New Santa Ana | Tag Archives: Santa Ana

Young boy molested at a Jerome Park bathroom during a birthday party

Posted on May 24, 2016 by Art Pedroza Posted in Crime, Parks and Recreation, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Advisory: SAPD Detectives Requesting Assistance Identifying Sexual Assault Suspect

On Sunday, May 22, 2016, at about 4:25 in the afternoon, a 9-year-old boy was with his mother, attending a birthday party at Jerome Park, 726 S. Center Street, Santa Ana. The boy went into the public bathroom at the park. Shortly after entering the bathroom, a male entered the same bathroom. The suspect had a short conversation with the victim in Spanish before the suspect touched the victim’s genitals. The suspect then fled the bathroom.

The victim said the suspect was a male, 25-35 years old, had short hair, a thin mustache and was wearing a white t-shirt and blue pants. The victim does not know the suspect and has not seen him in the past. Continue reading→

Santa Ana man convicted of 1995 cold case kidnapping and stabbing-murder of Gonzalo Ramirez

Posted on May 23, 2016 by Art Pedroza Posted in Crime, OCDA, Santa Ana Leave a comment

ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY PRESS RELEASE

Case # 13ZF0162/12CF3070

Date: May 23, 2016

MAN CONVICTED OF 1995 COLD CASE KIDNAPPING AND STABBING-MURDER OF MAN

SANTA ANA, Calif. – A man was convicted today for his role in the 1995 cold case kidnapping and stabbing-murder of a man. Shannon Ray Gries, 45, Santa Ana, pleaded guilty today, May 23, 2016, to one count of felony-murder for murder during the commission of kidnapping.

Co-defendant Diane Tran, 47, Costa Mesa, pleaded guilty on Jan. 24, 2014, to one felony count of voluntary manslaughter with a sentencing enhancement for being armed with a firearm in the commission of a felony. Continue reading→

Man sentenced for pimping a woman in Santa Ana and taking her payments

Posted on May 21, 2016 by Art Pedroza Posted in Crime, OCDA, Santa Ana Leave a comment

ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY PRESS RELEASE

Case # 15CF2459

Date: May 20, 2016

MAN SENTENCED FOR PIMPING AND PANDERING WOMAN AND KEEPING ALL THE MONEY SHE RECEIVED FROM COMMERICAL SEX ACTS

SANTA ANA, Calif. – A man was sentenced yesterday for the pimping and pandering of a woman and keeping all of the money that she had received from commercial sex acts. Korry Lyn Williams, 26, Hemet, pleaded guilty yesterday, May 20, 2016, to one felony count of pimping and one felony count of pandering. Williams was sentenced to six years in state prison stayed pending the completion of 412 days in jail, four years of formal probation, and was ordered to pay restitution.

Circumstances of the Case

Williams is a pimp who exploits women for financial gain. The victims are often required to turn over all payment they receive for sex acts from sex purchasers to their pimp. Continue reading→

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

Posted on May 20, 2016 by Art Pedroza 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 May 19, 2016 by Art Pedroza 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 May 18, 2016 by Art Pedroza 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 May 18, 2016 by Art Pedroza 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→

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

Posted on May 18, 2016 by Art Pedroza 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 May 18, 2016 by Art Pedroza 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→

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

Posted on May 17, 2016 by Art Pedroza 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 May 17, 2016 by Art Pedroza 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→

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

Posted on May 16, 2016 by Art Pedroza 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→

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

Posted on May 15, 2016 by Art Pedroza 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→

Santa Ana June, 2016 Voter Guide

Posted on May 14, 2016 by Art Pedroza Posted in 2016 Elections, Democratic Party, Orange County, Politics, Republican Party, Santa Ana 10 Comments

Are you ready for the upcoming June, 2016 Primary Election? Here is our Voter Guide for Santa Ana voters:

46th Congressional District

The incumbent, Loretta Sanchez, has decided to vacate her House seat as she tries to move up to the U.S. Senate. There are a lot of candidates vying to replace her. If you like corporate Democrats then Lou Correa should be your pick. We like the more progressive Garden Grove Mayor Bao Nguyen. We greatly dislike former State Senator turned lobbyist Joe Dunn, who once tried to move the U.S. Federal Court of Appeals out of Santa Ana – to Irvine. If you are a Republican then your best pick is Lynn Schott, an Irvine City Council Member who grew up in Santa Ana (her family still lives here).

U.S. Senate

No Republican has a chance of victory in this race to replace the retiring Senator from San Francisco, Barbara Boxer. While Loretta Sanchez has her bad moments we are endorsing her rather than her main opponent, Kamala Harris, because Harris is yet another Bay Area politician. It is about time that Southern California was represented in the U.S. Senate! Continue reading→

Poll – should Santa Ana spend $2.5M to help Mater Dei’s expansion?

Posted on May 14, 2016 by Art Pedroza Posted in Churches and Religion, Education, Politics, Santa Ana 15 Comments

The City of Santa Ana has spent a fortune over the years accommodating the requests of Mater Dei High School, a private Catholic school. Now Mater Dei is asking for more city funding, to the tune of $2.5 million dollars, to come out of our city’s beleaguered General Fund, to help them as they go about building a new parking structure and a 30K sq. ft. academic building. They are asking the City to pay for construction and engineering work associated with the removal/realignment of several streets where homes have been acquired by Mater Dei High School, to expand their campus.

Is this an appropriate expenditure for our City? Consider that Mater Dei is a private, not public school. While they do give out scholarships to low income students, the reality is that many of Mater Dei’s students don’t live in our city and quite a few of them come from high income families. Continue reading→