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WEDNESDAY JUNE 9, 2010 Breaking news at: Health Services gets new doctor Commerce www.redbluffdailynews.com See Page 5A RED BLUFF Red Bluff Cowgirl SPORTS 1B Partly cloudy 78/55 Weather forecast 6A By GEOFF JOHNSON DN Staff Writer 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 Sheriff’s race too close to call late into the night ‘I think history shows the first results As the sun set on Tehama County campaigns Tuesday night, candidates, clustered in cafes and conference rooms, packed into bars and bowling alleys, contemplated what the initial returns meant. Sheriff Clay Parker picked up a copy of the initial returns, which included absentee ballots and five precincts, from the elections department and, accompanied by his wife, walked through the parking lot to the Palomino Room, where staff members were waiting. The most recent returns, updated around 10:20 p.m. with about 6,200 votes counted, hold out to be pretty true’ Dave Hencratt, sheriff candidate showed Parker’s opponent, Detective Dave Hencratt, up by 253 votes. Parker said he felt good and, when asked about the possibility of defeat, responded with a joke. “If I don’t (win), my wife and I will get to enjoy life again,” he said. Parker was joined by Under- sheriff Dennis Garton, who led with 72 percent of the vote and was looking to be the next supervisor for District 3, a big- ger margin than he said he expected. “I figured it would be equal,” Garton said. Garton, running against Mel Freimuth, suggested he was the better known candidate. Across town, at the Comfort Inn on Sale Lane, Hencratt had rented out a conference room on the third floor. His support- ers spilled out of the room and into the hallway. “I think history shows the first results hold out to be pretty true,” Hencratt said. Given the state of things, people are ready for a change, he added. Asked about his future if he lost, Hencratt said he would have no problem with keeping up his work as a detec- tive. “It won’t be awkward for myself, because I’ll go back to work, keep my June 8 mouth shut, and do the best I can,” he said. Back downtown at the Coun- Make a difference Primary tryside Cafe, District Attorney Gregg Cohen was confi- dent, though he con- ceded, “every elec- tion is a new elec- tion.” Cohen led early by about 10 percentage points over chal- lenger Ken Miller. Todd Bottke stood outside the McGlynn, McG- lynn and Bottke law offices with a handful of his supporters, more lingering inside. He led by nearly a two-to-one margin over County Council See RACE, page 3A Pot growers sue county By GEOFF JOHNSON DN Staff Writer Making good on a promise to sue, medical marijuana advocates Monday filed a lawsuit to undo Tehama County’s controversial regulation of cannabis cultivation. The petition for writ of mandate filed by Ukiah attorney Edie Lerman and J. David Nick of San Francisco includes 10 plaintiffs, though an earlier meeting held by Lerman attracted around 150 people. The suit targets a county ordinance passed in April that county supervisors passed as a way to reduce crime stem- ming from medical marijuana theft. The ordinance limits anyone who owns 20 acres or fewer in the unincorporated county to growing 12 mature or 24 immature plants. It puts a ban on gardens within 1,000 feet of schools, churches and bus stops and requires a six-foot, opaque fence around outdoor gardens. As a compromise, supervisors included several loop- Daily News photo by Julie Zeeb Red Bluff High School seniors Melissa Renteria and Briana Denmark work on a mural at the school for Make A Difference Day. Not pictured is Yesi Gonsalez. By JULIE ZEEB DN Staff Writer Although school is winding down, seniors at Red Bluff Union High School have been keeping busy with projects all across Red Bluff with some ven- turing outside city limits. Monday and Tuesday students spent a minimum of four hours a day on pro- jects, with some spending hours more, said Associate Principal Jody Brownfield. “We have kids that won’t leave until they’re done,” Brownfield said. “It’s been a very good program for them. One man told us that this restored his faith in the young people of our com- munity.” Brownfield said it’s been great to see the kids go from looking at the project as just a good way of getting out of school to being really proud of themselves and what they’ve accomplished. Teachers Jared Norton and Doug Williams were among several teachers, counselors and parents supervising projects or stop- ping by sites to snap pic- tures of the students at work. Norton said the pro- ject is a chance for the seniors, many of whom have never done a project that is completely selfless. “It gives them an oppor- tunity to feel what it’s like to give back to the communi- ty,” Norton said. The program, now a requirement for high school graduation, started about 10 years ago as a way to thank the community for all it does for the school in dona- tions, volunteer time and contributions to fundraisers, Williams said. “It’s a rewarding experi- ence for students we hope they’ll continue