With wildfire activity on the minds of many in NorCal, the Outpost wanted to attempt to give you a brief rundown of the major blazes affecting our greater region.

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LONE PINE FIRE: Several fires continue to burn near the Hoopa Valley Reservation in northeastern Humboldt County. The Lone Pine Fire has grown to 450 acres and is five percent contained, according to a morning update from the Six Rivers Nationals Forest. The Hoopa Office of Emergency Services has issued an evacuation advisory for zone HIA-E014-B. This zone includes residents north of Pine Creek and Tish Tang Road, south of Community, east of Pine Creek Road and west of Hostler Ridge Road. This is not a mandatory evacuation order. “This advisory is a precautionary notice designed to give residents time to prepare for a possible evacuation,” according to local fire officials. “[There is] potential for [an] evacuation warning if fire crosses Tish Tang Creek. There are no evacuations currently.”

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PEARCH CREEK FIRE: The Pearch Creek Fire ignited nearby, northeast of Orleans, on Wednesday night. The fire is burning in the Pearch Creek drainage. Fire officials have not provided any additional information regarding acres burned or containment as of this writing.

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BLUFF COMPLEX: The Bluff Complex consists of 5 separate fires located near the Bluff Creek area north of Mosquito Lake. The total acreage for the complex is approximately 200 acres.

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PILOT FIRE COMPLEX: These fires are burning in Humboldt County, just west of the Trinity County Line and Forest Route 1 near Blake Mountain. The total acreage for these fires is over 100 acres with 0% containment. 

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KELLY FIRE: Highway 199 remains closed near the California/Oregon border due to the Kelly Fire, which has burned approximately 1,100 acres. The closure extends between Pioneer Road and Oregon Mountain Road.

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SLIDE FIRE: The Slide Fire has burned an estimated 340 acres in the Yolla Bolly Eel Wilderness. The fire is not contained, as of this writing.“Fire behavior has been low to moderate so far, creeping around through open ground,” according to a morning fire update from the Mendocino National Forest. “However, as scattered thunderstorms move through the area today and tonight, fire behavior has potential to increase.” There are no evacuations associated with the fire at this time.

Press release from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office:

Heading out to the Humboldt County Fair this weekend? You don’t have to wait until noon to begin your fair day! Stop by the Sheriff’s Work Alternative Program (SWAP) Farm in Fortuna this Saturday for free coffee, hayrides and farm tours before heading up the road to Ferndale. 

Coffee at the Farm is an annual event inviting the community to see the sustainable programs underway at the SWAP Farm to rehabilitate low-level offenders and provide food to our incarcerated population within the Humboldt County Correctional Facility. At Saturday’s all-ages event, community members will have the opportunity to meet some of the Correctional Deputies who work on the farm and in the jail, sample produce grown at the farm, see the animals and of course, get free, freshly brewed coffee. 

Coffee at the Farm is taking place this Saturday, August 19, from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. at the Sheriff’s Office Work Alternative Program Farm, located at 2300 Airport Road in Fortuna. 

Come stop by and say hi on your way to the Humboldt County Fair! 

 Receive HCSO news straight to your phone or email. Subscribe to news alerts at: humboldtsheriff.org/subscribe.

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In summary

More California police departments are deploying body cameras. A new court ruling restricts how prosecutors can use footage of witness accounts at trial.

When a woman refused to testify against a man accused of assaulting her, a Los Angeles County judge used the accusations she made the night of the incident that were recorded on a police officer’s body camera.

This week, the California Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the judge erred by using the body camera footage to stand in for the woman’s testimony. Doing so, the court ruled, denied the accused man a chance to confront his accuser in court.

“We emphasize that a defendant’s due process right to confront testimonial witnesses against him is not absolute,” the high court ruled in an opinion issued Monday.

“What cannot be done, however, is reducing the analysis to a single determination that hinges solely on whether a statement qualifies as a spontaneous statement.”

The ruling comes as body cameras have become more common in California police departments, most recently this year in San Bernardino County.

While body cameras are not mandatory among California agencies, CalMatters surveyed large law enforcement agencies last year and found that some of the largest police and sheriff’s departments in the state have given body cameras to all of their uniformed officers.

Body camera footage of alleged criminal incidents can be used as evidence in court and in disciplinary proceedings against police officers. The new ruling limits its use with respect to statements made on camera.

Prosecutors, including the state Department of Justice, had urged the court to admit the body camera footage, partly because it related to a suspect who was on probation.

