Location of occurrence:  118 Pine Street, Greenville, CA.
 
 
Type of call: Butane Hash Oil lab (BHO lab)
 
Agencies involved: Plumas County Sheriff’s Office,
 
Offenders:  O/1 Travis Fairbanks  DOB 03/01/1997
Charges:  11379.6 (a) PC- Manufacture a controlled substance.
 
O/2 Steven McIntire DOB 08/31/1993
Charges: 11379.6 (a) PC- Manufacture a controlled substance.
 
 
Synopsis: 
 
On 05/19/2019 around 1745 hours, a Plumas County Deputy Sheriff was flagged down by a Citizen on Main Street in Greenville, Ca.  The Citizen complained of a chemical smell coming from a residence at 118 Pine Street in Greenville.
 
The Deputy responded to the residence and determined the occupant, Steven McIntire was on current probation with search terms.  The Deputy also located Travis Fairbanks inside the residence.  The Deputy searched the residence and located the ingredients and equipment to manufacture BHO.  The Deputy also located a pyrex type dish containing the finished product.
 
After further investigation, Steven McIntire and Travis Fairbanks were arrested for manufacturing a controlled substance-11379.6 (a)PC.
​

$100 Million Also Added to Major Damage Restoration and Preservation
 
SACRAMENTO – The California Transportation Commission allocated more than $402 million for 74 State Highway Operation and Protection Program (SHOPP) projects throughout California, including $320.2 million for 29 fix-it-first projects funded by Senate Bill 1 (SB 1), the Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017.
 
“Almost half of the SB 1 funded projects in this round of allocations are bridge projects,” said Caltrans Director Laurie Berman. “Caltrans is committed to repairing and replacing more than 500 bridges by 2027 to extend their service life.”
 
The SB 1 funded projects will improve more than 60 bridges and 244 lane miles of pavement, upgrade 608 congestion reducing devices, and repair eight culverts to prevent flooding on highways.
 
Area state highway projects allocated SB 1 funds include:
 

• Paving and Accessibility Project on State Route 99 in Sacramento County: $50.9 million pavement project will install rumble strips, upgrade curb ramps and sidewalks, and improve 70.5 lane miles of State Route 99 at various locations from the Sacramento/San Joaquin County line to Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard in the city of Sacramento. The project was allocated $47.9 million.

 

• Bridge Replacement Project on State Route 70 in Yuba County: $88.6 million bridge project will replace the Simmerly Slough Bridge on State Route 70 north of Marysville. The project was allocated $82.8 million.

 

• Traffic Management Systems Project: $15.5 million traffic management systems project will install electrical cabinets, guardrail, construct maintenance vehicle pullouts, and repair and install permanent Automatic Vehicle Classification data collection stations at various locations in multiple counties including: Butte, Colusa, Glenn, El Dorado, Nevada, Placer, Sacramento, Sutter, Yolo, Yuba. The project was allocated $13.3 million.

 

• Seismic Retrofit Bridge Project on Interstate 5 and State Route 160: $38.7 million bridge project will modify the existing structures at the Sacramento River Bridge and North Sacramento Undercrossing on State Route 160 in Sacramento County, and Mokelumne River Bridge on Interstate 5 in San Joaquin County. The project will make the bridges more resistant to seismic activity, soil failure or ground motion due to earthquakes. The project was allocated $30 million.

 
After a year full of storms, flooding and wildfires, the CTC also approved Resolution G-19-09, which will increase the SHOPP Major Damage Restoration Reservation by an additional $100 million to meet the current level of emergency contracts being received. The increase will change the reservation fund from $540 million to $640 million for the fiscal year 2018-2019. To date, Caltrans has 179 emergency contracts totaling more than $625 million, and there are still 26 pending emergency contacts that amount to more than $80 million. The work done under these contracts are focused on reopening the roads and other facilities as safely and quickly as possible.
 
Other SB 1 funding included nearly $17.5 million for the Trade Corridor Enhancement Program, which is dedicated to projects that will improve truck corridors, border access, the freight rail systems, the capacity and efficiency of ports, and highways to better handle and move freight.
 
More than $5.3 million of SB 1 funding was also allocated to the Local Partnership Program (LPP) to help match investments that local communities have made in their region through voter-approved transportation tax measures.
 
