Police & Fire
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Janet Gunn May 19, 2013 at 01:00 pm
This is why we have so many drunk drivers in CA! They are arrested, slapped on the hand, big fines…Read More (actually thats all the state wants) and let go to drink, drive, kill!!
Who's the guilty one?? Judges, prosecutors?
Rico May 15, 2013 at 05:54 pm
I think that Robert is right, especially being a retired "peace" officer.
But I disagree…Read More about 2 beers are all the same alcohol content.
Most mainstream (or downstream) beers used to be 4.2 %, and now most regular beer beers have been upped to 5.2 %. Then we have the ales which can vary from 6 to 9 %, and malt liquors even much higher.
If this new threshold becomes a law, it will stop many people from going out to music venues, bars and restaurants, which will hurt those industries immensely, and the locally economy.
Take a look at all the businesses in any of the cities and towns in Marin, the predominant businesses are bars, restaurants and music venues. This will (or may) cause thousands of people to stay home and have parties at home (sleepovers?) and avoid the new police state.
I have heard that even the first DUI costs a person $2500.00 in fines and insurance premium rises in rates. That's enough to scare me into staying home, but I feel sorry for my friends who are in the restaurant and bar businesses. Most all of them have really been hurt by the downturn in the economy so far, and this new law (if enacted) will do them in. It will be time for them to find a new gig, like selling healthcare insurance and pharmaceutical drugs.
Robert J. Cleek May 15, 2013 at 01:54 pm
I'm no apologist for driving while impaired, but I'm not hearing what scientific basis there is for…Read More a "conclusive legal presumption" that EVERYONE with a .05% BA level is too impaired to safely operate a motor vehicle. It may be true, but not in my experience. How might a peace officer justify "probably cause" to make a DUI stop if a driver "blew" a .05 and exhibited no observable symptoms of intoxication? If they want to propose that NO ONE may drive with ANY measurable blood alcohol level, that's a separate issue, but to establish the "presumed" level at .05% seems to be cutting it closer than is a practical from an enforcement standpoint, if nothing else. Are YOU "impaired" after two alcoholic drinks? (2 beers, 2 glasses of wine, 2 mixed drinks... they're all the same) Some may be and shouldn't drive. Some are not. How the heck do you know what your BA is, anyway? Sounds like a "full employment act" for drunk driving attorneys to me.
novatomom May 21, 2013 at 10:23 am
Oh God. How utterly sad. My heart goes out to the family as does prayers for strength.
Richard Cochran May 10, 2013 at 02:43 pm
Someone who would flee and crash into a school bus is a clear danger to society. Regardless of the…Read More initial offense, if he tries to endanger so many lives by recklessly speeding away on a blown tire on a crowded highway like 101 at 4:30 in the afternoon, he's demonstrated that it's just too dangerous to let him go free.
Will Lamers May 10, 2013 at 02:09 pm
Guess it was the cops fault for showing up, they should have stayed in the donut shop, right? Then…Read More these poor fellows could have completed their transaction at the bank and left at a leisurely pace...
Will Lamers May 10, 2013 at 02:08 pm
The officer was struck with the side mirror at the Land Rover took off but was not seriously…Read More injured. The suspect then drove directly at a sergeant who was arriving at the scene but did not hit him, Cusimano said.
Witnesses said the Land Rover then went up on a sidewalk, struck a small shed outside Linda's Flower Box at 305 San Anselmo Ave. and went around several cars stopped at a red light.
Andres Stinchfield, 35, who was with his daughter at U-Top It frozen yogurt shop, said the area was filled with cars and pedestrians.
"I'm extremely surprised no one got hurt," he said. "There must be a dozen, maybe 20 witnesses. ... Everyone was basically stunned, like incredulous, I can't believe what I just saw."
Jerome J Ghigliotti Jr May 14, 2013 at 03:10 pm
No, they probably live in public housing in Marin City, which was the direction of their escape.…Read More But Marin Housing refuses to answer Government Records requests as to whether persons in public housing are evicted when they are convicted of crimes, as REQUIRED by HUD regulations. Their excuse is that this is confidential information. Both crime convictions nor evictions are a matter of public records. Where is the privacy issue? More social engineering at work and less Freedom of the Press reporting.
Besides, if the Patch does not report crime in Novato people will think that there is no crime in Novato. Just drink the grape kool-ade.
