Sheriff's arrest teen for alleged death threats

BY ERIC LINDBERG
DAILY SOUND STAFF WRITER

Sheriff’s detectives arrested a 14-year-old Carpinteria High School student during the weekend after he reportedly threatened to kill fellow students and a teacher, authorities said.
Deputies received a call on Saturday reporting that the ninth-grade student had threatened to bring a handgun to school to shoot five students and one of his teachers, Sheriff’s Department Spokesman Drew Sugars said in a news release.

“The suspect, who is a transfer student from another school district, felt he was picked on by the targeted students and the teacher,” Sugars said. “Detectives were immediately assigned to the case and contacted the suspect and his father at their home in Thousand Oaks.”
Authorities determined the juvenile did not own any firearms, nor did they find any firearms in the home, Sugars said. Nonetheless, he said after interviewing the suspect, detectives determined the threat was credible and took the teenager into custody at approximately 9 p.m. on Saturday.
Sheriff’s officials booked the 14-year-old into juvenile hall on suspicion of making criminal threats, Sugars said, a felony. He noted that the school district and all potential victims have been notified, adding that the suspect remained in custody as of yesterday morning.
Carpinteria Unified School District officials released their own statement through the Sheriff’s Department regarding the incident.
“The student will not be returning to school in the [district],” school officials said. “Carpinteria High School parents are being notified. At this writing, all staff in the district are also being notified.”
School officials noted safety procedures are frequently reviewed and updated. They also urged students to immediately report any threatening statements made by fellow students to school staff or sheriff’s officials.

Slaying suspect enters plea of not guilty

BY ERIC LINDBERG
DAILY SOUND STAFF WRITER

A 24-year-old Santa Barbara man who allegedly stabbed and killed a woman early Thursday morning entered a plea of not guilty in Superior Court yesterday during his arraignment.
Garren Musser, who police officials said is responsible for stabbing 29-year-old Lisa Marie Zazueta in the neck, pleaded not guilty to a charge of murder coupled with a special allegation of assault with a deadly weapon, Senior Deputy District Attorney Gordon Auchincloss said.

Zazueta was a married mother of two and Santa Barbara resident who had recently started seeing Musser, police said. Family members insisted the two had not been dating, but that Zazueta had met Musser a few weeks ago and had seen him on several occasions since.
Police discovered Zazueta’s body, with a single stab wound to the neck, in the 1300 block of Kowalski Avenue at approximately 12:30 a.m. on Thursday after receiving reports of a body in the roadway, authorities said.
Detectives questioned Musser, who reportedly lived at a nearby home with his parents. During an interview at the police station, he allegedly took responsibility for the slaying, police said. Detectives also recovered a knife suspected of being the murder weapon.
Auchincloss said Musser is being represented by a public defender. A preliminary hearing has been set for late November in the courtroom of Judge Rick Brown.

Feds allege more labor law violations at News-Press

BY ERIC LINDBERG
DAILY SOUND STAFF WRITER

Federal attorneys plan to prosecute the Santa Barbara News-Press for allegedly violating federal labor law by firing a pro-union newsroom employee two months ago, authorities announced yesterday.
The general counsel of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) revealed their decision after investigating the firing of News-Press reporter and copy editor Dennis Moran, who was handed a termination letter on Aug. 30, union officials said.

Ira Gottlieb, an attorney representing the newsroom union, alleged the firing came as a result of Moran’s position on the union’s negotiating team and to “strike fear into the dwindling ranks” of union employees at the newspaper.
“It is regrettable that the News-Press continues to punish its conscientious, hard-working employees because they support and are active in the union,” Gottlieb said in a prepared statement. “Management’s intimidation tactics are blatant and transparent, but they will not deter the employees who still courageously support the union and each other in their steadfast efforts to achieve a fair employment contract to improve the working conditions at this newspaper.”
News-Press representatives disputed the charge, alleging that regional labor attorneys have lost objectivity with respect to issues involving the newspaper after losing an attempt to have eight fired reporters reinstated by the court.
“The union files charges in complete ignorance of the facts, but that is understandable since they have a willing audience in the [NLRB] region staff,” News-Press attorney Barry Cappello said in a prepared statement. “We know why the individual was terminated and so does he. Now unfortunately it will have to become public.”
Cappello did not elaborate on the reasons given for Moran’s termination. Gottlieb also declined to discuss the topic, although he mentioned the newspaper had suspended Moran in the weeks leading up to his termination.
Gottlieb noted the latest unfair labor practice charge is among several pending against the newspaper, which has been embroiled in a labor dispute since July 2006, when a handful of editors quit over what they termed inappropriate influence on newsroom affairs by owner and publisher Wendy McCaw.
A total of 15 labor law violations filed against the newspaper and found to have merit by an administrative law judge late last year are awaiting a decision by the NLRB on appeal.
Gottlieb said that decision will likely not come before the next president of the United States appoints a new member to the three-seat NLRB, which currently has two members.
In response to the lengthy litigation process, union officials sought a temporary injunction to reinstate eight reporters fired by the newspaper, but a district judge ruled against the injunction earlier this year. Gottlieb said whether an appeal hearing of that decision will take place should be determined in the next four to five months.
In the meantime, he pointed out several additional labor law violations — some still being investigated and others moving toward prosecution — filed against the newspaper for bargaining in bad faith, discontinuing annual employee evaluations and failing to provide requested bargaining information.
“Management will continue to lie about and misrepresent what’s going on at and away from the table, and attempt to frustrate the newsroom employees, but no one is persuaded by distortions from a recidivist labor outlaw,” Gottlieb said in the statement.
Cappello said the newspaper plans to mount a vigorous defense to all charges it faces.
A hearing on the outstanding charges has yet to be set, and Gottlieb said he expects federal labor attorneys to package all pending violations into a consolidated complaint.

Police blotter

DAILY SOUND STAFF REPORT

Oct. 23 — Security guards at two separate Macy’s outlets in Santa Barbara called police after catching shoplifters trying to pilfer expensive clothing from the store in apparently unrelated incidents. At 12:40 p.m., loss prevention officers at the 3805 State St. Macy’s spotted a man conceal two shirts in a bag and leave the store without paying.

When officers spoke with the 41-year-old Goleta resident, he admitted to entering the store with the intention to steal clothing. He had selected two shirts valued at $107.40.
Less than four hours later, at 4 p.m., authorities were called to the 701 State St. Macy’s on reports of another shoplifter. Security guards told police they saw the suspect take a white Ralph Lauren polo shirt valued at $75 off the shelf, cut off the electronic sensor, place the shirt under his clothes and walk out without paying. Officers found a razor blade and $16.46 in the 23-year-old Santa Barbara man’s pockets.
He also admitted to entering the store with the intention to steal clothing. Police booked both men into jail in lieu of $20,000 bail for burglary.

Oct. 24, 10:45 p.m. — An employee at the Canary Hotel, 31 W. Carrillo St., called authorities after a man challenged him to a fight. The employee told police the subject had entered the building and asked to be directed to the stairs, saying he planned to climb to the roof and jump off.
When ordered to leave, the suspect reportedly squared up, raised his clenched fists and told the employee, “I’m going to kick your ass.” After two other employees came to their colleague’s aid, the man left the hotel.
He then promptly ran in front of a moving vehicle, which swerved and narrowly avoided striking him. When police caught up to the suspect in the 900 block of Chapala Street, he admitted he was attempting to commit suicide. Authorities took the 47-year-old into custody on $2,500 bail for challenging to fight.

Oct. 24, 10:50 p.m. — Officers responded to a home in the 500 block of Figueroa Street following reports of a fight between roommates. During their investigation, police asked one resident for identification. The 26-year-old man presented authorities with a consular card issued by the Mexican government.
However, as the man was digging through his wallet, officers could clearly see a social security card and became suspicious when the suspect said he had only been in the country for three months. After receiving his consent to search the wallet, police found a fake social security card and a fake resident alien card, both with the suspect’s name and a United States government seal.
The suspect admitted to purchasing both fraudulent documents in Los Angeles two months prior in order to gain employment. Authorities arrested him on $20,000 bail for possession of a false government document and an immigration hold is pending.

Oct. 25 — Police received a call from a resident in the 700 block of Ortega Street reporting a theft in progress. The caller told police someone had knocked on her door. When she looked out the window, the victim saw a man rifling through the trunk of her car, removing items.
When police arrived, the 34-year-old suspect was still at the vehicle, standing next to a pile of items on the ground. Police also found several personal items belonging to the victim stuffed in the suspect’s pockets.
Among the objects removed from the car were 24 compact discs, a camera bag, five pairs of underwear, an art portfolio containing original prints and a lotion travel pack. The total value of the items was estimated at $865.
After running a criminal history check, police determined the suspect was on probation for possession of a controlled substance and destruction or concealment of evidence. Authorities booked the man in lieu of $20,000 bail for grand theft.

Oct. 26, 3:53 a.m. — Hospital officials called police after a subject arrived in the emergency room with wounds consistent with an assault. Police spoke with the 29-year-old victim, who received treatment for cuts to his left cheek and ear.
The man told officers he had been drinking in a parking lot near his home in the 1500 block of San Pascual Street when a stranger approached. The suspect, described as approximately the same age as the victim, asked if he could drink with the victim.
The 29-year-old obliged, handing over a brew. After drinking for approximately 20 minutes, the suspect hit the victim in the face with a beer bottle, reportedly without provocation. The victim did not provide any additional details about the incident.

