September 17, 2012 (San Diego) – Daphne Hearn, Special Agent in Charge of the San Diego FBI Office, and Chris Maston, Director of Field Operations, Customs Border Protection (CBP) announced the arrest of CBP Officer Thomas Silva, age 33, a nine-year veteran with the CBP. Silva was arrested on Friday, September 7 2012, at approximately 8:30 a.m, at the San Ysidro Port of Entry by CBP and FBI Agents assigned to the FBI Border Corruption Task Force (BCTF) pursuant to a federal arrest warrant based on a complaint filed with the U.S. District Court, Southern District of California, case number 12MJ3305. The complaint charges Silva with wire fraud and concealing a person from arrest.

By Richard Lederer

September 17, 2012 (San Diego) – The Statue of Liberty Enlightening the World was a gift of friendship from the people of France to the people of the United States commemorating the alliance between the two nations during the Revolutionary War. The statue arrived in the United States aboard the French freighter Isere as 350 individual pieces packed in 214 crates. Lady Liberty was dedicated on October 28, 1886, designated as a National Monument in 1924, and restored for her centennial on July 4, 1986.

September 19, 2012 (Alpine) – Viejas Casino, Southern California’s premier gaming, dining and entertainment destination, on September 14, set a new Guinness Record for the World’s Largest Blackjack Table.

The record was set at 9:45 a.m. September 13, as six guests sat at a massive blackjack table measuring just over 2,226 square feet and played a hand of blackjack with chips and cards that were ten times the size of the actual Viejas blackjack chips and cards. Philip Robertson, an official “Adjudicator” for Guinness was on hand to confirm the measurements and witness the hand of blackjack…and the new record was officially certified amid a rousing round of cheers and applause from Viejas Team Members and guests in the DreamCatcher at Viejas Casino.

By Mark Gabrish Conlan

September 21, 2012 (San Diego)--I probably could have gone through my life blissfully unaware of the existence of a scrap of film called Innocence of Muslims — a.k.a. Innocence of Bin Laden, a.k.a. Desert Warriors — if the U.S. ambassador to Libya, Christopher Stevens, and three other U.S. Embassy staff members hadn’t been killed in an attack allegedly inspired by a YouTube trailer for this movie. It’s a film almost no one has seen — and that includes the attackers in Libya and the mobs who stormed the U.S. Embassy in Egypt — but that hasn’t stopped either the protesters against the film or the mystery people who made it, who appear to be  members of the Copts, an Egyptian Christian sect who lost their protector when Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak was driven from power and now fear both official discrimination and private retribution.

Find inspiration, savor a fresh foods buffet, and learn the latest in sustainability

By Walt Meyer

September 16, 2012 (Lakeside)--At Heartland Coalition/UnitedGREEN's  Forging a Sustainable Future event at San Diego State University in March, keynote speaker Robert F. Kennedy Jr. shared the importance of changing how we all live in light of the global climate crisis. But as has been said many times, all global change starts with local action--and there has never been a better time to take steps for real change. Toward that end, Heartland Coalition’s UnitedGREEN division is producing a series of customized Forging a Sustainable Future Solutions events to advance its mission of transforming the San Diego region.

The first FSFS event will be “Living Green at Blue Sky Ranch” on September 29 from 3-6:30 p.m. Exhibits and experts will explain permaculture, wildfire protection, Community Supported Agriculture, grey water, water catchment, organic farming and gardening, and other aspects of this self-sustaining community in Lakeside. The aim is to encourage others to emulate techniques used at Blue Sky Ranch (BSR) and invite people to showcase their innovations on the property. Early bird rates of $20 have been extended; at the door rates are $35/person or $60/couple.

By Colin Martodam

September 14, 2012 (San Diego’s East County)--It’s inevitable. At some point, everyone needs to call a heating and air conditioning company for maintenance, repairs and/or replacements.

Before getting any work done by an HVAC company – or any contractor for that matter – follow these 10 simple steps to ensure you’re hiring a trusted and qualified contractor.

By Lori Abbott, California News Service

September 13, 2012 (San Diego’s East County)--California's efforts to control the light brown apple moth will not include aerial spraying, although environmental groups say that restriction isn't enough.

Erin Tobin, an attorney with Earthjustice, says there's very little evidence to prove the non-native species causes any real harm to agriculture in California.

September 15, 2012 (Lakeside)—A power outage that occurred at 5:49 p.m. has left 2,605 customers without power in the Lakeside region.  SDG&E indicates a problem in the overhead electrical system is the suspected cause. 

Portions of the following communities are affected:   Blossom Valley, El Monte, Glenview, San Vicente, Foster, Moreno, Winter Gardens, Lakeside, Bostonia. Power restoration is expected by 7:49 p.m.

Case tests "Pruneyard" Supreme Court Decision when applied to public areas

September 14, 2012 (San Diego) – El Cajon activist Ray Lutz, founder of the watchdog Citizens Oversight organization, filed suit on Sept. 13, 2012, alleging a false arrest on November 29, 2011, while he was registering voters in San Diego's Civic Center Plaza, effectively the town square of San Diego.

By Sam DiGiovanna, East County's in-house Fire Chief

September 14, 2012 (Oceanside)--Camp Pendleton fire crews are battling several brush fires that ignited on base this afternoon, leaving smoke and flames from the blaze visible in San Diego and Orange County.

Four brush fires began in a training area in the central portion of the base around noon, Pendleton officials said. Crews are expected to continue battling the blazes overnight.  A fifth vegetation fire, located in the southern portion of the base, was reported shortly after 5 p.m.

September 14, 2012 (San Diego) – The chief law enforcement agency in San Diego County recently announced they are hiring.  They are seeking both sworn and professional staff including deputies, radio dispatchers, nurses, crime analysts and a variety of others.  Newly hired employees will be able to work at a variety of locations throughout the county at assignments in Law Enforcement, Courts or Detention Services Bureaus. 

From now until 2016, they are looking to fill 2,000 sworn and professional positions.  Some of the newly hired employees will fill staffing needs at the new Las Colinas Detention Facility in Santee, increase patrol staffing in unincorporated areas and provide additional staff in several detention facilities as a result of the recent California Prison Realignment.

September 13, 2012 (San Diego) -- NOTE TO READERS: The SDWriteWay webzine is temporarily down for maintenance. Below are events for late September and October. — Sam Warren, editor

September 13, 2012 (Spring Valley) – On September 11 at about 12:01 p.m., a California Highway Patrol (CHP) Officer attempted to stop a car for a Vehicle Code violation. The car accelerated away and the officer pursued it. According to Lt. Glenn Giannantonio with the San Diego Sheriff’s Department, the vehicle slowed in front of a house on Sacramento Avenue as the driver looked back at the pursuing CHP patrol car. The vehicle accelerated again and drove around the block in a circle, stopping in front of the same house.

Campers, hikers warned to take precautions

September 13, 2012 (Palomar)--Two ground squirrels trapped during routine monitoring at the Cedar Grove Campground on Palomar Mountain have tested positive for plague, County Vector Control officials announced Thursday.

Officials said the squirrels represented a low risk of transmission because their blood tests showed that their exposure was not recent, but that they were conducting flea-control measures and posting plague-warning signs at Cedar Grove and nearby Doane campground as a precaution.