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Tuesday, March 6, 2012 – Daily News 7A Randy "Georgie" Vansickle, a long time resident of Tehama County passed away on February 29, 2012. Survived by parents Monte and Donna Vansickle, broth- ers Monte and James Vansickle and sister Nancy Reid and several nieces and nephews. Georgie enjoyed riding quads and working on his cars. Graveside services will be at Oak Hill Cemetery on March 9, 2012 at 2:00 PM with a reception to follow at Jim Ballard's resident, 9430 Oat Ave., Gerber, CA. Obituaries Death Notices RANDY "GEORGIE" VANSICKLE Death notices must be provided by mortuaries to the news department, are published at no charge, and feature only specific basic information about the deceased. Paid obituaries are placed through the Classified advertising department. Paid obituaries may be placed by mortuaries or by families of the deceased and include online publication linked to the news- paper's website. Paid obituaries may be of any length, may run multiple days and offer wide latitude of content, including photos. Grace A. Burch Grace A. Burch died Saturday, March 3, 2012, at her residence in Red Bluff. She was 98. Hoyt-Cole Chapel of the Flowers is handling the arrangements. Published Tuesday, March 6, 2012, in the Daily News, Red Bluff, Calif. WOLF Continued from page 1A started work on any state plan to protect or deal with the introduction of wolves, there are plenty of existing plans in other states to draw from should the need arise, Kovacs said. The main goal is mak- ing sure all the federal and state agencies are well- informed and on the same page, she said. She wanted people to be aware of facts and the scientific-based findings. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service field supervisor, Susan Moore, spoke about the history of the gray wolf and legislation on the issue. The federal agency is committed to a continuing status review of the wolves throughout the nation, she said. The ser- vice is looking into whether each distinct pop- ulation of wolves in each region is legitimately endangered or could be taken from the list. "The service has no plans to reintroduce the gray wolf in the Pacific Northwest," Moore said. She did reiterate, how- ever, that it is a federal violation to kill any pro- tected gray wolf, even if it is attacking livestock. Supervisor Bob Williams questioned what ranchers should do if their livestock are killed. "I am an old sheep man," he said. "I never had to worry about droppin' a coyote in the middle of my pack." He was concerned that a rancher whose livestock get threatened would be subject to large fines and jail time for protecting the animals or suffer the monetary loss of dead livestock. Amaroq Weiss, the northern California repre- sentative for the Califor- nia Wolf Center, and Pamela Flick of the group Defenders of Wildlife, offered some solutions. The California Wolf Center, based in east San Diego County, is a non- profit agency established in 1977, Weiss said. Their mission is to educate the public about all wildlife using the wolf as an example species because of its importance in the ecosystem. Through the Mexican Wolf Conservation Fund, strides have been made in protecting livestock in non-lethal ways, she said. A range of tools has been developed, such as noise- making monitoring sys- tems that deter wolves from getting too close to livestock and track their approaches. Defenders of Wildlife, which was established in 1947 and has about a mil- lion members nationwide, works for the protection of all wildlife, Flick said. Wolves help restore nature's balance, she said. Because California didn't have wolves, it was left off the list of states eligible for compensation funds in federal legisla- tion in 2010, Flick said. Now that OR-7 has come into the state, Defenders of Wildlife is working to get California included. Williams encouraged the government agencies to work with the wildlife protection groups to establish a compensation element in California plans and to continue to carefully track the situa- tion. Some commented about their distrust of the government agencies and environmental groups. The local, state and federal governments care more about animals than humans, said Tehama County resident Gene Shea. Supervisor George Russell responded to comments. "It's confusing for a person who's not a scien- tist, I guess, to understand the balance of nature," Russell said. As an example, he spoke about a local fish and game representative who said the deer popula- tions are declining because the forest canopies have grown too thick in areas and prevent them from getting to their food sources. "I wish it was clear, but it really isn't," he said. No actions were taken on the issue. The speakers were planning a meeting the same day with the Tehama County Farm Bureau as well. After traveling 900 miles in California, OR-7 crossed the state line from Siskiyou County and back into Oregon on March 1, the Department of Fish and Game report- ed. Biologists for the department have described his behavior as dispersal, where a young wolf seeks to find a mate or another wolf pack. "That search has not been resolved for OR-7 in California and his next movements cannot be predicted with any cer- tainty," the