Theresa Leanne Freeman Emmons Cooper was born in Eureka in December of 1972, to parents Gary Freeman and Pamela Schopper Freeman. She was raised in Eureka her whole childhood, attending several local schools. She explored the woods and gulches with her brother and sister. As an adult, she went on many adventures in far away places.

She and Michael Emmons were married in Eureka in 1991. As Mike’s wife she got to travel, since he was a soldier in the Army. He was stationed in Georgia, and then Germany, where their son Trenten was born. While living there she earned a GED, and took college classes through the University of Maryland. After a few years, Theresa returned to Eureka. Her marriage to Mike ended, but they remained friends.  

Some time after, Theresa met Keith Cooper. They married in 2001. They lived in Eureka, and had a son together, Miles. They bought her Grandma Freeman’s house and hosted many family events and parties there. After a few years they moved to McKinleyville, when they bought Keith’s grandma’s house and lived there. 

Loving to bake, and try new recipes, Theresa was part of a Christmas cookie exchange club for years with her mother-in-law Andra Cooper, often hosting the exchange party. She was an amazing baker. Her blackberry cobbler was served at the county fair for several years at Cooper’s Hot Dogs. She loved family get-togethers and parties, and would carefully plan all the entrees and desserts she was preparing. Her joy of feeding people and entertaining was obvious.

She also enjoyed fishing, and would often try to talk her brother into taking her out on his boat. But only in the bay, not past the jetties. She inherited her grandma’s love of Bingo, playing at the Moose, the casinos, or wherever Bingo could be found. She was quite lucky with the game, as well as winning raffle prizes and drawings at fundraisers and events.

During her marriage to Keith they were able to travel extensively, to Mexico several times, and also Alaska, Jamaica, Hawaii. Theresa also loved going on cruises, dressing up in beautiful gowns for dinners on board. They went on family camping trips, in the local hills, boating and jet skiing at Ruth and Trinity lakes. She and Keith were married several years, and then sadly, went their separate ways.

Theresa was an employee of the USPS for 20 years, and was very proud of that accomplishment. She loved her rural route delivering mail in the Fieldbrook area especially. She enjoyed visiting with customers on her route, and making friends with neighborhood dogs along the way, often handing out treats. She was happy to see the wildlife during the drive on her route, and would share pictures of deer and other animals in the area.  

Theresa loved her sons very much, and was proud of them both. She was very happy to become a grandma. 

Theresa passed away in Eureka on April 3 of 2022 at the age of 49. She is preceded in death by her father, Gary Freeman. She is survived by her son Trenten Emmons (Hayley), her son Miles Cooper (Lacey), her grandchildren from Trent: Jackson & Elayna, mother Pamela Freeman MacMillen and stepfather Donald MacMillen, sister Lesa Freeman Churchill Holt (Dale), brother Robert Freeman (Stephanie), nieces & nephews: Rachel Freeman Butt (Andy), Ehlana Churchill Kirkpatrick (Roger), Katelyn Keffer, Sean Freeman and Justin Keffer, her great nieces and nephews, and numerous uncles, aunts and cousins. 

Theresa fought illness valiantly, but was taken from us too soon. She will always be our beloved mother, grandma, daughter, sister, aunt, niece and cousin. A Celebration of Life is being planned, and will be announced on Facebook for friends and family. In lieu of flowers, a donation honoring Theresa can be made to Miranda’s Rescue.

Peggy Smith, 69, of Carlotta, went to be with the lord after a short and sudden struggle with cancer, surrounded by her children at the hospice house in Eureka on January 18, 2022. She was preceded in death by her mother Mary Lee Samms. Peggy was survived by husband Douglas Smith and her children Kevin Smith, Donna and Jeff McWilliams, Robert and Frieda Smith, John and Lynette Smith. Her grandchildren, Ginny, Lacy, Jennifer, Isaiah Smith, Aaron and Justin Colby, Mariah, Travis, Colton, Brittany, Bethany, Geneieve Smith. Grate grandchildren Braxton, Aiden, Areana, Sylvies, Rawland and Trinity Bones. Aleigha McGregor. Lance, Ezra, Kai Smith. Everleigh, Barbara Jean Colby.

Peggy was born in Tacoma, Washington in 1953. Her father, Lee Roy Samms, was in the service, so they moved Japan, where she learned to speck and count in Japanese. When they moved back to the States they lived in Michigan. From there they moved to California and then Texas. Then moved back to Marysville, California, where she finished high school. She loved riding horses and spending time with her friends and family. After high school in June of 1971 she married “a real cowboy” and moved to Alderpoint. She continued to ride horses and lived the country life. In her words she began the “greatest achievement of her life, raising her children.”

