Santa Ana's top news & views blog

Santa Ana's top news & views blog

Category Archives: Santa Ana

MainPlace Mall shopper arrested after leaving her toddler in an unattended vehicle

Posted on by Posted in Anaheim, Crime, Santa Ana 2 Comments

Santa Ana Police Department

Advisory: SAPD Officers Arrest Mother For Leaving 4 Year Old Child In Unattended Vehicle At Mall While She Shops

Arrested: Arica Jenee Ayala (27) Anaheim

At approximately 8:30 pm, officers responded to a parking lot located at the Main Place Mall, 2800 block of North Main Street, regarding a child left unattended inside a vehicle. A witness advised the involved vehicle arrived at approximately 7:50 pm.

Officers found a 4 year-old male sitting in a car seat, crying and screaming. The doors to the vehicle had been left unlocked. The child told officers his mother left him alone in the car. Mall security made announcements over their P.A. system and officers checked the registered owner’s address in Anaheim and were unable to locate anyone. Continue reading→

Santa Ana’s Arts Future Community Engagement Week set for Jan. 27-30

Posted on by Posted in Arts and Culture, Civic Affairs, Santa Ana Leave a comment

City of Santa Ana, Downtown Orange County

Community: Santa Ana Arts Future Community Engagement Week, January 27th – 30th

We need your voice! The City of Santa Ana wants to know what you love about your community and what you want to see more of locally. Your insight will assist in the development of the Santa Ana Arts Master Plan, a comprehensive plan to strengthen arts and culture for all of those who live, work, or play in Santa Ana. The City will be holding a Community Engagement Week which will have a kick-off town hall meeting and discussion groups to gather your input on Monday, January 27th from 6:30 – 8:30 PM at Santa Ana College’s Phillips Hall Theater (1530 W. 17th Street, Santa Ana, CA).

Visit www.santa-ana.org/cda/acmp.asp for a schedule of events and more information. Continue reading→

Sup. Andrew Do seeks public’s input on changes to the CalOptima Board

Posted on by Posted in Andrew Do, Caloptima, Health and Medical, Orange County, Politics, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Sup. Andrew Do Seeks Public’s Input on Changes to CalOptima Board

Proposal Will Be Considered at January 26 Board of Supervisors meeting

(Santa Ana, California)— Orange County Supervisor Andrew Do is seeking the public’s input on proposed changes to the management structure of CalOptima, the county’s health care system for low-income children, adults, seniors and people with disabilities.

At its January 26 meeting, the Orange County Board of Supervisors is scheduled to consider changes designed to ensure proper oversight and management of the $3.2 billion health care program. Continue reading→

Community policing forum set for Jan. 30 at Godinez Fundamental H.S.

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

PRESS RELEASE, FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 15, 2016

Contact: Chris Schmidt, West End Community Oriented Policing, westendcop1@gmail.com; Connie Hamilton, Connect-to-Council, 714-745-1692

West End Community Oriented Policing to present Community Policing Forums for Santa Ana residents

Santa Ana, CA, –West End Community Oriented Policing, along with Connect-to-Council and Windsor Village Neighborhood Association, will present a Community Policing forum for the residents of Santa Ana. This forum will offer residents the opportunity to provide their input and assist in creating a community policing plan for Santa Ana. There will be a forum in each of the four policing districts (South Coast, West End, North East, and South East) in Santa Ana from January through April, with the first to be held on January 30, 2016. Continue reading→

A man was shot by an SAPD police officer on North Parton St. last night

Posted on by Posted in Crime, Gangs, Roman Reyna, Santa Ana Leave a comment

We reported last night about a drive by shooting that wounded a man in his 20s at the 1000 block of North Parton. Our readers indicated that there was a second man injured as well. Today we know the details about that second victim.

It turns out the second man was shot by an SAPD police officer, according to the O.C. Register. The police have not indicated yet if the second shooting was related to the first one. Continue reading→

Another drive-by shooting in Santa Ana reported tonight on N. Parton St.