department reported. "It remains pos- sible he will return to Cal- ifornia in the future." ——— Andrea Wagner can be reached at 527-2153, extension 114 or awagner@redbluffdailyne ws.com. Oh Snap! The Daily News wants your photos: Cute kids, Adorable pets, Inspirational sights, Any shot you think readers would enjoy You might just see it in the Daily News Send pictures to editor@redbluffdailynews.com or drop off at 545 Diamond Ave. in Red Bluff. Include a caption. FUND Continued from page 1A from the community, the surrounding counties and fire agencies throughout the state and the nation," Ciapponi said. "We are deeply grateful for their support. There are no words to thank everyone enough for their thoughts and prayers in our time of grief." Cards and flowers can be dropped off or sent to: Cottonwood Fire Protec- tion District, 3271 Brush St., Cottonwood, 96022 According to the release, Ratledge is remembered as a great friend, co-worker and fire- PRISON Continued from page 1A "It's a tragic situation for the vic- tim and my client," Logan said. "Consider that he had no adult record before this." Logan said Garcia's juvenile his- tory, which included misdemeanor batteries and difficulty with alcohol and anger problems, showed Garcia was crying out for help and the sys- tem failed him. Not having a father in the home, not having completed 10th grade and issues, such as his use of methamphetamine twice a week since the age of 16 while in the sys- tem, all contributed to his associa- tions, which led to the situation today, Logan said. Calling the incident truly outra- PAIR Continued from page 1A on a guilty plea entered into court records on Feb. 6 for the charges of assault with a deadly weapon, special allegation street terrorism and accessory after the fact. The charge of attempt- fighter. Ratledge came to the department in Novem- ber 2003 as a volunteer firefighter. He had worked for the U.S. Forest Service and seasonally part-time with the city of Redding while pursuing his career with the Cottonwood Fire Department. In February of 2007, Ratledge was hired as a fire captain for the depart- ment and took on the role of training officer. He was passionate about training, building props and fix- tures to aid in training and dropping everything to come in and help volun- teers any time they had questions, the release said. Ratledge was known as someone who would always give everyone a fair shot, and the benefit of-the doubt. "You just had to call, and he was there," the release said. Ratledge had a great love of animals and chil- dren and had been known to give mouth to mouth resuscitation to cats and dogs who fell victim to smoke inhalation at struc- ture fires. Firefighters remember Ratledge bringing his dog Tigger to the station. His dog was always with him, whether he was taking a long hike to explore old fire lookouts, or working around the station. Ratledge liked to restore and rebuild old geous and shocking, Assistant Dis- trict Attorney Matt Rogers said the victim had just been released from the hospital for serious back surgery and was on his way to pick up med- ication when he was stabbed seven times in broad daylight in down- town Red Bluff. The incident came about when the victim honked at the car ahead of him, which Garcia and the driver, then 17-year-old Marc Anthony Cabrera, were in, because it was still stopped when the light ahead was green. Rogers said Garcia's juvenile his- tory, including theft, violence and bringing a knife onto school grounds, prove that Garcia's not a fit member of society. "This was a senseless and violent act that deserves to be punished and will be punished," Skillman said. ed willful premeditated murder was dropped at the Feb. 6 hearing. Watkins was found dur- ing an area check for the vehicle associated with the stabbing and taken into custody. An anonymous tip led police to the final two sus- pects — Harris, who was found in the 1000 block of VW Buses and Bugs and would help friends with anything they needed done around their houses. Friends and family members say Ratledge had a special laugh, always a smile on his face. Ratledge was an amazing father, not only to Sophia, but to his stepchildren, Hannah and Connor. Ratledge will be missed. He leaves a big hole in the lives of his family and friends and fel- low firefighters. ——— Julie Zeeb can be reached at 527-2153, extension 115 or jzeeb@redbluffdailynews. com. Follow her on Twitter @DN_Zeeb. While other factors may have influenced Garcia, it was ultimately his choice, Skillman said. "It all boils down to you," Skill- man said. "When you commit a crime, you are responsible for the crime. When you chose to carry a knife, chose to be involved with a gang and chose to attack, those are all personal decisions." Cabrera entered a plea of not guilty on Dec. 28, 2010, which was changed to not guilty by reason of insanity on Feb. 15, 2011. It was changed to not guilty on April 18, 2011, with a trial originally set for June 8, 2011. Cabrera is set to go to trial April 25. ——— Julie Zeeb can be reached at 527-2153, extension 115 or jzeeb@redbluffdailynews.com. Follow her on Twitter @DN_Zeeb. Oak Street on Sept. 21, where he had been living in an attic to elude capture, and a 17-year-old girl who was found