UPDATE: The first post-election report released this afternoon continues to show the recall effort in Blue Lake trailing at 174 yes votes to 213 no votes. PREVIOUS: The Jan. 6 election to recall Blue Lake City Councilmember Elise Scafani had 156 votes in favor and 197 votes against in the election night final report. The […]
Kimberly Wear
Kimberly Wear is the assistant editor of the North Coast Journal.
Posted inNews (NCJ)
Losses in Arcata Fire Estimated at $18 Million
The devastating fire that tore through a block of downtown Arcata on Friday afternoon destroyed at least seven businesses, including “associated apartments,” and damaged five more, with an early estimate of $18 million in losses, according to the Arcata Fire District. The cause remains under investigation. Among the stores destroyed, according to social media posts […]
Posted inNews (NCJ)
Ferndale Resident Rescued from Flood Waters
A coalition of agencies and a Ferndale resident who provided a tractor saved the life of a 72-year-old woman trapped in her car after driving onto the flooded Fulmore Road around 1:05 p.m. on Monday, according to the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office. In a release, the HCSO said the emergency communication center received a call […]
Posted inNews (NCJ)
An Absence of Abalone
North Coast recreational fishery closed until 2036 as recovery remains elusive Unless conditions change dramatically in the interim, the North Coast’s iconic recreational red abalone fishery will remain closed for at least another decade. The move made official by a unanimous vote of the California Fish and Game Commission on Dec. 11 had been on […]
Posted inNews (NCJ)
Sacred Groves
Humboldt’s first conservation cemetery clears major milestone Arcata resident Michael Furniss has spent a lot of time thinking about a subject many people try to avoid: What happens after one dies. For decades, the wildland soil scientist has carried a vision of how he wants to be buried — laid directly into the ground at […]
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Sheriff’s Office Releases Footage From Blue Lake Shooting
The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office has released video from the fatal shooting of a 35-year-old man who, according to the investigation, fired at least once at the deputies trying to detain him near Blue Lake on July 26. Eureka resident Jared Randell Nelson, who the office says had an outstanding warrant for being a felon […]
Posted inNews (NCJ)
County Conducted Investigation on Bohn’s Behavior
Supervisor alleged to have pressured staff, acted in a hostile manner during a meeting The county hired an outside law firm to investigate allegations that Supervisor Rex Bohn engaged in “abusive and hostile behavior” toward staff and attempted to “direct staff to disregard” an ordinance “for a special favor for his friend” during a June […]
Posted inNews Blog
Sheriff’s Office Releases Footage From Blue Lake Shooting
Only one of four deputies had body cam on during the fatal exchange The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office has released video from the fatal shooting of a 35-year-old man who, according to the investigation, fired at least once at the deputies trying to detain him near Blue Lake on July 26. Eureka resident Jared Randell […]
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Gov. Newsom and Pres. Trump Tell the Same Inadequate Tale About Native America
Native American Heritage Month turns a spotlight on how we treat issues of importance to Indigenous peoples. Below: An assistant professor specializing in Indigenous people’s history describes how U.S. political leaders fail to respect Native American governments. Another view: A former museum curator describes how museums and universities neglect the remains of ancestors and artifacts […]
Posted inNews (NCJ)
Chronicle of a Censure
In the weeks before being censured, Supervisor Michelle Bushnell sought to hold off public discussion on an outside investigation that found she acted in a hostile manner toward two employees, arguing through an attorney that she was denied due process in a flawed system. The hearing ultimately did take place Nov. 4, with Bushnell receiving […]
Posted inNews Blog
Emergency Food Distributions Thursday
Food for People is holding two emergency drive-thru distributions Thursday amid continuing reverberations of the government shutdown: from uncertainty around the benefits that thousands of North Coast residents rely on to buy groceries to local federal workers going without paychecks. Carly Robbins, executive director of the nonprofit, says the operations will run just like ones […]
Posted inNews (NCJ), News Blog
Bushnell Censured, Removed as Chair for Conduct
The Humboldt County Board of Supervisors voted 4-0 Tuesday to censure Supervisor Michelle Bushnell after an outside investigation sustained allegations that she “raised her voice, spoke in a hostile manner and cursed” at two employees in May. The largely symbolic gesture that basically amounts to the board making a public statement of disapproval about the […]