A Eureka man who pleaded guilty to stabbing four strangers — two of them fatally — was sentenced to serve four life sentences in prison today by Humboldt County Superior Court Judge Lawrence Killoran. According to a press release from the Humboldt County District Attorney’s Office, Wesley Lee Starritt, 26, had pleaded guilty to murdering […]
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DA Declines to Prosecute 27 Arrested in Cal Poly Humboldt Protests
The Humboldt County District Attorney’s Office has decided not to criminally charge 27 of the 39 people arrested during the Pro-Palestinian demonstrations on the Cal Poly Humboldt campus in late April, during which protesters occupied Siemens Hall for a week. Responding to a Journal inquiry, District Attorney Stacey Eads wrote in an email that she […]
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Rhode Island Man Sentenced to 25-to-life for Kneeland Murder
A 28-year-old Rhode Island man was sentenced today to serve 25 years to life in state prison for the murder of 28-year-old Emily Lobba in her Kneeland home last year. Humboldt County Superior Court Judge Kaleb Cockrum sentenced Austin M. Medeiros for the first-degree murder today, and added another six years, four months to his […]
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Eads Finishes Night With Decisive Win
FINAL ELECTION NIGHT REPORT: Deputy District Attorney Stacey Eads will be Humboldt County’s next top prosecutor, taking over for her mentor Maggie Fleming, who announced she will retire at the end of the year. Eads has taken 59 percent of the 13,749 votes counted thus far in the race, far outpacing Deputy Public Defender Adrian […]
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Local Candidate Forums Set
Election Day is just five weeks away, with much at stake on the local ballot, with countywide races for district attorney, superior court judge, auditor-controller and clerk/recorder, as well as two supervisorial seats to be decided. It’s a lot. Fortunately, there are a host of opportunities in the coming weeks to get to know the […]
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John Edward Buffington: 1941-2021
John Edward Buffington passed away peacefully in Austin, Texas, on July 23, at the age of 80. He was preceded in death by his parents John and Blythe Buffington and is survived by his wife Georgia Willis Buffington of Austin, Texas. He is also survived by his three sons Peter (Mona), Andrew, and Justin (Jillian) […]
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UPDATE: State AG Closes Probe into Public Administrator’s Office
The California Attorney General’s Office has indicated it will not pursue criminal charges following an investigation into the handling of estates overseen by the county’s Public Administrator’s Office that began in August of 2017. The Public Administrator’s Office, which came under the umbrella of the Humboldt Sheriff’s Office following a merger with the coroner’s office […]
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DA Charges Driver Who Hit George Floyd Protester with Reckless Driving
Humboldt County District Attorney Maggie Fleming has charged the driver of a red Jeep that drove through a crowd of protestors May 30 with reckless driving. In its investigation, the DA’s Office found that as the driver of the red Jeep was driving through a group of protestors who were walking in the road outside of a […]
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Second Suspect Reportedly Arrested in Tripp Homicide
It appears another suspect has been arrested for the July 20 killing of Julius “Jules” Tripp near Hoopa. According to Humboldt County jail records, Daniel Armendariz was booked into the facility at 2:35 a.m. yesterday on suspicion of murder. Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Samantha Karges responded to a Journal inquiry about the arrest, saying it “looks […]
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Driver in Near Miss Incident with Demonstrators to Face Charges, LoCO reports
A driver who was videotaped coming close to hitting pedestrians and people on horseback on Central Avenue in McKinleyville during a June 11 Black Lives Matter march will face charges, Lost Coast Outpost reports. The incident was investigated by the California Highway Patrol. Find the story here.
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Hinson Guilty of Manslaughter in SoHum Beating Death
William Lamar Hinson III was found guilty of voluntary manslaughter “with the special allegation that he personally used a deadly weapon” in the 2015 killing Khan Lam in Garberville, according to a press release sent by the Humboldt County District Attorney’s Office. Lam, 37, was involved in a physical altercation with a family member in […]
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APD Interim Chief: There is ‘Unequivocal Physical Evidence’ in Lawson Case
The Arcata Police Department is preparing to submit its investigation into the 2017 stabbing death of David Josiah Lawson to the Humboldt County District Attorney’s Office this week and Interim Police Chief Richard Ehle says he thinks there is “unequivocal physical evidence” linking a specific suspect to Lawson’s death. Ehle declined to discuss the evidence […]