Sacto 9-1-1

By Stephen Magagnini

Yolo County sheriff's deputies arrested 18 people Monday morning people for trespassing at D-Q University, the struggling tribal college seven miles west of Davis, authorities said.

Monday's arrests marked the second time D-Q trustees have called sheriff's deputies to remove what they call "squatters" camping out there illegally.

"The dispute's been going on for two to three years, it started when DQU lost their accreditation," said sheriff's public information officer Michele Wallace. "We received a phone call from the DQU board requesting us to remove trespassers on the property illegally. We got there between 9:30 and 10 am this morning. There was no use of force at all."

In the past, some of those camping at D-Q included former students who were trying to run their own classes. But, Wallace said, "We have no reports that any of these people on the property trespassing had ever been students there."

The 18 booked on trespassing will be released pending a court date unless they have outstanding warrants, Wallace said. The D-Q board is taking steps to secure the property by installing new locks, Wallace said.

In a statement Monday, D-Q board member Jane Elliott said, "We can now move forward in rebuilding D-Q University."

By Sandy Louey

Elk Grove police have arrested a 16-year-old girl in connection with a car crash last year that killed another teenager.

The girl was arrested Thursday on suspicion of vehicular manslaughter, three counts of reckless driving and driving without a license, said Officer Christopher Trim, spokesman for the Elk Grove Police Department.

"We believe her reckless actions caused the collision and the death of the individual," Trim said Monday.

The arrest was the result of an eight-month investigation in the June 30, 2007, accident that claimed the life of 15-year-old Dyeshaia Shamor Richardson, who was a rear passenger in the Chevrolet Cavalier driven by the girl.

Witnesses reported that the northbound car was driving erratically and speeding before it struck a tree in the median of Bruceville Road, just north of Terrazzo Way.

Richardson, who was not wearing a seat belt, died at the scene. The four other 15- to 18-year-old girls in the car, including the driver, were injured.

By Sandy Louey

A neighbor helped Elk Grove police catch an alleged burglar over the weekend.

Around 6 a.m. Saturday a neighbor saw Jose Perez, 18, leaving the side garage door of a home in the 9100 block of Laguna Villa Way, according to a police report.

The neighbor yelled when he spotted Perez walking to a vehicle parked in a driveway. Another man stood across the street. Both men ran away. A K-9 unit helped capture Perez, but the other man was not apprehended.

Several items were located belonging to the homeowner.

Perez was arrested on suspicion of burglary. He remained in the Sacramento County Main Jail Monday on $50,000 bail.

The second man hasn't been located, said Officer Christopher Trim, spokesman for the Elk Grove Police Department.

By Sandy Louey

Two robbers in Elk Grove must have really craved some pizza.

A driver for Steve's Pizza was trying to make a delivery to a home in the 9200 block of Laguna Springs Way around 8:20 p.m. Sunday when a man with a knife walked up to him and demanded the pizza, according to a police report.

The man and a second man grabbed the pizza and left. An extensive search of the area, which including bringing in a helicopter, failed to locate the two robbers.

By Ryan Lillis

This bank robber is so cool, he wears his sunglasses inside.

A man wearing shades walked into the Bank of America branch inside the Save Mart grocery store at 9137 Kiefer Boulevard around 11:45 a.m. Thursday, according to a news release from the Sacramento Sheriff's Department.

He handed the teller a note demanding money and stating that he had a gun, authorities said. He then allegedly fled the store with money.

Authorities described the suspect as a black man in his 20s, standing 6 feet tall and weighing 200 pounds. In addition to the shades, he was wearing a dark colored baseball cap, blue jacket and striped collared shirt.

Anyone with information on the bank heist is asked to call the sheriff's department at (916) 874-5115 or Crime Alert at (916) 443-HELP. Callers can remain anonymous and may be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000.

By Denny Walsh

The next time you feel like sending a nasty email to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, consider the case of David Kearby Clements.

In September 2004, Clements emailed the governor protesting the lack of enforcement of California's Compassionate Use Act, the voter initiative allowing medical use of marijuana with a doctor's recommendation.

