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Red Bluff Police have their officer of the year, and it is Sgt. Dan Flow- erdew. Flowerdew was rec- ognized in a ceremony Wednesday morning, not only for his efforts over the last year, but for 20 years of service to the Red Bluff Police Department. Also recognized was Community Service Officer Keith Curl, who took home the depart- ment's civilian employ- ee award, and Dispatch- er Supervisor Cindee Spurgeon, who won the Distinguished Service Award for her efforts in completing a complicat- ed dispatch center upgrade. Others recognized Wednesday include: •Dispatchers Jane Hoover and Kim McIvor, who were rec- ognized for three con- secutive years of honor- able and faithful service and awarded Good Con- duct commendations. •Officer Josiah Ferrin was recognized for three consecutive years of honorable and faithful service, earning him a Good Conduct commen- dation, and five years with the RBPD, earning Red Bluff Outdoor Power Weather forecast 6B Mostly cloudy 55/49 N EWS D AILY DAILY 50¢ THURSDAY FEBRUARY 25, 2010 Chico Bach Festival US To Semis Breaking news at: www.redbluffdailynews.com N EWS D AILY RED BLUFF TEHAMA COUNTY 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 See Page 5A SPORTS 1B Pastimes 7 5 8 5 5 1 6 9 0 0 1 9 CALL TODAY (530) 529-1222 237 South Main Street As Local As.... Are you tired of being Nickel and Dimed by your current bank? It's time to move around the corner to Cornerstone Community Bank. • With our Better Than Free Checking • No Fees • No Monthly Service Charges • No ATM fees • No Minimum balances required Dave Hencratt for Sheriff/Coroner ★ Tri Tip Dinner $ 15 00 Paid for by the committee to elect Dave Hencratt for Sheriff/Coroner February 26th, 2010, 6pm Red Bluff Community Center Auction & Silent Auction • Door Prizes Music by: Chad Bushnell Ticket available at: Crossroads Feed 595 Antelope Blvd. or call 526-5675 Paid Political Advertisement High school board approves layoffs By TANG LOR DN Staff Writer A number of certified and clas- sified positions in the Red Bluff Union High School District will be reduced or eliminated next school year. The school board voted unani- mously Wednesday to approve the cuts. Full-time, certified positions in AVID, independent study, agricul- tural leadership, ROP metal fabri- cation and ROP vet tech/ag busi- ness and marketing will be reduced. Seven certified positions in adult education will be eliminated. Classified cuts include an edu- cational assistant at Red Bluff High School, crafts workers and an ROP student services clerk. These are the first steps in a process to keep cuts as minimal as possible, Board President Tim Benton said, following the vote. Cuts are an ongoing process at the school district, but the employ- ee cuts had to be addressed now per state law that teachers to be notified of layoffs by March 15. Though the district, including teachers, has been frugal in its spending, unfortunately the cuts from the state are so deep the dis- trict has to make cuts to staffing to keep the district salient, Superin- tendent Dan Curry said. Though California's education budget shortfall is affecting school districts all over the state, part of the reason Red Bluff Union has seen a reduction in funds is because of a decline in student enrollment. The state gives the school money based on how many students attend school each day, Curry said. The California Teacher's Association understands that enrollment has declined, but at the same time last year's cuts should have been sufficient, the associa- tion said in a letter to the school board. "We know that the cuts we are dealing with now are simply due to a shortage of money," the letter said. "We must attempt to look outside the classroom for these cuts." This round of cuts is much smaller compared to the 10 per- cent cut in staffing the district made in 2009, Curry said. Though it is a tough choice to make, cut- ting staff would save the district $200,000, as 80 percent to 90 per- cent of the district's budget goes to personnel. "It's an extremely difficult time for our staff and administration," Curry said. "We're all just humans, and it's deeply painful for everybody involved." ——— Tang Lor can be reached at 527- 2153, Ext. 110 or by e-mail at tlor@redbluffdailynews.com. Crash backs up I-5 Daily News photo by Geoff Johnson Yul Bermudezperdomo, 38, Antioch, suffered only minor injuries after falling asleep at the wheel around 5 a.m. and sending his 1990 Freightliner Semi onto the Interstate 5 median, just north of Hooker Creek Road. Bermudezperdomo was taken to St. Elizabeth Community Hospital for a laceration to his left arm and pain in the lower leg, while Caltrans' efforts to clean up the mess slowed traffic through Wednesday afternoon. Parents question Graham departure By TANG LOR DN Staff Writer The Antelope School Board has decided to move on but many parents are still asking what hap- pened to make Superin- tendent and Principal Earnie Graham leave. Graham resigned Feb. 12 during a closed ses- sion board meeting. He cited personal reasons for his resignation, according to the school board. Tuesday night's closed session board meeting had been planned for a perfor- mance evaluation on Gra- ham and issues involving the budget, board member Mike Shaffer said. Instead, the board dis- cussed Graham's absence during a session that last- ed more than two hours. Following the closed session, Board President John Bohrer announced that the board would hire Jack Hansen as interim superintendent and princi- pal for the period of Fish, Game denounces Bend plan By GEOFF JOHNSON DN Staff Writer The Tehama County Fish and Game Commis- sion has all but unani- mously agreed not to back a plan to turn 17,600 acres of Bureau of Land Man- agement land in the Bend Area into a National Recreation Area. A Feb. 9 vote by the commission saw all six members decide to leave the area alone, with the seventh, Commissioner Bill Burrows, absent from the meeting. A phone call to Bur- rows was not returned Tuesday evening, and sev- eral commissioners referred to a Feb. 17 letter the commission sent to the Board of Supervisors calling for the county to keep the land's "status quo." Commissioners inter- viewed Tuesday cited road funding as one of the biggest concerns. "We just felt that it's kind of the old thing where federal funding comes with federal ties," Chairman Warren Duke Top cops get department recognition Courtesy photo Red Bluff Police Chief Paul Nanfito, left, awards Sgt. Dan Flowerdew the Officer of the Year Award Wednesday morning. Lt. Kyle Sanders, right, reads the proclamation. Man pleads guilty in 2008 pot shooting A man pleaded guilty Wednesday morning to kidnapping and shooting someone he thought responsible for stealing his medical marijuana. Michael Rene Martinez, lured Timothy Mar- tin into a hatchback van in September 2008, after which he accused Martin of stealing his marijuana, according to a press release from District Attorney Gregg Cohen. Martinez threatened Martin with a .25 cal- iber semi-automatic pistol as the two drove to Corning. Martin tried to escape through a pre- viously broken hatchback window, but Mar- tinez was able to shoot him in the thighs and lower abdomen, injuries that would later require surgery, according to officials. Martinez has been stipulated to spend 25 years and 8 months in prison, with both offens- es being strikes. Formal sentencing is sched- uled for Mach 23 at 11 a.m. Deputy District Attorney Randy Alvey pros- ecuted the case, which was investigated by the Corning Police Department. —Geoff Johnson See GRAHAM, page 3A See COPS, page 3A See BEND, page 3A