Oct. 26, 5:45 a.m. — Arriving in the 3800 block of State Street after receiving reports of a vehicle blocking traffic, police found a young man passed out behind the wheel of a car in the middle of the roadway. Authorities noted the 22-year-old Medford, Mass., resident had left the vehicle in drive.
During their subsequent investigation, officers noticed the man had obvious signs of intoxication, including an odor of alcohol, bloodshot eyes and unsteady balance. He provided breath samples of 0.19 and 0.17 blood-alcohol content, well over the legal limit of 0.08. Authorities booked him into jail on $5,000 bail for driving under the influence.

Oct. 26, 10:11 a.m. — Medics called police for help with a combative subject who had apparently suffered a seizure in the 3600 block of San Pedro Lane. By the time officers arrived, emergency personnel had the 23-year-old man restrained.
When police ran a background check on the man, they discovered a possible motive for his combative nature — an outstanding $200,000 warrant out of Texas for theft. Authorities took the suspect to Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital, where he was treated and released into police custody. Officers then booked the man into County Jail in lieu of $200,000 bail on the outstanding warrant.

Oct. 26, 8:01 p.m. — Police arrived in the 1600 block of San Pascual Street on reports of a collision. During their investigation, officers determined a 24-year-old local resident had been driving south and hit three parked cars while making a turn.
The suspect also had his daughters, 2 and 6 years old, in the backseat without car seats or seatbelts. Police noted the man showed signs of intoxication, including bloodshot, watery eyes, unsteady balance and an odor of alcohol.
The suspect provided two breath samples, both revealing 0.12 blood-alcohol content, above the legal limit of 0.08. Authorities arrested the 24-year-old for DUI, driving without a license and child endangerment, booking him in lieu of $100,000 bail.

Local man dies in single-vehicle rollover in Goleta

BY ERIC LINDBERG
DAILY SOUND STAFF WRITER

A 35-year-old local man died Sunday evening after the SUV he was driving left the roadway in Goleta, hit a tree and flipped over, sheriff’s officials said.
Authorities said Russell Allan Sturges had been driving eastbound on Calle Real near Baker Lane just before 9 p.m. when his GMC Yukon went off the right shoulder and rolled onto its roof.

Drew Sugars, a spokesman for the sheriff’s department, said emergency crews extricated the trapped driver and a 16-year-old passenger. The driver was pronounced dead on the scene, authorities said.
Medics took the passenger to the hospital for observation, Sugars said. Authorities said the incident remains under investigation.

SB Foundation names new president and CEO

BY ERIC LINDBERG
DAILY SOUND STAFF REPORT

After a lengthy national search, the Santa Barbara Foundation has announced the selection of Ronald V. Gallo as its new president and CEO.
Gallo, previously the president and CEO of the Rhode Island Foundation, replaces longtime local nonprofit fixture Chuck Slosser, who is stepping down after 18 years at the helm of the Santa Barbara Foundation.

“I think the board selected an excellent person as the foundation’s next president and CEO,” Slosser said in a news release. “Ron Gallo is a seasoned community foundation executive who brings years of experience to his new position.”
Gallo will be responsible for managing one of the county’s largest private sources of funding for nonprofit groups — last year, the foundation awarded $26 million in loans or scholarships to local students and grants to local nonprofits.
Foundation officials said Gallo’s 15 years of experience at the Rhode Island Foundation, one of the nation’s largest community foundations, will greatly assist his transition to the new position.
“His lengthy experience in community foundation work and his reputation as an innovator will enable the foundation to continue to expand philanthropy in our county,” Robert Emmons, chair of the foundation’s board of trustees, said in the release. “The board of trustees is incredibly pleased that a candidate with such experience will be joining our foundation family.”
Gallo launched his career as a fundraiser for Marathon House in 1979, a residential drug rehabilitation group for teenagers and young adults.
In 1981, he took a position as executive director of the Rhode Island Council for Community Mental Health Centers and negotiated a $2.1 million increase in the state’s mental health budget.
Before joining the Rhode Island Foundation, Gallo served as the executive director of the Jesse Ball DuPont Fund for three years, a national foundation with an interest in issues affecting the South.
As the president and CEO of the Rhode Island Foundation, Gallo was instrumental in tripling its assets and launching an outreach plan that created alliances with other regional and national philanthropic organizations.
He also refocused the foundation to support low-income initiatives and health, poverty and educational efforts for impoverished youth. During his time with the organization, Gallo helped create Kids Count Rhode Island, a children’s advocacy group.
In addition to his leadership roles, he has also held several teaching positions. He lectured at Providence College and served as a Teaching Fellow at Harvard University, where he taught a graduate course on trends in organized philanthropy.
Gallo holds a master’s degree and doctorate in education from Harvard, a master’s degree from Columbia University and a bachelor’s degree from Connecticut College.

Hopefuls on fundraising frenzy

BY COLBY FRAZIER
DAILY SOUND STAFF WRITER

With six business days remaining until election day, Santa Barbara County Third District candidate Steve Pappas lined his campaign coffers with nearly three times the amount his opponent, Doreen Farr, did in the past three weeks.
During the most recent fundraising period, which began Oct. 1 and ended Oct. 18, Pappas, a local business owner who lives in Los Olivos, raised $98,950 to Farr’s $36,247.
The jump in funds for Pappas still fell far short from taking over the overall lead, which Farr retains with a total of $486,511, roughly $66,000 more than Pappas’ total of $420,551.

Both candidates spent heavy in the beginning of October, with Farr making $129,569 in expenditures, while Pappas spent $117,303.
Barring a continued burst in cash flowing Pappas’ way, Farr will likely have more cash on hand down the stretch, as she still has $43,738 in her war chest compared to $12,620 for Pappas.
Pappas made a similar fundraising run just prior to the June 4 primary election. While it’s difficult to know how much difference the last-minute cash meant to Pappas, some believed it helped vault him in front of former candidate David Smyser, who finished 723 votes behind Pappas despite being hand-picked by current supervisor Brooks Firestone as his successor.
But while Pappas’ money may have helped him clinch the second spot to force a runoff with Farr, the former county planning commissioner was still 10 percentage points ahead of Pappas.
The Third District, which stretches from Isla Vista to Vandenberg Village, and Goleta to the Santa Ynez Valley, is notoriously difficult for candidates to manage during campaigns.
While the First and Second District are isolated to the South Coast in terms of media markets, and the Third and Fourth districts are solely in North County, the Third District stretches between the two, requiring candidates to allocate funds across a diverse cross-section of media.
During a recent interview with the Daily Sound, Farr said winning in the geographical and demographically diverse district requires spending money.
The makeup of the two candidates’ financial backers during this filing period couldn’t be more different.
While Farr received 68 individual contributions, 33 of which were for $100 or less, Pappas received 20 separate contributions, two of which were for $100.
According to campaign finance documents, Pappas’ largest donor is Anne V. Crawford-Hall Enterprises, which gave the candidate $50,000 during the past three weeks. Throughout the duration of the campaign, Crawford-Hall, also known as Nancy Crawford-Hall, owner of the Santa Ynez Valley Journal newspaper, has given Pappas $102,500.
Pappas’ second largest source for contributions is the Alamo Pintado Equine Clinic, owned by Doug and Sue Herthel.
Through the Equine Clinic, the Herthel’s have given Pappas’ campaign a total of $37,000.
The Herthel's, through their local supplement company Platinum Performance, have also contributed $71,800 in non-monetary donations to Pappas’ campaign. These donations appear to be for television advertisements.
Pappas has also received $25,100 in non-monetary contributions from a man named Mark Herthel.
Though Farr trailed Pappas during the recent filing period, she picked up ground on Oct. 22 with a $20,000 contribution from the Santa Barbara chapter of the Service Employees International Union and a $5,500 contribution from that same union in Los Angeles.
With these two donations factored in, Farr’s recent contributions total just over $60,000.
After SEIU contributions, Farr received $1,000 from Alice Gillaroo of Santa Ynez, which brought her total donations to $8,000 — $2,000 from Malinda Chouinard of Ventura, $100 from Santa Barbara Mayor Marty Blum, $250 from former county supervisor Gail Marshall, $5,000 from Wayne Siemens, who has now given Farr a total of $10,000 and $2,500 from the Hope Ranch Political Action Committee, which also gave $5,000 to Pappas.
Over the course of the campaign, Pappas has taken out $46,500 in personal loans, far more than Farr’s $5,000.
In the past three weeks Pappas has spent $105,326 on television commercials and another $4,172 on mail-related advertisements. Farr spent $72,770 on television commercials and $10,150 on radio advertisements.
According to county election officials, any contribution between now and the election of $1,000 or more will have to be reported on a case-by-case basis.

Murder charge filed in woman's death

BY COLBY FRAZIER
DAILY SOUND STAFF WRITER

A murder charge was filed yesterday in Superior Court against a 24-year-old Santa Barbara man who police say allegedly stabbed a woman he was dating in the neck, an injury that ultimately killed the woman.
Police identified the victim as Lisa Marie Zazueta, 29, of Santa Barbara.
The man police say is responsible for slaying the married mother of two is Garren Musser, 24.