But Clements made the mistake of calling Schwarzenegger a "Nazi" and threatening to physically harm him, according to court papers.

That got the attention of the California Highway Patrol, which is responsible for protecting the governor. So, on Feb. 16, 2005, CHP officers executed a search warrant at Clements' South Lake Tahoe home to obtain evidence that the email originated on his computer.

They found a trove of "child pornography, sexually explicit images of minors, and child erotica," court papers say.

Clements, 50, was sentenced Monday to five years in federal prison for receipt and possession of child pornography.

By Art Campos

Illegal use of the popular painkiller OxyContin appears to be behind a number of recent area pharmacy holdups in which robbers brazenly demanded the pills.

The latest reported incident occurred shortly before 6 p.m. Saturday at Walgreens at 3999 Foothills Blvd., Roseville, when a man wearing a black mask jumped over a pharmacy counter and frightened a clerk as he demanded OxyContin, police said.

The robber put several bottles of the drug and other prescription narcotics in a backpack and left on a blue bicycle that was later found abandoned in the store's parking lot, said Dee Dee Gunther, a police spokeswoman. She said no weapon was seen during the robbery.

Gunther noted the trend in incidents involving OxyContin, a drug most commonly prescribed for cancer patients and people with chronic or debilitating pain.

"It's a hot drug right now," Gunther said. "And it's very addictive."

On March 19, a 20-year-old Folsom man was arrested by the Placer County Sheriff's Department following a series of pharmacy robberies in Folsom, El Dorado Hills, Sacramento and Granite Bay.

The suspect, Pierre Javon Williams, remains in custody in the Placer County jail on $15,000 bail.

By David Richie

Three men and one woman were arrested Sunday night after allegedly robbing an off-duty Sacramento County sheriff's deputy at an ATM machine in Folsom.

Folsom police declined to identify the deputy, who was confronted by a man carrying what was later described as a "replica" handgun. The incident occurred about 10:24 p.m. outside the Wells Fargo Bank in the 25000 block of Blue Ravine Road. The deputy handed over his wallet and grabbed the gun. Preliminary reports are not clear about whether the deputy knew that he was looking at a phony weapon.

The suspect fled to a waiting silver Toyota Camry. When Folsom police arrived, the deputy gave them the license plate number.

The Camry was soon spotted westbound on Highway 50. Folsom police, assisted by sheriff's deputies and Rancho Cordova police officers, stopped the car as it exited onto southbound Sunrise Boulevard.

The officers arrested Michelle Marie Tarpley, 18, of Rancho Cordova; Seth Derek Briggs, 20, of North Highlands; Guillermo Santana, 27, of Sacramento; and Steven Ray Tamberg, 23, of Rancho Cordova.

All four remain in Sacramento County Jail, booked on suspicion of robbery and conspiracy. Bail has been set at $200,000 each with no projected release date. Briggs and Tamberg also have been charged with probation violation. Santana already had misdemeanor warrants for his arrest.

By David Richie

Citrus Heights police took another gun off the street early today during an arrest that started with a traffic stop because of a missing headlight. "This was a good pinch, some very good police work," said Lt. Daman Christensen, Citrus Heights police watch commander.

Officers stopped the vehicle about 2:30 a.m. on Greenback Lane near Fair Oaks Boulevard. They soon determined that the passenger in the car, Matthew Stephen Connors, had a misdemeanor warrant for drunken driving. A loaded .25-caliber semi-automatic handgun fell out as he got out of the car.

The gun does not belong to Connors and officers were still investigating this morning to learn more about the weapon, Christensen said.

Officers also found a small amount of suspected methamphetamine in the car and just over a gram in Connor's boxer shorts while he was being booked into jail.

He was booked on seven felony charges including suspicion of carrying a concealed firearm in a vehicle and suspicion of possessing controlled substances while armed with a loaded firearm.

Sacramento police have arrested a 19-year-old man in connection with a knife attack on his 16-year-old sister that left her partially paralyzed and in critical condition.

The arrest of Patthana Vannalee followed an attack on the girl in her bedroom in the 3800 block of Rio Linda on Saturday at 12:12 a.m., police said.

