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UPDATE, 1:15 p.m. The Hoopa Valley Tribal Police Department has identified the suspects involved in the shooting, but no arrests have been made, according to an update posted to the department’s Facebook page. More information in the press release below.

At approximately 5:15 p.m., officers responded to reports of a shooting at the intersection of Highway 96 and Little Moon Lane. Officers located a victim who had sustained a gunshot wound. The victim was transported for medical treatment and is currently in critical condition.

Investigators have identified the suspects involved; however, no arrests have been made at this time as they continue gathering information. Gathering information is essential to the investigation to accurately identify suspects and lay a solid foundation for their prosecution. The Hoopa Valley Tribal Police Department is actively collaborating with the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office and the Yurok Tribe as part of the ongoing investigation.

At this time, investigators want to clarify that this incident is unrelated to the previous threats involving the school that were reported earlier. This is considered a separate and unrelated incident.
The Hoopa Valley Police Department also wants to reassure the community that those believed to be involved are no longer in the Hoopa area. As a precaution, there will be an increased presence of law enforcement officers at local schools to help ensure the safety of students and staff.

Anyone with information related to this incident is encouraged to contact the Hoopa Valley Tribal Police Department at 530) 625-4202 or the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office at (707) 445-7251.

The Hoopa Valley Tribal Police Department asks the community to keep the victim and their family in their thoughts as the investigation continues.

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Original post:

The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a shooting in Hoopa that sent one person to an out-of-area hospital with “life-threatening” injuries. The suspect remains at large. 

Shortly after 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Hoopa Valley Tribal Police and sheriff’s deputies responded to the report of a shooting on Moon Lane, near Highway 96, “in which an individual had been shot in the head,” according to HCSO spokesperson Erin Inskip. The male suspect was seen leaving the area on foot.

“The victim sustained life-threatening injuries and was transported to a local hospital, where he was stabilized before being flown to an out-of-county hospital for advanced medical treatment,” Inskip wrote in an emailed response to the Outpost’s inquiry. “Investigators are working closely with Hoopa Valley Tribal Police, the Hoopa Tribe, and members of the community to identify the suspect or suspects involved in this incident.”

Inskip declined to disclose the victim’s age, emphasizing that the investigation is active and information will be released as it becomes available. Anyone with information should contact HCSO at 707-268-2539.

Schools within the Klamath-Trinity Joint Unified School District are closed today. The following letter was emailed to parents on Tuesday night:

Dear Parents and Guardians,

Due to the off-campus shooting that occurred this evening, all schools will be closed tomorrow. This decision was made out of an abundance of caution and to allow our students, staff, and families time to process this tragic event.

Our thoughts are with the family and everyone affected by this incident. The safety and well-being of our students and staff remain our highest priority, and we are continuing to work closely with local law enforcement.

We will resume school as soon as possible to provide counseling services to any students or staff who may need support.

We will share additional updates as information becomes available. Thank you for your understanding and continued support of our school community.

Sincerely,
Jacqueline McCullough

Superintendent
Klamath-Trinity Joint Unified School District

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Additional information from HCSO:

On Mar. 10, 2026, at just after 5:00 pm, the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office began receiving 911 calls reporting a shooting that had just occurred near the intersection of Highway 96 and Moon Lane in Hoopa.  

Multiple law enforcement personnel from the Sheriff’s Office, Hoopa Tribal Police Department and the California Highway Patrol began responding and ultimately located the shooting scene and the victim. The victim, who had sustained a gunshot wound, was transported by ground ambulance to a local hospital, and ultimately transported by air ambulance to an out of the area hospital due to the severity of the injuries. 
 
The Sheriff’s Office Major Crimes Division is actively investigating this case in collaboration with our partners from the Hoopa Tribe. Multiple suspects have been identified. At this time, all suspects and firearms are outstanding.
 
This remains an active investigation.  Additional information will be released as it becomes available.
 
 The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office is urging anyone with information related to this case to call the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office at (707) 445-7251 or the Sheriff’s Office Crime Tip Line at (707) 268-2539.

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This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters.

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A California appeals court this week sided with state utility regulators in a case seen as crucial to the spread of solar panels on the rooftops of California homes.

