From the California Highway Patrol:

On April 19, 2023, at approximately 1112 hours, CHP Humboldt Communications Center received a report of a vehicle off the roadway, and down a steep embankment into a creek bed, on Price Creek Road west of Blue Slide Road. Emergency personnel responded to the scene and located a 2006 Ford Escape down a steep embankment, and on its roof. The reporting party, who was on scene and is a family member of the driver, stated she had located the driver deceased inside of the vehicle prior to the arrival of emergency personnel.

The driver, 60 year old Gene Stuart of Fortuna, had unfortunately sustained fatal injuries as a result of the crash and appears to have been the only occupant of the vehicle at the time of the crash. At this time, it is unknown exactly when this crash occurred, though family reports they had not had contact with him for several days and were actively searching for him at the time they located his vehicle.

The California Highway Patrol extends its sincere condolences to the family and thanks all responding agencies, to include the Ferndale Police Department, Rio Dell Police Department, Humboldt County Sheriff’s Department and Clyde’s Towing, for their assistance in managing the scene. The CHP Humboldt Area office is continuing its investigation and asks anyone who may have additional information to contact the California Highway Patrol at 707-822-5981.

If you want to visit the Great Wolf Lodge in Manteca, there’s the price you’ll see when you first search for a room — and then there are add-ons and fees you’ll discover as you click through the booking process.

When Leslie Harvey took her kids to the hotel and water park last November, she paid a “resort fee” of $39.99 per day on top of the rate for the room. That fee doesn’t cover water park passes, which are included in the cost of the room, according to the Great Wolf Lodge’s website; it covers “amenities” including life jackets, towels, Wi-Fi, and the coffee makers and mini fridges in rooms.

The fee “provides for amenities and services that enhance the guest experience, and are very much in line with guests’ expectations when visiting a family resort destination,” wrote Jason Lasecki, vice president of corporate communications for Great Wolf Resorts. “Great Wolf Lodge fully discloses room rates and any fees to our guests throughout the booking process… and in the final estimate before customers complete their reservations,” and it requires third parties to inform customers about mandatory fees. When CalMatters went through the booking process for the Great Wolf Lodge in Manteca, the resort fee only became apparent after selecting dates, choosing a room, making a decision about late check out, and clicking through options to add activities and dining credits.

The fee didn’t take Harvey, who lives in the Bay Area, by surprise. She’s savvier than most — she’s been writing about travel on her blog, Trips with Tykes, for more than a decade. But, she said, she hears often from friends and readers who start planning their vacation, searching online, talking with their family about it, and “then they actually go through the booking screen, and they’re like, ‘Oh, gosh, this is going to be 20% more than we were budgeting.’”

Resort fees are increasing, Harvey said, and she’s now seeing fees at hotels that don’t have many amenities, including city hotels that are adding “urban destination fees.”

“They don’t do enough to justify that fee. I think it’s a ripoff.”
— Brian Teeter, Sacramento Kings fan

It’s not just hotels. Fees and surcharges pop up at the end of all sorts of purchases. When a federal government agency said it was considering a rule to crack down on “junk fees,” Californians wrote in complaining about everything from fees at Pizza Hut to a $5,000 “paint protection” charge tacked on to a car purchase.

Figuring out the full price of a rental car or hotel can feel like a journey with unexpected twists and turns. A group of California state lawmakers have proposed a raft of bills that would require companies in several industries — including live events and apartment rentals — to be more transparent about total prices. Research mostly shows that people spend more when fees are tacked on to the end of a purchase compared with when all inclusive prices are listed up front.

When Brian Teeter bought tickets for the April 15 NBA playoff game between the Sacramento Kings and Golden State Warriors on Ticketmaster, each $749 ticket came with a $172 service fee. The tickets were expensive in part because it was the first time since 2006 that the Kings made it to the playoffs. Teeter, Sacramento resident and Kings fan, said he’s bought sports tickets before on other platforms, but he didn’t remember the fees being “that outrageous,” he said. “They don’t do enough to justify that fee,” he said. “I think it’s a ripoff.” He wishes the total price was clear on the front end, he said. Once you get far enough into the booking process to see the fees, most people, he said, are already committed to going.