Officers responding to a report of a stabbing found the victim with "wounds to her face, eyes, and the back of her neck," a police press release states. "She remains hospitalized in critical condition. The severity of her paralysis is unknown at this time."

Police say Vannalee attacked "viciously and without provocation" and then fled after family members confronted him. He was later arrested without incident and booked into the county jail on attempted murder and mayhem charges, police said.

The victim is not being named because she is a juvenile. Anyone with information should contact the Sacramento Police Department's homicide unit at (916) 808-0680.

Your daylong Arden area traffic nightmare is finally over. Bill Lindelof has the story.

By Bill Lindelof

The long, involved job of opening all roadways in the Arden area has been completed Monday after a woman fell asleep and ran into a power pole Sunday morning.

The California Highway Patrol announced at 6:09 a.m. Monday that all roads were open.

The streets were closed before when Katherine Hozjan's sports-utility vehicle struck a power pole near Howe Avenue and Wyda Way around 6 a.m. Sunday. The pole snapped and caused three other poles to fall, draping the streets in down lines.

The closed streets included parts of southbound Howe Avenue from Wyda to Arden Way; and Alta Arden Expressway between Howe and Ethan Way.

Power was restored to 200 residents early Sunday, SMUD spokesman Robert Tokunaga said.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

By Bill Lindelof

As an event draws near to honor exemplary work for those who do the high-stress job of answering emergency calls, Folsom Police officials have added up what their dispatchers accomplished last year.

The Folsom Communications Center has 12 full-time dispatchers, two part-time dispatchers and two full-time communications supervisors. In 2007, those employees handled 110,000 emergency 911 and non-emergency calls.

Sherri Furniss, the police department's technical services manager, said that the dispatchers answered nearly 98 percent of the 911 calls within 10 seconds. In addition, they dispatched officers to 58,756 incidents last year.

Dispatchers, she said, are a rare group of individuals "who work in a high stress environment where helping people is their top priority."

Folsom dispatchers and others from Sacramento, El Dorado, Placer and Yolo Counties will be honored April 19 during an awards banquet at the Radisson Hotel in Sacramento.

By Art Campos

A Roseville man faces a year in jail after agreeing to plead no contest today to three misdemeanor counts in incidents in which he exposed himself to two teenage girls and drove alongside a third girl, the Placer County District Attorney's Office reported.

James Demetrius Singh, 34, entered the plea to two charges of annoying or molesting children and one count of indecent exposure, said Scott Owens, senior deputy district attorney.

Owens said Singh could have faced a year behind bars for each of the three counts but accepted a plea deal that would give him no more than a year in the Placer County jail.

The arrest stemmed from a Sept. 11 incident in which two 15-year-old girls reported that a man exposed himself to them as they were walking home from school. Rocklin police said a third girl came forward to report that a man stalked her by driving alongside her as she was on the sidewalk.

Two days later, police served an arrest warrant on Singh for the two incidents.

Sentencing is scheduled for May 14 in Placer Superior Court, Owens said.

By David Richie

Two people were slightly injured Thursday when a 70-year-old woman's cat attacked her face, causing her to slam her Toyota Solara into the restaurant where the two people were eating lunch, Folsom police reported Friday.

The incident occurred about 12:23 p.m. at Barbecue Express in the 6600 block of Folsom-Auburn Road. The Solara nearly came through the wall and the two diners were struck by a piece of that wall as well as a soft drink machine and a table, said Officer Michelle Beattie, police spokeswoman.

They complained of pain but there is no indication that they required transportation to a hospital.

The owners and the people who work at Barbecue Express may be the ones really feeling the pain.

The business is closed, at least temporarily, said a worker who answered the telephone Friday but declined to give his name. He was on duty Thursday when the Solara hit the wall.

"It sounded like an earthquake," the man said. "That woman came out of nowhere."

From David Richie:

Wednesday was an exceptionally bad day for residents of the 1700 block of Creekside Drive, a neighborhood of high-density apartment complexes just up the hill from Mercy Folsom Medical Center in Folsom, according to crime reports released Friday.