Sgt. Lorenzo Duarte, a police spokesman, said detectives responded to the 1300 block of Kowalski Ave. just after 12:30 a.m. on Thursday to a report of a body in the roadway.
Duarte said it was Musser who called police and was eventually arrested at the police station when he allegedly told detectives he was responsible for the killing.
Musser apparently lived with his parents at 1310 Kowalski Ave., according to nearby residents.
Senior Deputy District Attorney Gordon Auchincloss said Musser was also charged with assaulting the woman with a deadly weapon.
He said Musser will be arraigned on the charges Monday.
While the details of Zazueta and Musser’s relationship remain fuzzy, the victim’s grandmother, Mary Zazueta, told the Daily Sound Thursday the two were not dating.
The grandmother said her granddaughter and Musser met at a downtown bar three weeks ago and the two had seen each other on at least two occasions since.
Due to the early stage in the case, Auchincloss said he had no additional details.

Election workers fire up 'The Beast'

BY COLBY FRAZIER
DAILY SOUND STAFF WRITER

Where fingers once were calloused and bitten with paper cuts, an $80,000 conveyor belt for envelopes sits. With its countless rubber belts, rollers and circular razor blades, it slices open 5,000 envelopes an hour.
It’s difficult to know what’s more impressive: that nearly 54 percent of Santa Barbara County’s 198,820 registered voters vote-by-mail, or that county election employees used to open each and every envelope by hand.

The growing popularity of vote-by-mail, and the anticipated high voter turnout for the Nov. 4 general election precipitated the purchase of what election workers call, “The Beast.”
Now the days of paper cuts and cramped hands are over.
“It looks like spaghetti,” said Elections Supervisor Suzanne Jackson of the Opex ballot extractor. “It works pretty well.”
The county's Election Office began opening vote-by-mail ballots yesterday. So far, 34,774 of the 106,489 ballots mailed to county voters have been returned.
While the machine has hastened the process, it hasn’t completely eliminated human labor.
The county’s vote-by-mail operation is housed in a mostly unmarked, second-story office space in the Chicago Title building located on the corner of Anacapa and Figueroa streets.
One would have to look to find it. And even if a person stumbled upon it, it’s difficult to get past the iron door that requires a passcode, which is unique to each employee, to enter.
Once inside, the office is predictably lined with cubicles. But the conveyor belt in the back of the room combined with the dozen or so security cameras lining the ceiling cancel out any normalcy.
Like the purchase of “The Beast,” the county began renting the space last fall in order to accommodate the increasing volume of ballots that arrive by mail that need to be processed in a timely manner.
Prior to running the ballot envelopes through “The Beast,” another machine verifies the signature on each envelope.
Once the envelope is opened on three sides, the ballots are extracted, flattened out by employees and briefly analyzed to ensure they haven’t been incorrectly marked or ripped.
In the event that a ballot is damaged and won’t be accepted, Jackson said an election employee fills out a new ballot. But this process isn’t that simple. While one person fills out a new ballot for the voter, Jackson said several other people observe to ensure the new ballot reflects exactly what the damaged one did.
“It has to be done in a very specific way to protect the voter,” she said.
The ballots that aren’t damaged are set in small baskets and kept in the “ballot room.” Jackson said only a handful of people are allowed in this room, and each time a person enters and exits, it’s recorded.
Several cameras hug the ceiling in the ballot room, and in the event of a fire, a special extinguishing system which does not require water and won’t damager the ballots is triggered.
“Hopefully we’ll never need it but it’s nice to have,” Jackson said.
When the ballots leave this room, they are processed by another machine, which electronically records the results and stores the tally in a server that Jackson said no one is allowed to see until election night.
Jackson said the county purchased “The Beast” last fall and it was first used for the presidential primary in February.
As far as Jackson knows, Santa Barbara County is one of the only counties with such a machine. But that’s probably going to change soon.
County Clerk, Recorder and Assessor Joe Holland, who has been coordinating a state-wide effort to record vote-by-mail data on a day-by-day basis, said yesterday that 40 percent of the state now votes by mail.
As of yesterday, he said 1.6 million vote-by-mail ballots have been returned to their respective counties.
And though Santa Barbara County workers are getting a jump on the action, they’ll likely be firing up “The Beast” long after election day to tally the vote-by-mail ballots that are handed in at polling places.
“We’ve got to work as hard as we can,” Jackson said of keeping up with the stream of ballots. “It’s a good system and it’s flowing very well.”

19th District race still running hot

BY ERIC LINDBERG
DAILY SOUND STAFF WRITER

It’s perhaps the closest and most hotly contested State Senate seat up for grabs on Nov. 4, and the battle over the 19th District has escalated to a fever pitch as the days tick down toward Election Day.
Democrats are gunning for the district — which stretches from Orcutt to Santa Clarita and includes large chunks of Santa Barbara and Ventura counties — in order to garner a two-thirds, veto-proof majority.

Typically a Republican stronghold in the past, the territory has narrowed in terms of political composition, with less than two points separating the two major parties in voter registration rolls.
Santa Barbara remains a bastion of Democratic support, with 43.3 percent of its registered voters leaning left and 32.7 percent leaning right. Sections of Ventura County, however, give Republicans the edge — 42.1 percent to 35.9 percent.
After adding in small portions of northern Los Angeles County, the district reveals a split of 39.63 percent registered Republicans and 37.82 percent Democrats per a Sept. 5 report from the Secretary of State.
So it’s safe to say the two candidates for the senate seat, Democrat Hannah-Beth Jackson and Republican Tony Strickland, have been running themselves ragged during the past months, crisscrossing the sprawling territory in an effort to spread their messages.
Offering up a small window of time amid last-minute campaign events and fundraisers, both candidates gave their take on the race, their opponent and their plans should the fight over the 19th District seat fall in their favor.

Hannah-Beth Jackson — “I think it is a transformational year and I think people are tired of the politics of division and tired of the politics that have put big corporations ahead of families. It’s time to put families ahead of big corporations.”

Environment, education and public safety have always been high on the priority list for Jackson, who trumpeted those causes during her six years as a representative of the 35th Assembly District.
But with the crisis on Wall Street looming in the minds of many residents, she said the biggest issue at the moment is the economy.
“We’ve seen it really kind of collapse in the last year, again, I think, as a result of the failed policies of the Bush administration and this putting corporations ahead of the people,” Jackson said.
Jumpstarting the economy will take a comprehensive approach, she argued, one that includes fostering “green” jobs, creating an education plan focused on preparing kids for the 21st century, and untangling the state budget mess.
Despite the challenges ahead, Jackson said she remains optimistic — stating that opportunity emerges from adversity.
“The quote I like the best is that the darkest time of the day is right before the dawn,” she said. “We keep delaying it by infusing money that keeps disappearing almost as rapidly as it is introduced.”
Jackson paired her support of environmental causes as a quality of life issue with her contention that the environment can also serve as an economic engine for the community.
Generating a marketplace for the development and application of new alternative energy sources is one critical step to relieving the economic crunch, she said. As a member of the senate, Jackson said she would support incentives that would motivate people to develop green technology, such as solar and wind power.
She also levied criticism against her opponent, characterizing Strickland’s $5,000 investment in a start-up company focused on wave power as a token gesture amounting to an attempt to “greenwash” himself.
“How does he explain this so-called company of his that has no employees, never put out a watt of power, doesn’t have a payroll and doesn’t have any technology as an actual company that has formed the basis of his entire campaign?” she asked.
Jackson said her opponent voted down bills supporting alternative energy during his time in the State Legislature and denied global warming existed as recently as five years ago.
“It’s interesting that my opponent is trying to run on my record,” she said, “whereas his record is he voted against all those things.”
As far as education’s role in the economy, Jackson said investment in schools and encouragement of research into emerging fields such as nanotechnology and green building is critical to creating new jobs.
She called for promoting math, science and vocational training, encouraging more students to pursue those fields, and giving mid-career and retired workers the opportunity to share their experiences and spark interest.
Asked about the state budget, Jackson acknowledged it has been in major turmoil for years. Officials keep putting off true reform until the next year, she said, and now the state is backed into a corner.
“The gimmicks need to go away and we need to take a hard, cold look at the way we budget and how we provide resources and funding for the state,” Jackson said. “We have to take a look at services and programs, and if they’re not working, we have to end them.
“We have to take a look at some of these huge tax loopholes that we’ve given to huge corporations, like the oil industry.”
California is the only oil-producing state that doesn’t charge a severance tax on oil drilling, she said. By creating such a tax, an idea the County of Santa Barbara is already kicking around on its own, Jackson said the state stands to gain at least a billion dollars annually.
“The oil companies are making enormous profits. This would not impact them, their bottom line, but it would provide money that could very well go to things like education,” she said.
Instead of tax credits for large corporations, Jackson said the state should be offering incentives, if any at all, for those businesses to create jobs in the state, rather than sending them off to neighboring states.
She also took issue with attempts to portray her as a tax-lover, noting she supported $26 billion in tax cuts when the economy was healthy during her time in the assembly.
“At this point, the middle class has been taxed enough,” she said. “I don’t support any increase in taxes on the middle class.
“My name happens to rhyme with taxin’. It also rhymes with action, by the way. And I like action better, because I think, and the people of the community know, that in my six years in the legislature, I was very responsive to the needs of the community.”
Ultimately, she said, the differences between Strickland and herself are stark. While she supports same-sex marriage, she said her opponent is a “right-wing idealogue” who voted against every measure on rights for same-sex couples.
She spearheaded legislation to protect children at a Ventura school from pesticides being sprayed on a nearby farm. Her opponent, she said, voted against that bill.
“With my record and my vision and my values, it’s very clear that I’m on the side of our families and my opponent is on the side of the big corporations, who are continuing to funnel millions of dollars into his campaign,” she said.