Last-minute fees lead to splurging

When economist Stephen Tadelis worked for eBay in the early 2010s, executives were talking about switching ticket sales on Stubhub, a ticketing platform owned by the company, from a strategy known as “drip pricing,” where taxes and fees were revealed later, to displaying an all-inclusive price, Tadelis said in an interview with CalMatters. Executives hoped that the switch, which was made in 2014, would make customers more loyal and help Stubhub gain market share, Tadelis said. That’s not what happened. “Turns out that customers were not flocking to Stubhub” because it had all-inclusive pricing, said Tadelis, currently a professor at UC Berkeley.

Before executives switched back in 2015, Tadelis and some colleagues got permission to run an experiment, revealing fees at checkout for half of Stubhub customers while maintaining all-in pricing for the rest. They found customers who only saw the fees at final purchase wound up spending 21% more, and were 14% more likely to make a purchase than customers who saw the total price up front.

Other studies have found similar results. For a 2009 study, economists at UC Berkeley and the Federal Reserve Board added, in one supermarket, price tags to deodorants, hair accessories, and cosmetics that included the price after the 7.4% sales tax was applied. They found that sales of those items fell by about 8% compared to two control groups of products. In a 2006 study, researchers at Hong Kong University and UC Berkeley auctioned off CDs and Xbox games. They found that when a product was offered at an opening bid of one cent with a shipping cost of $3.99, it attracted more bidders and brought in more revenue compared to when they set the opening bid at $4 and the shipping fee at $0.

But not every study has the same finding. For example, in 2019, researchers at German universities manipulated how a three euro surcharge for 3D movies was presented online to customers of a large German multiplex cinema. For some customers, the fee was incorporated into the ticket price; others saw a note about a fee, but didn’t see the amount until later. They found that customers with the note were more likely to put a ticket in their online cart, but they also dropped out more often once the total price was revealed.

In general, though, the finding that people spend less when they’re presented with an all-inclusive price is “very consistent,” Tadelis wrote in an email.

The fees can pad out businesses’ bottom line. When Marriott was sued over its alleged “deceptive pricing tactics,” unsealed court documents showed that the hotel company had brought in more than $220 million from resort fees between 2012 and 2019.

Lawmakers in DC, CA fight fees

After years of proliferating fees, we may have entered the backlash. President Joe Biden has called on federal agencies and states to focus on the issue and discussed it in his State of the Union address. The Federal Trade Commission is exploring regulations that would crack down on “junk” fees; and Congress is considering bills on the subject.

Efforts by California lawmakers include:

• Two bills aimed at the ticketing industry which, among other provisions, would require ticket sellers to disclose the total cost before the event is selected for purchase;
• Two bills aimed at greater transparency in advertised rates for hotels, short-term rentals, and more;
• A bill that would require rental car companies to only advertise rates that include mandatory taxes and fees;
• A bill that would require landlords that advertise or provide quotes to include any mandatory fees.
• And an overarching bill that would make it unlawful to advertise or display a price for a good or service that doesn’t include mandatory fees, besides taxes.

“Whether it’s ticketing of concerts, sporting events, whether it’s renting a car, whether it’s booking a room or staying at an Airbnb…the people who lose are consumers,“ said Robert Herrell, executive director of Consumer Federation of California, which coordinated a handful of the bills. “And disproportionately the people who pay the brunt of this are low- and moderate-income consumers, and consumers and communities of color,”

It’s still early in the legislative process — some of the bills haven’t yet gotten a first hearing — but groups are already lining up in opposition and support.

Consumer groups and Ticketmaster come down on different sides of the two bills aimed at the ticketing industry. Live Nation Entertainment, which owns Ticketmaster, opposes one bill not because of the price transparency provision, but because it would “regrettably steer more tickets to secondary markets where resellers and brokers get fans’ money instead of the artists and venues putting on the show,” wrote Jonathan Lamy, the company’s senior vice president of public affairs and policy, in a letter opposing the bill. Artist groups, including SAG-AFTRA and Music Artists Coalition, also oppose the bill.

