I wonder how the SAUSD’s PR staff will spin this one? Apparently 11 students at McFadden Intermediate School were rushed to a local hospital today after they were found to be under the influence of an unknown substance, according to the O.C. Register.
The SAUSD later admitted that the students had taken a prescription drug – Xanax, that one of the students brought to school. Xanax affects chemicals in the brain that may be unbalanced in people with anxiety. Continue reading
Santa Ana Police Department
SANTA ANA POLICE STEP UP DUI ENFORCEMENT
The Santa Ana Police Department will be conducting a DUI / Drivers License checkpoint on Friday, May 12th, 2017. It will begin at 9:30 p.m. and is scheduled to conclude at 2:30 a.m. It will be conducted in the area of 1500 E. McFadden Ave., in the City of Santa Ana.
The primary purpose of a DUI Checkpoint is to deter impaired driving, not to increase arrests. All too often, members of our community are senselessly injured or killed on local roadways by impaired drivers. This DUI / Drivers License checkpoint is an effort to reduce those tragedies, as well as ensuring drivers have a valid driver’s license. The DMV reports that unlicensed drivers are 4.9 times more likely to cause a fatal crash than a licensed driver. Continue reading
NEWS RELEASE, FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 1, 2017
Contact: Becky Iannotta, MADD 202.600.2032; becky.iannotta@madd.org
Drunk Driving is Still the Biggest Killer on Our Roads
Drug Impaired Driving a growing problem, but still much to learn
WASHINGTON, D.C. (May 1, 2017) — In response to recent reports regarding an increase in drug impaired driving, Mothers Against Drunk Driving wants to remind the public that drunk driving is still the biggest cause of traffic deaths and injuries in the nation.
The Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) released an update last week to its 2015 drug impaired driving report. As a result, some media coverage has suggested that drugged driving has overtaken drunk driving in terms of traffic fatalities. Continue reading
Orange County Drug and Alcohol Overdose Deaths on the Rise
The Orange County Health Care Agency (HCA) released the “Drug and Alcohol Morbidity and Mortality in Orange County” report that provides a summary of the leading causes of substance-related overdoses in Orange County. Compiled in collaboration with the Orange County Sheriff-Coroner division, the report found that the overall rate of drug/alcohol overdose deaths in the county increased by 82% since 2000.
Key findings include: Continue reading
Daisyland Eviction Notice
Last year we reported how an illegal marijuana dispensary called the Sanctuary was operating on the property at 2531 S. Main St. The property and building are owned by Daisy Sarmiento who is the sister of City Council Member Vincent Sarmiento.
On April 4th, the OC Sheriff issued an eviction notice to the operator of the Sanctuary a person by the name of Irfan John Nazarzai who was formerly an Account Manager for Weedmaps. The Plantiff on the eviction is listed as Daisyland Corp. which Daisy Sarmiento is the owner of. A quick search on Facebook shows that Nazarzai and Daisy Sarmiento are friends. Continue reading
An SAPD police officer who was attempting to stop a SUV Thursday morning for a traffic violation prompted a pursuit that led to a collision before the driver was arrested at the 1400 block of South Maple Street, according to the O.C. Register.
The police pursuit which started at about 8 a.m., ended when the suspect’s vehicle hit a fire hydrant and parked cars on South Maple. Continue reading
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, February 27, 2017
Attorney General Announces Crime Reduction and Public Safety Task Force
Attorney General Jeff Sessions today announced the formation of the U.S. Department of Justice Task Force on Crime Reduction and Public Safety
The Task Force was formed pursuant to the President’s Executive Order on a Task Force on Crime Reduction and Public Safety and will be chaired by the Deputy Attorney General. Task Force members will be drawn from relevant Department components, and will include the Director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Director of the FBI and the Director of the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS). Continue reading
ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY NEWS RELEASE
Case # 15CF2502
Date: February 22, 2017
SANTA ANA, Calif. – A driver under the influence of narcotics was convicted and sentenced to 15 years in state prison yesterday for hit-and-run crash that killed a pedestrian sitting on a sidewalk. Ramon Horta, 56, Santa Ana, pleaded guilty to one felony count of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence while intoxicated with a sentencing enhancement for fleeing the scene of the crime. The defendant was also ordered to pay restitution and his driver’s license was suspended for three years.
