Press release from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office:
The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office needs the public’s help to locate two missing persons last known to be at a property in the Berg Road area.
Blunt.
Bailey Faye Aralene Blunt, age 28, was reported missing on Sept. 25, 2023. Blunt was last seen on September 22 when she reportedly went to retrieve her belongings from a property on Berg Road, off State Route 299, associated with her ex-boyfriend 24-year-old Tyler Thomas Burrow.
On September 26, a family member of Burrow’s contacted the Sheriff’s Office to report him missing. According to the family member, their last phone contact with Burrow was on September 23. Repeated attempts to call him have gone unanswered. Neither Blunt nor Burrow were located at the Berg Road property when checked by friends and family.
Burrow
Blunt’s green Dodge Ram (CA License Plate Number 8T73126) was detected by a license plate reader in the Redding area on September 24. No additional detections of the vehicle have been received.
Blunt and Burrow’s whereabouts are unknown.
Bailey Blunt is described as a white female, approximately 5 feet 5 inches tall, 200 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes.
Tyler Burrow is described as a white male, approximately 5 feet 11 inches tall, 220 pounds, with red/brown hair, hazel eyes and a beard.
Anyone with information for the Sheriff’s Office regarding Blunt or Burrow’s possible whereabouts is asked to call the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office at (707) 445-7251, reference case numbers 20230449 and 202304457.
On September 11, 2023 at approximately 5:18 p.m., Officers with the Eureka Police
Department (EPD) were dispatched to a report of shots fired in the alley located in the
600 block of 16th Street. During the investigation, officers located numerous shell
casings in the alley and contacted the occupants of a near-by apartment complex. The
apartment complex had been struck by numerous bullets, but none of the occupants were
injured. An EPD Detective and Evidence Technicians responded to the scene and took
over the investigation.
Through the investigation, the Detective was able to identify Ray Madrone, 22 years old
of Eureka, as a person responsible for firing shots into the apartment. A Ramey Warrant
was obtained for Madrone.
On September 27, 2023 at approximately 5:25 p.m., Detectives located Madrone in a
vehicle traveling on Harris at B Streets. A traffic stop was conducted on the vehicle and
Madrone was taken into custody without incident. A search warrant was then authored
for a residence in the 2900 block of California Street in Eureka. Upon execution of the
search warrant and subsequent search, firearms and narcotics were located and seized.
Detective believe they have located the firearm used in the September 11th shooting.
Madrone was transported and booked at the Humboldt County Correctional Facility for
the following violations: Shooting at an inhabited dwelling, Masked while in possession
of a firearm in public with the intent to conduct a criminal offense, and Carrying a loaded
firearm with the intent to commit a felony. Madrone is being held without bond.
Additional weapons and narcotics charges against Madrone will be filed with the
Humboldt County District Attorney’s Office.
Humboldt Bay
Harbor, Recreation and Conservation District release:
Eureka will welcome the Seabourn Venture with 161 guests and 240 crew to Humboldt Bay on
Monday, October 2nd, docking around 7:45 AM. The ship will enter Humboldt Bay at 6:30 AM and be
led into the harbor by a boat parade followed by a private welcome party at Schneider dock. The
ship is expected to depart at 5:00 PM.
Ship guests will have the option to experience Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park, Old Town Eureka,
and a tour of the Victorians of Eureka and Humboldt.
The cruise visit and welcome party are a collaborative effort planned by the Humboldt Bay Harbor,
Recreation and Conservation District, the City of Eureka, Eureka Main Street, Humboldt County
Office of Economic Development, Visit Humboldt, Petrusha Pilots, Coos Bay Tugs and Zerlang and
Zerlang Marine Services. Special thanks to Chet Albin, Dave Schneider, and Schneider Dock.
The Seabourn Venture departed from Vancouver, BC on September 28th and traveling south along
the Pacific Coast on a 17-day cruise ending in Puntarenas, Costa Rica.
The ship is expected to be visible around 6:30 AM on Monday; local citizens can watch the arrival
from the Del Norte Street pier, the Park and Ride at Herrick Avenue and the Samoa boat ramp at the
north jetty.
One more cruise ship will be arriving in Humboldt Bay on October 7th, more information to follow.
A traffic collision that closed Broadway Tuesday evening left one pedestrian dead, Assistant Eureka Police Chief Brian Stephens confirmed to the Outpost this afternoon.
Stephens said the deceased man was believed by officers on the scene to be in his late 30s or early 40s. Any more information on the victim would have to come from the Coroner’s Office, Stephens said.
The driver of the vehicle that struck the pedestrian remained on the scene, was cooperative with investigators and was not intoxicated, Stephens said. He was released at the scene.
The victim is believed to have been lying prone in the roadway before the accident occurred.
Stephens said that there have been several testimonies apparently from witnesses to the collision, on social media and in other news reports, about the events that led up to the crash. However, he said, police have not been able to speak to some of the authors of these testimonies, and they’d very much like to do so in order to develop an understanding of what occurred.
If you witnessed this collision and haven’t yet talked to the police, Stephens asks you to call the EPD non-emergency line at (707) 441-4060, and ask to speak to Ofc. Jeremy Sollom.
The City of Eureka will host a Community Health Town Hall this Saturday afternoon to discuss the persisting mental health crisis and its effect on local kids.
The discussion –“Today’s Mental Health, Tomorrow’ Future: Raising Resilient Children” – is a part of the Eureka Mayor’s Initiative, which aims to cover a variety of topics relating to mental health, substance use and homelessness through a series of quarterly town halls.
“Children’s mental health is critical for the health of our community – especially for our future,” Eureka Mayor Kim Bergel told the Outpost in a recent phone interview. “COVID really exacerbated that problem. On top of that, Humboldt has some of the highest ACES [Adverse Childhood Experiences] scores in the state. We’re really looking at how we can mitigate that.”
Humboldt County has more reported cases of adverse childhood experiences, or ACEs, than anywhere else in California. Approximately 29 percent of Humboldt’s kids have an ACEs score of two or more, according to parent-reported data compiled between 2016 and 2019, nearly twice the state average.
What can healthcare providers and parents do to make a meaningful impact on children’s mental health? Jacob Rosen, the City of Eureka’s Managing Mental Health Clinician, says proactive engagement is key.
“Attending to mental health early on is super important,” Rosen explained. “What we see is a compounding effect. Children with a lot of ACEs early on will have profound effects on their mental and physical health later, especially if it’s not addressed. The more we can advocate and discuss this as a community, the more we can kind of get everyone behind the idea of trying to mitigate these ACEs, improve children’s mental health and invest in them.”
Education is the first step, Rosen said.
“When we educate people around the issues at hand, it helps them make a more informed decision,” he continued. “And when they have that knowledge, they can take that to the ballot box, they can take that to their business, they can take that to the organization that they work for. … Getting that knowledge and opening up some of those avenues for potential volunteering or convention is empowering.
Rosen will host Saturday’s meeting alongside Bergel. The panel of speakers will feature four local experts: Laura Ziemer, foster youth advocate and motivational speaker, Jayme Clark, mental health officer with the Eureka Police Department’s Community Safety Engagement Team (CSET), Dr. Virgil Moorehead, director of behavioral health for Two Feathers Family Services, and Martin Stephan, senior program manager for Children’s Behavioral Health at the Humboldt County Department of Health of Human Services.
“Many of the youth and families we serve have been impacted by various forms of trauma,” Stephan told the Outpost. “For younger youth, we see this show up as attachment and family functioning issues and children who have witnessed family violence. As youth get older, we see more risk of self-injury, social/family difficulties, along with depression and anxiety symptoms.”
“I’m looking forward to sharing information about the array of services Children’s Behavioral Health offers,” Stephan added. “I want to answer questions about how the community can access these services. … I’m hoping to just listen and get ideas and feedback from the community about this important topic.”
The Community Health Town Hall will take place in city council chambers on the second floor of Eureka City Hall – 531 K Street – this Saturday, Sept. 30. Doors open at 1:30 p.m. for attendees to get refreshments and find seating and the meeting will begin at 2 p.m. Those interested in attending virtually can tune in here.
Can’t make it but you’d still like to participate? You can send your questions to townhall@eurekaca.gov.
The proposed downtown Eureka “EaRTH Center” is one of the projects that the “Housing For All” initiative wants to stop. Graphic: City of Eureka.
Press release from I Like Eureka Housing!:
Housing
advocates are joining forces to defeat a new ballot initiative
that threatens to stop desperately needed affordable housing.
Together, housing advocates are coming together under a new banner
— ”I Like Eureka Housing!” — to officially oppose the
deceptively-named “City of Eureka Housing for All and Downtown
Vitality Initiative.” This initiative, which will be placed on
the ballot thanks to signatures gathered by paid signature
gatherers, would stop the construction of affordable housing and
would put the city in legal jeopardy, risking millions of dollars
of state grant funding.
“Safe,
affordable, and accessible housing is the cornerstone of a healthy
community. Creating health starts with securing the fundamentals
of food, shelter, and clothing,” said Tory Starr. Tory is
familiar with how housing impacts health. As the CEO of Open Door
Community Health Centers, Tory has seen how patients have suffered
because of a lack of housing — and how our housing shortage has
impacted the healthcare profession. “Without affordable
workforce housing we are in imminent risk of our local healthcare
system collapsing due to a lack of workers. I’m not referring to
only doctors but the myriad number of support staff such as
medical assistants, nurses, nurses aids, laboratory techs and
receptionists who are needed to keep our delivery system
functioning.”
