Santa Ana's top news & views blog

Santa Ana's top news & views blog

Category Archives: Santa Ana

Police pursuit of a stolen car ran through Santa Ana and ended in Irvine

Posted on by Posted in Crime, Garden Grove, irvine, Santa Ana Leave a comment

A female driver and her male passenger led police on a wild chase as they drove a stolen vehicle through Garden Grove, Santa Ana and Tustin, eventually ending in Irvine this afternoon when the couple were arrested, according to the O.C. Register.

The police pursuit began in Garden Grove and the SAPD took over at around 3:20 p.m. when the stolen vehicle entered Santa Ana’s city limits.

When the police ran the license plate of the stolen 2004 Toyota Camry they found it was registered out of Santa Ana. Continue reading→

New restaurants now open in Santa Ana

Posted on by Posted in Asians, Food, Restaurants, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Irenia Restaurant, the itinerant Filipino pop-up restaurant by Chef Ryan Garlitos, has opened in the Santa Ana in the space that used to be The North Left (which was itself The Crosby before that), according to the OC Weekly. Irenia is open at 400 N .Broadway, in Downtown Santa Ana.

Garlitos has aspired to open his own restaurant named for and honoring his grandmother’s soulful Filipino cooking. Born and raised in Orange County, he honed his culinary prowess at such renowned and respected local eateries like Slapfish and Taco Maria, according to Irenia’s website. Continue reading→

The Santa Ana City Council won’t terminate their jail’s contract with ICE until 2020

Posted on by Posted in Crime, immigration, LGBT, Santa Ana 1 Comment

Santa Ana City Council members unanimously voted to terminate a contract with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement – but not immediately, as some activists pressured with a hunger strike, according to the O.C. Register.

The Santa Ana City Council directed the City Manager, David Cavazos, to not renew the ICE contract set to expire on June 30, 2020, and not to end it earlier without a viable way to pay off the $24.3 million jail facility debt that ICE dollars are going toward. Continue reading→

The Santa Ana City Council has approved a $1K fine for use and possession of illegal fireworks

Posted on by Posted in Carlos Rojas, Crime, Santa Ana Leave a comment

The Santa Ana City Council unanimously approved a $1,000 fine for the use and possession of illegal fireworks in our city, on the Fourth of July, according to the O.C. Register.

I have to give kudos to Councilman Roman Reyna for overruling the City Staff, which recommended a measly $250 fine. It was Reyna who suggested increasing the fine to $1,000. Continue reading→

The Best Taste of Santa Ana is set for this Saturday in DTSA

Posted on by Posted in Alcohol, Charities, Food, Restaurants, Santa Ana Leave a comment

More than 25 restaurant exhibits will be on hand at the Best Taste of Santa Ana this Saturday, May 21 from 4-7 p.m. at Third and Sycamore Streets.

There will a beer garden, silent auction and music from the band Acoustic Monday. Tickets are $30, adult /$13 child. Click here to buy your tickets. Drinks: Unlimited Wrist Band: $20. Individual Drink ticket: $5. Continue reading→

Pimp convicted of human trafficking and pandering a woman in Santa Ana

Posted on by Posted in Crime, OCDA, Santa Ana Leave a comment

ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY PRESS RELEASE

Case # 15NF1059

15NF2346

Date: May 18, 2016

MAN CONVICTED OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING, PIMPING, AND PANDERING WOMAN AND ATTEMPTED PIMPING OF ANOTHER WOMAN BY THREATENING THE VICTIMS

SANTA ANA, Calif. – A man was convicted yesterday, May 17, 2016, of human trafficking, pimping, and pandering woman, and attempting to pimp another woman by threatening the victims. Johnny Lee Guyton Jr., 46, Henderson, Nevada, was found guilty by a jury of one felony count of human trafficking, one felony count of pimping, two felony counts of pandering, and one felony count of attempted pimping. Guyton faces a maximum sentence of 21 years and four months in state prison at his sentencing on June 9, 2016, at 1:30 p.m. in Department C-37, Central Justice Center, Santa Ana.

On April 21, 2015, Guyton was charged in case 15NF1059 with two felony counts of human trafficking, two felony counts of pimping, two felony counts of pandering. This case was subsequently consolidated with case 15NF2346. Continue reading→

Suspect stabbed his roommate at the Fairview Mobile Home Estates and is on the run

Posted on by Posted in Crime, Santa Ana Leave a comment

In case you are wondering why Santa Ana’s Lincoln Elementary School was locked down today, here are the details. An unidentified man apparently stabbed another man in his 30’s this morning in what police described as a dispute between roommates, according to the OC Register.

The SAPD responded to a call about the stabbing this morning at around 10:40 a.m., at the Fairview Mobile Home Estates on S. Sullivan Street, according to the SAPD. Continue reading→

Lincoln Elementary School on lockout for police related activity in the area

Posted on by Posted in Crime, Education, Santa Ana, SAUSD Leave a comment

Santa Ana School Police Department

Advisory: Lincoln Elementary School on Lockout for police related activity in the area. School Police on scene.

UPDATE: The Lockout has been lifted at Lincoln Elementary School.

As a precautionary measure only, Lincoln Elementary School is being placed on a “Lockout” for a police related matter in the area. There is no threat to the students or staff. Continue reading→

SCE to hold a briefing about residential customer rate changes, on 5/18

Posted on by Posted in Energy, Santa Ana 1 Comment

SCE to Hold Briefing About Residential Customer Rate Changes

WHAT: Southern California Edison will hold a briefing to explain changes to residential customer bills. A rates expert will explain the key reasons for the changes.