In addition, the CTC approved an allocation of more than $11.3 million in SB 1 funds for 12 locally administered Active Transportation Program (ATP) projects, which range from improving sidewalks and bicycle lanes to creating safer routes to school for children who ride their bicycles or walk to school.
 
For a complete list of the ATP, LPP, and SHOPP projects allocated funds, among other items from the May meeting visit:http://catc.ca.gov/meetings/2019/2019-05/Yellows/Revised_Complete_Book(1452).pdf.
 
SHOPP is the state highway system’s "fix-it-first" program that funds safety improvements, emergency repairs, highway preservation and operational highway upgrades. A significant portion of the funding for this program comes from SB 1.
 
Since SB 1 was signed into law April 2017, Caltrans has repaired or replaced 109 bridges and paved more than 1,300 lane miles of the state highway system.
 
SB 1 invests approximately $5.4 billion per year to fix roads, freeways and bridges in communities across California as well as strategically investing in transit. These funds are split equally between state and local projects and will allow Caltrans to fix more than 17,000 lane miles of pavement, 500 bridges and 55,000 culverts on the state highway system by 2027.
 
More information and updates on these and other projects can be found on Caltrans’ social media channels:http://www.dot.ca.gov/paffairs/social-media.html.
 
Caltrans is committed to conducting its business in a fully transparent manner and detailing its progress to the public. For complete details on SB 1, visit http://www.rebuildingca.ca.gov/.
 
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By Glenn Mollette

May 30, 1868 was the first official Decoration Day. The day was declared by General John A. Logan and observed at Arlington National Cemetery. Volunteers that day decorated the graves of more the 20,000 Union and Confederate soldiers.

During World War II, Decoration Day was expanded and renamed Memorial Day to honor all Americans who died in military service. The day became a national holiday in 1971.
Almost 500,000 military personnel died during the U.S. Civil War.

About 1.1 million service members have died in all the wars combined.

If you know someone killed in any of our wars then every number is very personal to you. We know 90,220 of our service members died in Vietnam. If one of those was your friend, sibling or child then that war has a face that is personal to you.

Four thousand four hundred and twenty four died in Iraq. I'm not sure how many have died in Afghanistan but the last statistic I can find is 2,372 but I'm sure it's several more now.

War is bad. I don't like the idea of war and yet every service member died fighting for you and me. They died for our country.

Every time you have a casual moment to do anything you want to do then stop and thank God for our service members. We have so much freedom in America. We have to pay some taxes if we work and own property. We have some laws we have to obey which pertain to treating each other in a civil manner. After this, you are free to go to the ice cream shop anytime you want. You can work hard and buy whatever you want or if you are content and want to do little to nothing you can even do that in our country.

The bottom line is America is still the greatest country in the world. We aren't perfect and we have problems but we still have freedom and we need to respect and give thanks to our past and present soldiers.

Take a moment at the cemetery and walk around. It won't take you long to find a grave stone of someone who served our country. When you do give thanks for their lives and the life you are enjoying today.

Memorial weekend is America's weekend to travel our highways vacationing or resting at home. As you travel, or hopefully relax, thank God for our soldiers - past and present. 
​

VOLUNTEERS - Pat Mattingly, Steven Roberts, Ed Lively, Mark Schulthies, Jimmy McDonald

​​Loyalton members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and other workers, cleaned and beautified the Loyalton cemetery grounds on May 11th. With permission from the city council and a request to begin with the veterans area, the workers raked brush and debris, pulled weeds, trimmed lawn and tidied the grounds. Workers were unable to clear the entire cemetery area but anticipate another work day in the future. 

 
 
REDDING – The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans District 2), in conjunction with Hat Creek Construction and Materials, Inc., have begun work on the Chilcoot Pavement Rehabilitation in Lassen and Plumas Counties. The $17.4 million project, funded in part by Senate Bill 1, will rehabilitate 9.5 miles of State Route 70 in and around Chilcoot, from just west of Summit School Drive to just east of the junction with U.S. 395.
 
The first four to six weeks of the project will consist of drainage work, followed by pavement recycling and overlay. The project will also include shoulder restoration, reconstruction of metal beam guardrail, and striping.
 
Motorists should anticipate one-way traffic control in the area, Monday-Friday between the hours of 6:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. Beginning in July, 24/7 one-way traffic control will be in effect on the project. 15 minute delays are expected throughout the project, which is anticipated to wrap up by November of this year. Motorists are reminded to slow down and drive carefully when in and around construction zones.
 
Through Senate Bill 1, Caltrans has committed to repair or replace 17,000 miles of pavement, 7,700 traffic signals, signs, and sensors, 55,000 culverts and drains, and 500 bridges by 2027. 
 

(Washington, DC) – Congressman Doug LaMalfa (R-Richvale) issued the following statement after the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) awarded $1.5 billion to states impacted by major disaster last year. California will receive $491,816,000 for wildfire recovery, including areas impacted by the Carr Fire and Camp Fire.
 
The funds are provided through the Community Development Block Grant – Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) Program and will be used to rebuild housing, businesses, and infrastructure.
 
LaMalfa said: “Last’s year’s wildfires were some of the worst ever in Northern California. The Carr Fire burned over 220,000 acres and the Camp Fire was the costliest natural disaster in the world for 2018. That means Redding, Paradise, and other affected areas still have an extensive rebuilding process ahead, and that will require a significant amount of time and money. I thank Secretary Carson and the Administration for their efforts to help our communities recover. I will work with the state to ensure these funds are properly allocated to people in my district who desperately need it. This funding will help our people rebuild their homes and businesses in Northern California and slowly return to a more normal way of life.”
 
This allocation comes from the 1.68 billion in CDBG-DR that was provided the FAA reauthorization bill that was passed by Congress and signed into law by President Trump in October of 2018. The allocation is estimated to address 68% of unmet needs for California.
 
Congressman Doug LaMalfa is a lifelong farmer representing California’s First Congressional District, including Butte, Glenn, Lassen, Modoc, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou and Tehama Counties.
 

 
Traffic ticket experts, GetDismissed.com, report increased traffic ticket volume trend in California for 2019 
Los Angeles, CA (May 14, 2019) – GetDismissed.com, California’s traffic ticket experts, have experienced a higher volume of traffic tickets this year for the greater Los Angeles area. New traffic safety laws in California, combined with greater police enforcement has led to more traffic ticket violations being issued in 2019.
According to a new study, California consistently leads the ranks among states with the most traffic tickets issued in the United States. In December of 2018, 5 new traffic-safety laws to crackdown on traffic violations and improve public safety went into effect. This increased regulation has already impacted many drivers in the greater Los Angeles area. Steven F. Miller, President/Founder of GetDismissed.com; a web-based traffic ticket service, has seen an increase in traffic ticket volume through the first third of the year.
Steve also states “We’ve seen a considerable uptick in 2019 for traffic citations written here in Southern California. 20% more speeding tickets have been requested for dismissal by our services.”
Due to the increase in California traffic tickets and to further help California drivers when they receive a traffic ticket, GetDismissed.com also offers a traffic ticket protection membership that protects drivers against future traffic tickets. The service will provide California drivers a completed “Trial by Written Declaration defense package” to fight most California traffic tickets for free, without having to go to court.  Additionally, members receive other perks such as free traffic school (if eligible) and a weekly newsletter to stay abreast of all traffic-related updates and news in California.
About GetDismissed:
GetDismissed is a web-based legal document assistant that has helped thousands of California drivers quickly and inexpensively prepare the necessary paperwork to contest and dismiss their traffic tickets through the Trial by Written Declaration process. The recipient of a 2016/2017/2018 “Best of Los Angeles Award,” GetDismissed is a web-based application and is also available for all Apple and Android based phones in the App and Play stores respectively. The site and app work for most California traffic tickets, including speeding, red light, sign infractions, cell phone use, among others.
 

The members are getting busy with Spring clean-up and maintenance on the Grange Hall in Vinton.  Since our members recognize the value of sharing a meal with each other we have returned to the tradition of holding a Pot-Luck meal prior to the monthly meetings. We welcome anyone interested in looking into Grange to stop by on the 1st Wednesday of each month.  Call for information and come check us out! 707-330-3601.
For our musing each week, it might be helpful to explain what Grange is.  It is so much more than just the big white building on Hwy 70 in Vinton.  Grange is a Fraternal Organization whose purpose is to help Farmers and other rural people by: 1) Providing them the tools and resources to increase their political and economic clout. 2) Encourage continued education and personal growth for both the members and the community. 3) Supporting the members and community through charitable work.  We will explore these topics in upcoming Happenings.  In closing, let me leave you with the Grange Motto, “In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity."
 

