Humboldt County Registrar of Voters Juan Pablo Cervantes says he’s been in touch with the FBI regarding vandalism that occurred overnight at the county voting center set up in the Arcata Community Center. Cervantes says he received a report at about 5:45 this morning from precinct workers who arrived to find a variety of pro-Palestinian graffiti at the center. Voting center manager Brent Duncan told the Journal the vandalism included someone spray-painting slogans, including “No Election, Insurrection” and “Genocide Is Not a Lesser Evil” on the outside of the building. Cervantes said Arcata ..read more

A Eureka police officer was found to have failed to timely investigate allegations of the sexual abuse of a minor last year, neglecting to take any action on a report from school staff for more than a month. The officer, who resigned amid the internal affairs investigation, was found to have neglected his duties, engaged in conduct unbecoming, failed to activate his portable recorder during the investigation and violated the department’s body-worn camera policy, according to a quarterly report by OIR Group, the city’s independent police auditor, detailing four closed internal affairs investi ..read more

In the hours, days and weeks after a group of student demonstrators entered Siemens Hall at about 4:25 p.m. on April 22 intent on bringing awareness to the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, Cal Poly Humboldt has consistently maintained they almost immediately began vandalizing the building and barricading its entrances, which is why police were summoned to the scene. In official internal and external messaging, the university maintained that police had been called to the building — and then asked to clear it — because the situation had become “increasingly dangerous,” that “protesters had blocked ex ..read more

The Humboldt County District Attorney’s Office has decided not to criminally charge 27 of the 39 people arrested during the Pro-Palestinian demonstrations on the Cal Poly Humboldt campus in late April, during which protesters occupied Siemens Hall for a week. Responding to a Journal inquiry, District Attorney Stacey Eads wrote in an email that she rejected the 27 case referrals “based on insufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt and/or interest of justice grounds.” “Those cases which were not rejected are pending, as they are being referred to the lead investigating agency, C ..read more

A 30-year-old Eureka woman reported has admitted to using nitrous oxide just prior to causing a fatal multi-car collision on I Street in May that left a pedestrian dead, according to Eureka police. The Eureka Police Department issued a press release this afternoon announcing it had secured a Ramey warrant for the arrest of Maria Cuevas for vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence and hit and run causing death or injury and that Cuevas is in custody, held on $65,000 bail. According to jail records, Cuevas was booked into the jail July 2. “Additional charges of felony DUI causing bodily i ..read more

UPDATE: The Humboldt County Corner's Office has identified the 66-year-old pedestrian killed May 22 as Eureka resident David Sprague, according to a news release from the Eureka Police Department. The multi-car crash remains under investigation, the release states, and witnesses are being asked to contact the Criminal Investigations Unit (CIU) at (707) 441-4300. PREVIOUS: The Eureka Police Department's investigation into a multiple-car crash on I Street yesterday that left a pedestrian dead and multiple people hospitalized remains ongoing, the department announced this afternoon ..read more

The Eureka Police Department's investigation into a multiple-car crash on I Street yesterday that left a pedestrian dead and multiple people hospitalized remains ongoing, the department announced this afternoon. According to a press release, EPD responded to a report of a vehicle-versus-pedestrian collision at around 1:45 p.m. yesterday in the 900 block of I Street, which was followed moments later by multiple reports of multiple collisions on I Street near Seventh Street. A 66-year-old male pedestrian was pronounced dead at the scene, and several people from involved vehicles were transpor ..read more

Cal Poly Humboldt’s University Police Department is wrapping up its criminal investigation into the week-long occupation of Siemens Hall by pro-Palestine demonstrators and associated vandalism, and expects to turn the case over to prosecutors tomorrow, a university spokesperson tells the Journal. At least 33 people were arrested in association with the demonstrations on campus that began April 22 and prompted administrators to shutter the campus, threatening students, faculty and staff who violated the “hard closure” order with citation or arrest. While those arrested were booked into jail o ..read more

The Humboldt County Sheriff's Office has identified the deputy who fatally shot a shooting suspect last month as Lt. Conan Moore, who remains on paid administrative leave. According to the Sheriff's Office, Moore was responding to the scene of the report that a 75-year-old woman had been shot in Cutten and arrived to find Kevin Jeffrey Burks, who matched the suspect description, fleeing the scene. Burks reportedly then entered a residence, after which deputies set up a perimeter. Burks, 32, is alleged to have exited the home a short time later, "pointing a firearm in the direction of deputie ..read more

The Cal Poly Humboldt Chapter of the California Faculty Association has issued a blistering statement condemning the police clearing of Arcata campus last night that led to more than two dozen arrests, calling it "another dangerous escalation," while North Coast state legislators released a joint statement calling for unity and healing in the wake of the protests. The faculty association, which had already passed a vote no confidence in CPH President Tom Jackson Jr. stemming from his handling of the protests that occupied a portion of campus for a week, strongly condemn the use of law enforc ..read more