The Consumer Federation of California, CalPIRG, and other consumer groups support that bill. The federation opposes another proposal, which is supported by LiveNation Entertainment and the same music industry groups. The consumer group says it doesn’t give consumers ownership over their tickets, giving them limited options if they need to resell their tickets, and defines “ticket sellers” in a way that “fails to get at the heart of the issue, which is the control exercised over consumers by those marketplace participants such as the monopolistic Ticketmaster/Live Nation that control the industry.” Stubhub and Vivid Seats, two ticket resale companies, also oppose the bill in its current form.

The California Chamber of Commerce, which lobbies on behalf of businesses, opposes a couple of the bills, including the two requiring greater price transparency for hotels and short-term rentals. Robert Moutrie, an advocate for the group, said the Chamber didn’t take issue with requiring companies to be up front about mandatory fees that businesses themselves add. But, he said, including government-imposed taxes in the initial price could put California at a disadvantage when travelers are weighing a trip to California versus Washington or Nevada. He’s working with the bill authors, he said, and has shared proposed amendments with them.

“They’re not going to move to all-in pricing until these bills start passing.”
— Lauren Wolfe, counsel, Travelers United

Alyssa Stinson, regional government affairs manager for Expedia Group, which owns VRBO, a vacation rental site, wrote that Expedia will “work collaboratively” with lawmakers on the bills.

Airbnb did not comment on the short-term rental bills, but a spokesperson shared that in December the company began rolling out the option to display a total price in countries without existing requirements. Hosts set room rates and cleaning fees and Airbnb sets the service fee, which is “under 14.2% of the booking subtotal” for “most stays,” according to the company’s website.

One of the reasons that Airbnb might have started offering all-inclusive pricing is because Airbnb doesn’t really have major competitors, said Lauren Wolfe, counsel at Travelers United, a consumer protection nonprofit. Hilton, Hyatt, and other hotel chains that compete against each other won’t decide on their own to add fees into their room prices, making them look comparatively expensive.

“They’re not going to move to all-in pricing,” she said, “until these bills start passing.”

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

Mary Ann Flanagan was a light. Her impish smile of interest and friendship, the almost wink she shared - letting you know that you and she were in this together.

Mary Ann lived upstairs in Old Town, Eureka, where she loved being in the thick of things. Each day she dressed all color coordinated, with a warm sweater, gloves, scarf, and jaunty hat… rain or shine. She made an almost daily trek to the co-op for coffee and an atomic bran muffin. She then stopped at her favorite bookstores, the herb shop, and all the thrift stores, finally feeding the birds down at the bay.

Bussing and walking all over town, Mary Ann attended the Catholic, Episcopal, Presbyterian, and Orthodox churches, tai chi in the courtyard, meditation group and retreats, along with visits to the library, and the historical society among other destinations. Her favorite was visiting her son John at his home, a couple of miles away.

Mary Ann walked with determination, a goal in mind - the downtown post office to send off her many correspondences that she wrote in her beautiful script, the copy shop, so she could include important political, and spiritual commentary - always progressive, always personally reflective.

Mary Ann wrote to local politicians to call them out and encourage them to do right by the people. She also had numerous strongly worded letters to the editor published in the local papers. Mary Ann wrote to the Catholic Bishop imploring him and the Church to get with the times. (He answered.) While sure to get her point across, Mary Ann was eloquent and gracious, careful to write, speak and act from the heart.

Mary Ann loved to listen to opera on Saturday mornings while sitting in her chair looking down on the happenings of Clark Plaza. Spiritual, healing, and old time radio CDs filled her evenings. She was intrigued by late-night talk radio from varied political views (“You have to listen to the other guys to see what they are thinking!”) Mary Ann was thrilled by the community pride and inspiration of the Sara Bareilles concert at the bay in 2022. She never wanted to miss out on a happening!

Before her final chapter here in Humboldt, she lived many different lives. Her story began on May 6, 1930, when she was born in Los Angeles to her parents John Juenemann and Elsie (Zielski) Juenemann. Her father and his siblings continued the family business of Juenemann Pickles, Kraut and Relish Corp. while her mother worked as a nurse at the hospital where Mary Ann was born.

