EAST COUNTY ROUNDUP: LOCAL AND STATEWIDE NEWS

December 6, 2021 (San Diego) -- East County Roundup highlights top stories of interest to East County and San Diego's inland regions, published in other media.  This week's round-up stories include:

LOCAL

• Trial begins for former La Mesa police officer accused of lying on report (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• Arsonist Who Set Fire to Chase Bank in La Mesa Sentenced to Probation (NBC San Diego)
• Lemon Grove Councilmember Liana LeBaron files complaint against city manager, city attorney (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• San Diego’s burrowing owls get new homes at Ramona Grasslands after sprawl drove them away (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• 'Making malicious threats'| CEO of Sullivan Solar Power arrested on felony stalking charges (CBS 8)
• Daniel Sullivan of Sullivan Solar Power a no-show at bail review hearing (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• Santana Student Raped Countless Times in Early 1980s by Counselor, Suit Alleges (Times of San Diego)
• Black job applicant in San Diego sues company for discrimination over hairstyle (San Diego Union-Tribune)

STATE

• Police investigating several flash mob thefts in California (10 News)
• Rain, snow and chill are heading to Southern California this week (Los Angeles Times)
• ‘There is nothing alive on that tree’: Inside a giant sequoia grove scorched by the KNP Complex fire  (Los Angeles Times)
• Derby winner Medina Spirit collapses, dies in California (San Jose Mercury News)

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.

LOCAL

Trial begins for former La Mesa police officer accused of lying on report (San Diego Union-Tribune)

Former Officer Matthew Dages’ arrest of Amaurie Johnson drew scrutiny when video surfaced on social media.

Arsonist Who Set Fire to Chase Bank in La Mesa Sentenced to Probation (NBC San Diego)

One of two men charged with setting fire to a Chase bank in La Mesa following last year's contentious protest outside the city's police headquarters received a term of probation Tuesday and was ordered to stay away from several La Mesa businesses connected with post-protest looting.  Ricky Bernard Cooper, 34, pleaded guilty last month to arson and burglary charges for the May 30, 2020, fire inside the Chase bank branch at 4791 Spring St., as well as for looting stores at the La Mesa Springs Shopping Center.

Lemon Grove Councilmember Liana LeBaron files complaint against city manager, city attorney (San Diego Union-Tribune)

Lemon Grove City Councilmember Liana LeBaron has filed a complaint with the city alleging the city manager and the city attorney have created a hostile work environment for her and she accused both of professional misconduct. LeBaron, elected to her first term in November 2020, is asking the city to hire an outside investigator to review her allegations against City Manager Lydia Romero and City Attorney Kristen Steinke.

San Diego’s burrowing owls get new homes at Ramona Grasslands after sprawl drove them away (San Diego Union-Tribune)

…Last winter the San Diego Habitat Conservancy introduced 24 burrowing owls to their new digs on the preserve through a reintroduction project with the San Diego Zoo Institute for Conservation Research and state and federal resource agencies. The breeding pairs honeymooned in artificial burrows, and guarded over clutches of eggs until the chicks hatched, adding the next generation of owls to an area where they had all but disappeared.

'Making malicious threats'| CEO of Sullivan Solar Power arrested on felony stalking charges (CBS 8)

The CEO of a major San Diego solar company is behind bars, facing felony domestic violence and stalking charges. Sullivan Solar Power shut its doors last month, leaving surprised customers wondering what happened to its CEO, Daniel Sullivan. Jail records showed officers arrested Sullivan on Monday. He pleaded not guilty to stalking charges on Wednesday morning. His bail is set at $1 million.

Daniel Sullivan of Sullivan Solar Power a no-show at bail review hearing (San Diego Union-Tribune)

Daniel Sullivan, founder and CEO of a high-profile solar installation company that suddenly locked its doors in October, did not appear in court Friday for his bail review hearing related to felony charges accusing him of stalking a former girlfriend. Sullivan’s attorney told Vista Superior Court Judge Laura E. Duffy that Sullivan is no longer in custody at the Vista Detention Facility but has been admitted to Tri-City Medical Center in Oceanside.

Santana Student Raped Countless Times in Early 1980s by Counselor, Suit Alleges (Times of San Diego)

Shawn Morris of Snohomish County, Washington, is a 54-year-old construction worker who never graduated from high school...A lawsuit filed on Morris’ behalf alleges that his guidance counselor at Santana High School in Santee molested him countless times over three years, starting around December 1981, with stories of rape behind closed blinds and at a San Diego bathhouse called The Tubs. “The years of sexual abuse I suffered at the hands of [counselor] Douglas Foster turned into decades of trauma,” Morris said in a statement Wednesday.

Black job applicant in San Diego sues company for discrimination over hairstyle (San Diego Union-Tribune)

A Black job applicant who had recently moved to San Diego in hopes of furthering his career in the audiovisual field filed a discrimination suit this week against an event production company, claiming he was denied employment only after refusing to trim his locks.

STATE

Police investigating several flash mob thefts in California (10 News)

Authorities in California are investigating a string of incidents throughout the state known as flash mob thefts.

Rain, snow and chill are heading to Southern California this week (Los Angeles Times)

Light rain is slated for Tuesday morning, officials said, and a stronger system should deliver more moisture by the end of the week.

‘There is nothing alive on that tree’: Inside a giant sequoia grove scorched by the KNP Complex fire  (Los Angeles Times)

As many as 2,380 giant sequoias burned to death or are expected to die within several years because of the complex fire, which is still active.

Derby winner Medina Spirit collapses, dies in California (San Jose Mercury News)

The colt died during a workout at Santa Anita racetrack