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WEEKEND JANUARY 8-9, 2011 Breaking news at: Why I Love Living in USA USA Weekend www.redbluffdailynews.com See Inside RED BLUFF Shootout Semifinal SPORTS 1B Mostly Sunny 55/33 Weather forecast 8B By ANDREA WAGNER DN Staff Writer A series of four tragic events — a fire, a car crash and two burglaries — that occurred since 2009 are linked by the 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 Neighbor a suspect in burglary of dead man’s home same victim. Most recently, Tehama County Sheriff’s deputies arrested a Red Bluff man in connection with a burglary at the home of Rogelio Herrera, a man recently killed in a colli- sion with a suspected drunken driver north of Chico. Deputies arrested Dennis Wayne Smith, 44, of Red Bluff, Thursday at the Friendly Acres Mobile Home Park, 12055 Hwy 99W, and charged him with Foggy Friday receiving known stolen proper- ty and possession of a con- trolled substance. Items were reportedly stolen from Herrera’s residence, according to a Sheriff’s Depart- ment press release. Herrera had lived at Friendly Acres at least five or six years until he and his fiance, Sarai Alverez, 31, of Chico, were killed in a head-on collision See HOME, page 7A Weather delays I-5 completion By JULIE ZEEB DN Staff Writer The Red Bluff Rehabilitation Project stretching from the Adobe Road to South Main Street exits on Interstate 5, which was supposed to be completed by the end of 2010, is taking a little longer than planned. “The weather is a major factor,” said Caltrans Public Information Officer Denise Yergenson. “We’re looking at (completion in) late spring — May or June.” With the weather as wet and cold as it has been, Cal- trans is mostly doing concrete work such as paving right now, Yergenson said. Work on bridge decks has to wait for warmer weath- er, she said. Those traveling southbound Interstate 5 near Dia- mond Avenue on Thursday may have noticed a longer delay than normal with only one lane open about 9 a.m., which was caused by workers running late on picking up cones that closed the slow lane, Yergenson See I-5, page 7A Wrong-way driver crashes into Dibble Creek Daily News photo by Tang Lor Fog envelopes an orchard along Highway 99W near Gerber on Friday morning. The low-lying fog that has covered the area from early evenings until late mornings should clear up soon. Today will be cloudy, though the sun may peak through by late afternoon. There will be clouds in the sky, but it won’t be so low as to create fog on the ground, said Karl Swan- berg, a forecaster with the National Weather Service in Sacramento. Having fog during this time of the year is not unusual, but the rain earlier this month contributed to the fog lingering into the daytime and being lower. The high pressure surrounding the area, the clouds and the moist surface combined makes it prime conditions for Brown to cut education post, first lady’s office SACRAMENTO (AP) — Gov. Jerry Brown announced Friday that he is eliminating the Secre- tary of Education position and slashing the gover- nor’s office by 25 percent as he tries to make good on a campaign promise to cut government spending. The Democratic gov- ernor said he’s also returning most of the $770,000 allocated for the changeover to his administration from that of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. He said he only spent $120,000 for the gubernatorial tran- sition. All the savings add up to $7 million, just a frac- tion of the projected $28 billion state shortfall through June 2012. But Brown said he has to start somewhere. ‘‘California is facing a huge deficit, and it is nec- essary to find savings throughout all of govern- ment,’’ Brown said in a statement. ‘‘We all have to make cuts, and I’m starting with my own office.’’ Brown is scheduled to release his budget plan for the 2011-2012 fiscal year on Monday, and he has forecast deep, across- the-board cuts to many state programs, as well as a government restructur- ing. He said he would trim $4.5 million out of the $18 million budget for the governor’s office by cut- ting staff in the Washing- ton, D.C. office; closing field offices in San Diego, Fresno, and Riverside; and cutting communica- tions staff. He also said he is elim- inating the position of cabinet secretary and all deputy cabinet secre- taries. Brown also said he would eliminate the first lady’s office. He previ- ously announced that his wife, Anne Gust Brown, 7 5 8 5 5 1 6 9 0 0 1 9 See BROWN, page 7A fog, Swanberg said. In foggy conditions drivers are being advised by California Highway Patrol to slow down. Driving in the fog can be similar to driving in the rain. In the event that drivers have to use their wipers in the fog, they should have their lights on, said CHP Officer Roger Smith. CHP has the following tips for driving in the fog: • Drive with lights on low beam. Do not use high beams because it will reflect off the fog. • Avoid crossing traffic lanes. • Don’t stop on highways except in emergencies. • Move away from stalled or disabled vehicles. • Consider postponing trip until fog clears. A wrong-way driver from Nevada crashed his 2004 Dodge Neon about 11:40 p.m. Thursday on northbound Interstate 5, north of Dibble Creek. Adrian Bravo, 28, of Reno, was driving north in the slow lane of a three- lane section of north- bound I-5 just past the Main Street exit, leaving Red Bluff. Bravo, who told offi- cers he was unaware he was on a divided highway, made a u-turn and began driving south in the fast lane about 67 mph, said California Highway Patrol Officer Roger Smith. As Bravo approached Dibble Creek he didn’t realize the fast lane ended where it merges into the middle lane and ran off the road. The car went into a fence and down an embankment before land- ing in Dibble Creek, Smith said. Bravo was uninjured, but the vehicle had major damage. —Julie Zeeb RBUHS grad to play at big game By JULIE ZEEB DN Staff Writer For those who watch the National Champi- onship game between University of Oregon and Auburn on Monday they might catch a glimpse of a familiar face. Red Bluff native Jonna Threlkeld, who is in her final year at the University of Oregon, will be there playing saxophone with the university’s marching band to cheer on her team. “I’m excited that after six years I’m ending at a National Championship,” Threlkeld said. “I thought the Rose Bowl was the be- all, end-all, but now I’m following my team to the most prestigious event in college football.” Threlkeld, who has been in the University of Oregon Marching Band since she was a freshman, also has been in the Green Garter Band and Yellow Garter Band. “Game days are 12- hour days and a huge deal,” Threlkeld said. “Your first pre-game is something you never for- get. You run out onto the field at Autzen Stadium to the drum cadence in front of 62,000 screaming Ducks fans.” Threlkeld said. “It’s a huge time commitment, but it’s been an unbeliev- able ride. I’ve been given every opportunity under the sun.” Threlkeld was able to earn a scholarship by being in the band — an opportunity made possible by playing in school bands in elementary, mid- dle and high school. “Being a musician is a huge part of my identity and I can’t imagine not being able to develop that,” Threlkeld said. “Having programs (in younger grades) is so cru- cial to helping kids find out who they are and developing that part of their mind.” Daily News photo by Julie Zeeb Red Bluff native Jonna Threlkeld will be playing in the University of Oregon band when her team plays Auburn at the national championship game Monday. Threlkeld has played for the basketball team at a variety of events, includ- ing one trip to the Elite 8 for March Madness in St. Louis. “It’s been such a posi- tive experience to travel with the teams and to keep music in my life,” While her oldest sister Erin, who also played the saxophone, inspired her to pick up the instrument, it was teachers such as Chris Uchibori at Metteer School and Becky Huskey at Berrendos Middle School who helped Threlkeld become the musician she is today. “Becky Huskey really fueled my creativity and talents,” Threlkeld said. It was Dwight Evans, her journalism teacher at Red Bluff Union High See GRAD, page 7A