Three appeals court judges ruled that the California Public Utilities Commission was justified in reducing the rate utilities pay customers for excess energy the customers’ solar panels generate.

Environmental advocates who brought the case say the decision will exacerbate California’s energy affordability crisis. Regulators believe it vindicates a decision they took “to ensure that rooftop solar programs remain fair, sustainable, and aligned with California’s clean energy goals,” CPUC spokesperson Terrie Prosper said Tuesday.

The case centered on the state’s “net energy metering” program, which governs how much solar customers are paid for excess power from their panels. Earlier versions of the program guaranteed customers the retail rate, which is how much utilities charge other customers when they resell the energy.

But a 2022 commission decision reduced this payment by about 75%. The commission’s decision backed utilities’ position, which was that those who have rooftop panels don’t pay their fair share of costs such as maintaining the grid, shifting the expenses disproportionately to non-solar customers. The decision resulted in a significant drop in new customers signing up for rooftop solar.

Advocacy groups sued over the decision, including the Center for Biological Diversity, The Protect our Communities Foundation, and the Environmental Working Group. They argued that commissioners didn’t properly take into consideration the benefits to disadvantaged communities and customers of having local energy generation.

The case reached an appeals court, which applied, in a decision siding with commissioners, a legal standard granting them significant deference. The Supreme Court of California then unanimously ruled last August that the lower court should not have applied this standard and must delve more deeply into the substance of the arguments.

Roger Lin, senior attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity, said this week’s decision is “disappointing” and the groups are “evaluating all of our options.” They can appeal again to the state supreme court.

“The whole reason the utilities created the ‘cost shift’ narrative was to preserve their profits,” Lin said. Under state law, utilities can earn a rate of return on everything they build, which amounts to hundreds of millions of dollars from ratepayers every year. They can’t earn that return on customers’ rooftop solar.

The decision comes amid renewed attention on California’s energy affordability crisis. Golden State residents pay the second highest rates in the country for energy after Hawaii, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Ratepayers routinely admonish state utility regulators for their high bills at public meetings. And Gov. Gavin Newsom recently announced an upcoming replacement of the head of the utilities commission as part of a move to focus on bill affordability.

Leola Nadine Jones passed away in the early morning hours of Sunday February 15, 2026. Our beloved mother, grandmother and great-grandmother (GIGI) had just recently celebrated her 88th birthday with most of her loved ones by her side.

Leola was born in Montana on February 9, 1938. She carried many fond memories of ice-skating on the lake, riding horseback to school, and growing up surrounded by Montana’s natural beauty.

After World War II, Leola’s family moved to Eureka, where she attended local schools and graduated from Eureka High with the class of 1953. Leola went to Humboldt State University, where she met the love of her life Henry Doyle Jones. They were married June 15, 1956 and began their life together. Leola and Henry built a loving family and raised four children — Kenneth, Joann, Alan and Richard.

Education was important to Leola. After the 1964 flood, she went back to school and worked in the medical field for 15 years. After her husband’s passing, she worked for the Department of Health and Human Services for over 20 years, where she met and maintained several lifelong friendships. Leola was a dedicated, hard worker. She would deliver phone books door to door after hours to earn extra money for school clothes for her children every year.

Leola’s first passion was for her family. There were many years that she would work extra hard, doing back-breaking work to provide school clothes to her children. She loved being a mother, grandmother and Gigi most of all. Leola had many hobbies. She loved quilting, gardening, making porcelain dolls, canning food and basket weaving.

One of Leola’s favorite past-times was traveling with her beloved friend Lenore. They traveled extensively for 10 years. One of her favorite trips was one they took to Canada. Oftentimes when they left together, none of us knew where they were headed until they returned home and filled us with stories of their travels. If Leola wasn’t traveling you would always find her at her grandchildren’s sporting events or enjoying the great outdoors.

Leola is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Leola had a strong testimony of the gospel and loved doing genealogy and talking about her heritage.

Leola had a special bond with her son-in-law Barton Garber. They spent a lot of time together traveling & playing cards and games. Bart welcomed Leola into his home after her house burned down with open arms.