A police log indicates that calls for service started around 4:30 a.m. Wednesday when some residents discovered that their blue 1990 Honda Civic had been stolen.

A few hours later officers took a report on a stolen motorcycle.

In between they fielded at least three vehicle burglary complaints. Windows were broken in each case with stereo equipment, global positioning systems and similar items stolen from two of the vehicles. In the third incident, a vehicle's right rear window was shattered but nothing was stolen.

A 29-year-old man is being prosecuted by the Placer County District Attorney's Office for allegedly defrauding an elderly Roseville resident of more than a half-million dollars.

Joshua Tymon Correa of Sacramento has been arraigned on 12 counts that include theft, embezzlement, forgery, defrauding an elder and residential burglary, said Scott Owens, senior deputy district attorney.

Read the rest of Art Campos' story

From Denny Walsh:

It appears that golf does not pose nearly as much of a challenge for former Sacramento County Sheriff Lou Blanas as running the jail, plagued by problems during his tenure.

He traded his six shooter for a six iron and scored a hole-in-one Sunday on the 151-yard 15th hole at Winchester Country Club in Meadow Vista.

A Sacramento woman involved in a car crash a week before Christmas that killed 18-year-old Scott Crouch, left, and injured eight other young people has been charged with gross vehicular manslaughter and driving under the influence with injury, Sacramento District Attorney Jan Scully announced today.

Beth Ann Colyer, 35, had a blood-alcohol level of .15 more than 90 minutes after the Dec. 19 crash, nearly twice the legal limit of .08, Scully's office said.

Tests also detected the presence of hydrocodone, which the District Attorney's office described as a "common and powerful prescription pain reliever."

For the rest of today's story, click here; Click on link below to read Tony Bizjak's Dec. 21, 2007, story about the accident:

171 reports from the last week in February to the past week in March for the city of Rocklin have been added to CrimeMapper

In another school project gone awry, a college student's science project short-circuited Thursday on a New York City subway train.

Panic ensued, but no one was injured or arrested. The student later apologized.

Here's the Associated Press story

Legend has it that the rainstick was invented by Chilean natives to bring rainstorms. But Friday, rainsticks brought the bomb squad to a Sacramento school.

In traditional cultures, rainsticks are made from cactus. The spines are pulled out and pushed back in, sharp end first. Then the hollow cactus are filled with seeds or pebbles. When inverted, the sound is sort of like the tinkle of rain falling.

That apparently was the goal of an art project at Sutterville Elementary.

Read Bill Lindelof's report

Stan Oklobdzija weaves a harrowing tale about a Rancho Cordova Code Enforcement officer's surprise encounter with a gunman during a blight sweep one recent morning.

After a few very tense moments, the man put down his gun and was arrested shortly thereafter.

Here's Stan's report:

State game wardens cited 10 more people on the Sacramento River this week for illegally netting young chinook salmon to use as bait.

The latest actions come on the heels of a major poaching sting last week that brought nine arrests in Sacramento for crimes including salmon poaching. The poaching is believed to be one factor in a broad decline in the salmon population.

More details from Matt Weiser:

Sacramento Police have arrested three suspects on suspicion of robbery after the SWAT team was called Friday morning to take the teens into custody.

The incident began when a man was beaten at gunpoint and his vehicle taken around 12:30 a.m. near Pennywood Court in south Sacramento. A short time later, another man was carjacked at gunpoint near Bushwood Court.

Police went to the home of a person officers suspected of committing similar crimes and found both cars. Knowing that the suspects from the robbery were armed, officers called for SWAT and a hostage negotiator around 1:10 a.m.

Read the rest of Bill Lindelof's report

Local firefighters are raising money for cancer research while dramatically "lowering their ears" and they are inviting local residents to join them.

Bald will be beautiful for dozens of firefighters mustering 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday at Station 21, 7641 Greenback Lane in Citrus Heights. They are getting their heads shaved in support of Capt. Jim Peterson of the Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District, said Capt. Christian Pebbles.

More from David Richie:

A former employee of a beer distributing company learned the hard way that trying to put a slick move on his bosses isn't as easy as doing it on a basketball court.