 IBoth softball and baseball teams advanced in the play-offs on Tuesday, May 14th.
The boys beat Chester in the first round on May 10th, 16-9. The team traveled to Greenville for the second round and played against the Greenville Indians, resulting in a win 13-11. The boys now advance to the championships at Shasta College on Saturday to go against American Christian Academy.
The girls played Mercy on Tuesday, winning 20-1. Pitcher Candice Durney pitched her 100th strike out! Mercy's main pitcher was out which created little competition and allowing the Grizzlies to walk 16 times in the second inning.  Mercy's replacement pitcher is to be applauded for her efforts and proved to be a feared competitor at bat!  The Grizzly girls advance to a second round to play Redding Christian in Redding on Thursday, May 16th. If they win, they will advance to the championships Saturday.
THE GREAT QUANDARY: How the players will get back in time for the Prom to be held at Lost Marbles Ranch Saturday night!!

Results of Statewide Distracted Driving Awareness Campaign Released
 
Sacramento, Calif. – Despite a statewide public education campaign about the dangers of distracted driving, the California Highway Patrol (CHP) issued 19,850 citations during the month of April to drivers who violated California’s handsfree cell phone laws.  This total represents a 3.6 percent increase from April 2018.  As part of the campaign, the CHP identified two statewide, zero-tolerance enforcement days, April 4 and 19.  During that time, the CHP issued 2,459 citations to drivers for violating the handsfree law.
 
The CHP, the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS), Impact Teen Drivers (ITD), local law enforcement, and other traffic safety partners worked together throughout Distracted Driving Awareness Month to educate drivers on the dangers of distracted driving.  Only statistics from the CHP were available for release.
 
In addition to phones, other serious distractions include eating, grooming, applying makeup, reaching for fallen objects, using a vehicle’s touchscreen, knobs, dials or buttons, changing clothes, or any other task that takes your eyes or mind off the road.
 
“Citations are just one tool law enforcement has at its disposal for combating driver distraction,” said CHP Commissioner Warren Stanley.  “Our ultimate goal is compliance with California’s handsfree law so that nothing diverts a driver’s attention or interferes with their ability to safely operate a vehicle.”
 
The OTS continued its “Go Safely, California” public awareness campaign for the month of April and early part of May with a focus on distracted driving.  The education effort included TV and radio spots, social media posts, and outdoor billboards with messages encouraging Californians to put down the phone while driving.
 
“Drivers on their cell phone are a stubborn problem that will continue to require extensive education about the dangers and enforcement of laws against using cell phones behind the wheel,” OTS Director Rhonda Craft said.  “It is a bad habit that may be hard for some to break, but is something that far too often leads to tragic consequences.”
 
ITD, a Sacramento-based nonprofit that educates teens on the dangers of reckless and distracted driving, kicked off Distracted Driving Awareness Month with a Teen Safe Driving Roundtable at California State University, Sacramento.  ITD hosted the event with the CHP and the National Transportation Safety Board to discuss ways to improve teen driver safety where driver distraction is the primary cause of crashes.
 
“Seventy-five percent of teen fatal car crashes do not involve drugs or alcohol but everyday behaviors become lethal when a new inexperienced driver chooses to engage in them behind the wheel,” said ITD Executive Director Dr. Kelly Browning.
 
The OTS hosted an event April 12 at Sacramento’s Inderkum High School to educate students on the importance of driving free of distractions.  Students even had the chance to experience first-hand how distractions impact your driving ability through simulator goggles.
 
The OTS is holding a statewide distracted driving video and billboard contest for high school students, with $15,000 in total cash prizes.  All California high school students ages 14 to 20 are eligible to participate.  The OTS is still accepting entries through May 20.  For details on rules and how to enter, visit gosafelyca.org.
 
Distracted driving remains a top concern for California drivers.  According to a 2018 public opinion survey conducted by University of California, Berkeley, nearly half of all drivers surveyed listed distracted driving because of texting or talking on a cell phone as their biggest safety concern on roads.
 
“Many drivers understand the risks they take looking at or using their phone, but do it anyway,” Director Craft said.  “Drivers must use self-discipline and make it a habit to stay off the phone.”
 
California has had distracted driving laws since 2008.  The CHP, the OTS, and ITD remind drivers that under the handsfree cell phone law, drivers are not allowed to hold a wireless telephone or electronic communications device while operating a vehicle.  Drivers under the age of 18 are not allowed to use a cell phone for any reason, including handsfree.
 
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