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Wednesday, March 10, 2010 – Daily News – 7A Death Notices Obituary ROBERT JUSTICE RICHARDSON Robert Justice Richardson, 76, of Red Bluff, California passed away on Friday, February 26, 2010 at his home. Bob has been a resi- dent of Red Bluff for the last 3 months. Formerly, he lived in Las Vegas, Nevada from 1964 to 2009. Bob was born on October 30, 1933 in Marion, North Carolina to Preston and Iris Richardson. He served in the U.S. Air Force from 1951 to 1959 during the Korean War. Bob worked as a Line Foreman for Arizona Public Service Company and Ne- vada Power Company for 31 years. In addition, he was a member of IBEW 357. Bob is survived by his be- loved wife of 57 years, Betty Richardson of Red Bluff, CA; 3 daughters: Barbara Negri of North Las Vegas, NV; Kathy Mir of Las Vegas, NV and Teresa Richardson of Red Bluff, CA; 1 son Da- vid Richardson of Red Bluff, CA; 5 grandchildren: Jenni- fer Negri, Jamie Reynolds, Frank Mir, Robert Mir & Bet- tyann Mir-Lemons; 8 great grandchildren: Teresa Gar- cia, Reese Negri, Preston Villadoz, Kierstyn Reynolds, Isabella Mir, Kage Mir, Kane Lemons and Ronin Mir. A private family visitation was held on Thursday, March 4, 2010 at Hoyt-Cole Chapel of the Flowers. Com- mittal services were held on Monday, March 8, 2010 at 12:45 at the Northern Cali- fornia Veterans Cemetery in Igo, CA with Air Force Milita- ry Honors. Pastor Jack McFarland officiated the service. Arrangements were handled by Hoyt-Cole Chapel of the Flowers in Red Bluff, CA. Leonard V. Rohrer Leonard V. Rohrer, a 40-year Tehama County resident, died Monday, March 8, 2010, in Red- ding. He was 83. Visitation will be held from 5 to 8 p.m. on Thurs- day, March 18, at Hoyt- Cole Chapel of the Flow- ers. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10 a.m. on Friday, March 19, at Sacred Heart Catholic Church followed by burial at Northern California Veteran's Cemetery, 11800 Gas Point Road, in Igo. Hoyt-Cole Chapel of the Flowers is handling the arrangements. Published Wednesday, March 10, 2010, in the Daily News, Red Bluff, Calif. Margaret Stutz Margaret Stutz died Tuesday, March 9, 2010, in Chico. She was 97. No services are planned. Brusie Funeral Home is handling the arrange- ments. Published Wednesday, March 10, 2010, in the Daily News, Red Bluff, Calif. Because the office will not be pursing charges, Cohen declined to share the name of the former probation officer. Sheriff Clay Parker, whose office handled the investigation up until the potential evidence was turned over to the Depart- ment of Justice, confirmed an object had been sent for testing but would not reveal what was tested. "We followed up any and all leads that we received, we con- tacted and interviewed all sus- pects and witnesses, we collected and analyzed any and all evi- dence, and put it all together in an investigative report," Parker said. Chief Probation Officer Richard Muench said he sees the results of the investigation as a chance to start with a clean slate and rebuild his office's public image. "I'm glad to hear that there's no evidence of wrongdoing by current employees," he said. "It is time to reestablish community trust, and at the same time to honor the probation employees that continue to provide public service." Muench previously confirmed that Cohen's investigation con- cerned claims that went back three years. He also indicated that previ- ous, separate allegations had been made against the probation department and said the county had acted on those already. ——— Geoff Johnson can be reached at 527-2153, extension 114 or gjohnson@redbluffdailynews.co m. Continued from page 1A JUVENILE tion Training Operations held since November throughout the province by members of the Afghan Veterinary Asso- ciation and International Security Assistance Forces. Organizers previously referred to the events as Veterinary Civic Action Programs, but said they changed the name to reflect the more active role of Afghan veterinari- ans. Tanson and other mem- bers of the division's Agri- business Development Team, a California National Guard unit, said most area residents depend on livestock for their livelihood. "The animal is their checkbook and their sav- ings account," said Lt. Col. Max Volte, of Sacra- mento. "(The animals) are a member of the family and they are relied on." On previous missions, the team would do all the work. Now it is a coordi- nated effort through the Afghan government, which contracts civilian veterinarians and veteri- nary technicians to con- duct the treatments, Volte said. In turn, the team helps organize the event sites and provides invaluable lessons for the veterinary technicians. This experi- ence helps the technicians become full-time veteri- narians, open their own businesses and provide the essential follow-ups needed to maintain the animals' health. "(Afghans) have to sus- tain this because we can't," Volte said. Mohammed Tahir, a veterinarian who partici- pated in other public vac- cination programs in pre- vious years, said the event was good training for him but an even better experi- ence for the public. "It's most beneficial for the people," Tahir said. According