Dylan Demoss, 22, of Sacramento was sentenced to 60 days in the Placer County jail this week and ordered to pay $4,000 in restitution and fines for collecting workers' compensation after lying about how he was injured on the job, the Placer District Attorney's Office reported.

More from Art Campos:

From Bill Lindelof:

A woman wearing a hood and sunglasses is suspected of robbing a Bank of the West on Thursday on Sacramento's J Street.

A woman approached the counter at 11:39 a.m. and presented a note to the teller that said she had a gun. The teller handed over the money and the suspect left the bank at 601 J St.

She was described as a white woman in her late 20s or early 30s, about 5-foot-3 and 180 pounds. She was wearing a black knit cap, a black hooded jacket, dark sunglasses, blue jeans and white running shoes.

From Art Campos:

A motorist who stopped to refuel at a gas station in Roseville was arrested Wednesday afternoon for possibly having consumed too much fuel himself.

The first clue? Police say that when the driver was exiting the station at 1261 Pleasant Grove Blvd., he ran over the foot of an 80-year-old man, causing minor injuries.

Investigating officers determined that the driver, James Whitney Bibbins III, 20, of Granite Bay, was under the influence of alcohol, said police spokeswoman Dee Dee Gunther.

Bibbins was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving and causing injury, she said.

The 80-year-old pedestrian was taken by ambulance to Sutter Roseville Medical Center, where he was treated for injuries to his foot and then released, Gunther said.

From Terri Hardy:

The Sacramento Police Officers Association board voted unanimously today to endorse former NBA all-star and developer Kevin Johnson for mayor.

Brent Meyer, SPOA president, at a news conference said the organization was excited by Johnson's vision for the city and his emphasis on the need for public safety. The board arrived at its decision after meeting with all interested mayoral candidates, including two-term incumbent Heather Fargo.

More story:

From Ryan Lillis:

Four juveniles -- apparently too cool for school -- were nabbed after allegedly committing a pair of home burglaries in Sacramento's Pocket area midday Monday, police said.

Even more troubling was the fact that police believe the crew took handguns in both break-ins and may be responsible for several more burglaries in the area.

More story:

From David Richie:

Cops are cops wherever they go.

Just ask Reuben Meeks, who wears two hats as a Sacramento County Sheriff's Department captain and as Rancho Cordova's chief of police.

That's how he views his March 8 "low speed" collision with a bollard while on a Rancho Cordova police motorcycle.

More story:

A prank known as "swatting" -- making phony 911 calls that send SWAT teams on bogus responses -- is a serious matter, especially for a Lake Forest (Orange County) family. A computer hacker was sentenced to three years in prison for placing such a call. A dispatched SWAT team ended up storming the family's home at gunpoint.

Here's the story from the Orange County Register

Once a Los Angeles Dodgers favorite, Mike Piazza apparently wasn't loved in Orange County.

A man who hit Piazza with a water bottle thrown from the stands at Angel Stadium last year was sentenced to 30 days in jail, authorities said. Piazza, then playing for the Oakland A's, was plunked in the on-deck cirlcle.

Here's the Associated Press story

From Ryan Lillis:

Slain Sacramento sheriff's Det. Vu Nguyen will be honored today at his department's annual Awards and Commendation Banquet.

Nguyen's family will be presented with the Gold Medal of Valor and the Purple Heart. The detective was shot and killed in the line of duty Dec. 19 after chasing a teenager through back yards in south Sacramento, authorities said.

In addition to Nguyen, 27 other sheriff's deputies will be given awards at the banquet at the Radisson Hotel, said Sgt. Tim Curran.

An El Dorado County couple returned from an evening stroll Sunday to find their 2002 Chevrolet Silverado pretty much totaled, according to a crime report released Thursday.

The incident occurred after the couple parked their vehicle off Happy Valley Cutoff Road, in the Pleasant Valley area. They stowed a purse with an extra set of car keys under a seat before going for a walk around 6 p.m.

More details from David Richie:

The Sacramento Citizens' Crime Alert Reward Program has released its updated list of the area's wanted suspects. Ancil Lloyd Statum, left, also known as Joe Greene, is suspected of performing a lewd act with a child under 14 years old. Statum was last known to live in the 2600 block of 27th Street in Sacramento. The other suspect, whose name is not known, is wanted for reportedly committing identity theft and forgery in Citrus Heights.