Tony Strickland — “The No. 1 issue is the economy. If we don’t have a strong, robust economy, we can’t invest in infrastructure, healthcare, schools. California needs to be more business friendly.”

When Strickland first ran for State Assembly, he had education on the mind. But when he arrived in Sacramento, the energy crisis hit. So he changed his focus and filed a lawsuit against then-Gov. Gray Davis, forcing the administration to reveal expensive energy contracts it had negotiated in secret with energy companies.
Now, with three assembly terms under his belt, Strickland has another crisis in his sights: the flagging economy.
“I really firmly believe everything touches the economy,” he said. “Until we fix the economy, we can’t really invest in education like I want to.”
Fixing the economy is obviously no easy task, he concedes. Nonetheless, he said government officials need to take steps to address what he terms a spending problem, not a revenue problem.
One solution Strickland proposes is to create a strict spending cap, allowing the government to increase only by population growth plus inflation. If implemented when Gov. Schwarzenegger took office, he said, “Today we’d be talking about a surplus, not a deficit.”
Another way to rein in spending is to improve bureaucratic efficiency, he said. By way of example, he pointed to a Ventura County supervisor who launched a direct deposit payment system for county employees, saving millions by not mailing out checks.
Taking such an action would save the state billions, Strickland said.
“There are innovative ideas like that that they’re doing in the private sector that we’re not doing in the government,” he said.
Calling California an economic leader in entertainment, he said the state could also be an economic leader in terms of renewable energy. He called his proposal to provide incentives for companies looking to develop new sources of energy a surefire way to liven up the economy.
“I would implement a system to fast-track the permitting process,” Strickland said. “A lot of this renewable energy is proven technology, particularly in other countries.”
Bureaucratic requirements are holding up the process, he contended, giving companies more of a reason to move to business-friendly states such as Nevada and Oregon.
Unless the state develops policies more welcoming to businesses, Strickland said it will continue to have budget woes.
“If we create those jobs here, that means companies will stay here,” he said.
He also addressed Green Wave Energy Solutions, a start-up company focused on harnessing wave energy. Strickland invested $5,000 in the company along with several partners and serves as its vice president.
When asked about criticisms that the company has no employees, payroll or technology, he dismissed those arguments.
“Those who make those criticisms don’t understand the economy,” he said. “It’s a start-up company. If they had said that to Bill Gates, he wouldn’t have started his company. We’re putting our money where our mouth is.”
As a result of his involvement in the company, Strickland said he now offers expertise in the field of alternative energy.
“I bring with me the knowledge of what it takes to grow a renewable energy economy here in California,” he said.
Strickland also noted the recent endorsement of Gov. Schwarzenegger, who he termed the “greenest” governor the state has seen. He said the governor is excited that he is promoting renewable energy and tax credits for businesses.
Queried about his past record on alternative energy, Strickland said he has always been supportive but is placing more of an emphasis on it now.
“Our gas prices are spiraling out of control and we need to invest in an energy plan,” he said.
He called offshore drilling is a band-aid solution, although he might be supportive should it be part of a comprehensive energy package.
Strickland acknowledged there are plenty of other issues to deal with should he be elected to State Senate. The state’s aging infrastructure is a major problem, as is the tenuous water supply.
But ultimately, he said, nothing will change until the state fosters a robust economy. It’s on this point that he emphasized clear differences between Jackson and himself.
“We’ve been talking about our proactive approach to how we’re going to fix the economic problems in the state of California,” he said. “…She’s talking about everything but the economy because she has a poor record on the economy.
“I’m firmly confident that the voters will take a look at the records of both of us and understand that the economy is the No. 1 issue.”

Woman found dead on Westside

BY COLBY FRAZIER
DAILY SOUND STAFF WRITER

A 29-year-old woman was found stabbed to death in the 1300 block of Kowalski Avenue yesterday morning, the second homicide in Santa Barbara this year.
Santa Barbara Police officials said a 24-year-old man, who the woman was dating, allegedly stabbed her in the neck and left her bleeding in the street.
The victim was identified as Lisa Marie Zazueta of Santa Barbara.

Police responded to the Westside neighborhood at 12:38 a.m. after receiving a call from the suspect, Garren Musser, who was eventually arrested for suspicion of homicide.
Sgt. Lorenzo Duarte, a police spokesman, said Musser and other residents living at 1310 Kowalski Ave. agreed to be interviewed by detectives at the police station.
“Once at the station Musser provided information to detectives indicating that he was responsible for the homicide,” Duarte said.
He said the woman appeared to have been stabbed once.
According to Duarte, Musser and Zazueta had recently started dating, and there was no history of abuse between the two.
The victim’s grandmother, Mary Zazueta, told the Daily Sound her granddaughter met Musser at a downtown bar three weeks ago. She insisted the two were not dating, but had seen each other on at least two occasions.
She said her granddaughter, who was married and had two children, went to see Musser just after midnight.
“He murdered her with a senseless act,” she said. “It was our first granddaughter. It’s just horrible.”
While details of the victim and suspect’s involvement remain fuzzy, Duarte said Musser apparently stabbed the woman as a result of an argument concerning their relationship.
Duarte said police recovered a knife they believe was used by Musser to assault Zazueta.
Musser was booked into Santa Barbara county jail on suspicion of homicide. Duarte said chargers are pending.
Due to the ongoing investigation, Duarte would not disclose if Musser had a prior criminal history.
By yesterday afternoon, a small memorial of two candles, a feather and roses had been erected on the curb near where Zazueta’s body was discovered.
A group of Musser’s neighbors were still reeling from the killing, puzzled as to why the young man would kill someone.
“It’s just shocking because it’s so quiet here,” said a 35-year-old mother of three who lives one house down from the Musser residence. “We still can’t believe that this happened.”
The woman said Musser lived with his parents. She said he didn’t talk much, but was always polite and would often say hello to her and her children.
“We saw her lying [in the street],” the woman said. “I haven’t been able to sleep, just having the image of her face in my mind.”

Police blotter

DAILY SOUND STAFF REPORT

Oct. 20, 12:10 a.m. — When authorities arrived at a traffic collision in the 200 block of E. Sola Street, they found a 36-year-old man at the scene who admitted to being behind the wheel of a red Toyota Corolla when it crashed into a parked car. During their investigation, officers determined the car had been involved in a prior collision at Garden and Micheltorena streets and the driver had fled the scene, apparently crashing along Sola Street during his attempted getaway.

Police immediately noted the suspect had obvious symptoms of intoxication, including an odor of alcohol, bloodshot eyes, slurred speech and poor balance. He performed poorly on field sobriety tests and subsequent breath tests revealed he had a blood-alcohol content of 0.18 or 0.19, well above the legal limit of 0.08.
Authorities arrested the driver for DUI, hit-and-run and driving without a license, booking him in lieu of $5,000. The arresting officer also noted opposition to an “own recognizance” release, stating the suspect is an illegal alien.

Oct. 20, 1:13 a.m. — Arriving in the 1900 block of Grand Avenue on reports of an intoxicated woman, police could hear an argument occurring inside a nearby residence. A man opened the door and told them he had been arguing with his ex-girlfriend, who apparently was angry because he had been seeing another woman.
During the confrontation, she punched him several times in the chest and kicked him in the side, the victim told officers. The 26-year-old woman admitted they had been arguing and that the fight had become physical.
Officers told her to stay seated on the couch, but the woman jumped up and ran outside toward the victim. Authorities managed to physically restrain the woman, ultimately taking her into custody on $10,000 bail for domestic battery.

Oct. 21, 3:19 p.m. — Police tracked down a suspect involved a domestic battery case several weeks ago at a local hotel room in possession of drugs. Officers arrived on the scene after hotel employees called to report a room had been checked out with a stolen credit card.
Authorities found the 39-year-old suspect in the room and recognized him from a prior case on Oct. 8 during which he had allegedly verbally abused, choked and smothered his victim with a pillow. He also injured her wrist as he attempted to take her keys and threatened to cut her or disfigure her face.
When police found him in the hotel room, they noticed two small, white clusters on the ground near him. The suspect attempted to grind the substance into the carpet with his foot, but was stopped. The powder field-tested positive for cocaine.
Authorities took the man into custody in lieu of $70,000 bail for domestic battery, threatening death or great bodily harm, and possession of cocaine.

Oct. 22, 1:28 a.m. — A witness called police to report being threatened by a man near the intersection of State and Anapamu streets. The victim said a strange man had unleashed an unprovoked string of expletives, yelling, “I’ll kick your ass. I’ll f*** you up with this pipe.”
The victim said the man had a 3-foot metal pipe and was swinging it around his head in a threatening manner. Officers found a man matching the description nearby and the victim positively identified him as the suspect, noting he still had the pipe in his possession.
Police took the 56-year-old man, listed as homeless, into custody on $2,500 bail for brandishing a weapon.

Oct. 22, 3:40 p.m. — An officer on bike patrol along the 400 block of State Street spotted a man sitting in a parked car. Recognizing the 24-year-old local resident from a prior arrest for battery, the officer approached and began chatting with him. As the man stepped out of the car upon request, the officer spotted brass knuckles on the driver’s side floorboard.
The suspect told police he uses the weapon for protection, explaining he works in an adult bookstore. He said he often has to transport cash and has been threatened on occasion. Authorities booked the man for possession of an illegal weapon.