When she was four years old her siblings Bob, George, Joan and Jeanne joined the family in rapid succession. Mary Ann quickly became their second mother, nurturing, teaching, comforting, and encouraging each one. She put the girls’ hair up in ringlets, taught them all to play the piano, sewed pinafores and outfits for them, and was sure to make all birthdays and holidays special. Mary Ann and her siblings were a clan unto themselves, and she was forever proud of each of them throughout their lives.

In 1944, Mary Ann received an academic scholarship to Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy, where she boarded for four years, graduating with honors in 1948. She continued to correspond with many of her classmates over the decades.

Mary Ann always worked hard, spending much of her wage-earning time as a night auditor in fancy hotels like the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles and the Fontainebleau in Miami Beach. While at the Fontainebleau, Mary Ann saw a man getting roughed up by Frank Sinatra’s associates. Mary Ann yelled, “Boo Sinatra!”, which made Sinatra very annoyed. She was quickly driven home by her boss, with instructions to lay low for a couple of days. That was Mary Ann, fearless - fiercely independent, and ready to call it like she saw it.

In 1960, Mary Ann and her sister Joan traveled to Germany to witness the every ten years’ performance of the Oberammergau Passion Play. They made their way there as the only passengers on a freighter out of New York City. While in Europe, they left their tour group to search out their own adventures. Of course, they brought home many a story!

In the mid 1960’s, on a whim, Mary Ann and a friend moved to Hawai’i where they worked and had fun living the island life. After a few years, Mary Ann returned to Los Angeles, then soon moved to Florida where, her son John Vincent Flanagan was born in 1967. Mary Ann reveled in the joys of mothering her boy. Her father John joined them in Florida, and the three of them lived there until they moved back to Pasadena in 1977.

While John grew through his teen years, he and Mary Ann lived in the Los Angeles area, where Mary Ann always worked hard to support her son. Good times and hard times were had during this period.

In 2005, after John had discovered and moved to Humboldt County with his partner Sharon, Mary Ann followed the one true romantic love of her life, Weston Fisher, to Mississippi. She and Weston had ten very happy years together. Mary Ann volunteered with Head Start, managed an antique store, and made many good friends in Mississippi. In 2016, Mary Ann’s son John had become ill, and he asked her to come to Eureka. Although sad to leave Weston, Mary Ann’s devotion to John made her quickly decide to move. She was glad to have had these last years with John, until he passed away in 2021.

On February 18, 2023, Mary Ann visited her son’s grave to speak of their mother -son love and how much she missed him. She told him that she was so proud to have him as her son and that she was looking forward to being with him again. Soon after, while with a dear friend, Mary Ann had a stroke that took away her ability to speak out loud. Her sister Jeanne traveled to be with her at the hospital in Davis where they held hands and sang songs of faith and childhood.

Mary Ann was moved from the hospital to rehabilitation in Santa Rosa to concentrate on regaining her speech. On April 1, 2023, a close friend was visiting, reading aloud cards that Mary Ann had received, holding her close and speaking of her family and God’s love. That night, Mary Ann was tucked in and kissed goodnight. On the morning of April 2, 2023, Mary Ann passed away.

Mary Ann Flanagan was preceded in death by her parents John and Elsie, sister Jeanne’s husband Pat (2018), her brother George (2020), her sister Joan (2021), her son John (2021), her brother Bob (2022), and her life partner Weston (2023).

Mary Ann is survived by her sister Jeanne, her son’s life partner Sharon, and many, many friends that loved her so very much.

A celebration of life memorial will be held for Mary Ann in the ballroom at the Inn at Second and C (Eagle House) on Friday, April 21, 2023, from 1-4 p.m. All of Mary Ann’s friends and neighbors are welcome to come by and join in a joyful remembrance of a truly remarkable woman.

Graveside services will be held on Saturday April 22, 2023 at 11 a.m. at Oceanside Cemetery. Mary Ann will be laid to rest next to her son John, as was her final wish.

Mary Ann had hope and faith in all of us. As we walk among our world neighbors, be that bright and shining light!

