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Listen To Your News		Tuesday, August 11, 2009		News Archive

David Jones

ANOTHER VICTIM, MORE CHILD SEX CHARGES FOR DAVID JONES A 5th victim has been identified and additional charges have been levied against former School Board Member and past Morongo Basin Time Warner Cable General Manager David Jones. Deputy District Attorney Kristen Caine said that a new charge of Continued Sexual Abuse of a Child, and possession of child pornography have been filed against Jones. Jones will be arraigned on the new charges Wednesday. Caine said that a 5th victim has been identified, adding to the four children that were part of the original charges filed in February 2008. Jones, 60, was placed under arrest February 13 after search warrants were served as part of a week-long investigation into the child sex abuse claims. Jones was originally charged with 4 counts of lewd acts with a child under 14, along with special allegations, victims under the age of 14 and multiple victims. With the new charges Jones faces 84 years to life if convicted on all counts. David Jones is being held in the West Valley Detention Center with bail set at $900,000.

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DYNAMITE FOUND AND DETONATED IN YUCCA VALLEY
A large boulder, remnants from building State Route 247, was blown up yesterday by sheriffs arson and bomb, after wires were seen sticking out a drilled hole in the rock. Around 3:12 Monday workers were clearing a pad in the 6100 block of Mandarin Road. The crew had moved a huge boulder with heavy equipment as part of a retaining wall. After moving the boulder, workers noted a one and one half-inch hole drilled into the rock with yellow and orange wires sticking out. Sheriffs arson and bomb was called in, cleared the area and blasted the bolder in place at 3:35. Based on the blast, Arson and Bomb technicians believe a full stick of dynamite had been left in the boulder.

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13,000 MARIJUANA PLANTS FOUND NEAR WHITEWATER
More than 13,000 marijuana plants worth an estimated $45 million were found growing in the Whitewater area early Monday morning. Sixteen Riverside County Sheriff’s officers flew in by helicopter to the rugged hillside north of Interstate 10 off of Haugen-Leman Way and pulled out the plants. In Stubbe Canyon, 5,622 plants were found, and in Cottonwood Canyon, 7,447 were found. Riverside County sheriff's said the street value is about $3,500 per plant. No arrests were made. It appeared the growers recently abandoned the area. "We were notified by a homeowner that their water from the creek had greatly diminished, almost to a trickle," an investigator said. "We discovered there were subjects up there growing marijuana and stealing the water." Officers discovered that growers built five dams to poach the water from a nearby running creek. The marijuana plants were easily accessible.

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From left to right: Dennis McKoy Shannon Goodpaster, Margo Sturges, Robert Lombardo and Dawn Rowe

YUCCA VALLEY PLANNING COMMISSION LOOKS AT FARMER’S MARKET PERMIT, NATIVE PLANTS, TONIGHT The Yucca Valley Planning Commission meets tonight. A permit for a farmer’s market and the native plant ordinance are on the docket. Reporter Tami Roleff takes a closer look ------ At tonight’s meeting of the Yucca Valley Planning Commission, the commission will be asked to approve a temporary special event permit for a new farmer’s market in Old Town near Pioneertown Road. The commissioners will then discuss the revised desert native plant protection and management ordinance. Tonight’s Planning Commission meeting will be held at 7 p.m. in the Yucca Room of the community center.

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250 MARINES AND SAILORS RETURNING HOME TODAY
More than 250 Twentynine Palms-based Marines and sailors are scheduled to return home today. Military officials said the 257 members of the armed forces are with the 1st Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment. They were deployed in February to Iraq. The time of their arrival has been delayed until late night, so we will not be able to meet the busses at the top of the Morongo Grade. Welcome home.

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Deputy Chief Dan Wurl Fire Chief Pat Dennen

TWO TOP COUNTY FIRE OFFICIALS ACCUSED OF USING SECURITY TRAILER San Bernardino County's two top fire officials are being investigated for allegedly using a trailer equipped to fight terrorism to move personal belongings, county sources say. The Board of Supervisors will discuss the investigation in a closed session today. The investigation found that Deputy Chief Dan Wurl had used the trailer to move from his home in Running Springs to Yucaipa and Fire Chief Pat Dennen helped him while on county time. The double-axle trailer was purchased for about $30,000 to respond to large-scale chemical or biological attacks. It is filled with thousands of dollars worth of equipment. The two had other on-duty fire personnel empty the trailer of the equipment so Wurl could use it. As a result of the investigation, county administrators discovered both Wurl and Dennen regularly used county vehicles despite collecting $1,000-a-month car allowances, according to the sources.