Westmont breaks ground on master plan

BY COLBY FRAZIER
DAILY SOUND STAFF WRITER

After 32 years of dreaming, golden-tipped shovels sunk into the dirt at Westmont College yesterday, where school officials broke ground on two new buildings as part of the campus master plan.
The groundbreaking marks a new era for the school, which despite crowded classrooms and sparse office space that often forced students to sit on the floor, hasn’t constructed a new building in 24 years.


“I never didn’t think it would happen, I just didn’t know when,” said Ron Cronk, the school’s former vice president for administration and finance, who spent 14 years working on getting the project underway. “It feels wonderful to finally be at this point.”
School officials broke ground on the Adams Center for the Visual Arts, a nearly 23,000-square-foot building, and the David K. Winter Hall for Science and Mathematics, a 43,000-square-foot structure.
Winter, who spent much of his life dreaming of the kind of campus Westmont needed to properly educate its students, said he started the process in 1976, his first year at the helm of the school.
During that year, Winter gained approval from the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors to expand the school’s student cap from 800 to 1,200.
He said the facilities were fine for 800 students, but quickly became insufficient. Small building projects occurred here and there, but the large-scale construction that Winter felt needed to happen was put on the backburner for what turned out to be decades.
Arts faculty member John Carlander, who came to Westmont in 1980, said he was surprised then when he realized the extent of the school’s arts program was one classroom.
Things have improved since then, but he said the new arts center will go a long way to improving the program and making it available to more students.
“We’ve outgrown the arts center we’re in,” he said. “There’s no elbow room left. There’s no room at all.”
Russell Howell, a math professor, said he was asked to host an academic conference in 1989, and prior to agreeing to do so, was told by school officials that a new academics center would be built.
That didn’t happen, but Howell said the story shows Westmont’s quest to have new facilities is not just to have them, but for the purpose of education. As such, he said the costs are not strictly financial.
Howell said Winter used to say, “We’re playing over our head,” meaning the quality of the faculty and students far outweighed the mortar and brick that was the school.
“Now, even with these new buildings,” Howell said. I hope “we still play over our heads.”
As the school approached the finish line nearly 10 years ago, and had a project ready to present to county officials, they were hampered by protests from planners and the community.
Ultimately, the school redesigned the master plan, making buildings more environmentally friendly and small. Twelve appearances before the Montecito Planning Commission and $3 million spent on redesigns later, the plan was approved.
But a community group called Citizens Concerned Over Westmont Expansion appealed the project to the Board of Supervisors, who rejected the appeal and unanimously approved the school’s plan.
A legal challenge filed by the group in Superior Court also failed, and on Wednesday, the State Court of Appeals heard legal arguments from both sides.
The brunt of the group’s challenge, according to Westmont Media Relations Manager Scott Craig, deals with how the environmental impact report was conducted.
Because of pending litigation, Craig said bulldozers wouldn’t begin wide-scale construction until the end of November, after the court of appeals rules.
Westmont President Gayle Beebe said he’s confident the legal issues will be resolved in the school’s favor.
He said the symbolic groundbreaking yesterday was held to correspond with the school’s Board of Regents October meeting.
“We’re hoping to prevail,” he said. “So far we’ve just been delighted. We need this space.”
The first phase of construction consists of 166,000 square feet of new buildings, which aside from the two that the school broke ground on yesterday, includes a new residence hall and chapel.
A five-year lull will occur in between each phase of construction, which when completed, will add 345,837 square feet to the campus.
Though the process was long and costly, Cronk said he feels it worked and as a result of the community’s criticism, Westmont has a better plan.
“It’s a wonderful plan,” he said. “It’s not just about building buildings. This is about the student experience and preparing students to better serve the society of the future.”

Leaders, families celebrate Los Robles graduates

BY ERIC LINDBERG
DAILY SOUND STAFF WRITER

Being a part of a graduating class of 19 students might not seem like a particularly earth-shaking occasion, but for the young men who stepped onto the stage in the County Education Office auditorium to receive their diploma from Los Robles High School, the moment will live in their memories for years.
After landing in the Los Prietos program headed by the county probation department, they took advantage of the second chance offered to them and became part of the second-largest graduating class from the high school.

“It hasn’t been easy, but we have succeeded,” graduate Ivan Romero told the crowd of beaming family members, friends and officials who gathered to celebrate the occasion yesterday. “I am proud to say I’m a high school graduate.”
With black, green and gold balloons lining the auditorium, the group of young men strode determinedly to the stage in their black robes and green tassels, breaking into quick grins when family members cheered or whistled.
As they took their seats, Fred Razo, the county’s director of court and community schools, stood at the podium to hail their accomplishments.
Perhaps most outstanding, he said, was their commitment to earn college preparatory units, racking up a total of 705 during their time at Los Robles.
“These young men took it upon themselves to extend their school day to earn those credits,” Razo said.
Now many have plans to attend a college and continue their education.
Graduate Joe Guzman, a Santa Maria resident, acknowledged that each student on the stage with him had a different past and a different life experience.
“But our paths have intertwined and we’re all on the path to success,” he said.
His path took a turn for the worse at age 10 when his father died. He gave up on life, he said, and lost interest in school.
But with the support of his grandparents, who took him in, Guzman decided to change his life for the better and worked for his diploma. Now he has plans to attend college, become a probation officer and return to the Los Prietos program to aid troubled young men.
County Superintendent Bill Cirone lauded the accomplishments of Guzman and his fellow students, acknowledging the barriers and obstacles they had to face down to earn their diplomas.
“You had a high school experience unlike any other, facing challenges that no one else could understand, and you have triumphed,” Cirone said.
Life will always pose challenges, he told the graduates, but what separates the winners from the others is the ability to bounce back and stand firm in the face of adversity.
“May this be the first step in a new direction that will lead to a lifetime of achievement, success and happiness,” he said.
Taking the stage next to address the audience, Santa Barbara Police Chief Cam Sanchez described a bit of his personal history — particularly the fact that his first time in a squad car wasn’t spent in the front seat.
“Therefore, there’s no such thing as a bad kid, just bad decisions,” he said.
Sanchez also recognized the families and friends who have supported each graduate throughout the tough times in their lives, calling their role critical to the success of each student on the stage.
“We have to continue to give these young men hope, because when you take away hope, you take away everything,” he said.
Each graduate then picked up several yellow roses and slowly wound their way through the audience, handing them to people who have offered them the greatest support through the years.
Graduate Miguel Garcia, of Lompoc, described the role his mother played in his life. It wasn’t an easy life — his family only spoke Spanish and his mother had to work extremely hard to pay the bills.
Growing up, he never placed much importance on school. But when he found himself in the Los Prietos program, he said he realized something had to change.
“When I finally realized the value of an education, I had to work extra hard,” he said. “…It was hard and I stumbled, but I stood up and I persevered.”
In addition to their diplomas, many of the graduates received a $500 scholarship from local Rotary clubs to support their future educational endeavors.
They also received plenty of advice from those who spoke during the ceremony. Daniel Schradermeier, the teacher in charge at Los Robles, offered up a few simple yet eloquent words.
“Be happy, be wise, be kind and prosper,” he said. “Play and work hard, because it’s probably the only life you’ll have.”

Farr stands by experience, endorsements

BY COLBY FRAZIER
DAILY SOUND STAFF WRITER

During her three years as a Santa Barbara County planning commissioner, Third District supervisor candidate Doreen Farr said she wrestled with controversial issues and staunchly protected the environment.
These are some of the experiences she’s vowed to take with her to the Board of Supervisors, where the Santa Ynez Valley resident hopes to secure the Third District seat.

Farr is quick to note what separates her campaign from that of her opponent, Steve Pappas. But on big issues, such as protecting the Gaviota Coast, how to grapple with the county budget and keeping the diverse Third District on the same page, the two candidates have sung similar songs.
With just 12 days to go until election day, Farr said she is “cautiously optimistic” in her chances of winning, and “believes things are going well.”
During a recent interview in Buellton, Farr cited her experience as a planning commissioner and her lengthy list of endorsements as proof that she has what it takes to lead the diverse Third District.
Having lived in the Santa Ynez Valley, as well as the unincorporated Goleta Valley, Farr, unlike Pappas, has lived on both sides of the street as it were, and has the South Coast endorsements to prove it.
But that’s not why she’s running for office. The answer to that question is a little simpler: Farr said she believes the residents of the Third District deserve the best representation around, and she happens to be it.
“A lot of people love living in this county and sacrifice to stay here,” she said. “[I] want to give them the best representation I can.”

Finding differences

Farr acknowledges she and Pappas share similar views on big issues facing the county, but she said these similarities have tightened in recent months.
“As the campaign goes forward he says more and more things that I’ve been saying,” she said.
Farr, who has been endorsed by current South County supervisor’s Salud Carbajal and Janet Wolf, as well as four other former supervisors and the majority of city council members from Goleta and Santa Barbara, said her backing alone speaks for her ability to follow through with her words.
“Just because he says the same thing that I do doesn’t mean he has the backing and support on the issues that I have,” she said of her opponent.
The issues in the Third District, which stretches from Goleta, to Vandenberg Village and Isla Vista to the Santa Ynez Valley, are wide reaching.
From protection of the Gaviota Coast, energy, the county budget crisis, preservation of agriculture land and development, it has a little bit of everything. The district’s people, and its land, are likely the most diverse in the county.
Farr said one primary difference between Pappas and her, is her support from the public safety community.
The Santa Barbara County Deputy Sheriff’s Association, as well as the County Deputy District Attorney Association have endorsed Farr.
On top of these, Farr pointed out she has been backed by a number of environmental organizations.
“My opponent has none of that,” she said.