For more details about these and other wanted suspects, view the Crime Alert Web site. If you have information about any wanted person or crime, call 1-800-AA-CRIME or 916-443-HELP.

The Bee's Regional editions publish Public Safety Watch stories each Thursday. Here's a roundup of those stories and Police/Fire Logs, as compiled by Bee reporters:

Sacramento/North Sacramento/south Sacramento:
Woman found on bike trail
Police/Fire Log

Arden/Carmichael:
Cops: Brawl turns to looting
Police/Fire Log

Elk Grove:
Keep smoke alarms working, Red Cross urges
Police/Fire Log

Citrus Heights/Orangevale/Fair Oaks:
Residents learn to protect themselves from burglary
Police/Fire Log

Folsom:
Folsom fire station plan goes low-profile
Police/Fire Log

Rancho Cordova/Gold River:
Police/Fire Log

Placer County:
Former insurance broker sentenced to prison
Police/Fire Log

El Dorado County:
Police/Fire Log

Three teenagers have been arrested for suspicion of spitting on a 2-year-old boy and the child's mother in a Woodland park. The mother was also allegedly kicked and bitten.

Here's the rest of Bill Lindelof's update:

A judge, trying to make a stern point, ordered a San Luis Obispo serial burglar to serve 927-plus years in prison.

Read the story from The Triubne in San Luis Obispo.

A community discussion on drug awareness is scheduled April 2 at Del Oro High School in Loomis.

The Placer County Sheriff's Department provides more information:

It's never a good idea to impersonate a police officer -- or to pull over a real officer for a traffic stop while doing it.

This happened in Gilbert, Ariz. The Associated Press provides the story

Twelve people in Galt have been cited by the state's Department of Alcholic Beverage Control for supplying alcohol to minors.

The citations occurred during three stings conducted by the Galt Police Department and ABC investigators over the last month.

Read Melissa Nix's story

Two Yolo County drug suspects involved into a high-speed chase and rollover crash Monday night on Greenback Lane in Citrus Heights might not have known much about the city's layout.

One of them ran from the crash scene and was taken into custody in the city's Fountain Square government complex, just a few doors down from the Citrus Heights police station.

David Richie provides more details:

From Melissa Nix:

Jagjeet Dhillon, 35, was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol after crashing a gold Chevy Tahoe into an Elk Grove home at 9 p.m. Tuesday.

No one in the house, on the 9300 block of Miko Circle, near Calvine Road, was injured.

Dhillon sustained minor injuries, according to the police.

'If there is a work day involved with rebuilding the structure, I hope the Bee publishes the date so folks who want to lend a hand and see for themselves how devastating something like this can be to kids 5-16 years old. Maybe if those players come out and see adults re-building and doing something in a constructive manner for them, it'll impact them enough where they will give back to the community in the future.'

-- davidsons4, commenting on the Parkway Little League arson story

Tuesday, we detailed copper thefts locally and at a Connecticut church during an Easter Vigil. Another metal of choice for thieves is brass, especially in fire hydrants.

The Victorville Daily Press reports on this trend in California's High Desert area.

After a week of uncertainty, Kacie Klinnert, a missing 17-year-old El Dorado Hills girl, has been reunited with her family.

Here's David Richie's update and his previous story about the teen.

Owners of $180,000 Mercedes Benzes, beware. Thieves targeted -- and torched -- the prized ride of San Diego Chargers' linebacker Shawne Merriman last week.

Details from The San Diego Union-Tribune

Three teenagers attacked a 22-year-old woman in a Woodland park Monday evening, after she suspected them of spitting at her 2-year-old boy, police said.

Sgt. Dan Letamendi said the mother and toddler were at the play structure at Ferns Park at about 7 p.m. when they met their attackers, two boys and a girl, who were between 17 to 19 years old.

More details from Chelsea Phua:

From Denny Walsh:

Two former Sacramento residents have been charged with fraud related to claims for disaster relief arising from Hurricane Katrina, U.S. Attorney McGregor Scott announced Tuesday.