Statements made outside of court that cannot be verified at trial are called hearsay, and are generally prohibited. But there are exceptions, one of them being “spontaneous statements,” which are statements made in the moment that don’t leave time for deliberation. Courts have found that these statements tend to accurately reflect what a person was thinking when they said something.

In the case before the Supreme Court this week, a woman called 911 in March 2019, reporting that someone was trying to break into the house where she was working as an aide to a person with a disability.

Responding officers found damage to the front door and Dontrae R. Gray in the back of the house. The woman had bruises and a scratch on her face, and told an officer wearing a body camera that Gray kicked in the door and assaulted her. Gray was on probation for a previous, unrelated assault.

A few days later, the woman partially recanted her story, which is common among victims of intimate partner violence, and refused to appear at Gray’s criminal trial despite a subpoena. Los Angeles County prosecutors tried to introduce the body camera evidence, but a judge refused to allow it.

The criminal case was dismissed, but prosecutors asked a judge to revoke Gray’s probation, and again tried to use the body camera footage as evidence. This time, it worked.

Body camera footage a ‘unique opportunity’

The judge at Gray’s probation revocation hearing ruled that the woman’s statements in the body camera footage indeed qualified as a spontaneous statement, revoked Gray’s probation and ordered him to serve a suspended sentence of seven years in prison.

“The court actually has the unique opportunity to actually see her, hear her and see her,” Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Renee Korn, according to trial transcripts cited on appeal. “It’s not just an audiotape. It’s not just the reiteration of an officer of these statements.

“Rather, it’s actual video footage of who she is and how she presented at the time. (It) gives the court ample basis to find the defendant in violation of probation.”

On appeal, Gray said the decision to introduce the body camera footage as testimony violated his due process rights. State prosecutors replied in briefs to a state appellate court that due process rights at probation hearings are “flexible.”

“Probationers at revocation hearings are not entitled to the full array of constitutional rights available to defendants at criminal trials,” prosecutors led by Attorney General Rob Bonta wrote, “because probationers, having been validly convicted of crimes, have already been afforded the full panoply of constitutional trial rights in the criminal proceedings that resulted in their convictions.”

A California appellate court agreed and affirmed the decision to revoke his probation. Then the case went to the state Supreme Court.

California rulings on probation revocation

Previous probation revocation cases relying solely on paper evidence offered varying results.

In one 1981 case, the Supreme Court rejected prosecutors’ use of a trial court transcript in lieu of a witness’s testimony. Another case affirmed prosecutors’ use of hotel and car rental receipts to prove a defendant had broken the rules of his probation by traveling out of state.

This week, the high court agreed that defendants have the right to due process, including the right to confront their accuser.

“The Attorney General asserts that the particular reliability and unique nature of spontaneous statements make them categorically admissible under the due process clause, without requiring a further finding of good cause or a balancing,” the court ruled. “We reject this categorical approach.”

The Supreme Court sent the case back to the Second Appellate District.

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CalMatters.org is a nonprofit, nonpartisan media venture explaining California policies and politics.

Betty Rose Sporrer, at age 98, passed peacefully in her sleep at home with family by her side on May 28, 2023. The Hospice of Humboldt provided exceptional care during her last days.

Betty is survived by her brother Clarence; her children: Renee, Kathy, and Dan; her six grandchildren: Daniel, Emma, Katie, Christopher, Bret, and Kinsey; her great grandchildren: Jaxon and Eli. She was preceded in death by her loving husband, Dean (Buck) Sporrer; children: Dephane and Rodney, and eleven siblings.

Betty was born on November 29, 1924, in Wisconsin to Albert and Mildred Turenne. At the age of 15, Betty ventured to the big city of Chicago, Illinois, where she worked in the factories supporting the war effort. Shortly thereafter, she began her 10-year career as a switchboard operator for Bell Telephone. She transferred to Portland as a supervisor where she met Buck. Their 59-year marriage began on April 13, 1954, and continued until Buck’s passing in 2013.

Betty had an active retirement in Bend, Oregon. She was surrounded by family and a diverse tribe of friends, including various clubs and her beloved Catholic Daughters. Betty lived independently in Bend to age 93; at which time she moved to Northern California to live with her daughter Kathy and her husband Cecil.

She was loved, adored, and respected by all who knew her and is missed. She left this world a better place with her wit, her smile and encouraging words to all.

Our wish is to honor Betty with contributions to the Dephane Marie Sporrer scholarship foundation managed by St. Mary’s Academy. The address is 1615 SW 5 th Portland OR 97021. The phone number for the foundation is (503) 228-8306.

The family invites you to a celebration of Betty’s life at the Stock Pot Broiler from noon to 3 p.m. on Saturday, July 15, 2023. The address is 8200 SW Scholls Ferry Road, Beaverton, OR 97008.