Gaviota Coast

While not the most pressing issue facing the county at the moment (Farr said she believes the No. 1 slot goes to the budget), protecting the Gaviota Coast ranks near the top of Farr’s list.
“This is an issue the people have been very united about,” she said, adding that county residents from north to south have joined hands in the fight against development on the wide-open coast.
With the Board of Supervisors’ approval of the Naples residential development fresh on her mind, Farr said she wished more could have been done to pear down the size, bulk and scale of the 71 homes planned for the spot.
Though the project was 10 years in the making and was the subject of countless public meetings, Farr said she believes more work should have been done to lessen the impacts, and find less impactful sites for many of the homes.
“I think we could have gotten a much better agreement than we did,” she said.
Farr said she would have also liked to see the Board of Supervisors amend a memorandum of understanding with Naples developer Matt Osgood in public.
As it happened, the board earlier this month voted 3-2 behind closed doors, with Carbajal and Wolf dissenting, to split the development into two chunks, distinguished between coastal and inland.
As a result, the California Coastal Commission will not review the inland portion, which consists of roughly 50 homes; a factor some believe will make approval far easier on the developer.
Farr pointed out that the original MOU the developer negotiated with the county was handled in public, and the amendment should have been the same way.
She said a balance must be struck between private property rights on the coast and preservation, but dismantling the one project into two different projects, “was inappropriate.”
“When you start taking the thing apart, it falls apart,” she said.

County Budget

When asked what the single greatest threat to the health of the county is, Farr said without blinking, “not enough money.”
“It’s a picture that’s of great concern,” she said of the county’s fiscal future. “We’ve got some very lean times ahead. We’re going to have to make some more cuts and find new revenue streams.”
The budget is one topic Farr and Pappas both agree is a severe issue, but the candidates differ on exactly how to tighten the belt, and keep cuts as far away from health and public safety as possible.
If elected, Farr said she’d support an effort to analyze the budget over the past few years, identify what departments grew during good times, and see if cuts could be made there.
She said the county should turn to its employees and ask them where waste is occurring, and possibly offer incentives to those who are successful in making the county more efficient.
While Pappas said he does not fully understand the county’s $760 million budget, Farr said she has a handle on it.
“I understand the budget,” she said. “It’s a very complicated, long document but it’s quite understandable if you take the time and go through it.”
While Pappas said he would push for a forensic, independent audit of the budget, Farr said she’s not sure such an audit is necessary. Instead, Farr said the county’s auditor controller has done a good job identifying sticky financial situations, one of which is roughly $30 million the county amassed in faulty Medi-Cal billing, which might have to be repaid to the state.
“I think we need to ask a lot of tough questions,” she said.
Farr also said she doesn’t feel Pappas’ insistence on cutting “fat” from the county’s Planning and Development Department has merit.
The last time Farr checked, she said the Planning and Development Department was down 40 positions.
“I’m not sure that they’re at all overstaffed at this period in time,” she said. “There has to be somebody there.”

3-2 Split

The Third District is geographically sandwiched between North and South County. So it’s fitting that it is also often ideologically a bridge between what is sometimes considered a more conservative north, and liberal south. As a result, the person sitting in the Third District seat often represents a crucial swing vote.
This has been manifested in the board’s recent 3-2 vote to send Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger a letter informing him of the county’s newfound support for offshore oil drilling — a decision Farr adamantly opposed.
“Overall the people of Santa Barbara County have been very proud of being considered environmental leaders,” she said.
On this note, Farr said she hopes to help push the county in a more sustainable direction by encouraging wind farms, similar to one recently approved in Lompoc, and solar energy.
The Naples development was also a 3-2 vote, and at the forefront of both of these issues, was Firestone, voting in step with North County supervisors Joe Centeno and Joni Gray.
Farr spoke out against the board majority in both of these instances, and if it had been her sitting behind the dais, neither would likely have moved forward as they are.
But regardless of how heated the discussions grow when big issues are on the table, Farr pointed out that the majority of the time the board casts unanimous votes.
She said the majority of a supervisor’s job should be aimed at community outreach, not arguing with colleagues.
“I think it’s important to remember that so much of the work of a county supervisor is day-to-day community service,” she said, noting that she will make it a priority to be available to her constituents.

Experience

While Farr was the Second District planning commissioner, she dealt with her share of complicated land-use issues. At that time, Montecito did not yet have its own planning commission, and Goleta had not become its own city.
The County Planning Commission had it all, and Farr said that experience is very similar to being on the Board of Supervisors.
As Goleta was incorporating, Farr said she left the Planning Commission to be a part of the new city’s interim staff, during which time she primarily dealt with land-use issues Goleta inherited from the county.
But Farr’s roots run deeper than that, and are imbedded in her grass-roots fight to improve traffic conditions near her former Goleta home, which ultimately ended with the formation of the Patterson Area Neighborhood Association.
For Farr, the journey to the ballot has been a long one, during which time she’s co-owned a newspaper, radio stations, a magazine and managed to keep a foot in politics as well.
And that journey, spanned over the past 25 years, is similar to a lengthy campaign.
“It’s been a long campaign,” she said. “It’s not over till’ it’s over and we’re continuing to do all the things we’ve done in the primary.”
And if things go the way of the February primary election, where Farr racked up 35.7 percent of the votes to Pappas’ 25.6 percent, Farr will end up on top.
More information about Farr’s campaign is available at www.doreenfarrforsupervisor.com.

Pappas banks on independence

BY COLBY FRAZIER
DAILY SOUND STAFF WRITER

If there’s one thing Santa Barbara County Third District supervisor candidate Steve Pappas has made crystal clear over the past year, it is his intention to be independent and nonpartisan. In his own words, he’s “beholden to no political machine.”
Six years ago, Pappas registered as an independent. He did so, he said, because he realized the Third District, which encompasses a swath of land dotted with Goleta, Santa Ynez, Isla Vista, Los Alamos and Vandenberg Village, needed a representative who was an independent thinker.


As such, Pappas believes he has the ability to balance the diverse interests of the sprawling district, which in recent history, geographically and philosophically, has become the bridge between North and South County.
“People are just starting to see how important that is for the Third District,” Pappas said in reference to his nonpartisan approach. “To be the most effective candidate, I needed to be nonpartisan so I could really be free in my decision making.”
Pappas, who lives in Los Olivos, said his independence is the marquee difference between him and his opponent, Doreen Farr, a registered Democrat, who also lives in the Santa Ynez Valley.

Arrival

Pappas’ arrival on the local political scene was spurred by the planned demise of an 18-acre farm in Los Olivos called Montanaro.
Had a developer not wanted to pack the lot with condominiums, Pappas would likely still be minding his own business, hoping local elected leaders make wise decisions on his behalf.
But that’s not how Pappas saw the wheels of government turning.
Pappas recalls the experience like it happened yesterday. He was in his front yard when a neighbor dropped by. She was panicked, he said, and asked him if he knew what was going to happen to the farm.
Apparently the county was hosting a meeting to discuss the project that very night at a church in Los Olivos.
Pappas and the woman went door to door, rallying their neighbors, and as the group made their way to the church, it became clear none of them knew about the project.
When the meeting was over, Pappas said he told the group the project would go through if they didn’t organize and do something about it.
A couple of days later, Pappas said the group Preservation of Los Olivos (POLO) was formed, and ultimately, the farm was saved.
“It was out of fear of the unknown,” Pappas said of his drive to enter politics. “Because we didn’t know what was happening in our neighborhood.”
Since then, Pappas has been involved in several land-use projects connected to the Santa Ynez Valley, and in 2004, ran for Third District supervisor. He lost badly to current supervisor Brooks Firestone, who is not seeking a second term on the board.
But the initial shock of not knowing what was planned for his own neighborhood has stuck with him.
And not surprisingly, Pappas says one of his main goals as supervisor would be to ensure no one in the Third District is ever left in the dark again.
“If they wanted us to know, we would have known,” he said. “It’s clear they didn’t want us to know because no one knew.”

County Budget Crisis

Pappas said the county budget, which absorbed millions in cuts last year to remain balanced, and could require the same this year, is the biggest issue facing the county.
As supervisor, Pappas, who is the president of the board of trustees for the Los Olivos School District, said he would like to see “fat” cut from the budget.
One area he believes could use some trimming is the Planning and Development Department and office of Long Range Planning.
“Both of these departments are full of bureaucracy and red tape,” he said. “They don’t produce any fruit, they just spend our money.”
Pappas said he’s watched the county spend heaps of cash dealing with development projects that eventually dwindle away, or drastically change over and over before eventually being shut down or approved.
Pappas said his role as president of the school board, a position he was elected to in 2004, has given him valuable experience working with budgets, and more importantly balancing the budget.
When he took over as school president, Pappas said he and the board became puzzled when it appeared significant chunks of the district’s $5 million budget was disappearing.
He said a forensic audit, conducted by an outside firm, was ordered and the board shortly discovered the district’s business manager had embezzled roughly $100,000.
Pappas said he would support a forensic audit for the county’s $800 million budget, if for nothing else to get a better understanding of where taxpayer money is being spent.
“When you look at the county budget it might as well be in Chinese,” he said, admitting he doesn’t understand it, despite his familiarity with budgets. “No one should be afraid of a forensic audit.”
Pappas also said he would be willing to consider reducing benefits packages for future county employees. He said any and all promises made to current employees should be honored, but if the county doesn’t do something along these lines to help shore up the deficit, it might have to lay off existing workers.
“It’s time to reevaluate what we can afford to offer new employees,” he said, adding that this is one well-established difference between him and his opponent. “We’ve got to turn the page and adjust and adapt.”
While Pappas believes there are many ways to rein in spending, one place it should not occur is in public safety and health.
Under a Pappas led Third District, these services would be preserved. He said this includes mental health services, which took a hit last year during the budget cycle when community based organizations that contract with the county sustained debilitating cuts.
While Pappas said he’s long believed the health, mental health, and safety of county residents is paramount, a recent tour of the county jail cemented this belief.
He said the county jail has become a “dumping ground for the mentally ill.”
Pappas echoed the concerns of Sheriff Bill Brown, who has said the county’s chronic problem with jail overcrowding is not aided by repeatedly locking up the mentally ill, who often don’t receive the help they need behind bars.
“Clearly the mental health crisis in Santa Barbara County is growing and we are doing nothing to help,” he said.