She was the most amazing mom and grandma anyone could ever ask for. She was a strong Christian women. She loved God and her family. Throughout life she taught us everything she knew. She loved spending time with her family, gardening, shopping, traveling with her dear friend Linda and her cousin Darlene. She was always there for us when we needed anything. We could always count on her. She loved watching her grandchildren and everything they did; she never turned down a minute to spend with them. We know everything we do she’s there watching over us. She will always be loved and missed by everyone.

A celebration of life will be held at the Calvary Chapel in Fortuna on May 14 at 1 p.m. for friends and family.

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

Luella L. Poczulp
July 16, 1922 – February 25, 2022

Luella L. Poczulp was born in Mapleton, Maine on July 16, 1922. She finished her journey here on earth on February 25, 2022 in Eureka, where she was a resident for five and a half years.

Mom grew up on State Road in Presque Isle, Maine where her family owned Jones Bros. potato farm. Mom attended college at the University of Maine in Orono, Maine. Before Mom finished college, she met my dad, Edward D. Poczulp, who was in the army. They met at a United Service Organization (USO) dance, fell in love and married in Chicago in 1943. Mom finished college in 1964 at San Jose State College in San Jose and taught elementary school until she retired.

After Mom and Dad retired, they traveled extensively with their 5th wheel across the United States. She enjoyed walking, dancing, reading, traveling, playing cards, dice games, scrabble, knitting and gardening.

They were blessed with five kids: Robert Poczulp, Barbara Arneson, Patricia Halstead, Eddie Poczulp Jr. and Kenny Poczulp. They also had 15 grandchildren, 26 great-grandchildren, 7 great-great-grandchildren and numerous nieces and nephews.

Mom is preceded in death by her husband of 62 years, Edward D. Poczulp, her dad Llewellyn M. Jones, her mom Julia May Bagley Jones, her stepmom  Priscilla Higgins Jones, her brother Malcolm Jones, and two of her sons Eddie Jr. and Kenny.

Our heartfelt thanks go out to all the caregivers at Humboldt House Lodge and Cleo’s Home. Thank you to all the doctors and wonderful staff at Open Door and Hospice that cared for Mom and also my sister Patty. Without them I would have been lost.

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

A statement from The Greater Eureka Chamber of Commerce:

It is with a heavy heart that we announce the passing of Donna Wright, CEO and  President of the Greater Eureka Chamber of Commerce. Donna’s leadership at the Chamber for the past five years has been transformational for the community. Her passion for being a catalyst for business growth, a convener of leaders and a champion for a stronger community has enriched us all.

A special thank you to the first responders of Eureka, whose assistance is greatly appreciated. Our deepest sympathies are with her family and all those who loved her.

The pony-napping in progress. |  Arcata Playhouse Security footage

The Arcata Playhouse’s 16-foot mascot “Peggy,” the peg-legged, polka-dotted pony that shoots bubbles out of its butt, mysteriously went missing Sunday morning.

Peggy at Greenview Park the next morning. | Photo provided by a reader

Upon checking security footage, Arcata Playhouse co-founder David Ferney told the Outpost that a group of pranksters likely wheeled the 1,000-pound pony away on Sunday at 1:36 a.m.

“It seems like there was a group of people that stole the pony [based on the security camera] audio, but only one person showed up on the camera,” Ferney said.

After playhouse employees spread the news about the missing pony on Facebook, residents spotted the hard-to-miss mascot at Greenview Park in the Arcata Bottoms around 10 a.m. —

nearly a mile away from its Creamery District home.

No official police report was filed over the pony-napping. However, responding Arcata Police Department officers escorted Peggy back to the playhouse as workers towed her back from her early-morning adventure.

“It was so fun to see the pony arrive by police escort!” Arcata Outdoor Event Grant Coordinator Shoshanna Anthony said. “So glad she came home safe.”

Ferney said that Peggy is usually locked away behind a fence, but that the mascot was left unsecured overnight near the circus tent for convenience purposes. 

“The short answer is, it wasn’t locked up in its usual home, but now it is,” he said.

Built in 2014 by local artist Lush Newton, Peggy has since become an iconic part of Arcata and is known to show up at local events, where she dazzles crowds with bubble blowing abilities.

Southern Humboldt resident Ryan Anthony Tanner was sentenced this morning to more than 39 years in state prison for shooting a man to death and terrorizing his own neighbors during a violent rampage in February 2020.