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From the Hoopa Fire Department and Office of Emergency Services:

Hoopa, CA - As of Wednesday afternoon, August 16, the Lone Pine Fire had grown to approximately 400 acres with 0 percent containment. Of the 23 confirmed fires burning within the Six Rivers National Forest following recent lightning activity, the Lone Pine Fire is one of several top priority fires.

The fire is burning between the Horse Linto Creek and Tish Tang Creek drainages and east of the Trinity River. The fire is currently being managed by the North Coast Incident Management Team 3 (IMT3) and the Six Rivers National Forest (SRNF). The fire is under a full suppression tactic. Firefighters are creating a handline and heavy equipment are creating dozer lines near Tish Tang Ridge. A firing operation is expected to strengthen lines on the west side of the fire within the next 48 hours.

Because the fire has burned over the Hoopa Valley Indian Reservation’s southern border, the North Coast Incident Management Team 3 and SRNF is working in close coordination with the Hoopa Valley Tribal Council and Hoopa Fire Department to prioritize protection of tribal resources and cultural sites.

There are currently no evacuation advisories, warnings, or orders associated with the Lone Pine Fire, however, Hoopa Fire Department Chief Greg Moon said that the necessary tools are in place should an evacuation be necessary.

“Even though the fire has burned onto the reservation, there are currently no structures threatened,” Moon said. “Our teams are meeting regularly and have plans in place to protect the community.” There are currently 150 fire personnel assigned to the fire; 3 handcrews, 5 engines, 1 dozer, 2 water tenders and 55 overhead staff. Additional resources have been ordered and are in route.

The Hoopa Fire Department is also expecting additional resources from the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Tule River Fire, Chumash Fire, Quartz Valley Fire and the Nature Conservancy, to help with initial attack of this fire and any additional potential fires.

A red flag warning due to excessive heat and northwest winds remains in effect through 9 p.m. tonight. There is currently a forest closure on the Hoopa Valley Indian Reservation at Tish Tang Road and Sign Board Gap. No additional road or forest closures are in effect at this time.

Official information regarding the Lone Pine Fire will be provided by the Hoopa Fire Department and Office of Emergency Services and Six Rivers National Forest. In addition, KIDE 91.3 FM will broadcast updates daily. Maps and updates will also be posted at https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident-information/casrf-lone-pine-fire

Residents are encouraged to download the “Genasys” application on their smartphones, or visit https://app.zone-haven.com to stay informed about potential threats, advisories, warnings and orders.

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A proposed ballot initiative aimed at protecting downtown parking lots while purporting to address the housing crisis has caused a considerable amount of confusion among community members in recent weeks. 

The “City of Eureka Housing for All and Downtown Vitality Initiative” seeks to amend the City of Eureka’s 2040 General Plan and, per the campaign’s website, rezone “a number of pieces of property throughout the city” – and specifically the former Jacobs Campus – to accommodate the city’s affordable housing needs. Proponents of the initiative have criticized the city’s efforts to convert city-owned downtown parking lots into housing. They say the parking lots are critical for downtown businesses.

Others have called the initiative misleading. An open letter to Eureka voters, signed by more than 100 residents, local leaders and elected officials, argues that the initiative would actually prevent the development of affordable housing and could “put the city in legal jeopardy, risking millions of dollars of state grant funding.”

During the public comment portion of Tuesday’s Eureka City Council meeting, a Eureka resident, who chose not to identify herself, asked the council who was behind the petition and asserted that the people gathering signatures “don’t even know anything about [housing].”

“They said the Jacobs [campus] is owned by the City of Eureka, which it isn’t. It’s owned by Eureka City Schools,” she said. “I’ve spoken with them and I’ve also spoken with the captain of the [California Highway Patrol]. I want to know who started these petitions. Can you tell me?”

Prior to the meeting, Councilmember Leslie Castellano had asked city staff to provide a report on the proposed initiative to help clear up “a lot of the confusion in the community.”

City Attorney Autumn Luna noted that the city council has the opportunity to request informational reports during the signature-gathering process for an initiative proposal but asked the council to “keep in mind that staff does have some limitations on what it can report on.”

The attached staff report includes seven topics relating to the proposed initiative, including its effect on land use, the availability and location of housing and the ability of the city to meet its regional housing needs. 

One member of the public, Althea Christensen, spoke in favor of the informational report. “It might be good for you guys to explain what parts [of the initiative] the staff is not allowed or able to comment on or report on,” she said. “So, just to kind of explain that to us. And I would hope that the report would include, you know, if this does pass, whether agencies like the CHP would be subject to that rezoning.” 