Lenore Kotterman, Eddie and Cami Claros, Thouy and Heather Vonglakone, and Ryan Gleave were great friends that became family to her. Diane & Ken Williams, Sylvia & George Jutila and Weezy were all very dear to Leola’s heart.

Leola is survived by her daughter, Joann Garber (Bart Garber); son Alan Jones; son Richard Jones (Deb Jones); grandchildren Amber, Cami, and Dustin Garber (Sarah Garber), Nykia Wilson (Rai Wilson), Carissia Andersen (Justin Andersen), Cailin Olsen (Andy Olsen), Kimberly Cessnun (Wes Cessnun), Scott Jones, Sabrina Jones, Rainy Rodriguez, Violet Jones, Trevor and Dylan Jones, Valentino Guffey, Eddie and Kenny Gaethle, and Debbie Gaethle Hill; great-grandchildren Jocelyn Garber, Ana Guffey, Zach Bradfield, Levi, Ezekiel and Niko Garber, Jack and Josh Wilson, Jianna and Coyer Andersen, Adley Pedrotti and Emmit Olsen, Madyson, Kyndal, Lyndze, Jayden and Wyatt Cessnun and Aryanna Leal.

Leola is preceded in death by her husband Henry Doyle Jones; father Orville Lawrence Gaethle; mother Dora Ann Saxton; brother Dale K. Gaethle; sister Maretta Gaethle; and son Kenneth Dwayne Jones.

Service and reception will be held at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, 1444 Ross Hill Road, Fortuna on Friday, March 20 at 3 p.m.

We will be honoring Leola’s memory by wearing all shades of purple, which was her favorite color, and serving her famous cheesecake!

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The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Leola Jones’s family. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here. Email news@lostcoastoutpost.com.

People all around the world are complaining about gas prices right now, but across the entire U.S., there’s only one county that has it worse than Humboldt.

The average price for a gallon of gas in Humboldt is $5.806, just a little less than Mono County, where gas is going for $5.947, according to data from the American Automobile Association. Humboldt and Mono counties are currently the most expensive counties for gasoline in the whole country. The average price nationwide is $3.539; statewide, it’s $5.290. 

Good thing the average commute here is less than 19 minutes long.

UPDATE, March 11, 11:40 a.m.

In the post below, we remark on the fact that First District Supervisor Rex Bohn didn’t recuse himself or abstain from the vote on whether or not to censure himself for the sustained allegations of misconduct. We reached out to the county to ask what’s proper in this scenario. Here’s the response we got from Public Information Specialist Cati Gallardo:

There is nothing in the Board’s Code of Conduct that specifically states that a Board member must recuse. The determination of whether a conflict exists rests solely with individual members of the Board of Supervisors. Staff do not have the authority to direct a Board member to recuse from a particular matter.

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“I apologize if I acted like an A-hole,” Rex Bohn said into his microphone late this morning.

This mea culpa came among a variety of remorseful statements (some more qualified than others) offered up by the First District supervisor at today’s meeting of the Humboldt County Board of Supervisors. “I’m ready to take my lumps,” he said at another point.

Bohn was addressing the results of a third-party investigation into allegations that he’d been abusive and hostile toward staff during a meeting last June. The allegations were sustained after witnesses agreed that Bohn “acted in a disrespectful and aggressive manner toward County employees, which included the use of profanity.”

At the end of an occasionally tense 30-minute discussion on the matter, the board opted not to censure Bohn (a formal expression of disapproval), though a majority of supervisors criticized his behavior, and Third District Supervisor Mike Wilson took particular issue with Bohn for quibbling about the results of the investigation after refusing to participate in it.

Bohn began his remarks by noting that seven months have passed since the incident in question, and while he doesn’t necessarily remember all of the details, he disputes the conclusion that he scheduled the meeting in order to pressure staff into doing a favor for a friend of his.

The ad hoc meeting, which included Bohn, Fifth District Supervisor Steve Madrone and staff from the county’s Environmental Health division, was scheduled by staff, Bohn said, and this so-called “friend” was more of an acquaintance who he hadn’t spoken with for more than 20 years, until shortly before the meeting. 