Gaviota Coast, Farmland and Open Space

Pappas, like Farr, hasn’t been shy in his opposition to development along the Gaviota Coast.
During recent meeting on the Naples residential development, which was ultimately green lighted by the Board of Supervisors Tuesday, Pappas said approval of the project would be a “train wreck.”
While Pappas said the need to balance a developer’s private property rights with the public’s will can be tricky, in the case of the Gaviota Coast, the Board of Supervisors should have found a way to appease the people, not the developer.
“As a supervisor you have to make that happen, period,” he said.
Pappas said the public, from the Fifth District to the First District, has made it perfectly clear they don’t want development along the Gaviota Coast.
And when such an overwhelming majority of the public is intent on saving something, Pappas said that’s the way it has to be.
“You need to make that happen and if you don’t, you aren’t’ fulfilling the obligation of the people who put you in office and maybe you shouldn’t be in office,” he said.
Pappas, like much of the environmental community opposed to the Naples project, which as proposed would erect 71 homes, is most concerned with roughly 10 of those homes slated to rise from the bluff top overlooking the ocean.
Many opposed to the project said they could live with the homes on the north side of Highway 101 if they were placed out of sight as much as possible. But the bluff top homes remain in the plan approved by the supervisors.
Pappas said not finding a new place for these homes was a “failure.”
“I’m not going to stop,” Pappas said. “I’m going to do whatever I can to prevent these lots from being developed.”
Pappas said he would not support rezoning agricultural land to residential or commercial, saying the protection of local agriculture is “vital.”
On the same note, Pappas said he would like to get local farmers together to see what it would take to stop trucking locally grown produce to other states and countries, and sell it here.
“All of this waste has to stop,” he said.

Experience and Leadership

Pappas says his experience as an elected official on the school board, combined with owning his own business for the past 22 years, has endowed him with the tools necessary to take the reins of the Third District.
Pappas said both jobs, as head of his eight-employee business, and president of the 750 student strong school district, gives him far more executive experience than Farr.
Combined with his insistence on being nonpartisan, a quality he said will end the divisive 3-2 splits on controversial votes and create a 2-2-1 atmosphere, is enough reason to vote for him.
And in the final sprint to election day, Pappas believes his message is picking up speed.
“I have no strings attached, period,” he said. “It’s just kind of catching on that I’m the best pick for this race.”
More information about Pappas is available at www.stevepappas.org.
A candidate preview on Doreen Farr will appear in tomorrow’s Daily Sound.

City defends Measure G information

BY ERIC LINDBERG
DAILY SOUND STAFF WRITER

City officials are denying allegations that they improperly used public funds to support Measure G, a ballot measure that will update the city’s utility users tax.
A group known as the Committee Against Measure G based in Santa Barbara sent a complaint to state officials yesterday alleging the city broke elections law by printing and sending out fliers and brochures discussing the measure.

City Attorney Steve Wiley dismissed the claims, pointing to a government code section allowing municipalities to disseminate information regarding the potential impact of the ballot measure on the city’s operations as long as it remains accurate and impartial.
“We’re pretty careful to stick pretty closely to that,” Wiley said. “…I know there isn’t anything wrong with it. It’s just informational material.”
The documents in question include several fliers included in city water bills, a notice published in the city’s Parks and Recreation activity guide, and a brochure distributed by the city.
Jan Evans, former president of the Santa Barbara County Taxpayers Association who signed the argument against Measure G, said state law is clear when it comes to the use of public funds for promoting ballot items.
“The city, in my estimation, has stepped over the line,” she said. “…When this material is sent inside of bills — water bills — that the city bills for and sends out, it’s highly questionable as to whether that is appropriate.”
In a letter to the enforcement division of the California Fair Political Practices Commission, the group argues that the documents represent a “systematic attempt” by the city to get Measure G passed.
In particular, the letter cites similarities between the mailers and ballot arguments made by those supporting the measure.
“With respect to style, materials prepared by the city are virtually indistinguishable from standard campaign materials used to pass ballot measures,” the letter states. “Indeed, the wording of some of the city of Santa Barbara’s materials is almost identical to the wording in the ballot argument rebuttal on behalf of Measure G.”
That wording includes the fact that funds raised by the city’s current utility users tax support city services such as police, fire, emergency communications, parks, recreation, library services, and streets and pothole repairs.
“It specifies how the money will be used,” Evans said. “It is promoting their own argument as to why voters should approve Measure G.”
However, government code section regulating improper expenditures states that it “does not prohibit the expenditure of local agency funds to provide information to the public about the possible effects of a ballot measure on the activities, operations, or policies of the local agency…”
That holds true only if the information presented is “an accurate, fair, and impartial presentation of relevant facts” that will aid voters in reaching an informed judgment on the ballot measure, according to the statute.
Mayor Marty Blum said the city did just that, explaining how the utility users tax is used and why it is being updated.
“It’s a normal thing that governments do, to put information out there,” she said. “I don’t think there is anything in there that supports the argument either way.”
Wiley also pointed out that the Fair Political Practices Commission is not involved in that particular area of elections law, but instead handles primarily conflicts of interest and campaign financing violations.
“I’m sure they’ll respond and say it’s not in their jurisdiction,” he said.
The city’s utility users tax is levied on six utilities and brings in approximately $13 million each year. The section being updated by Measure G relates specifically to telecommunications utilities, including phone and cable service.
That section alone brings in $5.3 million annually, City Finance Director Bob Peirson said. Due to changes in federal legislation, the portion of the tax involving telephone or voice services — which pencils out to approximately $4 million a year — is facing potential legal challenges, he said, explaining that other cities have been sued over their outdated utility users taxes.
“While that litigation is still pending and not resolved, more and more cities are feeling like rather than await the outcome … to instead be proactive, to go ask the voters to approve an updated telecommunications ordinance,” he said.
Peirson said in addition to bring its ordinance into compliance, the city decided to include new technologies not covered by the decades-old tax under its umbrella in order to level the playing field for telecommunications companies.
Evans criticized that component of the tax measure, arguing that it represents an attempt by the city to increase taxes.
“They want to tax cell phones, they want to tax text messaging — in other words, they are going after all the new communication technology and trying to pull everything under the former phone utility tax,” she said. “…It gets very complicated and what I see is just another layer of bureaucracy going after a minimal amount of money.”
Peirson disputed the argument that the measure would implement a new tax on cell phones, suggesting residents check their phone bills to confirm that cell phones are already being taxed.
In addition, he has noted the city is dropping the taxation rate from 6 percent to 5.75 percent in order to bring in new technologies and yet remain revenue-neutral — that is, the city should not bring in more money should Measure G pass.

Dreams of a Family, Dreams of a Nation

BY CHERI RAE
One of the finest compliments anyone can offer parents is to notice how their child’s behavior reflects the values they instilled. It’s a testament to their vision, hard work and good judgment when their child goes out into the world and shines.
The grace under pressure exemplified by Senator Barack Obama in the face of ever-increasing, over-the-top negative attacks on his character, beliefs and associations reveals his true nature. He emulates the strong family values with which he was raised. Basic decency, good humor, hard work and commitment to making a difference run deep in his upbringing.