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HUMBOLDT TODAY: We have a full rundown of the wild police chase and subsequent shootout in Eureka yesterday; the City of Arcata is struggling to find officers; plus, a local 8th grader scores a fun science award!  Those stories and more in today’s online newscast with John Kennedy O’Connor.

FURTHER READING: 

• Sheriff’s Office Issues Statement on Harris Street Incident, With Clear Photos of the Suspects and Weapons Recovered
• (LIVE) Sheriff’s Office Press Conference About Yesterday’s Police Shooting on Harris Avenue
• Arcata City Council to Consider $50K Bonus for Police Department Transfers to Address APD Staffing Shortage
• California Attorney General Bonta to Host Event Promoting Awareness of Missing and Murdered Indigenous People in Blue Lake on Saturday
• Freshwater School Eighth-Grader Brings Home Big Award for Her Redwood Science Research
• CONVERSATIONS: Old Town Restaurateur Charity Desbrow on Moving Into the Old, Historic Oberon Location (And Acquiring a Full Bar)

HUMBOLDT TODAY can be viewed on LoCO’s homepage each night starting at 6 p.m.

Want to LISTEN to HUMBOLDT TODAY? Subscribe to the podcast version here.

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PREVIOUSLY:

• “Going Down,” April 18.
• (LIVE) Sheriff’s Office Press Conference About Yesterday’s Police Shooting on Harris Avenue

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Press release from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office:

On April 18, 2023, at about 2:49 p.m. officers with the Eureka Police Department (EPD) responded to a report of an armed robbery in the area of the north parking lot at the Bayshore Mall. There, officers located a 33-year-old male victim who told officers that he had been robbed at gunpoint and assaulted. The victim sustained minor head injuries from the physical assault.  The victim was able to provide a description of the suspects and suspect vehicle to law enforcement. EPD issued a Be On the Lookout (BOLO) to all local agencies describing a red ford pick-up and indicating that a firearm had been used in the robbery.  

Approximately 10 minutes later, EPD received a report of a pedestrian hit and run in the area of West Washington and Summer Streets. The victim, a 34-year-old male, sustained major injuries. The suspects of the hit and run were later confirmed to be the same suspects involved in the earlier armed robbery.

At about 3:14 p.m., a Humboldt County Sheriff’s deputy in a marked Sheriff’s Office pick-up truck observed the suspect vehicle, a red 2004 Ford F250, in the Cutten area near the intersection of Redwood Street and Walnut Drive. The deputy attempted a felony traffic stop on the vehicle. The vehicle failed to yield, and a pursuit ensued.

Approximately two minutes later, the fleeing suspect vehicle was involved in a traffic collision with a civilian vehicle at the intersection of Dolbeer and Harris Streets. Following this collision, the suspects in the Ford are believed to have fired at the marked Sheriff’s vehicle, striking it at least once. At about this time, an unmarked Sheriff’s Office pick-up truck occupied by an HCSO Sergeant and one deputy arrived. Both of these officers fired their service weapons at the suspects. An additional HCSO marked vehicle arrived and pulled alongside the HCSO marked truck. This deputy also fired his service weapon at the suspects. Both suspects sustained multiple gunshot wounds. The suspects were taken into custody on scene and deputies rendered first aid while waiting for Emergency Medical Services. No deputies were injured.

During this incident, there were two additional individuals inside the suspect vehicle, a 37-year-old female and a 2-year-old male. Both sustained minor collision-related injuries and were transported to a local hospital for treatment.

The civilian vehicle involved in the traffic collision contained three occupants. The driver, a 42-year-old male, sustained moderate collision-related injuries. The passenger, a 27-year-old female, sustained major collision-related injuries. A 2-year-old passenger of the vehicle was not injured. The three were transported to a local hospital for medical evaluation and treatment.

The suspects have been identified as brothers, 18-year-old Jesse Widmark and 27-year-old Brandon Widmark. Both suspects were transported to a local hospital and remain in critical condition. The Widmarks were last known to be residing in Northern Mendocino County but have family ties to Humboldt County. At the time of this incident, the brothers were wanted by the Arcata Police Department in connection to a robbery occurring April 14 in the Valley West area.