John M. Ford is charged with five counts of mail fraud and two counts of wire fraud in connection with false claims to the Federal Emergency Management Agency. He is alleged to have stolen $4,370 allocated for Katrina victims.

Ford, 35, who has been in custody since his arrest March 10, is expected to plead guilty Tuesday.

Andre D. Morning is charged with five counts of mail fraud, one count of making a false claim to FEMA, and one count of lying to federal agents. He is alleged to have stolen $1,700 allocated for Katrina victims.

Morning, 52, was arrested Tuesday in Yuba City. He entered a not guilty plea later in the day before a federal magistrate judge.

Three bouncers at a nightclub in Old Town Roseville were arrested over the weekend for allegedly beating up two bar patrons, police reported.

The men, who work for the Onyx Club at 116 Main St., were taken into custody after 1 a.m. Sunday on suspicion of battery with serious bodily injury and conspiracy, said police spokeswoman Dee Dee Gunther.

Art Campos provides more details:

The Porter family of midtown Sacramento hoped to spend Sunday afternoon looking for Easter eggs in their backyard. But their plans gave way to heartbreak when they came home from church to discover a pair of pit bulls had broken through their fence and killed their 11-year-old terrier mix.

Here's more details from Ryan Lillis:

'What we need in this city is ways to throw the book at people who take advantage of our elderly, who grew up in a time when they could - for the most part - trust the average person. My dad's wife now lives in fear that he is going to give away their hard earned retirement to some criminal who sounds trustworthy or some door to door salesperson who looks nice.'

-- ruth blank, commenting on the 'Suspects target elderly woman in swindle' story

From David Richie and Stan Oklobdzija:

Two teenagers ran afoul of Citrus Heights police Wednesday evening after spiking their spring break with vodka and cough syrup, officers say.

The concoction sounds like one of the many variations referred to on the Internet as "purple drank" or "sizzurp." It is also called "lean," possibly because that's what people do when they drink it - just before they fall down. It might also be called "lethal." It is suspected as a contributing factor in the deaths of several hip hop artists.

Police say that when they arrived at the home near San Juan Park, one of the boys, age 14, flew into a rage. The boy tried to kick one officer and spit at two other officers.

An arrest summary released Monday alleges that the boy continued to spit at police officers and hospital staff members after being transported by paramedics to Mercy San Juan Medical Center in Carmichael.

He was subsequently transported to juvenile hall and booked on suspicion of battery on a police officer and disorderly conduct.

The other boy was cooperative during the whole encounter. He was released to his parents after being treated at the hospital.

From David Richie:

Dr. Phil might not even be able to save this relationship.

A woman and her boyfriend got into a hot domestic spat while driving from Sacramento to Citrus Heights about 1:30 p.m. Thursday.

Possibly in search of a referee, the woman decided to swing by the Citrus Heights police station on Fountain Square Drive. She parked and started inside toward the public counter.

He hopped out, grabbed the car keys out of her hand and drove away.

Police are still looking for the boyfriend and the car, a white Buick Century, license plate number 5WQA726, according to a report released Monday.

Construction sites, freeway lights, a softball field, now a church during an Easter Vigil. Is there no end to reports of copper thefts? In today's Bee, Ed Fletcher details the theft of copper wire from the field lights at Tahoe Park's softball field.

Read the story about the church theft from theday.com in Connecticut.

With less than two weeks until opening day, the Parkway Little League is trying to rebuild its snack shack and restock its baseball equipment after a costly arson Sunday.

Here's Bill Lindelof's update

Two suspects are wanted for swindling an elderly woman out of tens of thousands of dollars.

One of the suspects was caught on surveillance tape in the Freeport Boulevard Bank of America. Sacramento Police hope the photograph will help catch the suspect and enable them to recover the victim's money.

Here's the rest of Bill Lindelof's report:

A fourth suspect, Alfredo Valdovino Chavez, is being sought in a triple slaying earlier this month in the Yuba County community of Linda. According to the Yuba County Sheriff's Department, Chavez has been "positively identified by witness statements" as being involved in the shooting incident.