At approximately 1:10 p.m. on Nov. 3, 2015, Horta drove a van while under the influence of narcotics, traveling at approximately 30 mph while approaching the intersection of McFadden Avenue and Cedar Street in Santa Ana. The defendant slowly veered the van to his right and drove over a curb onto the sidewalk. The defendant hit and ran over 24-year-old Marcello Bisarello, who was sitting on the sidewalk. Continue reading
The family of Jamie De Castilla Campos, an 18-year old alleged Santa Ana gang member who was shot and killed in a homicide incident that occurred at around 10:40 p.m. last Sunday in an alley in the 600 block of East Pine Street, is trying to raise the money needed to pay for his funeral.
The SAPD suspects that Campos was killed during a botched drug deal. Continue reading
SAPD Police Pursuit in DTSA
An unidentified man lead SAPD police officers on a brief pursuit this morning before he crashed into two cars and was finally arrested, according to the O.C. Register.
The SAPD received calls about the man being passed out in a Toyota Prius that was parked but left running, at around 8 a.m. on Flower Street. The callers thought the guy might have been drunk. Continue reading
When I started this blog back in 2009 I was hopeful that Santa Ana was at last heading in the right direction. Now, in 2017, things seem darker than ever. There are daily shootings and stabbings – and if you did not notice these are now happening in broad daylight. The gangbangers have become utterly fearless – and drive by shootings have once again become the norm in our city.
We can point fingers all day long but that won’t change anything. The fact is many good people in our city are now wondering if Santa Ana has sunk too low. Women are being run over and killed in our city for crying out loud! It is just too horrible to even begin to comprehend.
How did we end up in such a fix? Continue reading
Arrested:
Santa Ana Police Department
Advisory: SANTA ANA POLICE DEPARTMENT SERVES SEARCH WARRANTS ON ILLEGAL MARIJUANA DISPENSARIES
During the morning hours of Thursday, January 26, 2017, Police Detectives assigned to the Santa Ana Police Department’s Vice and Narcotics Unit served search warrants at Sky High Dispensary located at 419 W. Seventeenth Street and the Elevated Dreams dispensary located at 413 W. Seventeenth Street in the City of Santa Ana. Detectives were assisted by members of the Santa Ana Code Enforcement and Planning & Building departments, as well as representatives of the Orange County Fire Authority.
Since December 2013, in response to numerous complaints from surrounding homeowners, businesses, and community groups, the City has employed a variety of administrative, civil, and criminal enforcement measures against numerous dispensaries, their owner/operators, and property owners, including those associated with Sky High and Elevated Dreams dispensaries. Specifically, criminal charges have been filed against the property owner for allowing these illegal businesses to continue to operate on his property. Despite these efforts, both dispensaries have continued to operate. Sky High and Elevated Dreams dispensaries are located adjacent to the Floral Park, Morrison Park, and West Floral residential communities and are located less than a mile from Willard Intermediate School, a charter school and a pre-school. Continue reading
Hector Maldonado Ibarra, 29, was arrested on Tuesday morning on suspicion of being a serial shoplifter – repeatedly terrorizing retailers and their employees in at least eight Orange County cities for about a year by brandishing a replica gun and swiping high-end merchandise – to feed a heroin addiction, according to the O.C. Register.
SAPD police officers found and arrested Ibarra after they served a search warrant at his Santa Ana home, where they also found thousands of dollars worth of merchandise and drug paraphernalia, according to the SAPD. The stolen and recovered items included Gucci and Michael Kors handbags as well as children’s clothing and perfumes. Continue reading
ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY NEWS RELEASE
Case # 16CF3123
Date: December 13, 2016
DRUNKEN DRIVER CHARGED WITH CRASHING INTO POLICE OFFICER WHO WAS STANDING BEHIND PATROL VEHICLE
SANTA ANA, Calif. – A drunken driver was charged today with crashing into a police officer who was standing behind his patrol vehicle on a residential street. Ashley Victoria Bertolino, 27, Tustin, is charged with one felony count of driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs causing bodily injury, one felony count of driving under the influence of alcohol causing bodily injury, and one felony count of driving with a blood alcohol level of .08% or more causing bodily injury, with sentencing enhancements for inflicting great bodily injury. If convicted, she faces a maximum sentence of six years in state prison. The defendant is scheduled for a continued arraignment on Jan. 6, 2017, in Department CJ-1, Central Jail, Santa Ana. Continue reading