While processing the scene, investigators located three weapons associated with the suspects: one Winchester Model 70 Bolt Action 270 Rifle, one Marlin Model 60 .22 Caliber Long Rifle and one Sigsauer M17 Airsoft Handgun.

A total of four HCSO deputies were involved in this incident, three are believed to have fired their service weapons: a Sergeant, with 14 years of service, and two deputies with six and 10 years of service, respectively. The fourth involved deputy, who was fired upon during this incident, has five years of service with the HCSO. All involved deputies have been placed on routine paid administrative leave pending the outcome of an internal administrative investigation. Involved deputies will be identified within the timeframe as required by law in a future information update.

This is still an active, multi-faceted investigation, being led by the Eureka Police Department and Humboldt County District Attorney’s Office as part of the Humboldt County Critical Incident Response Team. Additional information will be released when available and appropriate.

The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office would like to thank the following agencies for their assistance with this investigation: Eureka Police Department, California Highway Patrol, Humboldt County District Attorney’s Office, Arcata Police Department, Fortuna Police Department, Rio Dell Police Department and the CA Department of Justice.

Anyone with information about this case or additional criminal activity associated with the suspects should contact Eureka Police Department Detective Raymond Nunez at (707) 441-4109.

PREVIOUSLY:

• “Going Down,” April 18.

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Humboldt County Sheriff Billy Honsal is holding a press conference on the police shooting of two reportedly armed suspects on Harris Street yesterday.

Live video above, via the Sheriff’s Facebook page; notable updates below.

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UPDATE, 2:36 p.m.: Eureka Police Chief Todd Jarvis confirms that the incident began at the Bayshore Mall, with the assault and robbery of one victim. Also, he connects the suspects to a hit-and-run on Eureka’s West Side yesterday in between the assault and the shooting.

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UPDATE, 2:40 p.m.: Honsal, speaking now, says that the suspects’ drove their red pickup into Harris Street from Dolbeer at a high rate of speed, crashing into a Toyota that was carrying three people. After the crash, two people emerged from the red pickup carrying rifles and fired at least once at deputies, striking a patrol vehicle.

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UPDATE, 2:41 p.m.: The two suspects are Jesse and Brandon Widmark, who are currently hospitalized in serious condition. They had previously been wanted by the Arcata Police Department in connection with an armed robbery.

UPDATE, 2:43 p.m.: Three Sheriff’s Office personnel fired their weapons at the scene, all of them with fairly long tenure at the office.

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UPDATE: 2:47 p.m.: Three civilians in the other pickup suffered injuries. One of them — a 27-year-old female — suffered major injuries.

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UPDATE, 2:55 p.m.: Body cameras worn by Sheriff’s Office personnel were not on at the time of the incident. When asked by the Outpost’s Isabella Vanderheiden why that was, Honsal said, “This is definitely something we will be looking at.” “That’s going to be a question that we do ask.”

As usual with officer-involved shootings, the county’s interagency Critical Incident Response Team will conduct an investigation into the police response to the case. 

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Like many other police departments around the state and country, the Arcata Police Department (APD) has seen a severe staffing shortage over the last few years. And recently it has gotten so bad that the department is asking the Arcata City Council to approve a $50,000 transfer bonus for trained officers. 

According to a city staff report, the department currently has 19 officers on staff, down from 29 at the beginning of 2020. That means the department is about 34 percent understaffed, and two more officers are expected to depart soon. APD Chief Brian Ahearn told the Outpost that the department has been struggling to keep staff, and that it’s causing issues both within the department and for the community. 

“Because we’ve had to really constrict operations due to our staffing shortage, we’re not able to provide specialty services and haven’t been able to deliver some of those services that we know our community members expect,” Ahearn said in a phone interview Tuesday morning. “And just the sheer volume of work has really created a lot of fatigue within the organization, both mentally and physically.” 

The department already offers a $15,000 lateral transfer bonus, but Ahearn says that it has not been enough and thinks that increasing the amount will incentivize more officers to move to APD. And though $15,000 to $50,000 is a pretty huge bump, Ahearn said that it’s going to take a huge increase to keep Arcata competitive with other agencies. 