Posted on by Posted in Crime, Gangs, Roman Reyna, Santa Ana 7 Comments

A man in his early 20s was shot in the upper body tonight at around 7:20 p.m. at the 1000 block of North Parton St., according to the O.C. Register.

Igmar Rodas, a local community activist and photographer, told us that this was a drive-by shooting.  He also reported that two suspects are in custody. Witnesses he spoke to said that there was a second victim that was seen laying on the street.

The SAPD did not report any details. SAPD police officers were only told that people had heard shots in their neighborhood. Continue reading→

Free tax preparation for those who earned less than $60,000 in 2015

Posted on by Posted in Orange County, Santa Ana, Taxes Leave a comment

If you earned less than $60,000 in 2015 you can file your state and federal taxes for free this year at MyFreeTaxes.com, which is part of the United Way. You can save over $2,000 on your tax refund.

H&R Block is providing the filing software for all MyFreeTaxes returns. Once you login, you should see the MyFreeTaxes logo in the top left-hand corner throughout the filing process to receive free filing. Continue reading→

A Playground for cucarachas?

Posted on by Posted in Food, Health and Medical, Jason Quinn, Restaurants, Santa Ana 13 Comments

I wrote about Downtown Santa Ana’s upscale hipster restaurant, The Playground, back in January of 2013. At the time their owner, former food truck chef Jason Quinn, was flaming customers on Yelp and his restaurant had been dinged by the Orange County Health Agency for all sorts of hygiene issues.

Well it has been a while since I last scrutinized The Playground but guess what?  Nothing has changed – they are still a mess and many of their patrons are still ripping them on Yelp. And Quinn is still flaming them in response.

Let’s take a look at The Playground’s most recent health inspection, on September 3, 2015. It did not go well. Here are the violations they were issued: Continue reading→

It was another bloody week in Santa Ana with 31 weapon-related crimes

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It was another bloody week in Santa Ana with 31 crimes involving weapons, from January 11 to January 15, 2016, according to CrimeMapping. Nine of these crimes involved “Assaults with a Deadly Weapon” and six were “Disturbing the Peace/Fight” incidents involving weapons.

Here is a complete breakdown of these crimes, including the locations and dates/times: Continue reading→

Man charged with pimping and pandering a woman in Santa Ana

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ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY PRESS RELEASE

Date: January 15, 2016

Case # 15CF2734, 13CF3365

MAN CHARGED FOR PIMPING AND PANDERING WOMAN IN SANTA ANA

SANTA ANA, Calif. – A man has been charged for pimping and pandering a woman in Santa Ana. Jermyn Jeraldo Logie, 40, Los Angeles, is charged with one felony count of pimping and one felony count of pandering with a sentencing enhancement for crime-bail-crime. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of eight years in state prison. He is out of custody on $35,000 bail. The scheduled arraignment yesterday was continued in court to Feb. 4, 2016, at 8:30 a.m. in Department C-55, Central Jail Santa Ana.

Co-defendant Jeremy Monte Daniels is charged with one felony count of pimping and one felony count of pandering. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of six years in state prison. Daniels is out of custody on $35,000 bail and is scheduled for pre-trial at 8:30 a.m. in Department C-5, Central Justice Center, Santa Ana. Continue reading→

SAPD DUI checkpoint set for tonight

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

Santa Ana Police Department

Advisory: SAPD conducting DUI/Drivers License checkpoint Fri, January 15th, 9:00PM to 3:00AM, 500 W. Warner Avenue

SANTA ANA POLICE STEP UP DUI ENFORCEMENT

The Santa Ana Police Department will be conducting a DUI/Drivers License checkpoint on Friday, January 15th, 2016. It will begin at 9:00PM and is scheduled to conclude at 3:00AM. It will be conducted in the area of 500 W. Warner Avenue, 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→

Discovery Cube to host 10th Annual Kid’s Summer Jamboree event

Posted on by Posted in Education, Family, Santa Ana, Science, Youth Activities Leave a comment

