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WEDNESDAY APRIL 6, 2011 Breaking news at: Business of The Month Commerce www.redbluffdailynews.com See Page 4A RED BLUFF Athletes of the Week SPORTS 1B Mostly sunny 62/38 Weather forecast 8B By TANG LOR DN Staff Writer A former employee of a local logging company who pleaded guilty to felony grand theft by embezzlement with a special allegation was sen- tenced to the maximum state prison term Tuesday in Tehama County Superior Court despite DAILYNEWS TEHAMACOUNTY DAILY 50¢ T H E V O I C E O F T E H A M A C O U N T Y S I N C E 1 8 8 5 Woman gets maximum 3 years for embezzlement pleas to serve her sentence on probation. Cheryl Lynn Holder, 56, of Red Bluff, will serve a maxi- mum 3-year prison term for embezzling more than $2 mil- lion from former employer John Wheeler Logging Inc. She worked for the logging company as a bookkeeper for 20 years. The embezzlement ‘The sense of entitlement that you had is unfathomable’ Judge Todd Bottke happened over a 5-year period, from 2004 to 2009, during which time she used the compa- ny’s funds to buy personal items totaling more than $2 mil- lion, according to the District Attorney’s Office. Holder’s attorney Donald State of progress Heller argued that Holder’s mother would become “collat- eral damage” if Holder were incarcerated. Holder is the sole caregiver for her 96-year-old mother who is blind and suffers dementia. He asked that Holder be placed on some form of pro- bation that would allow her to See WOMAN, page 7A County mulls pot regulation By ANDREA WAGNER DN Staff Writer County officials mulled banning or regulating marijuana dispensaries during a study session Tues- day that may lead to a draft ordinance later this year. Tehama County Board of Supervisors discussed policy options to legally define medical marijuana dispensaries and whether to ban or regulate them. The first objective was to define what the county deems as a “dispensary.” “All dispensaries are collectives, but not all col- lectives are dispensaries,” said Arthur Wylene of the County Counsel’s office. Wylene presented the board with discussion prompts to consider. Daily News file photo This is the third in a three-part series looking at the State Theatre’s past, the time while it was operated under the non-profit State Theatre For The Arts and future plans. By JULIE ZEEB DN Staff Writer The non-profit organization State Theatre For The Arts has entered into escrow with building owners Dr. Ron Clark and Ben Sale. “We’re very excited and very optimistic that in the not too distant future the State Theatre can be owned by the non-profit STFTA and will be available to all citizens of Tehama County,” said STFTA President Bill Cornelius. The group entered into negotia- tions in January and reached a deal, entering a 135-day escrow March 11, Cornelius said. “The purpose of this (longer escrow) is to allow us to raise or acquire enough financial support to identify and obtain financing for the remainder of the purchase,” Cor- nelius said. “Through significant fundraising in the next four months Brown renews push for lawmakers to call tax vote SACRAMENTO (AP) — Gov. Jerry Brown said Tuesday that he still hopes to win a vote in the Legislature to ask Califor- nians whether they want to extend increases to the sales, personal income and vehicle taxes to help close the rest of the state budget deficit, despite cutting off negotiations with Republicans last week. The Democratic gover- nor said he would prefer that approach to an inde- pendent ballot initiative. He ended talks with GOP lawmakers over his plan to hold a June special election on the taxes, say- ing time had run out to strike a deal. Brown already signed $11.2 billion in spending cuts, mostly to social ser- vices, leaving the state with a $15.4 billion bud- get deficit. He said Tues- day that Californians of all political persuasions have no appetite for bil- lions of dollars in further cuts. “I think ultimately, from everything I can tell, people don’t want to make drastic cuts. They don’t want to gut the uni- versity, gut public educa- tion, weaken public safe- ty,” he said. “But under our system ... the only way to get tax extensions is Republican votes. We must get those four votes.” See BROWN, page 7A 7 5 8 5 5 1 6 9 0 0 1 9 Red Bluff Outdoor Power Courtesy photo Elaine Benwell and Camilla Delsid, far left, from Northern Valley Catholic Social Services, present a plaque to, from left, Marlene Mason, Lupe Green, Charles Rouse, Sherie Abel, Shirley Fay and Patricia Rasmussen. Northern Valley Catholic Social Services presented to Corning Healthcare District March 28 a commemora- tive plaque for its support in launching the File of Life. Elaine Benwell made the presentation. “We want you to know how much we appreciate your support for the seniors in our area,” Ben- well said. “We could not launch the File of Life without you.” File of Life is a red plastic refrigerator mag- net with a pocket that holds a card containing pertinent medical infor- mation for emergency responders. Information includes the patient’s name, existing conditions and health problems. It lists medications, dosages, allergies, recent surgeries as well as the primary physician’s name and contact infor- mation. If a patient is found unconscious, and there is no one present to answer questions, the rescuer can find the needed informa- tion in the File of Life. Because police, fire and rescue workers are trained to look on the refrigerator for the red File for Life magnet, time is saved in administering crucial medical attention. This could result in sav- ing the life of the patient. The public is invited to attend the launching of the File of Life at the Corning Family Resource Center at 5:30 p.m. April 14. Magnets will be given free of charge to seniors in southern Tehama County. For more information, call Benwell at 528-7949. Mercy High School presents Les MISERABLES One of the greatest musicals ever written April 7, 8, 9, 10 Champagne Gala 6pm April 9 Matinee 2pm April 10 All other curtain times 7pm DON’T MISS IT! 527-8313 Book by : Alain Boublil Music by : Michel Sconberg we hope to have at least half of the purchase amount of $440,000.” The group already has more than $50,000 donated by members of the community who have an interest in and love for the theater, he said. After months of work to com- plete a feasibility study on purchas- ing the theater, the group, which consists of several members of the community, decided to move for- ward by launching a capital cam- paign. The campaign will be led by See STATE, page 7A A temporary moratorium, or suspension, that prohibited the establishment and operation of mari- juana dispensaries in Tehama County, will expire Sept. 14, and cannot be extended, Wylene said. Wylene’s research showed strong legal support for the county’s authority over local dispensary reg- ulation or banishment, he said. Supervisors could choose to take no action and let the moratorium expire, ban dispensaries outright or set up policy to regulate the land use and estab- lishment of the dispensaries, Wylene said. Staff proposed defining a dispensary as “a med- ical marijuana collective, etc., that either (1) has a storefront or mobile retail outlet of the type that ordinarily requires a local business license, or (2) has 10 or more members/patients/customers.” Then a lengthy discussion ensued that touched on topics of whether a licensed medical profession- al can be required to dispense pot, whether fewer than 10 people could be considered a dispensary and whether dispensaries should be allowed in industrial and commercial zones. The session ended with some direction for Wylene. He will be back in two weeks with drafts of possible ordinances for the board to consider. The next study session for the marijuana dispen- saries discussion is scheduled for April 19. ——— Andrea Wagner can be reached at 527-2153, extension 114 or awagner@redbluffdailynews.com. Corning Healthcare District honored