Stolen credit card used at La Mesa gas station

October 7, 2015 (Santee and La Mesa)—The Sheriff seeks public help to find a “person of interest” caught on surveillance video at a La Mesa gas station where a stolen credit card was used on September 23 shortly before dawn.  She drove a red four-door car.

The credit card was among items stolen during a burglary of a home on Woodside Avenue in Santee just hours earlier. The thief broke in while the homeowner was sleeping and stole items including cash and credit cards from the victim’s purse.  Also stolen were U.S. Marine Challenge coins (see photo) that belong to the victim’s son.

Update Oct. 6, 2015 - La Mesa Police report that this missing juvenile has been found with friends in Imperial Beach and has been returned to her family.

Update Oct. 4, 2015 1 p.m. - Olivia's mother confirms that a friend received an Instragram message that appears to be from Olivia.  The message indicates she is safe but does not want to come home.  It is not certain whether the message was sent by Olivia or possibly by someone with access to her account.

East County News Service

October 4, 2015 (La Mesa) – Public help is sought to locate Olivia Miller, 14, A Guatay resident who vanished Friday night in La Mesa. She was last seen at 7 p.m. at the Journey Community Church at 8363 Center Drive.

According to La Mesa Police dispatch, Olivia is 5 feet 1 inch tall, weighs 110 pounds, has black hair and green eyes. She was last seen wearing a white baseball cap, black shirt and black pants. She may also have been wearing a white cardigan and carrying a brown backpack, her mother has advised East County Magazine.

Olivia’s mother, Sherrie Jockell, says Olivia had a picnic dinner with family at the church before services.  An assistant teacher in a class at church, Olivia never made it to class after dinner.  Family realized she was missing after the service, when she did not return to their car.  Olivia made no mention of going anywhere after church to her friends or family.

By Liz Alper

October 2, 2015 (EL CAJON) - An El Cajon man who murdered his girlfriend has been sentenced to 35 years to life in prison, KUSI reports.

East County News Service

September 30, 2015 (Sacramento)—Governor Jerry Brown has signed Assembly Bill 8 into law. The measure will create “yellow alerts” to display descriptions of vehicles involved in hit-and-run collisions on digital freeway signs.  The alerts, set to start January 1^st, will be similar to Amber Alerts used for kidnapped children.

By Miriam Raftery

Currently, California drivers who want to challenge a ticket in court have to pay a fine or fee first, in many jurisdictions.  But Senate Bill 405, now awaiting Governor Jerry Brown’s approval, would give motorists the right to fight tickets without paying a fine or fee unless they are found guilty.

 The U.S. justice system is supposed to presume innocence until someone is found guilty.  But traffic fines and add-on fees amount to hundreds of dollars in some cases. The American Civil Liberties Union has argued that those fees block access to the justice system for the poor.

East County News Service

September 29, 2015 (Lakeside) – Katie L.M. Ellison, 21, has been arrested and charged with murder and felony driving under the influence, the California Highway Patrol reports.

On Friday, September 25^th at 10:16 p.m., Ellison was driving a 2013 Toyota with headlights off, traveling east on Woodside Avenue east of Winter Gardens Blvd. in Lakeside when she struck an older couple walking across the street after leaving a local restaurant.

East County News Service

September 27, 2015 (El Cajon) – A man suspected of breaking into a car in the Chase/Avocado area of El Cajon has been arrested, according to a  post left by the vehicle owner on the Mt. Helix Next Door neighborhood forum. 

According to the car owner, it didn’t take too much sleuthing to track down the alleged perpetrator.  “Good thing he had the bad luck of leaving his wallet in our vehicle,” she wrote, adding that the suspect had prior arrests and had just been released from jail two days before his arrest on September 14.

By Elizabeth Alper

September 19, 2015 (Spring Valley) - A driver in an SUV was arrested after a pursuit and crash in Spring Valley early this morning (September 15).

East County News Service

September 19, 2015 (El Cajon) – El Cajon Police dispatched its SWAT (Special Weapons and Tactics team) and evacuated neighbors due to an active shooter at 1400 Petree Avenue.

The incident began at 7:40 p.m. when a caller reported three gunshots from a neighbor’s apartment. While on the phone, police heard another shot.Officers responded and established a perimeter around the apartment, hearing additional gunshots from inside.

As arrests and incarcerations decline, county will put greater emphasis on prevention, intervention

East County News Service

September 15, 2015 (San Diego’s East County)--A major decrease in juvenile arrests and detentions has caused significant savings for the county, and now government officials are looking to transfer money into services that help keep young people out of serious trouble. In 2009, 5,000 juveniles were under supervision, but now there are approximately 2,100. Detention rates have had a similar decline, down from 842 to 438, said Ron Lane, deputy chief administrative officer.

On Tuesday, the Board of Supervisors voted 5-0 to transfer this savings to training for law enforcement officers dealing with young offenders, increased mental health services, and a program that helps stop juvenile family violence.

Update: The body of missing chlid Wesley Hilare was found in Mission Bay.  Police now believe the boy drowned and that the report of a man walking off with the boy was a false lead.

Photo of Wesley Hilaire, by Daniesha Hilaire

September 13, 2015 (San Diego)  --- An Amber alert has been issued across southern California for a 4-year-old African-American boy abducted from San Diego last night at 7:44 p.m.  He vanished while at Mission Bay in the 2800 block of East Mission Bay Drive. He was last seen with a man who is believed to have abducted him from a family gathering.

Wesley Hilaire was last seen wearing red shorts and no shirt.  He is 4 feet 2 inches tall, weighs 40 pounds and has black hair and brown eyes.

The suspect, a stranger to the family, is described as a 40-year old African-American man, 6 feet tall, 235 pounds with short black hair. He was last seen wearing a grey T-shirt, dark blue jeans with a hole in the right knee, and flip flops.

By Miriam Raftery

September 10, 2015 (San Diego’s East County) – Grossmont High School’s principal sent a letter to all parents yesterday warning of a apparent attempt to kidnap a female student on Tuesday, September 8th. 

According to Principal Daniel Barnes, the teen girl was waiting for a ride at 3:30 p.m. near the baseball field on Milden Avenue when she was approached by a man, who beckoned to her with a cigarette and told her to “get in” his vehicle. She refused and the man drove off on Water Street.

The victim described the suspect as a Hispanic man about 30 to 40 years old with brown hair, brown eyes, dark complexion, round face and large mole on his right cheek.  He was driving  a maroon single cab pickup truck, possibly a Ford F-150, older model with chipped paint.

Video: Press conference in Los Angeles announcing OpenJustice initaitive

East County News Service

September 6, 2015 (Los Angeles) --Attorney General Kamala D. Harris has announced the launch of OpenJustice, a first-of-its-kind criminal justice open data initiative that will release unprecedented data.  The new interactive database includes disclosure in three key areas: 1)law enforcement officers killed or assaulted in the line of duty, 2) deaths in custody and arrest-related deaths, and 3) arrests and bookings.

The tool consists of two components: a Dashboard that spotlights key criminal justice indicators with user-friendly visualization tools and an Open Data Portal that publishes raw data from the California Department of Justice’s statewide repository of criminal justice datasets.

By Miriam Raftery

September 2, 2015 (San Diego's East County) - Deadly drunk driving crashes have spiked this summer, killing 11 people since May -- six in August alone.