WHEN: Presentation from 10-10:30 a.m., May 18. Continue reading→

Santa Ana Latino Education Center to host local debut novelist on May 21

Posted on by Posted in Education, Literature, Santa Ana, Women Leave a comment

Spies at an Orange County Middle School

Santa Ana Latino Education Center to Host Local Debut Novelist May 21

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 17, 2016

Media contact: btiritilli@yahoo.com; 714-292-2899; or 714-973-7900

Santa Ana’s newly renamed Centro Comunitario de Educación (formerly Libreria Martinez) will host the author of Spy in the Teachers’ Lounge at a book-signing and fundraising event Sat., May 21 from 6-8 p.m.

A Santa Ana barrio provides the backdrop for author Béa Tomaselli Tiritilli’s young-adult novel. The book’s protagonist is Rosie Fernandez, who escapes bullies at her middle school by finding a hiding spot at lunchtime—under the teachers’ lounge window. Although Rosie has plenty of challenges and drama at school and at the home she shares with her abuelita and nearly destitute parents, she soon learns her teachers face a crazy mix of predicaments in their own lives. The conversations Rosie overhears in the lounge are surprising and sometimes shocking: teachers’ suspicions that the assistant principal is drinking on the job; woes in teachers’ romantic lives; and much more. When Rosie shares her teachers’ secrets with her new friend Dominique Nguyen, Dominique’s inability to keep quiet creates a complex blend of chaos and comedy. Continue reading→

Santa Ana woman missing since May 7

Posted on by Posted in Public Safety, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Santa Ana Police Department

Advisory: SAPD DETECTIVES REQUESTS PUBLIC’S ASSISTANCE IN LOCATING MISSING PERSON

Name: Claudia Lisseth Sanchez Reyes
DOB: 6/12/1994
Description: Female/Hispanic, 5’05”/160, Black eyes/Brown hair Location last seen 2015 N. Bush, Santa Ana

Claudia Reyes was last seen with her husband on or about May 6, 2016. Her husband last spoke to her on May 7, 2016 at 10:45 pm. Continue reading→

Man who may have been drunk struck by a vehicle while crossing S. Harbor Blvd.

Posted on by Posted in Accidents, Alcohol, Santa Ana Leave a comment

An unidentified man in his 40s was hospitalized Monday night after he was struck by a driver while he was illegally crossing a major street, according to the O.C. Register.

The incident happened at around 9:30 p.m.,when a pedestrian walked in front of a vehicle from the left side, as the driver of that vehicle was heading southbound in the 200 block of South Harbor Blvd., according to the SAPD.

The pedestrian appears to have been struck by the vehicle as he was walking across Harbor Blvd., mid-block from west to east outside of any crosswalk. Continue reading→

Why Santa Ana’s Ofelia Velarde-Garcia is challenging Tom Daly in the June Primary Election

Posted on by Posted in 2016 Elections, Ofelia Velarde-Garcia, Politics, Republican Party, Santa Ana, Tom Daly Leave a comment

There are a lot of good reasons not to vote for Assemblyman Tom Daly, the corporate Democrat who represents Santa Ana in the 69th Assembly District. For example when he was the Mayor of Anaheim, Daly attacked the poor residents of that city’s motels. He also tried to stop a Mexican Supermarket from opening in Anaheim. Later, as the OC Clerk-Recorder, Daly made one bad decision after another, wasting taxpayer money on questionable purchases and hiring his useless cronies, such as Jordan Brandman.

Daly is being opposed in the upcoming June Primary Election by Ofelia Velarde-Garcia, a graduate of Valley High School in Santa Ana. Velarde-Garcia enlisted in the United States Marine Corps, receiving an Honorable Medical Discharge. Continue reading→

SAUSD Music Festival set for this Saturday

Posted on by Posted in Education, music, Santa Ana, SAUSD, Youth Activities Leave a comment

City of Santa Ana, Downtown Orange County

Community: SAUSD Music Festival this Saturday, May 21st!

Spend a warm sunny afternoon enjoying the musical sounds from our talented students at the first SAUSD Musical Festival, to be held May 21, 2016, at Memorial Park from 2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. Memorial Park is located at Flower and Anahurst, in Santa Ana.

This is a free event open to all residents of Santa Ana. It will be a day to relax, enjoy a picnic, and listen to some of the best musical groups in the Santa Ana Unified School District. Food trucks will be available with a variety of selections. Guests can enjoy the concert in their lawn chairs. Continue reading→

Santa Ana bookkeeper and her boss charged with $1.5M tax evasion and insurance fraud

Posted on by Posted in Crime, irvine, OCDA, Santa Ana Leave a comment

ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY PRESS RELEASE

Case # 15CF2382

Date: May 13, 2016

BUSINESS OWNER AND HIS BOOKKEEPER ARRAIGNED ON CHARGES OF $1.5 MILLION TAX EVASION AND INSURANCE FRAUD SCHEME

SANTA ANA, Calif. – A business owner and his bookkeeper were arraigned today on charges of $1.5 million tax evasion and an insurance fraud scheme. Ronald Scott Dee, 63, Irvine, and Pamela Palmer Quast, 61, Santa Ana, are each charged with 28 felony counts of failing to file a return with intent to evade tax, 28 felony counts of willful failure to pay tax, 24 felony counts of willful failure to pay disability insurance deductions, six felony counts of misrepresenting facts to workers’ compensation insurance company, and sentencing enhancement allegations for committing a theft exceeding $100,000. Dee is also charged with two felony counts of willful failure to file or make fraudulent tax returns. If convicted, Dee faces a maximum sentence of 64 years and eight months in state prison and Quast faces a maximum sentence of 63 years and four months in state prison. They are out of custody on $350,000 bail and are scheduled for a pre-trial hearing on Aug. 17, 2016, at 8:30 a.m. in Department C-55, Central Justice Center, Santa Ana. Continue reading→