This white, middle-class Dunham family from Kansas—Stanley, Madelyn and daughter Stanley Ann—was rooted in Midwestern pragmatism, yet as progressive and open-minded as they come. Striking out for adventure and in pursuit of the American Dream, they moved to the exotic, brand-new state of Hawaii, seeking the promise of a better life.
When Stanley Ann, then an idealistic 18-year-old freshman at the University of Hawaii, brought a brilliant Kenyan student home to meet the parents, it was a real-life version of “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner,” six years before the controversial, Academy Award-winning film hit the screen. The Dunhams accepted their daughter’s unexpected relationship, subsequent marriage and the baby boy born of that union in 1961.
They lovingly embraced and helped raise their bi-racial grandson named Barack Hussein Obama.
Consider the context of the times: According to the 1960 U.S. Census in 1960, there were only 51,000 interracial marriages in the United States, and a Gallup survey of the time found that only 4 percent of Americans approved of them. In fact, such relationships were actually illegal in 16 states until the U.S. Supreme Court finally found those laws unconstitutional in 1967. (Times have changed; today a majority of Americans are unconcerned about interracial relationships.)
Their dignified, unconditionally loving response to the situation—from the moment of his birth until today—matters. Instead of casting out their daughter and her child for violating commonly accepted societal norms, they supported her, helped her, and even stepped in and helped raise her child in a stable home environment.
With a no-nonsense determination to provide for her grandson and his education, Obama’s grandmother redoubled her professional efforts. She worked hard and rose through the ranks from bank secretary to become one of the first female vice-presidents of the Bank of Hawaii.
At a time when the Civil Rights Movement raged on the mainland, this family clearly believed in civil rights, racial and gender equality. They showed it every day by matter-of-factly getting on with life, never allowing differences to define or limit them.
When Martin Luther King delivered his soaring, inspirational, “I Have a Dream” speech on August 28, 1963, Obama was just two years old. The most memorable lines from that speech remain, “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.”
Could have imagined, even in his wildest dreams, that exactly 45 years later, a bi-racial Senator would be nominated to the presidency of the United States?
Could Obama’s dreamy mother have imagined it either?
Sadly, she passed in 1995, far too young and much too soon to witness the impressive accomplishments of her son born of an unlikely union at an unlikely time. I’m sorry she is not here to witness the extraordinary content of her son’s character—the steadfastness, wisdom and good judgment—that that matters so much more today than the color of his skin. Yet her influence, and that of her parents, is felt every day of this campaign.
At this writing, Sen. Obama is winging his way back to the tenth-floor Honolulu apartment where he spent so many years in the care of his beloved grandparents. His 85-year-old grandmother, “Toot,” as he calls her, is gravely ill. His strong Midwestern conscience requires him to honor her contribution to her life, even at the most important moment of his. It’s who he is. It’s how he was raised. It’s a parent’s dream come true.
This common decency in a presidential candidate is the change we need.

Fundraising takes on a frightful aura

BY ERIC LINDBERG
DAILY SOUND STAFF WRITER

On a heavily wooded roadway cutting back and forth across a hillside in Santa Barbara, deformed dolls hang from branches choked with cobwebs.
Gravestones dot the landscape and a bloody machete is embedded deep in the thick bark of a tree trunk. Even with sunlight filtering through the canopy, the drive is tinged with a macabre atmosphere.

It’s precisely the creepy mood that a group of Santa Barbara High School students are striving for as they add grisly and eerie touches to the Fright Walk, a quarter-mile scarefest that will serve as the sole fundraiser for the theatre department’s production of a musical revue early next year.
“This driveway is almost scary enough by itself,” said Michael Landecker, an SBHS senior and one of four directors of the musical production.
It’s the Landecker’s winding drive at 2101 Mountain Ave. that opens this Friday to thrill seekers willing to subject themselves to a twisted 20-minute hike.
In addition to the obvious props —spiders, swaying skeletons and so on — the Fright Walk also features 30 costumed characters, all members of the musical revue cast.
A doctor in a bloody lab coat and the quintessential creepy little kid are among the spooks they plan to portray, Landecker said.
“It’s a fun way to raise money,” he said, adding that while the walk isn’t recommended for children under 6, the actors will recognize younger visitors and act appropriately.
“They’re not going to attack a little kid or anything,” he said.
Many of the props are in place, or at least momentarily stored at the edge of the road to allow traffic to pass. Most of the work remaining involves installing fog machines and spectral lighting.
“Everything is basically done, it’s just the lighting and sound left,” said Kristian Sorensen, a junior at SBHS and another director of the production, which is coincidentally titled “Music of the Night.”
Although its only the second year that the Landecker clan has offered up the driveway for a Halloween fundraiser — having raised $1,500 last year for a theatre trip to Scotland — Landecker said his family has been putting together a Fright Walk of sorts for friends during the past decade.
“We’ve just collected them over the years,” he said, referring to the numerous bizarre and ghoulish objects littering the drive.
In fact, the group isn’t spending much money on the project. Kendra Costigan, another director and a senior at SBHS, said she’s only shelled out $150, mainly for fog machine fuel and makeup.
The crew has been working weekends and afternoons for several weeks to put the Fright Walk together. Costigan pointed out a set of wood panels that will form a freakish funhouse replete with evil clowns as her favorite project during the assembly process, although she admitted it won’t be too enjoyable for her when it’s complete.
“It would be the scariest part for me,” she said.
Along with the entrance fee, which is $5 for kids and $7 for adults, organizers are planning a bake sale toward the top of the driveway to raise additional funds.
After passing the backed goods, visitors will make one more hairpin cutback and spill out onto a public street, where adults will be waiting to chauffeur them back to their vehicles at the bottom of the hill.
The driveway will be open Friday through Sunday from 7 to 10 p.m. and its architects said if it’s anything similar to last year’s experience, Sorensen said people will not be disappointed.
“We even scared a lot of teachers who came last year,” he said.

Council tangles with speed limit conundrum

BY ERIC LINDBERG
DAILY SOUND STAFF WRITER

In a move they openly termed counterintuitive, Santa Barbara city leaders agreed yesterday on a 5-2 vote to lower speed limits on Haley Street and increase speed limits on De la Vina Street.
Their reason for making the seemingly backward decision is intricately linked to the method currently used to set speed limits and their desire to give police officers the tools to crack down on speeders.

As explained by the city’s transportation engineer supervisor, Dru Van Hengel, speed limits on many city streets are based on speed surveys taken approximately every five years.
Traffic engineers are bound by law to set a baseline for speed limits by judging the 85th percentile of speeds being traveled on a given street — that is, essentially cutting off 15 percent of the fastest drivers and using the next highest speed.
The city must set the speed limit at the closest 5-mile-per-hour increment. Engineers can then lower that limit by 5 mph for a variety of reasons, such as bicycle and pedestrian safety, visibility concerns and collision rates.
So when the city’s traffic engineers studied a group of local streets to update their speed surveys, drivers on De la Vina Street delivered a baseline of 35 mph, while those on Haley Street set it at 30 mph.
Van Hengel explained that engineers took into consideration pedestrian and bicycle safety, as well as collision rates and visibility issues, and lowered both recommended speed limits to 30 and 25 mph respectively. The move effectively swapped the current speed limits on each street.
“You’re reducing it on the wide street and increasing it on the narrow, constrained street,” Councilmember Iya Falcone said.
It might seem obvious, then, to toss the new survey and keep the original speed limits. But doing so would strip police officers of their ability to enforce those speed limits.
“When the speed survey expires, we can no longer use radar on that street,” said Sgt. Todd Stoney, traffic investigation supervisor with the Santa Barbara Police Department.
When officers go to court to testify on speeding tickets, the first thing judges ask for is the engineering survey, he said. The only other way to catch speeders is to follow them in a squad car at the same speed for a certain distance, a method Sgt. Stoney described as unsafe.
“Essentially, we can no longer work those streets,” he said.
So by raising the speed limit on De la Vina Street between Micheltorena and Haley streets, the city will actually permit police to go after speeders. And by lowering the limit on Haley Street between Chapala and Milpas streets, they’ll accomplish the same goal.
“We’re being forced to increase the De la Vina area by 5 mph because we have to start with a higher baseline,” Councilmember Helene Schneider said. “…We can’t wriggle around that.”
That is, Van Hengel said, unless the city decides to reclassify its streets.
Many of Santa Barbara’s streets are officially classified as “arterial” or “collector” streets under federal standards, meaning they are eligible for federal funds for construction, rehabilitation, resurfacing and operational improvements.
“Yet many of our streets, although designated as arterials, don’t really display the typical look and feel of an arterial,” Van Hengel said.
Arterial and collector streets are largely dedicated to thru traffic, with few driveways and little on-street parking, she explained. On the other hand, streets classified as “local” have plenty of driveways and parking.
More importantly, Van Hengel said, radar-enforceable speed limits can be set on “local” streets without a speed survey.
She explained that the city classified many of its streets as arterials or collectors years ago in order to garner federal funds. By reclassifying them as local, city leaders could come up with their own speed limits, but would lose out on the funding.
While that amount is not known, Van Hengel said Caltrans officials described it as negligible when compared to the overall federal and state funds available for street improvements.
The council seemed in favor of studying that option in more detail, giving staff the go-ahead to launch a yearlong effort to that effect.
Councilmember Dale Francisco expressed a bit of hesitancy, citing concerns about the financial downside. And while reclassifying De la Vina Street, for instance, makes sense, Francisco said some arterial and collector streets should not be “artificially” reclassified.
His reason for voting against the item stemmed from changes to the speed limit along Haley Street. He called the need to change the limit along De la Vina Street unfortunate but understandable under the circumstances, but said he couldn’t understand the need to drop speeds on Haley Street to 25 mph.
“It seems to be functioning well from what I can see,” he said. “…It seems unreasonable to reduce by 5 mph the speed when it seems to be working fine.”
Van Hengel cited pedestrian and bicycle safety concerns, along with a higher collision rate and limited sightlines from side streets, as the underlying reasons for dropping the speed limit. She said the collision rate for the area is 2.64 accidents per million vehicle miles traveled, compared to a Caltrans standard of 1.77.
Councilmember Roger Horton, who also voted against the proposal, said he simply did not have enough information on how the changes will impact the police department.
Ultimately, a majority of the council decided to set the new speed limits and conduct a speed survey along those streets in three years instead of five to determine if they need another update.
Public Works Director Christine Andersen, while empathizing with those who live along De la Vina Street and deal with speeders, said the city had its hands tied when it came to getting an enforceable speed limit on the books.
“We’ve got speeding going on along De la Vina … and the police can do nothing about it,” she said. “This will allow police to go out there and enforce at the 30 mph speed limit.”