The council gave staff a thumbs up to move ahead with the report, which should return to the council sometime in October.

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The council also received a report from staff about privacy concerns surrounding Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs), an issue that has apparently burbled up in Eureka’s neighborhoods in recent months. 

First off, to qualify as an ADU, the residence must have independent living facilities, said Principal Planner Cristin Kenyon. “It can’t just be a detached bedroom; it has to have a bathroom and a kitchen,” she said. “And in the City of Eureka, any ADU that we legally authorized after Jan. 1, 2020, can’t be used as a short-term vacation rental. It has to be rented out long term.”

ADUs can be permitted anywhere residences are allowed but only five percent of Eureka’s single-family residential parcels contain ADUs. The city’s goal is to create 20 new ADUs per year but there hasn’t been a lot of interest. “We think it’s because of financing and education and things like that,” Kenyon said.

State laws limit the city’s ability to impose additional regulations on ADUs. City staff took a look around and found other California cities, including Palo Alto, Fort Bragg, Antioch, Temple and San Bernardino, were able to adopt objective standards to create more privacy between ADUs and residential lots.

“They’re mostly about preventing line of sight into adjacent properties through landscaping, fencing, glazed windows, windows placed above eye level, or not allowing windows and doors facing adjacent properties,” Kenyon said. “However, there’s this override provision of the state ADU law that … trumps everything else and you can’t impose objective design standards.”

For example, an ADU in an existing space of an accessory structure, like a garage or a detached shed, would not be subject to any of the aforementioned design standards.

As such, Kenyon recommended that the city council provide guidance rather than add more rules. “Neighbor disputes are a miserable thing for everybody involved,” she said. “I think if we help people realize little things they could do to avoid those neighbor disputes, they would hopefully want to implement them when they’re designing their ADU. And there’s always the ability for people to add fencing or landscaping if they’re concerned about privacy from a neighbor constructing a second floor or an ADU that overlooks their property.”

Moulton asked if primary residences were subject to similar privacy restrictions. Kenyon said, “Basically, you can construct a three-story house within five feet of your neighbor’s property.”

Castellano spoke in favor of creating privacy considerations for residents to look into. She also suggested staff look into micro-loan opportunities to incentivize the construction of ADUs.

The council agreed to accept staff’s report but did not take any action on the item.

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Before closing out the meeting, City Manager Miles Slattery offered a brief update on a few of the city’s housing projects, two of which will welcome residents in the coming months.

The 34-unit low-income development for seniors, located at Seventh Street and Myrtle Avenue, is “well on its way,” Slattery said. “There have been a few issues with PG&E but we’re working with our Chief Building Official Reilly [Brendan] to get around those. But we should be up and running by October.”

The four-story mixed-use development at Second and E Streets in Old Town is expected to open in the next couple of months. The new building will host retail storefronts and office space on the ground floor, one- and two-bedroom apartments on the second and third floors, and a restaurant and bar on the rooftop.

“Both of the projects, in my opinion, have turned out exactly how they were proposed in the design review process,” Slattery said. “I think they’re going to be a great addition to the city.”

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Press release from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office:

Manning

On August 16th, 2023, Humboldt County Drug Task Force Agents served a search warrant at the residence of Daniel Langevin, Cara Chmielewski, and Jennifer Manning, located in the 500 block of Herrick Avenue in Eureka. HCDTF Agents received information that drug activity was occurring at the residence.

Upon arrival at the residence, Agents located and detained Daniel Langevin, Cara Chmielewski, and Jennifer Mannine without incident. Once the scene was secure, Agents searched the residence and located one firearm, 10 grams of fentanyl, 6 grams of methamphetamine, 5 Suboxone strips, 18 Perc-30 pills, a small amount of unknown pills, scales, packaging materials, and indicia of drug sales.

Jennifer Manning was transported to the Humboldt County Correctional Facility where she was booked on the following charges:

• HS11351- Possession of Controlled Substance for Sales 
• HS11378- Possession of Controlled Substance for Sales (Methamphetamine)
• HS11370.1(A)- Possession of Controlled Substances while Armed

Daniel Langvin and Cara Chmielewski were released on scene. Agents will request the following charges for Langevin and Chmielewski:

• HS11366.5- Operating/Maintaining a Drug House
• HS11378- Possession of Controlled Substance for Sales (Methamphetamine) 

Anyone with information related to this investigation or other narcotics related crimes is encouraged to call the Humboldt County Drug Task Force at 707-267-9976.