Daniel Ayer May 10, 2013 at 04:23 pm
I was a witness to the accident. The back right tire of the vehicle was completely gone. He barely…Read More missed me, lost control, and slammed into the bus from the left at a sharp angle. He was going extremely fast.
harry finster May 9, 2013 at 03:25 pm
They should arrest Fred Bretz aka "harry finster" for stalking.
anonymous because you folks are scarey May 9, 2013 at 03:15 pm
My hero! You had a great run. Sure out smarted the police. Thank you officers for not gunning him…Read More down. They should give him a job.
Bubbasixpack May 10, 2013 at 11:19 am
Couldn't have happened to a better bunch of people. These real estate pimps have been scamming the…Read More public for years.
J. Pritchard May 10, 2013 at 11:14 am
So, if understand this article correctly, this couple was scammed out of $1.6 million because they…Read More thought they were going to profit by helping the son of the Congo president circumvent U.S. Asset Seizure laws. Sounds like their own greed caught up with them.
Craig Belfor May 8, 2013 at 11:27 pm
1.6 Million? That's nothing. I know of a group of elected officials who scammed their town out of…Read More 15.5 million for a building they didn't need, while private enterprise built a bigger building next door for less that half that price and can't fill it.
Bill McGee May 5, 2013 at 04:34 am
Rico – much of what you wrote may be true, but your suggestion that you or others in Mill…Read More Valley are somehow exempt from this law is absurd and misleading.
The good news for you though Rico, even though you are ignorant of what “defensible space” means, from your description of your property in your post, you might already comply but you can read and decide that for yourself.
Here is just one of the many good resources out there Rico when I did a simple internet search:
http://calfire.ca.gov/communications/communications_firesafety_100feet.php
So here I go again picking on poor Rico. This Patch article is about protecting property and lives and your suggestion that the law does not apply to you and others in Mill Valley is misleading and dangerous.
So the next time when you go to write “we have been through this defensible space issue before” you won’t try to suggest that Mill Valley is so special the law does not apply to you.
Rico May 4, 2013 at 02:06 am
We have been through this defensible space issue before.
That applies to other areas than Mill…Read More Valley.
In the hills, where parcels can contain multiple lots, the "tip" is to clear all the dried vegatation away from structures as much as possible, but if the vegatation is green, let it be, the same with trees. I have Redwood trees touching my deck, and I cannot legally remove them because they are Heritage trees , I also have avacado, loquat and plum trees touching my deck, so I water them and keep them green.
If your yard is kept lush and green, there is no need to clear cut every living plant and tree 100 feet away from your house. Now, down in the flats or the more higher density areas of Mill Valley, many parcels only consist of one tiny lot, some with a very minimal side setback, like 10 feet or less. We can throw the 100 foot rule out the window for Mill Valley.
Chas Blackford May 21, 2013 at 09:57 am
Always a good idea to chill out on the drinks on popular "drinking" weekends. The real key…Read More to checkpoints is "Unlike a regular traffic stop, police do not need reasonable suspicion to stop or question suspects at a sobriety checkpoint. " Here's what LegalMatch has to say about sobriety checkpoints.
http://www.legalmatch.com/law-library/article/dui-sobriety-checkpoints.html
Bud Wiesser May 2, 2013 at 03:07 pm
Yeah, cuz we all know that legal licensed and insured citizens NEVER do anything stupid.
school bus ninja May 4, 2013 at 08:50 pm
@ anonymous
Better your friend breaking all those bones than Santa Claus. At least Santa knows now…Read More to bring a rope with him. It's a good thing that I'm too fat to fit in that ventilation shaft or it might have happened to me.
John Neal May 3, 2013 at 01:28 am
I am the father of two elementary school kids. I'm teaching them that life has enough challenges and…Read More dangers without going out and seeking more. There are plenty of ways to get the thrills and excitement that teenage boys seem to like without endangering life and limb. And if kids do choose to do such dangerous activities then they should be responsible for the consequences and not the tax payer. BTW kids are welcome to play on my lawn (and many do) and it is perfectly safe there - unlike the tunnels at Marin Headlands.
Mother who survived raising boys May 1, 2013 at 04:29 am
And, John Neal, were you ever young and adventurous, or were you always a "Get off my…Read More Lawn" kind of guy?
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