“Downtown
and Old Town Eureka will improve because of new housing,” said
Solomon Everta, owner of Eureka Books. “Imagine a local barista
or office worker able to walk from an affordable home to their
place of work in Downtown. Imagine these folks walking through Old
Town on the weekends, visiting our local businesses and enjoying
this vibrant and liveable town. Affordable housing is a win in
every way for the city.”
Susan
Seaman was mayor of Eureka from 2018-2020 and has worked in
economic development for decades. “Our housing affordability
crisis impacts all facets of the economy and particularly hurts
working families. Eureka has responded to this crisis by releasing
under-utilized parking lots to be redeveloped into affordable
housing. While I care about parking for downtown businesses,
housing is more important.”
Neal
Latt is an attorney with offices in Downtown Eureka. As a lawyer,
Neal understands the legal ramifications of the anti-housing
initiative. “By stifling affordable housing production, the
anti-housing initiative would place Eureka’s Housing Element at
risk — and with it, millions of dollars in grant funding and
local control over many issues related to local control of zoning
and development.”
Peter
Pennekamp has worked in community organizing for decades. Peter
recognizes that the anti-housing initiative is a threat to local
democracy. “If one rich person can buy themselves a ballot
initiative, that’s a concern for local democracy. Eureka’s
downtown housing plan was developed through a long, public
process. Bypassing citizen engagement through a misleading ballot
initiative is bad for Eureka.”
Peter
LaVallee understands the difficulty of local governments to
produce housing. As mayor of Eureka from 2003-2006, Peter
understands that if Eureka wants affordable housing to be
constructed, the city needs to play a role in its development.
“The City of Eureka owns little property that could be
redeveloped for housing. The downtown parking lots chosen for
housing were the most underutilized based on utilization surveys
dating back to 2016. The idea promoted by the anti-housing
initiative that there are other properties that could be developed
is false. The City of Eureka does not control the former Jacobs
Middle School site and California Highway Patrol is in
negotiations to purchase the property from Eureka City Schools.”
The
anti-housing initiative is likely going to be placed on the
November 2024 ballot. Opposition to the initiative is a grassroots
effort, driven by a love of Eureka and a concern for the loss of
housing that would result if it were to pass. If you would like to
volunteer, please
sign up here.
If you would like to donate, please click here.
If you’d like to donate via check please mail to PO Box 7284
Eureka, CA 95502. Please include your employer and occupation. If
you don’t have an employer or are retired, put N/A, and if you are
self-employed, put “self-employed” as your employer and
describe your occupation.
Thank
you all for your support. Together we’ll save Eureka’s
housing.
Elizabeth Clews at a library at the University of California, Santa Cruz campus in Santa Cruz, on Sept. 27, 2023. Photo by Laure Andrillon for CalMatters
Elizabeth Clews was taking classes at a community college, working a full-time job at the local mall and living in a Toyota Camry with her baby when she learned that she no longer qualified for financial aid.
To qualify for state and federal aid in community college — an average of $2,000 to $3,000 a year, according to one estimate — students must meet certain requirements, known as “satisfactory academic progress.” Most notably, they must maintain a GPA above 2.0, the equivalent of a C average.
“I pretty much failed all my classes,” said Clews, who was 19 at the time and living in Ventura. “I had just concluded I wasn’t smart enough for school.” When she learned she was going to lose her financial aid too, she dropped out. What she didn’t realize at the time was that her grades also would jeopardize her chances of receiving financial aid in the future.
If a bill by Assemblymembers Marc Berman, a Palo Alto Democrat, and Sabrina Cervantes, a Corona Democrat, becomes law, students like Clews may get another chance at aid. The bill would loosen the provisions of financial aid by forcing schools to drop additional requirements that exceed those mandated by federal law. The bill passed both houses of the state Legislature with near unanimous support and now awaits Gov. Gavin Newsom’s signature.
“I think he’ll sign it,” Berman said. The bill would cost taxpayers between $3 million and $9.5 million each year, a risk that the governor may not be willing to take as the state faces a $31.7 billion dollar budget deficit.
“If there’s a little financial cost upfront, there’s more long-term gain,” Berman said. A spokesperson for the governor’s office said he wouldn’t comment on pending legislation.
Every year, about 120,000 students across California’s colleges and universities lose their financial aid because they can’t meet these academic requirements, according to a rough estimate from Sarah Pauter, a senior program manager at John Burton Advocates for Youth. The organization advocates for foster and homeless youth and is a leading sponsor of the bill.
Among first-year community college students receiving financial aid in California, it’s roughly 1 in 4 who fail to meet these requirements, and for certain groups, such as former foster youth, Black, and Native American students, the rates are even higher, according to a study by the same organization. Most who lose their aid drop out of school.
Two years and three appeals to get financial aid
In 2016, roughly two years after dropping out of college, Clews decided to apply again to Ventura College.