The June 24 gathering concerned the county’s draft Tobacco Retailer Licensing (TRL) ordinance, and the complaint alleged that Bohn’s friend/acquaintance was in the process of selling 30 or more Chevron gas stations in Northern California. This person was convinced that the new ordinance would “cost him to lose his tobacco sale license for 3 stations in Humboldt County,” the complaint said.

Bohn said this morning that he wasn’t just lobbying on this one person’s behalf. 

“My intention was to represent the perspectives I was hearing from members of the community,” he said. “Having lived in this area for 71 years, I have many longstanding relationships, and I take seriously my responsibility to listen when people reach out with concerns.”

He said he feels strongly about this particular topic since he was raised in a corner grocery store.

Reading from prepared remarks, Bohn added, “However, I sincerely regret if my tone [or] delivery caused anyone to feel uncomfortable or disrespected. I do apologize for that. …I apologize if anything I said or how I said it caused concern or hurt feelings.”

After a beat, he continued off-script. 

“So I can’t deny [that] I did it. This is my second complaint in 14 years. The other one, [I] was fully exonerated. This one, I didn’t participate in [the investigation] because … I just didn’t,” he said. “Again, I apologize to staff.”

Madrone thanked his colleague for “the heartfelt apology.”

Fourth District Supervisor Natalie Arroyo said this incident may be part of a larger issue. She relayed comments from an unidentified consultant who once told her that some county department heads were scared of the supervisors, with particular concerns about how employees might be treated in small group meetings.

“I don’t want to have that kind of culture within the county,” Arroyo said. She called Bohn’s apology “a step in the right direction” and urged her fellow supervisors to be conscious of the power imbalance between them and county employees.

During a public comment period, former Humboldt County planning commissioner Thomas Mulder suggested that the county needs a better process for handling such complaints, given that this investigation cost more than $15,000.

Another commenter questioned why this complaint took so long to be addressed publicly. Human Resources Director Zach O’Hanen explained that the delay was caused in part by the board’s November request to have its Code of Conduct and Ethics reviewed by the Civil Grand Jury. (Second District Supervisor Michelle Bushnell pushed for that referral late last year after disagreeing with the results of an investigation into her own alleged misconduct.)

“We considered that [referral] to sort of be putting a halt on the process,” O’Hanen said, “and so that’s why this one didn’t move forward as quickly as it [otherwise] would have.”

Wilson, who is serving as board chair this year, said Bohn should have participated in the investigation rather than complaining of inaccuracies after the fact, and he suggested apologizing for hurting people’s feelings is insufficient when the underlying issue is the more serious matter of employee intimidation.

Bohn defended and reiterated his apology. “I knew that whatever apology I did was going to get picked apart, and I appreciate that,” he said, adding, “I am very sorry.”

To censure or not to censure?

The board’s decision on whether or not to publicly censure Bohn had a couple of interesting dynamics at play. Misconduct complaints involving county employees are generally handled by the Human Resources Director, who can assign disciplinary measures or corrective action. County supervisors, however, have no superiors in the organizational chart. As such, they’re responsible for policing their own behavior. 

The existing Code of Conduct and Ethics says that when an investigation sustains finding of supervisor misconduct, “Board action is limited to public censure, and such action shall require the affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of the Board members present and voting.”

But who gets to vote? Does the subject of an investigation have to recuse themself or abstain from the vote? Bohn certainly didn’t do so today. In fact, after Bushnell made a motion to receive and file the report, rather than to censure Bohn, Bohn himself seconded the motion. [The Outpost emailed county staff to ask whether Bohn should have recused himself or abstained, as Bushnell did in November. We have yet to hear back.]

Bushnell, meanwhile, announced at last week’s meeting that she will never censure one of her colleagues. Her own public reprimand in November proved to be a difficult and emotional ordeal, and despite the fact that county policy explicitly gives supervisors the authority to censure one of their own, Bushnell said last week, “It’s not my place. … I am not your judge and jury. Your constituents are.”

With all five supervisors participating, it would have taken a four-fifths vote to censure Bohn. That clearly wasn’t going to happen, so the board opted to simply receive and file the report without objection.

