EPD began online crime reporting in October 2009... close to 6 years ago, not 'close to a year ago.' Google the 10-31-2009 Times-Standard article about it.
TIL Mike Dronkers is a redditor.
A wonderful man and a friend to many at Morris Elementary and all of the area schools he served with his generosity.
It's inexcusable that someone who is agreeing to plead guilty and do jail time wasn't kept in jail. Count the time between the generous plea deal and his next court appearance as time spent toward the jail sentence he's agreed to accept. Keep the public safe. I won't be voting for this DA again.
A couple years ago our elementary school sent letters and a gift certificate to Toni's #1 in Arcata to an alumnus of the school. (He was scheduled to return a few months later.) At some level I felt silly because, while we waited for weeks for the package to arrive, I was able to communicate with the guy daily via e-mail and Facebook.
It sounds cliche in memorializing a person, but Suzie's default facial expression was a smile. It was difficult being grumpy around her because you were always met with a smile. Her meteorological expertise came into play when scheduling preschool playground playdates. You look at the forecast and see rain, but she'd look at the National Weather Service 'forecast discussion' (a long technical never-looked-at report issued with forecasts) and tell us the rain won't come until a couple hours after the playdate and probably will hit south of Eureka (etc.). She had a way with kids, being encouraging to everyone, helping other parents' kids kids perk up with enthusiasm and self-confidence when wary alongside her child in swim class and other summertime activities. I'm not surprised to have learned she volunteered at her kids' school, the loss being felt heavily there. She taught college courses, but she would have made an excellent elementary school teacher, too. My child and one of her children parted ways after preschool, but she was widely known. There was wailing yesterday in my school parking lot. It is a testament to a person's life that her absence is being felt by so many.
Re: “Incumbent Judge Faces Ethics Probe”
It's telling that this story made national news, but for the NCJ thought it wasn't worthy of a cover story.