“When I tried to enroll in classes, I got the same message I had received two years prior, saying I could enroll for classes but they weren’t going to give me any financial aid,” she said.
Colleges keep track of which students failed to meet the requirements for financial aid in the past and deny them aid if they try to receive it again. It’s a kind of “life sentence,” Pauter said. Students can try to appeal, explaining why they failed to get a GPA above 2.0, but every college has its own appeals process. Some are more forgiving than others.
Clews ultimately decided not to enroll and spent the next five years working multiple jobs in retail, making just enough money to pay for child care even if it wasn’t always enough to afford a stable home. In 2020, while under the state’s stay-at-home orders for the COVID-19 pandemic, she changed her mind and decided to apply again for financial aid, only to receive the same message about her academic performance as she did when she was 19.
This time, at age 25, she refused to quit. She appealed the decision, explaining she was homeless at the time and caring for a new baby while working a full-time job. Her appeal was denied.
She enrolled anyway, paying out of pocket for many expenses. It took her about two years and three separate appeals before the college agreed to reinstate her aid. She said she submitted the same explanation each time.
Colleges keep track of which students failed to meet the requirements for financial aid in the past and deny them aid if they try to receive it again.
Financial aid offices have a wide range of discretion in these policies, said Pauter, whose team has tried to track the different policies in place at California’s public colleges and universities. Every school uses the federal requirement, which is broad. Community colleges must set a GPA that is at or above the standard for graduation (most colleges require a minimum 2.0 to graduate). At four-year institutions, colleges must evaluate the academic progress of students by the end of their second year.
But many schools have added other stipulations as well. UC San Diego requires a 2.6 GPA for students on certain athletic scholarships. Students at Foothill and De Anza community colleges in Santa Clara County must maintain a 2.0 GPA every quarter whereas most community colleges take the average of all grades earned over time. A few California State University campuses offer an even more lenient standard that allows students to earn a lower GPA in their first few years, as long as their senior year grades average a C.
The appeals process isn’t standardized either, Pauter said. Fresno State, for instance, has a list of approved excuses and specifically mentions scenarios that “could have been anticipated” are unacceptable, such as the “need to pay living expenses” and the “need for child care.” At other schools, such as El Camino College in Torrance and Cabrillo College near Santa Cruz, such excuses are allowed.
The University of California, California State University and community college systems stayed neutral on the bill, though all three student associations endorsed and sponsored it.
More aid and fewer death certificates
The bill would ban many of the more punitive policies by preventing California’s colleges and universities from adding more restrictive requirements on top of the federal minimum. It also sets out a list of acceptable excuses for appeals, including but not limited to “homelessness,” “loss of child care,” and “loss or change of employment.”
Of those students who lose their aid each year, it’s unclear how many would be able to keep their financial aid if the bill passes. That’s in part because the bill doesn’t change the requirements for aid; it only loosens them at colleges that have imposed stricter rules, meaning some students will still lack a sufficient GPA to qualify.
It’s also unclear how many students who have lost their aid in the past would regain it. The majority of those students already dropped out, according to the study from John Burton Advocates for Youth. The odds that they ever return are low.
While definitive estimates are elusive, Berman’s office points to the example of Glendale Community College as evidence of the bill’s potential.
“From a policy standpoint,” these additional rules are “unnecessary obstacles.” — Assemblymember Marc Berman, Democrat from Palo Alto
Before Associate Dean Christina Tangalakis arrived at the college in 2018, the financial aid policy required that every student maintain a C average by the end of their first semester. Under the new policy that went into effect in the following years, students now have three semesters to reach an average 2.0 GPA. She estimates that changing this policy and other related requirements enabled the college to reject about 3% fewer financial aid applications — roughly 635 students — in the 2020-2021 academic year.
Previously, the financial aid department only accepted two explanations for a successful appeal: either the student had an illness or injury or they experienced the death of a family member. “I can’t tell you over the years how many death certificates I’ve looked at,” Tangalakis said. “I’ve always thought that was demeaning and overly intrusive.”
She widened the list of acceptable excuses and the following year, she saw more than a four-fold increase in the number of appeals, from 105 students in the 2020-21 academic year to 454 students the following year.
Tangalakis said financial aid departments “wear two hats” — serving students and stewarding the use of public funds. “While we need to do both, the scales are tipped towards a more conservative interpretation of rules,” she said. She felt that mentality didn’t align with the mission of the college, which explicitly focuses on student needs and equity.
“From a policy standpoint,” said Berman, these additional rules are “unnecessary obstacles.” “The goal is for students to graduate.”
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Adam Echelman covers California’s community colleges in partnership with Open Campus, a nonprofit newsroom focused on higher education.
CalMatters.org is a nonprofit, nonpartisan media venture explaining California policies and politics.