Here's Bill Lindleof's update

... and gets arrested after sitting next to the couple that had been chasing him Friday night through the streets of midtown Sacramento. The alleged robber was taken into custody at the Torch Club.

Ryan Lillis provides the details of the chance reunion.

A 39-year-old Sacramento woman tried to dress up as a 76-year-old to open a fraudulent $10,000 account Saturday at Thunder Valley Casino. It didn't work.

Art Campos provides the details.

Federal officials announced the indictment of 19 people Monday in what they call the largest "foreclosure rescue" scam in the nation, one that allegedly took in more than $12 million and affected more than 100 homes.

In February, The Bee obtained a search warrant for the case, which victimized homeowners throughout the nation, including seven in the Sacramento area.

Here's Christina Jewett's story and more details from the Department of Justice:

Download file

Folsom crime reports for Feb 2008 (158 this month) have been added to CrimeMapper.

Roseville crime reports (477 of them) for the second half of Feb 2008. have been added.

Click here to see past updates to CrimeMapper.

A citywide curfew sweep Friday in Elk Grove by a variety of local agencies resulted in 38 juveniles being cited and released to their parents or guardians. Read the details, as provided by the Elk Grove Police Department:

Sacramento County Sheriff's detectives are asking for help finding a developmentally disabled man who has been missing for nearly a week. Here's the details from Bill Lindelof

The Sacramento Fire Department has ruled that Sunday's fire that damaged the snack bar at the Parkway Little League was arson. Here's The Bee's initial story. Here's Bill Lindelof's update.

A third suspect has been named Monday in a triple slaying earlier this month in the Yuba County community of Linda. Arrest warrants were issued for Guillermo Larios Garcia, right, whose last known address was in Pacoima. Earlier, warrants were issued for Saul Marroquin, center, of the Merced area, and Nicolaus Solano, from Yuba and Sutter counties. Here's Bill Lindelof's update and an earlier Bee story about the case.

Emergency call boxes on the American River Parkway and another bicycle trail are out of commission, but officials promise they will operate soon with the latest technology.

Here's the rest of Bill Lindelof's report

A Fairfield man was sentenced Friday in Sacramento federal court to 16 years in prison for serial armed bank robbery, armed carjacking and use of a firearm in connection with a violent crime. Two of the robberies were in Sacramento.

Here's Denny Walsh's report

The Sacramento Police Departmet seeks the public help in identifying a man wanted for a sexual assault that took place at 4:35 p.m. at 21st Street and Castro Way in the Curtis Park neighborhood.

Here's more details from a police department news release:

A California Highway Patrol officer helped a woman give birth early Friday morning in a vehicle on the shoulder of Highway 50 near Watt Avenue. It turns out the new mother is a nurse in labor and delivery at the UC Davis Medical Center.

Here's Blair Anthony Robertson's story:

A man in his 20s was discovered dead in a vehicle early Friday morning in south Sacramento after Sacramento police responded to a report of gunshots.

Here's the rest of Bill Lindelof's report

State game wardens Friday morning raided seven homes in Sacramento and arrested eight people on charges related to poaching sturgeon and chinook salmon from the Sacramento River and the Delta. A ninth suspect remains at large.

Here's Matt Weiser's report

The Sacramento County Sheriff's Department said Thursday that a 31-year-old woman who had been reported missing was located.

Read Bill Lindelof's report

Frisbees turn out to be the root of a disagreement in a Rocklin park that led to a 71-year-old man being arrested in a city park Tuesday after brandishing a handgun. Here's Art Campos and Chelsea Phua's report

The man found dead in a single-occupancy hotel in downtown Sacramento has been identified as Gerald Leo Fones, a Sacramento County coroner's deputy said Thursday.

Here's Bill Lindelof's update

Here's why it's wise to tip The Bee's carriers: A Bee delivery driver is being credited with helping Folsom police bag two suspected burglars early Saturday morning.

Here's David Richie's report:

As featured on on Page A3 of The Bee, a YouTube video describing how to scam Del Taco led to an arrest by police in Rialto. Here's the video: