Story and photo Miriam Raftery

Photo:  Jimmie Johnson and his wife, Chandra Janway,  at a 2009 rally with then-Supervisor Dianne Jacob in Santee, where Johnson and his wife were honored for their charitable foundation’s generous donations to local schools.

June 27, 2023 (San Diego’s East County) – The parents of NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson’s wife, Chandra Janway, Johnson, were found dead today at a home in Muskogee, Oklahoma, along with Johnson’s 11-year old nephew.  Raised in El Cajon, Johnson has long been hailed as a hometown hero not only for his NASCAR wins, but also for the generosity of the foundation that he and his wife ran, donating millions of dollars to help children in need and benefit local schools.

Police investigators report that they believe Terry Janway shot and killed her husband, Jack Janway, and their grandson, Dalton, then killed herself.  

NASCAR issued this statement.  “We are saddened by the tragic deaths of members of Chandra Johnson’s family.  The entire NASCAR family extends its deepest support and condolences during this difficult time to Chandra, Jimmie, and the entire Johnson and Janway families.”

East County News Service

June 25, 2023 (San Diego’s East County) — Cal Fire/San Diego County Fire will suspend all outdoor residential burning within the State Responsibility Areas of San Diego and Imperial counties, effective Monday, June 26, 2023, at 8 a.m.

Story and Photos By: Josh Stotler

Photo, left:  A San Diego Helitack crew heads into the smoke to clear crush as the Proctor fire burns in the background.

June 24, 2023 (Jamul)-- Crews from CAL FIRE and Inmate fire crews are still on the scene at the #ProctorFire this evening, mopping up and dousing hot spots. All   road closures and evacuation orders have been lifted.

The  brush fire was reported off Proctor Valley Road around 5:23 pm. Units were dispatched to the scene and reported the blaze burning in medium vegetation with a medium rate of spread. Due to vegetation drying out and homes in the area, the fire was upgraded; more air and ground units were called in.

Source: SANDAG

June 24, 2023 (San Diego)-- On Wednesday afternoon, SANDAG and Facilitating Access to Coordinated Transportation (FACT) representatives were joined by local community members to celebrate the launch of RideFACTNow, a new and first-of-its-kind on-demand specialized transportation service in the San Diego region.

The new on-demand service is for people using mobility devices, including wheelchairs, and will operate on a same-day basis with a maximum one-hour response time.

East County News Service

June 24, 2023 (Spring Valley) – California Highway Patrol is searching for the drivers of a red SUV and a silver sedan which each struck a 50-year-old woman in Spring Valley shortly before 10 p.m. on June 22, then fled the scene.

The woman was walking northbound on Jamacha Blvd. east of Lamplighter Village Drive when she was hit by the red  SUV, which was traveling west on Jamacha.  The impact knocked the victim to the ground. While she was lying on the roadway, she was struck a second time by the silver sedan.

The woman sustained major injuries and died at the scene.

“Both vehicles were last seen fleeing the scene, westbound on Jamacha Blvd.,” says Officer Matthew Baranowski with the California Highway Patrol. 

By Miriam Raftery

June 23, 2023 (Lemon Grove) – Michael Perez, an attorney who runs the nonprofit Imago Dei (operating as 29: Eleven), with his wife, a dream to restore two historic buildings in Lemon Grove. They wanted to open up a home for women who are struggling, including pregnant women in need of shelter and mothers with babies. Since buying the property in 2008, however, Perez told ECM, “We’ve been in a constant struggle with the city of Lemon Grove over building permits.”  

He described a nightmare of obstacles in the permitting process, as well as frustrations with the Sheriff’s department for not being responsive to his pleas for help to keep out homeless people who repeatedly broke down barriers to camp out inside.

Then last week, a fire destroyed one of the two buildings, a house originally built in the 1930s by Dr. Ebon McGregor. The other building, which once served as Dr. McGregor’s was spared. The site is on Main Street, next to city hall in the heart of Lemon Grove.

“My wife and I both cried when we heard about it,” Perez told ECM. “We’re going to trust  God,” he said, adding that he still hopes to  find a way to bring the nonprofit’s services to the site. “I think it’s needed.”

By Miriam Raftery

Photo:  former homeless camp in unincorporated El Cajon later cleared by the County, which opened a safe parking lot on the site

June 22, 2023 (San Diego) – El Cajon’s City Council voted unanimously on June 13 to direct staff to draft an ordinance prohibiting camping on any public property, such as sidewalks and parks.  The ordinance would mirror a similar, controversial ordinance adopted by the San Diego City Council 5-4 on the same date.

Enrolled customers who conserved during last heat wave earned more than $11M in bill credits for helping to reduce strain on statewide grid

Source:  SDG&E

June 21, 2023 (San Diego) - With today being the first official day of summer, San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) is sharing summer energy savings tips and encouraging its residential customers to sign up for Power Saver Rewards, an energy savings incentive program that rewards customers with bill credits for reducing their electricity use on days when the statewide grid is stressed by high demand. Enrolled customers who conserved during the summer 2022 heat wave earned more than $11 million in bill credits.