to the team, Veterinary Inoculation Training Operations have helped treat more than 4,700 animals since November. Animals received not just vaccinations, but nutritional supplements and other medicines. Volte said all the treatments are endorsed by the Afghan Veterinary Association. Members of the U.S. Department of Agricul- ture were on hand to eval- uate and grade the animals as they came in. "They're getting Cadil- lac treatment here," Volte said of the animals. "They're excellent, excel- lent vaccines." Volte said that since the treatments help the ani- mals, they help boost the wealth of the owners that attend, thereby helping the economy of the area. Another benefit was helping bring locals down from the hills to meet with those in the valley, essen- tially making the event a regional one, he said. Soldiers handed out additional livestock food supplements and free radios as residents left with their animals in tow. The day had a few shows for the crowd as well, usu- ally when one of the large water buffalos broke free and had to be wrestled back into place by the sol- diers. "This is acting as a fes- tival," Volte said. "It has a spinoff of community building." Continued from page 1A GOAT the chance to discuss how the cut will affect them. The elimination of summer school affects teachers, as well. A number of teachers teach summer school for supplemental income and they will not have that option this year, said Steve Piffero, pres- ident of the school's teacher's association. Curry said he is aware that there are some teachers who are use to the extra income, but drop- ping summer classes was a deci- sion the school board had to make considering the economy. "It's not something we want to do," he said. "But it's necessary the way things are. Again, there are no easy cuts. All our programs serve the students." At the elementary level, the Red Bluff Union Elementary School District has not held sum- mer school for the past two years and will not be offering it this year. Not having summer school is just one of the cost-saving mea- sures the district has had to imple- ment, Superintendent William McCoy said. ——— Tang Lor can be reached at 527- 2153, Ext. 110 or by e-mail at tlor@redbluffdailynews.com. Continued from page 1A SUMMER honored to once again serve as your District Attorney," he said. Asked about his oppo- nent, veteran Public Defender Ken Miller, Cohen declined to com- ment. The election is sched- uled for June 8. The dead- line to file for candidacy is Friday and the deadline to register is May 24. ——— Geoff Johnson can be reached at 527-2153, extension 114 or gjohnson@redbluffdailyn ews.com. Continued from page 1A COHEN Agents, police arrest fugitive with drugs on him A Red Bluff resident was arrested Monday evening on suspicion of possessing metham- phetamine, drug paraphernalia and prescrip- tion medication. Red Bluff police arrested Corey Gene Piper, 23, when Fugitive Recovery Agents matched Piper to the description of a man they were searching for on Jackson and Ash streets, according to a press release. Agents, spying a package containing methamphetamine in Piper's possession, called in officers and arrested Piper. Drug paraphernalia and prescription med- ication were found in his vehicle, according to the release. Piper was subsequently booked into the Tehama County Jail. No further information was released. Gov: Lawmakers must cut more spending SACRAMENTO (AP) — Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said Tuesday that he vetoed the largest piece of legislation in a package of budget bills because it did not take immediate steps to cut spending. Democratic lawmakers said the bill would have shaved $2.1 billion from the $20 billion short- fall projected for California's budget through June 2011. So far, the Legislature and governor have agreed to just $200 million in spending cuts. ''It's extremely important that we immediately jump into action and make midyear cuts,'' Schwarzenegger told reporters on Tuesday. ''We're spending, right now, $600 million a month more than we're taking in. It's irresponsible.'' Schwarzenegger vetoed the Assembly bill Monday evening. He explained Tuesday that the bill targeted potential cuts in the fiscal year that begins in July, but he wants those cuts to be made in the current fiscal year. ''I know this is very tough,'' Schwarzenegger said. ''I know this is difficult for some of the programs that we have — educa- tion, higher education, health care and so on — but we have to make those cuts, because we don't have the money to pay for those things.'' In January, Schwarzenegger called the Legislature into a spe- cial session to slash the state's deficit by $8.9 billion, primarily through cuts to public schools, higher education and social ser- vices. But Democrats refused to make the deeper cuts he request- ed. As part of the special session, the Legislature was required to focus on budget bills. If lawmak- ers did not send the governor a budget solution for the current fiscal year by Feb. 22, they would not be allowed to take up regular session bills. The Legislature met that requirement when it passed a measure authorizing payment deferrals that would ensure the