later in life or at least have an apprecia- tion for,” Norton said. Over the years Williams and Norton have seen many students rise to the occasion taking on a variety of impressive projects, they said. Norton recalled a student about three years ago who grew up poor, which inspired his project of a coat drive. Williams remembers another group of students who took on the project of getting paint donated to paint a Victorian house, molding and all. The house belonged to an elderly woman near the school. Katelin Wise, Bailey Dudley, Ashlee Zumalt, Melissa Samson and Katie Younger spent the day beautifying eight planters up and down Main Street near the ReMax building. “It’s really important to help out the community,” Wise said. “They give so much to us and to help them out is very rewarding.” 7 5 8 5 5 1 6 9 0 0 1 9 Red Bluff Outdoor Power Wise said the group found plenty of unusual things in the planters, from hairballs and a bird skeleton to bottles and toilet paper. The planters the girls worked on are maintained by the Downtown Red Bluff Business Association and some of the merchants, said Beautification Chair- woman Linda Bullock. “I’m thrilled they came down and did this today,” Bullock said. “It’s a terrific community service project for them and for us.” Allie Brown spent Mon- day and Tuesday with Cody Robertson, Chela Reyes, Christine Ross, J.P. Peters, Jessica Paylor, Naomi Coker, Alayna Hudgens helping the Red Bluff Fire Department. The teens did everything from wash fire engines to planting flowers after pulling weeds. They also fixed breakfast and lunch for the firefighters. “They give so much back to our community,” said Brown, a ROP student with the department. “Seniors have nothing bet- ter to do while waiting for graduation. It’s also a way to teach seniors responsibil- ity and team work.” The work was appreciat- ed. “The Red Bluff Fire Department appreciates the responsibility of our young adults and their willingness to help us with our day to day activities,” Engineer Matt Shobash said. “It’s been a joy to have them around helping us out.” At Red Bluff City Park, Laura Culver, Judith Jimenez and Christina Tang painted the children’s play area. Senior Kerry Defonte put together a benefit con- cert Tuesday evening to raise money for the Ameri- can Cancer Society. Matthew Mueller and Aaron Lutes worked on a physics themed mural out- side a new science class- room to show their appreci- ation and love for physics gained during the year. Melissa Renteria, Briana Denmark and Yesi Gon- salez chose to work on a mural near the art class- rooms. See MAKE, page 3A EXCEL Class Is now accepting applications for the 2010-2011 school year. Grades 6-12 Public school with small classes WASC accredited Visit us at 1660 Monroe St., Red Bluff CA. or Call: 530-529-1650 for an application Thurs, June 10TH 8:30 am to 12:30 pm Job Training Center 718 Main St., Red Bluff Cost: $65.00 per person Space is limited! Call 529-7000 to register Basic holes. For one, the ordinance is complaint driven and is only supposed to take effect when someone complains about a garden. If growers can prove hardship, they may be exempt from a rule requiring all marijuana to be grown at least 100 feet inside the property line. Sheriff Clay Parker, whose department is tasked with enforcing the ordinance, has promised to work with indi- vidual growers and to enforce the ordinance fairly. But growers, uncertain how these loopholes will play out, are treating the policy as an absolute. They argue both that it violates California’s medical marijuana laws and that it makes growing impossible in some areas of the county. Thomas Scott operates a garden the county could target as public nuisance in several ways, as it violates the 100- foot setback rule and is within 1,000 feet of a school bus stop. “Since the...petitioner resides on a parcel of land that is less than 200 feet in width, it is physically impossible for him to cultivate any marijuana...on any location on his par- cel,” according to the petition for writ of mandate. Because the ordinance makes no exception for multiple growers or multiple patients sharing a parcel, local medical marijuana advocate Jason Browne and five others sharing See SUE, page 3A Man killed after wrong-way crash A 72-year-old Clear Lake man was killed when he crashed into a bridge going 70 mph at 12:24 a.m. Tuesday. The man was driving south in the northbound fast lane of Interstate 5, south of North Main Street at the time of the crash, however, there were no witnesses who saw the man enter I-5 in the wrong direction, a California Highway Patrol release said. A witness did see the vehicle driving the wrong way until it crashed into the Dibble Creek Bridge, the release said. Per the witness’ state- ment, the vehicle never hit the breaks prior to hitting the raised concrete bridge abutment, where it spun clockwise, coming to rest facing north in the fast and slow lanes. A Tehama County Coro- ner’s office spokesperson said the name of the driver could not yet be released. 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