Tobacco Retailer Licensing Ordinance approved

At last week’s meeting, the board split 3-2, with Bohn and Bushnell dissenting, on a final draft of the county’s new Tobacco Retail Licensing Ordinance. Bohn’s objection, as mentioned above, centered largely around a provision prohibiting license transfers to new owners under certain conditions.

The vote for final approval of the ordinance broke down along the same lines today. The ordinance, which you can download by clicking here, applies only to retailers in the county’s unincorporated areas. It prohibits the sale of flavored vapes and tobacco products and formalizes an administrative review process for proposed license denials, suspensions or revocations.

Airport business takes off

Early in today’s meeting, the board received a very sunny report about the growing economic impacts of the California Redwood Coast-Humboldt County Airport, otherwise known as ACV or “The Arcata-Eureka Airport.”

Jack Penning, a managing partner with the consulting firm Volaire Aviation Inc., began by saying, “This is very, very positive,” and indeed it was.

The number of seats available on flights into and out of ACV has grown by 38% over the past year and will soon grow even more thanks to the addition of daily flights to Seattle from Alaska Airlines (starting April 8) and flights to both Las Vegas and Provo, Utah (starting tomorrow).

“The significant increase in seats is a little scary, because we’ve got to fill them,” Penning said. “But our demand in this market is strong enough that these airlines believed, when we delivered the business case, with the help of the county with the community, that they could support the service that we’re going to see.”

He showed a map indicating that local residents will soon be able to fly to 239 different cities across the globe with only one layover. 

“This is the best connectivity our community has ever had by very, very wide margin,” Penning said.

Currently, an average of nearly 400 people get on planes at ACV each day and that number is projected to jump to nearly 600 with the addition of new routes. 

“That’s incredible,” Penning said. “With an airport of our size, we’re up 80% from 2019, the baseline before the pandemic — 80% growth. That’s huge. That does not happen. We’re one of the fastest-growing small community airports in the country.”

There is still a fairly high number of local residents who will drive to San Francisco or Santa Rosa rather than leaving out of ACV, but Penning described that as a growth opportunity. He also noted than roughly 135,000 people arrive at ACV as tourists each year, spending a collective $51 million. 

Penning also said that the airport generates almost $12 million in federal tax revenue every single year and $5.6 million in state taxes while employing 121 people (soon to be 150). 

Hanging over this discussion was the fact that the county’s latest aviation director, Justin Hopman, just resigned after less that two months on the job. But Hopman indicated that he made the decision for family reasons, and Penning said there’s every reason for optimism.

You can download the full economic impact study by clicking here.

Audit findings

Mychal Evenson, the county’s interim auditor-controller, presented the audit reports and financial statements for Fiscal Year 2023-24. He explained that the financial statements audit, which his office performs, looks at the county’s internal fiscal controls, including documentation of financial transactions. The single audit, meanwhile, concerns program-level compliance with federal laws, rules and regulations. It’s performed by the outside firm CliftonLarsonAllen. 

These two audits had five “findings” for this fiscal year, which is bad news. A “finding,” in this context, means either a weaknesses in internal controls or an instance of noncompliance with rules and regulations.

However, CliftonLarsonAllen partner Brianne Weiss, who called in to the meeting via Zoom, said the financial statements were unmodified, which is a “clean opinion” or passing grade. And while findings are never good, Weiss said the “scope and scale” of the ones in Humboldt County’s audits have decreased over time, and she expects that trend to continue.

A finding in the county’s financial statement audit arose due to delayed reporting from the Fortuna Fire Protection District, which contracts with the county for such services, Evenson explained. One of the findings in the single audit likely stemmed from staff turnover in the county’s Airport Improvement Program, Weiss said.

The supervisors weren’t too concerned about these results. Bushnell told Evenson, “I hear continuously [about] how efficient the Auditor-Controller’s Office is becoming, so I just appreciate that.”

Bohn noted how far behind the county had gotten on its fiscal reporting five or six years ago and said that both Evenson and his predecessor, Cheryl Dillingham, “have the respect of … all the people we do business with, especially vendors, especially our government partners.”

The board unanimously agreed to receive and file the report on these audits.

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CORRECTION: This post initially misspelled Jack Penning’s last name. The Outpost regrets the error. 