state has enough cash to pay its bills. Schwarzenegger's spokesman Aaron McLear said the governor met last night with leaders of the Legislature to discuss the bud- get, but no agreements were reached. ''It's baffling the governor would veto $2.1 billion in real budget solutions which were part of his own proposed package,'' said Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramen- to. He added that of the $2.1 bil- lion in cuts the Legislature pro- posed, approximately $1.8 bil- lion were identical to the gover- nor's proposal. ''He keeps saying he wants cuts, but when we give him $2.1 billion in cuts, he won't take it,'' Steinberg said. The governor has not yet decided whether to sign the Leg- islature's gas tax proposal, McLear said. That bill would end a 6 percent sales tax on gasoline and replace it with a 17.3 cent per gallon excise tax on gas, freeing up $1.1 billion in general fund money. Assembly Speaker John Perez called the governor's veto unfor- tunate, and said that the budget savings would be achieved when the Legislature passes next year's budget in a few months. ''The Legislature acted responsibly and proactively to impose spending restrictions on the 2010-2011 budget bill,'' Perez said in a statement. Schwarzenegger also said some of the bill's savings esti- mates were unrealistic. He explained that he does not want to commute the sentences of some undocumented immigrants who committed severe crimes. The Legislature had proposed deporting them to save $182 mil- lion in prison costs. 'We're spending, right now, $600 million a month more than we're taking in. It's irresponsible' Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger LOS ANGELES (AP) — Very few consumers benefited from California regulators' highly publicized settlements with health insurers accused of dropping sick patients from their policies, according to a state assembly report. The Department of Managed Health Care and the Depart- ment of Insurance oversee the individual policies affected by the practice of rescission, the health insurance industry's term for dropping patients from coverage when they try to make claims. About 2.6 million Californi- ans, or 9 percent of the state's insured, have individual poli- cies. In a report Tuesday, the state's Committee on Account- ability and Administrative Review said fewer than 200 people went through the arbi- tration process set forth by the regulators. More than 6,000 Californians were subject to rescissions by the five largest insurance companies between 2004 and 2008, according to settlement agreements between the regulators and the insurers. Regulators reached settle- ments with HealthNet, Anthem Blue Cross, Blue Shield of Cal- ifornia, PacifiCare of Califor- nia and Kaiser Permanente. The settlements did not require the insurers to accept any blame. But they did order the insurers to pay fines rang- ing from $50,000 for Pacifi- Care to $10 million for Anthem Blue Cross, and they required insurers to allow the policy- holders to be reinstated under new policies. The settlements also prohib- ited policyholders from taking further legal action against insurers if they attempted to recoup medical costs. After-hours calls to the regu- lators were not returned. Few consumers benefited from insurance settlement Whitman defines herself as the un-Schwarzenegger SACRAMENTO (AP) — Former eBay chief Meg Whitman's cam- paign for governor of California has a familiar ring to it: She's an out- sider from the business world who promises to sweep the Capitol clean of politics-as-usual and deliver fiscal common sense. California voters have heard that before. It's roughly the same mes- sage fellow Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger pitched during the 2003 gubernatorial recall election that elevated him to power. With California mired in a deep budget crisis and partisanship as bit- ter as ever, Schwarzenegger is widely seen as having failed to deliver on that promise. That's why, despite their party alliance, Whitman is taking any opportunity she can to distance herself from Schwarzenegger and his tenure. She sometimes uses harsh language to suggest that the governor has been, at the very least, a disappointment and that she will be differ- ent. The billionaire former chief executive of eBay casts herself as a seri- ous, plain-Jane businesswoman who knows how to meet a payroll and create a balance sheet, unlike the bodybuilder-turned movie star-turned governor who she suggests has been more concerned with his image than fulfilling his promise of fiscal responsibility. ''We need a governor with a spine of steel who will look at the books, decide on priorities, deal with the Legislature and take the heat for what we cut and what we fund,'' Whitman said when she officially announced her candidacy last September. ''If being popular and getting re-elected is your goal, then being governor is a really bad job-person fit.'' She repeats variations on that theme at most of her campaign stops, often adding that she possesses the kind of focus the current administra- tion lacks. ''The most important thing that the next governor of California has to do is actually deliver the goods,'' Whitman said.