Historical Society founder weighs in on what could have been done to prevent this from happening

Story and pictures by Jessyka Heredia

Historical photo provided by Helen Ofield

View video provided by Stephan Clay

Update June 23, 2022:  The home's owner, Micfhael Perez,  in an in-depth interview with ECM,  says he's spent years struggling to secure permits from the city of Lemon Grove, and faults delays for the house being left in disrepair. He also voices frustration over the Sheriff's department regarding efforts to keep homeless people from repeatedly breaking into the property.  View article with his remarks.

June19, 2023 (Lemon Grove) -- A fire broke out early last Tuesday morning at the historic Ebon McGregor house at 3262 Main Street, next to City Hall and the Sheriff’s station.

“This is a tragedy. One of the few buildings in town designed by master architect, Alberto Owen Treganza, is no more,” says Helen Ofield, founder of the Lemon Grove Historical Society.

Story and Photos By Josh Stotler

June 20, 2023 (San Diego’s East County) --  Federal, state, and tribal fire departments battled the #Blackwood Fire this afternoon, which threatened homes before crews halted the blaze at 37 acres.

The fire broke out around noon on the Campo Reservation just off interstate 8 on Black Wood Rd and Old Mine Rd.  Initial responders confirmed a vegetation fire and immediately upgraded the incident, calling for more ground units as well as air support.

June 20, 2023 (El Cajon) -- A brush fire burning between Interstate 8 and Murray Drive has charred several acres, threatening homes.  The fire began near Murray Drive and Dennstedt Place, El Cajon.

It is reportedly burning at a slow rate of spread, however some homes are threatened, based on scanner traffic.

CalTrans reports that three lanes of westbound I-8 are closed in the vicinity.

MTS announced that the Green Line trolley cannot travel between Amaya Drive and the El Cajon Transit Center, so a bus bridge will be implemented for riders.

By Miriam Raftery

Photo: Hunter Biden during a 2014 meeting with India's prime minister

June 20, 2021  (Washington D.C.) The son of President Joe Biden, has reached a plea bargain deal with the U.S. Department of Justice. Hunter Biden will plead guilty to two misdemeanor counts of filing his 2017 and 2018 taxes late, according to court documents released today, the New York Times reports.  A judge must still approve of the plea deal; Biden is expected to appear in federal court in Delaware for arraignment.

Hunter Biden will not be sent to prison or charged for failing to disclose drug use when he purchased a hand gun in 2018, provided he abides by terms of a two-year probation that includes remaining drug-free and agreeing to never own a gun again.  This sentence is consistent with how tax and gun registration misdemeanors are customarily handled for other non-violent first-time offenders, though questions remain over whether or not the Justice Department has dropped or is continuing to investigating questions over Hunter Biden's controversial actions while serving on a Ukrainian energy company's board of directors.

President Biden has avoided commenting on his son’s legal issues. A  White House spokesman, Ian Sams, issued a statement which reads, “The President and First Lady love their son and support him as he continues to rebuild his life. We will have no further comment.”

Former President Donald Trump, who is awaiting trial on criminal charges relating to mishandling of classified documents and alleged hush money payments made to a porn star, criticized the deal on social media, claiming, “Our system is  BROKEN.”

By Miriam Raftery

Video by Miguel Estrema

June 19, 2023 (Ranchita) --  A single-family home in Ranchita across the street from a  Cal Fire station erupted in flames on Saturday.

Cal Fire responded to the fire on Valley View Drive.  On Twitter,  Cal Fire stated, “There is a single story residential structure that is well-involved in fire.The fire has extended into the vegetation; additional units have been dispatched.  #MontezumaIC.”

By Christianne McCormick

Photos by Christianne McCormick and Monica Silver

June 19, 2023 (Santee) -- The Santee Pride Walk  on June 10^th was met with an outpour of support despite the City’s conservative culture. This pride walk, organized by the Santee United Methodist Church, attracted so many people from all parts of San Diego that attendants could barely fit along the sidewalks. Nearly all came to support diversity and the LGBTQ+ community, though several protesters also turned out.

Car after car honked to show support of the walk, which began on Edgemont Drive, then proceeded to Cuyamaca Street along Mission Gorge. Some supporters held their rainbow pride flags out of their car windows and sunroofs to show support for the marchers. An estimated 300 people were present for this event, far more than the 50 that organizers originally estimated would participate.

Source:  MTS

June 18, 2023 (San Diego) - A agreement has been reached between Transdev and Teamsters Local 683 to operate MTS bus routes in South Bay and East County that had been affected by a work stoppage. All scheduled bus routes for these divisions are anticipated to operate on a normal schedule on Monday, June 19.