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If you live in one of Eureka’s picturesque Victorians, there’s a good chance Eddie Serna has reimagined it in miniature.

For the better part of 30 years, the 85-year-old Eureka resident has spent countless hours recreating the steep gabled roofs, intricate gingerbread cutouts, ornate spindles and scalloped siding that define Victoria-era architecture — all on a tiny scale. Each Victorian façade, measuring at about two feet tall, is a replica of a real house in Eureka.

Serna poses with his models at the Humboldt County Library. | Photo via Facebook.

When he first took up the craft, Serna made each Victorian entirely by hand, painstakingly carving, sanding and painting Chicklet-sized shingles and itty-bitty adornments. These days, he’s able to buy the shingles, siding and other structural components online, but the rest is custom-made.

“It’s taught me patience,” Serna laughed. “When I first started, a few of my houses came out crooked but I learned and got the right tools. I tell everybody, my main tools aren’t my saw and sanders and drills — it’s my combination square and compass. I’ve learned that to make things correct, you got to keep things in square. … Now, I can get parts online, which is easier and cheaper for me, and the houses look exactly the same as the real house. Each one is unique.”

Growing up in a family of skilled masons in the Silicon Valley, Serna was familiar with the technicolor Victorians of San Francisco, but it wasn’t until the mid-1980s that he began to truly appreciate the architectural style. At the time, he was living with his ailing sister Antoinette, known to him as Toni, who had a copy of “Painted Ladies: San Francisco’s Resplendent Victorians.”

“[Toni] was passing away from diabetes, so I was living with her and her family,” Serna recalled. “I was in the living room when I noticed these books about Victorian houses called ‘Painted Ladies’… and I started looking at the pictures and I was just amazed. … I found this quote written by her [on the front page] of one of the books — ‘I love these old Victorians’ — and it hit me! I started making them right there.”

Serna started with some of the Victorians he had seen in Toni’s book, opting to make façades rather than full-blown replicas because he couldn’t see the sides of the house in the the pictures. “It’s amazing that I somehow did it just from a picture in a book,” he said.

He gave his first few models to family members, and kept several others to tinker with and practice new design elements. Unfortunately, his sister Toni didn’t live to see any of his miniature homes, but each one is recreated in her memory.

Serna made his way up to Humboldt County in an old army bus in the early ’90s. He was soon introduced to master craftsman Eric Hollenbeck and started working at the Blue Ox Millworks, where he honed his woodworking skills and went back to school. After he was attacked in front of his house in Eureka, he decided to move back to the Silicon Valley and pursue a career as a truck driver. He returned to Humboldt after he retired about 13 years ago, and he’s been making miniatures ever since. 

Asked about his process and how he selects the homes he wants to recreate, Serna said he walks through Eureka’s neighborhoods and takes pictures of houses he finds interesting, especially those that appear to be on their last legs.

“I want to take pictures of these old house before they fall apart or burn,” he said. “I’m taking pictures of those first because I want to save them by making a model of them. When I’m done with those, I’ll take pictures of the million dollar ones and the $20 million ones. … People ask if  I’ll make the Carson Mansion or the Carter House or another famous house, and I say ‘No, no, no, no.’ Why not make the ones that are kind of shabby?”

That said, Serna has made models of some of Eureka’s most pristine houses, including the ornate Victorian at 933 I Street, which is among my personal favorites. That miniature — and about a dozen others — is currently on display at the Clarke Museum in Old Town. 

The folks at the Clarke Museum adore Serna. 

“He is a sweetheart,” said Dana Fredsti, the museum’s marketing and events coordinator. “He’s just so enthusiastic about [his models], and his enthusiasm is contagious. When we first saw them, we were like, ‘Gosh, wouldn’t it be cool of our house could be made into one of them?’ And we got to know him, and he ended up doing a model of our house! Personally, it has brought us a tremendous amount of joy to see that.”

Executive Director Shawn Wagner said Serna was one of the first people she met when she took the helm of the Clarke Museum last year. She was familiar with his Victorian models, but she had never met their creator.