The 10th Annual Jamboree — Get Cubed or Be Square

SANTA ANA, CA (January 14, 2016) – Parenting OC magazine has partnered with Discovery Cube in Santa Ana to present the 10th Anniversary Edition of the Kids’ Summer Opportunities Jamboree event, to take place on March 5, 2016 at the iconic Orange County family destination. Discovery Cube, which expanded this past summer, doubling in size, and adding among other attractions, the 10,000 square-foot Julianne Argyros Showcase Theater, is the leading hands-on science center for families in Southern California. On the day of the Jamboree event, which is free to attend, the Center is also offering free childrens’ passes for admittance to the Cube.

“We wanted to do something big and exciting for our 10th annual Jamboree,” said Parenting OC Media President Randall Tierney, regarding the choice to hold the event at the Cube. “It doesn’t get any bigger than this.” Continue reading→

Santa Ana transient originally sentenced to death resentenced to life in prison

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

ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY PRESS RELEASE

Case # C-57572

Date: January 14, 2016

INMATE PREVIOUSLY SENTENCED TO DEATH TO BE RESENTENCED TO LIFE IN PRISON WITHOUT POSSIBILITY OF PAROLE

SANTA ANA, Calif. – An inmate who was previously sentenced to receive the death penalty will be brought back to Orange County at the request of the Orange County District Attorney (OCDA) to be resentenced to life in state prison without the possibility of parole. Kenneth Clair, 55, housed in San Quentin State Prison, was found guilty by a jury in 1987, of one felony count of special circumstances murder during the commission of a burglary, two felony counts of burglary, and a sentencing enhancement for a prior prison conviction for a 1976 armed robbery in Louisiana was found true. Clair was also sentenced to receive the death penalty in 1987. Clair is expected to be in court for a resentencing hearing on Feb. 19, 2016, at 9:00 a.m. in Department C-45, Central Justice Center, Santa Ana. Continue reading→

The OCDA has cleared an SAPD policeman who killed a suspect with six gunshots

Posted on by Posted in Crime, mexico, OCDA, Santa Ana 5 Comments

Re: Officer-Involved Shooting on Feb. 27, 2015 

Fatal Incident involving Ernesto Canepa

District Attorney Investigations Case # S.A. 15-003

Dear Chief Rojas,

Please accept this letter detailing the Orange County District Attorney’s (OCDA) Office’s investigation and legal conclusion in connection with the above-listed incident involving on-duty Santa Ana Police Department (SAPD) Officer Christopher Shynn, Ernesto Canepa, 27, died as a result of his injuries. The incident occurred in the City of Santa Ana On Feb. 27, 2015.

OVERVIEW This letter contains a description of the scope and the legal conclusions resulting from the OCDA’s investigation of the Feb. 27, 2015, fatal officer-involved shooting of Canepa. The letter includes an Overview of the OCDA’s investigative methodology and procedures employed, as Well as a description of the relevant evidence examined, witnesses interviewed, factual findings, and legal principles applied in analyzing the incident and determining Whether there was criminal Culpability on the part of the SAPD officer involved in the shooting. The format of this document was developed by the OCDA, at the request of many Orange County police agencies, to foster greater accountability and transparency in law enforcement. Continue reading→

O.C. Mexican Mafia leader Peter Ojeda convicted again and is facing life in prison

Posted on by Posted in Alfredo Amezcua, Crime, Santa Ana 3 Comments

Peter Ojeda, the head of an Orange County wing of the Mexican Mafia, and his former girlfriend, Suzie Rodriguez,  have been convicted of racketeering, conspiracy to commit murder and assault with serious bodily injury, as well as extortion and narcotics trafficking, by a federal jury in Santa Ana, after two days of deliberations, according to the Sacramento Bee.

Both Ojeda and Rodriguez are facing life sentences. Rodriguez was out on bond but will be returned to jail. Ojeda, who is 73-years-old, was due to be released from a 14-year federal prison term for racketeering in 2016 or 2017, with good behavior, according to ABC News. He will never be free again. Continue reading→