just a few months ago, the local election calendar was wide open. But the ballot-casting landscape shifted in August, with proponents in Blue Lake securing enough signatures to move forward with a recall against one of the three councilmembers targeted, and the California Legislature putting a mid-decade redistricting […]
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‘What Else Can We Do?’
Humboldt resident sails on flotilla to Gaza for aid mission Before being detained, Orleans resident Windfield “Wind” Beaver made clear in an interview with the Journal that he didn’t want his role in the Sumud Global Flotilla’s attempt to bring humanitarian aid to the Palestinian people to be framed as a “white savior” narrative. “Our […]
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Wanted: Alternates for Humboldt’s Civil Grand Jury
The Humboldt County Civil Grand Jury is still searching for alternates who can serve on this year’s panel, if needed, to carry on a civil oversight tradition that dates back to the Magna Carta. According to a news release from the Humboldt County Superior Court, which appoints a group of residents each year to act […]
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Sheriff’s Office Releases Video of Fatal Shooting at Bear River
The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office has released body-worn camera and other footage from the June 5 fatal shooting of a 29-year-old man on road near the Bear River Recreation Center that shows him charging at a deputy while holding a knife above his head. Nicholas David Anderson, of Simi Valley, died after being shot in […]
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Man with Knife Arrested at Arcata Council Meeting
A Fresno man was arrested during Wednesday’s Arcata City Council meeting after approaching the dais while carrying what officials described as “a Nerf gun with the handle painted black, which was protruding from the front of his body.” According to the Arcata Police Department, 36-year-old Shaine Scott Haugen had to be “restrained by a city […]
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Metal Theft Spree at Redwood Parks
Redwood National and State Parks is asking for the public to be “on the look out” after a series of metal thefts, including items of cultural and historical significance. According to a news release, the pilfered objects have ranged from war veteran memorial plaques and donor recognition plaques to art sculptures. Even shower drains have […]
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The Grand Jury Reports
Wielding the power of the subpoena and carrying a mandate enshrined in the state Constitution to serve as overseers of local government, a group of volunteers comes together each year to constitute the Humboldt County Civil Grand Jury. During their service, the 19 members spend months conducting interviews, making on-site visits and reviewing documents as […]
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‘No Signs of Recovery’
When the California Fish and Game Commission took the unprecedented step of shuttering the North Coast’s red abalone season back in 2017 due to a precipitous decline in the population amid the larger collapse of the region’s kelp forests, there was hope that the temporary moratorium would give the fishery a chance to rebound. But, […]
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Blue Lake Recall: Election on Scafani to Move Forward
The city of Blue Lake is preparing for the first recall election to take place in the county in 20 years. Before the end of the year, voters in the bucolic hamlet of about 1,200 residents will be asked whether Mayor Pro-Tem Elise Scafani should be removed from office, the culmination of months of deepening […]
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HCSO Name Three Deputies Involved in Fatal Shooting
The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office today released the names of the three deputies involved in the fatal shooting of a suspect on July 26 in an area near Blue Lake. In a press release, the officers were identified as: Deputy Jonathan Eckert, with nine years of law enforcement experience; Deputy Cole Kane, with six years […]
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Blue Lake: Recall Election on Scafani to Move Forward, Two Others Fall Short
An effort to remove three members of the Blue Lake City Council succeeded in collecting only enough valid signatures for one recall election to move forward, that of Mayor Pro Tem Elise Scafani. In an interview with the Journal, Interim Blue Lake City Manager Jill Duffy said the city received three of what are known […]