Sept. 23 and booked into Tehama County Juvenile Hall on the charges of attempted murder and participation in a criminal street gang. Law enforcement said the victim had encoun- tered the suspects the day before while with a friend who was called derogatory words over the friend's wearing of a blue T-shirt. ——— Julie Zeeb can be reached at 527-2153, extension 115 or jzeeb@redbluffdailynews. com. Follow her on Twitter @DN_Zeeb. Study: Cellphone restrictions reduce deaths SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California's nearly four-year-old ban on drivers using handheld cell- phones is saving lives, according to a University of California, Berke- ley, study released Monday. The study found that overall traffic deaths dropped 22 percent, while deaths blamed on drivers using hand-held cellphones were down 47 percent. Deaths among drivers who use hands-free phones dropped at a similar rate. The university's Safe Trans- portation Research and Education Center examined deaths for two years before and two years after the cellphone ban took effect in July 2008. It found a similar drop in injuries attributed to drivers' cell- phone use. The number of deaths among drivers using hand-held phones fell from 100 to 53 during that period, while the number of injuries dropped from 7,720 to 3,862. The California Office of Traffic Safety, which sought the study, said deaths and injuries are declining in part because of an overall decrease in drivers using cellphones. An unrelated survey commis- sioned by the state last summer found 40 percent of drivers say they talk less while driving since SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A University of California task force on Monday delayed the release of a report on the pepper-spraying of student demonstrators by police officers during an Occupy protest at UC Davis last fall. the ban took effect, even if they have a legal hands-free device. The California survey, which included 1,801 drivers 18 and over at gas stations in 15 counties, tracked a similar finding in 2010 by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. The institute's survey found that 44 percent of drivers in states with cellphone bans said they don't use their phones while driving, com- pared with 30 percent in states that let drivers use hand-held cell- phones. Two previous studies, one by the nonprofit RAND Corp. and another by an affiliate of the insurance institute, found no overall reduc- tion in vehicle crashes after the cellphone law took effect. The uni- versity said its study is the first to look specifically at collisions involving cellphone use. The university findings sur- prised neither critics nor supporters of the state law. ''When you ban something, you're going to have less of it,'' said Sen. Doug LaMalfa, R-Wil- lows. ''Of course the numbers are going to go down.'' Instead of looking for illegal cellphone use, LaMalfa said police should be on watch for erratic dri- vers no matter if they are distracted by cellphones, putting on makeup, shaving, or changing compact discs in a stereo system. The Department of Motor Vehi- cles reported 460,487 handheld cellphone convictions last year, up 52 percent from the 301,833 con- victions in 2009. Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, who authored the cellphone law, said he was gratified by the study's findings but thinks the state could do better if the financial penalty was higher. He plans to amend his SB1310 to raise the current base penalty for a first offense from $20 to $30, with the additional $10 going to driver education programs. With court and other fees, a first offense currently costs drivers at least $159. Gov. Jerry Brown last year vetoed a bill, SB28, that would have raised the base fine to $50. Brown said current penalties should be enough to deter illegal cellphone use. ''Distracted driving laws can and do save lives,'' said Simitian, adding that, ''as good as these numbers are, they could be better'' with a higher fine and more educa- tion. UC committee delays release of pepper-spray report said. The UC Davis task force was scheduled to publish the report online Tuesday before discussing its findings and recommen- dations at a public meeting on campus. John Bakhit, the union Task force chairman Cruz Reynoso made the decision after learning the officers' union plans to seek a court order to halt the report's public disclo- sure, university officials attorney, told The Associat- ed Press that officers involved in the Nov. 19 incident don't want their names and confidential information they told investigators published in the report. Red Bluff Simple Cremations & Burial Service You DO have a choice in the Red Bluff area. Caring & Compassionate Service Full traditional burial service or cremation 722 Oak Street, Red Bluff, FD Lic. 1931 527-1732 529-3655 www.affordablemortuary.net ''We don't have any issue with the findings being released, but we were (initially) told the report wasn't going to include names or confidential information,'' Bakhit said Monday. Bakhit, an attorney for the Federated University Police Officers Associa- tion, plans to request a tem- porary restraining order in Alameda County Superior Court on Tuesday. 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