“When we met, he walked me through every single model, telling me what type of pieces he used, how long it took, how he was able to do this and why he chose this or that house,” Wagner said. “[His models] have become such a pivotal part of the museum, and it’s so Eureka.”

The museum’s staff have worked with Serna to track down the addresses for his models, but there are a few that have yet to be identified.

Serna has several models in progress, but the rising cost of materials has stretched his fixed income. His therapist, Angelina Torres, helped him set up a GoFundMe to help pay for his supplies and update some of his machinery. 

“When I first learned that Eddie was recreating these Victorians on his own — even while living on a fixed income — I was amazed and impressed,” Torres said. “That drove my own passion to help him because I believe we live in a wonderful community, and if other community members knew of his story, that would also inspire others to help him by donating.”

“Eddie is an extraordinary individual, and his journey has been one filled with challenges and setbacks, yet through it all, he’s found a way to channel his experiences and struggles into his creations,” she continued. “I see his work not just as a personal triumph, but as a way for him to share his healing journey with the world. … This campaign isn’t just about supporting an artist; it’s about helping him continue to create the kind of art that heals, that transforms, and that uplifts, art that speaks to those of us who need it most.”

Those interested in donating to Serna’s GoFundMe can do so at this link. His miniatures are on display at the Clarke Museum and in the Humboldt Room of the Humboldt County Library.

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PREVIOUSLY

• ALLEGED ASSHOLE IN CUFFS! 31-Year-Old Oklahoma Resident Arrested on Multiple Felony Counts for Making ‘Terrorist Threats’ to Local Schools
• Officers Recount Threatening Phone Calls to Schools During Preliminary Hearing in Trial of Daryl Jones
• We’ll Have to Wait Until October to Finish the Prelim Hearing for Man Charged With Threatening Schools, Businesses
• In Daryl Jones Prelim Hearing, Cops Recount Graphic Threats to Harm and Kill Children at Local Schools
• Daryl Jones’s Middle School Girlfriend Testifies that He Harassed and Repeatedly Threatened to Kill Her in the Years Before His Arrest

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A judge upheld more than 30 of the counts against Daryl Ray Jones today, the man accused of threatening to kill, rape, and mutilate people during dozens of phone calls made to local businesses and schools last year. 

The closing arguments during Jones’ preliminary hearing were held this morning. Defense attorney Meagan O’Connell attempted to convince judge Timothy Canning that Jones shouldn’t be “held to answer” for about two-thirds of the 35 counts of attempting or making criminal threats he’s been charged with. O’Connell argued that many of the phone calls didn’t scare the victim to the level of “sustained fear,” or that elements of the calls didn’t count as threats because they were questions or vague.

O’Connell claimed that because several of the witnesses who testified during previous sessions of the preliminary hearing didn’t explicitly say that the calls scared them, those counts should be tossed out. One victim said she was “concerned;” O’Connell argued that meant she didn’t meet the standard, as she did for someone who said they were “shook up.” Jones allegedly called several schools and threatened to commit mass murder, and they entered a school shooter lockdown. O’Connell suggested the staff and students weren’t afraid, necessarily; they were simply following procedure. 

Counts based on evidence like the caller asking victims questions, like “What would you do if I came over and beat your ass?”, texting one victim their name, their partner’s name, and their home address, and saying to one, “What up, bitch? Look outside, you know who it is,” shouldn’t apply, O’Connell argued, either because they were simple facts, vague, or questions, not direct threats.  

She also contested some of the counts based on Arcata Police Department Lieutenant Keith Altizer’s testimony. O’Connell argued that because he wasn’t the officer who interviewed some of the victims, she couldn’t cross-examine him and should be excluded on procedural grounds. (The officer who did talk to the victims retired before the trial started; Altizer reached out to them to confirm their stories.)

Deputy District Attorney Roger Rees said that those calls met the standard of probable cause, and Judge Canning agreed. He said that violent questions could be “reasonably interpreted” as a threat, as could sending someone their own home address and their name. He also let evidence from Altizer’s testimony stand. Canning decided to throw out a few of the counts for lack of probable cause (police couldn’t tell where several of the phone calls were coming from), but he decided 32 of the counts would stand.

Jones’ arraignment will be held March 24 at 8:30 a.m.