Judge Kaleb Cockrum, in sentencing Tanner for a slew of charges including voluntary manslaughter, kidnapping and arson, indicated he thought Tanner was a poor candidate for rehabilitation. His crimes, the judge said, were acts of pure selfishness.

Tanner shot 33-year-old Jason Todd Garrett to death with an assault rifle after forcing the Fortuna man to get into a bathtub in a remote cabin owned by Tanner’s father. He also set fire to the van Garrett had been riding in and burned down his father’s cabin to hide evidence.

About 10 of Garrett’s family members and friends attended the sentencing, with Garrett’s uncle, Utah resident Glenn Taylor, reading a statement on their behalf.

Taylor said his nephew’s death has been “excruciatingly painful” for the family, particularly for Garrett’s mother and the two younger brothers who idolized him.

He recalled the phone call from Garrett’s mother — Taylor’s sister — on Feb. 17, 2020. She was so distraught she was barely comprehensible.

“She said her son Jason had been kidnapped and tortured by a man named Ryan Tanner,” Taylor said. Tanner had been arrested that day.

A couple of days later Garrett’s body was found, buried under a water tank on Tanner’s property.

Under current California law, the 34-year-old Tanner will be released when he is 60.

“Ryan Tanner is going to be allowed to prey on society,” Taylor said.

Because Garrett’s family is very religious, he said to Tanner this morning, “We will have to find forgiveness for you. But none of us will ever forget it.”

He brought up Garrett’s memorial service, when so many people spoke about what a wonderful person he was.

“How many people will say great things about you?” he asked Tanner, who sat at a table between his attorneys Russ Clanton and Zack Curtis. Tanner made no statement at the sentencing.

Deputy District Attorney Whitney Timm, the prosecutor in the case, explained why it was decided to take a plea from Tanner rather than risk going to trial, a trial that may have ended in a hung jury or even an acquittal. Chief among the potential problems was key prosecution witness Christopher Champagne, an eyewitness who told wild stories when testifying during the preliminary hearing.

Champagne provided “hallucinatory testimony,” Timm said. Also, Champagne owned a weapon of the same caliber as the one used to kill Garrett. He never disclosed that fact. And months after the killing, Champagne brought in a bloody cloth and a knife and presented it as evidence.

Timm said when Tanner is released at age 60, he should be less prone to violence. Not only does the prosecution have a duty to the victims, she said, but a duty to protect the public from people like Tanner.

As for the sentence, “Mr. Tanner deserves every day of it. He deserves much more for what he did to Jason.”

Killing Garrett was Tanner’s most heinous act during the weeks he was on a paranoid rampage. In addition to admitting the manslaughter, kidnapping, arson and weapons charges involving Garrett, Tanner also pleaded guilty to: setting fire to a van owned by Natalie Pierce, making criminal threats against Champagne, assaulting his former girlfriend Vanessa Womack with a firearm and carjacking neighbors Jeff Condos and Larry Kirk and assaulting them with a firearm.

Additionally, he pleaded guilty to the kidnap a year earlier of Devin Stebbins, who said he went to work on Tanner’s property and Tanner held him captive there by using threats and violence.

After the sentencing today, Garrett’s uncle Robert Taylor, who traveled from Nevada, said Tanner “didn’t get enough. He should never be released.”

Tanner originally was charged with murder. He had pleaded not guilty and not guilty by reason of insanity.

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Press release from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office:

Medeiros

A Rhode Island man wanted for the murder of a Kneeland woman has been arrested in Santa Cruz.

Austin Michael Medeiros, age 27, was taken into custody by the Santa Cruz Harbor Patrol on April 10, 2022, at approximately 4 p.m. for reportedly attempting to steal a boat. Medeiros was transferred into the custody of the Santa Cruz Police Department (SCPD). During a search of Medeiros incident to arrest, SCPD officers reportedly located a loaded stolen firearm and approximately 29.3 grams of psychedelic mushrooms in Medeiros’ possession.

Medeiros is currently being held in the Santa Cruz County Jail on fresh charges of grand theft (PC 487(A)), carrying a loaded stolen firearm (PC 25850(C)(2)) and possession/transportation of a controlled substance (HS 11391). He is pending extradition to Humboldt County on warrant charges of murder (PC 187(A)), evading a peace officer (VC 2800.2(A)), assault (PC 240), battery (PC 242) and possession of a controlled substance (HS 11377(A)). His bail has been set at $1 million.

Anyone with information about this case or related criminal activity is encouraged to call the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office at (707) 445-7251 or the Sheriff’s Office Crime Tip line at (707) 268-2539.