Hiring and transfer bonuses are nothing new, but have become increasingly common since COVID. Over the last few years many police departments in California and across the country have dramatically increased their transfer incentives, with cities like Redding and Chico offering a $40,000 transfer bonus, and Alameda offering a staggering $75,000 for lateral transfers. 

If approved by the council, the $50,000 bonus would be offered to police officers currently employed in the state of California who have successfully completed law enforcement academy and are “performing satisfactorily” in their current employment, according to the staff report. The payment would be spread out over two and a half years, with the first $10,000 added to the employee’s first paycheck. 

Additionally, Ahearn is suggesting the council approve $60,000 in funding to the police department to improve the department’s workstations, locker rooms, floor surface, lighting and equipment. According to the staff report, in recent exit interviews with officers leaving APD for other cities many shared that the departments they were transferring to had higher quality facilities and equipment. Ahearn believes that making some of these improvements could help APD recruit new officers and also improve conditions for the current employees and hopefully encourage them to stick around. Also to help keep the current staff on, Ahearn is proposing a short-term retention bonus that would offer current employees $7,500 a year for three years. 

Ahearn | Stephanie McGeary

This all might sound like a lot of cash to give to the police department, especially when Arcata’s budget is looking pretty tight this year. But part of the costs would be offset by the salaries and benefits savings the department has accumulated from the unfilled positions. Ahearn also holds that the long term savings from keeping officers and recruiting transfers who would be able to enter the field much more quickly would be worth the investment. The $50,000 transfer bonus is still less than the cost of supporting a candidate through the academy and field training, which is estimated to cost $65,000. 

When asked about why it has been so difficult to keep Arcata’s police department staffed over the last few years, Ahearn said it is not only the competitive market, but also that not as many people are interested in being police officers these days, something Ahearn attributed largely to the increasing scrutiny of police officer and department practices across the country. 

“I just think the profession has seen so much change in the last several years,” Ahearn said. “There’s been so many reforms, and many of those have been the right reforms. We need to continue to evolve as a profession. We have to continue to achieve excellence. But along the way, a lot of people have forgotten that police officers are human beings…and police officers are just being absolutely vilified.” 

Amid the calls for police reform that were largely sparked by the Black Lives Matter movement, many people have urged municipalities to “defund the police” and direct that funding toward alternative forms of emergency response, such as mental health services. Arcata Mayor Sarah Schaefer even said that reallocating funds from the police department budget was one her top priorities, back when she was running for council in 2020. 

And Ahearn feels that the APD and the City of Arcata have done a good job at responding to those cries for change. The department has been working with the county’s Mobile Intervention Services Team (MIST), which provides services for those struggling with mental health issues and/or substance use disorders in the community. Members of MIST are on staff at APD four days a week. 

Ahearn also mentioned Arcata’s Community Ambassador Program, a collaboration between APD and Arcata Main Street that was launched in 2022. The community ambassadors are trained in de-escalation techniques and can respond to issues that aren’t necessarily a crime. City staff is also proposing the council approve a .25 percent sales tax to be placed on the ballot in 2024 to help fund the Community Ambassador Program and additional upgrades for the police department. 

With these alternative programs in place, Ahearn feels that APD is a very progressive police department and hopes to attract officers who want to be a part of an organization that will “redefine and reimagine how policing is going to look moving forward.” He hopes that, if the incentive program is approved, that it will help make Arcata’s department more desirable and that once someone transfers here and sees what the department does for the community that they will want to stay. 

Ahearn does also realize that hiring bonuses only offer a temporary solution and that the department will need to continue to improve and possibly offer other incentives in the future, like housing allowances, covering education or childcare costs. But right now, the bottom line is that APD needs to fill these positions as soon as possible. 

“This is designed to bring these officers to us immediately,” Ahearn said. “We have been slowly bleeding out with our departures out numbering our new hires. So this is not a bandaid, it’s a tourniquet. Because if I don’t stop the bleeding now we’re going to bleed out and potentially we’re going to no longer exist as an organization. And I can’t let that happen.” 

The Arcata City Council will consider the APD’s proposal during its meeting tonight (Wednesday, Apr. 19) at 6 p.m. You can view the full agenda and directions on how to participate here.