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HI-DESERT WATER DISTRICT CITIZENS ADVISORS GET SEWAGE PLANT UPDATE TONIGHT
The Hi-Desert Water District Citizen’s Advisory Committee will get an update on the Yucca Valley Sewage Treatment System tonight. Managing Editor Karl Gardner outlines the meeting -----
An update on the recently passed environmental and monitoring plan for the Yucca Valley Sewage Treatment Plant, is first up at this evenings’ Hi-Desert Water Wastewater Public Advisory Committee meeting, being held at District Offices on the Highway at Inca, starting at 6. Next the committee will view a video of Regional Water Quality Control Board ombudsman Jose Angel’s presentation at the July 15th board meeting. An item only identified as "Subcommittees", roundtable comments and setting a date for the next committee meeting, closes out the remainder of the agenda.

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MORONGO BASIN UNITY HOME GETS SEVERE FUNDING CUT
Morongo Basin Unity Home has received word that its budget will be cut by more than 25%, some $207,000, due to the state budget crisis, and this is the first round of cuts, there may be more to come. Spokeswoman Marrieta Cowen said last years cuts already left Unity Home’s budget threadbare. She said three full time staff positions and four part time staff positions will be eliminated. Cowan said, "We hope our supporters in the community will shop at our newly opened thrift store in Joshua Tree". If you have new or gently used merchandise any please drop them by Tuesday through Saturday during business hours. Unity Home will more than ever need committed volunteers to help with everything from answering phones and facilitating groups to holding babies. Please call the administrative offices at 366-1247 for information about volunteer opportunities. Morongo Basin Unity Home provides shelter and legal services for victims of domestic violence.

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COMPASSIONATE FRIENDS MEET TOMORROW AT HOSPICE OFFICE
The Morongo Basin Chapter of The Compassionate Friends will hold their monthly meeting tomorrow from 4:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the office of Hospice of Morongo Basin in Joshua Tree. The Compassionate Friends is a national support organization reaching out to parents who have experienced the death of a child. The Compassionate Friends reach out to each other with love, understanding and hope. For questions or more information, call Kristin at 258-4803 or Hospice of Morongo Basin at 366-1308.

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Back Row: Dr. Wilcox, Catja Arnzen and Paul Hoffman Front Row: Patricia Cooper and Leslie Moody

HI-DESERT MEDICAL CENTER MEETS IN BUSY MEETING TONIGHT The Hi-Desert Medical Center Board of Directors meets tonight, reporter Tami Roleff checks the hospital board’s agenda ----- The Hi-Desert Medical Center Board of Directors will hold its regular monthly meeting at 6 p.m. tonight in the Helen Gray Education Center at the hospital. On the agenda, the board will hear a presentation by Phil Fultz of the Morongo Basin Coalition for Adult Literacy on adult literacy and healthcare. The consent agenda consists of approvals for new appointments, re-appointments, a resignation, and a new policy and procedure. On the action agenda, the board will be asked to approve a lease proposal for a new immuno-assay machine; and approve the methodology pertaining to payment for on-call emergency physician services, and delegate the implementation and oversight to the chief executive officer. After staff and administrative reports, the board will adjourn to a closed session where it will discuss quality assurance matters and a medical executive credentialing report.

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TWENTYNINE PALMS JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL ORIENTATION MEETING SET
Twentynine Palms Junior High School has scheduled orientations for all students: 8th Graders will have their orientation on August 17th at 9:00 in the gym; 7th Graders will have theirs on the 18th also at 9:00. Gym doors will open at 8:30, and students and their families will be issued numbers as they arrive that will help the TPJHS staff better serve their needs, class schedules will be handed out and representatives from Transportation/buses will be available to answer questions concerning bus routes, stops, and times. At 9:00, principal Jolie Kelley will deliver a short program on major issues facing students and their families. Immediately following the presentation, students will check out textbooks and purchase PE uniforms, yearbooks, ASB cards, and AVID binders. On the 17th and 18th, the library will be open immediately following the orientation until 1:30 PM. On the 19th – 21st, the library will be open from 7:30 to 1:30. Parents and students can log on to www.tpjhs.com for additional information.

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