June 12, 2013 (San Diego) – Local home sales were strong in May and median prices continued to rise steadily, according to the latest housing statistics from the Greater San Diego Association of REALTORS® (SDAR).

Detached home sales increased 15 percent in May compared to April, and about 10 percent from last year. Properties also continued to be scooped up fast, with an average of only 54 days on the market. The median price of detached homes increased to $466,000 in May. That’s up 4 percent from the previous month, and 22 percent from May of 2012. The median price of attached properties was up nearly 6 percent from April, and 33 percent from a year ago. Condos and townhomes surpassed the $300,000 median price, which, according to SDAR’s statistics, hasn’t been topped since March 2008.

June 12, 2013 (La Mesa)- On Saturday, June 15,  the San Diego East County Chamber of Commerce and the Grossmont Healthcare District will again team up to produce Summer Healthcare Saturday, a one day health exposition that will be held at Grossmont Center in La Mesa.

The event will feature free demonstrations, free health information and screenings. Up to 75 booths are expected to be present and lining up throughout the mall.

Shanieka Thomas is the fifth individual national champion in the program's history

By Go Aztecs

June 12, 2013 (San Diego)--San Diego State junior Shanieka Thomas won the national title in the triple jump to lead the 23rd-ranked Aztecs at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships Friday in Eugene, Oregon. She became the fifth individual national champion in program history and second straight, joining Whitney Ashley, who won the discus throw at the 2012 championship meet.

Thomas, who finished runner-up in the event at both the 2013 indoor meet and 2012 outdoor meet, beat the other 23 entrants with a best of 46 feet, 4 ¾ inches (14.14 meters).

June 11, 2013 (La Mesa) – At 12:30 a.m. on June 8,  the crew of the Sheriff’s ASTREA 3 helicopter was repeatedly struck by a green laser. ASTREA 3, piloted by Deputy Dollard with Tactical Flight Officer Deputy Brown, was flying in the La Mesa area when Deputy Brown noticed a green laser was striking him. Deputy Dollard positioned the aircraft so that Deputy Brown could locate the suspect using the Forward Looking Infra-Red (FLIR) camera. While orbiting an apartment complex in the 5300 block of Baltimore Avenue, La Mesa, the suspect stood on his balcony and illuminated ASTREA 3 with the laser.

June 11, 2013 (El Cajon) – The summer series of the San Diego County Library Acoustic begins in June.  Erika Davies will be performing June 15 at 2 p.m. at the El Cajon Branch, 201 E. Douglas, El Cajon.  Davies first came to local attention singing with former Rugburn Gregory Page before striking out on her own as a solo artist.

The Acoustic Showcase offers a variety of some of San Diego’s very best singer/songwriters, folk music performers and story tellers.  The concerts are free to the community.

June 11, 2013 (El Cajon) – The San Diego County Sheriff’s Department is hosting a Coffee with the Community on June 22, from 8:45 a.m. to 9:45 a.m. at the Rancho San Diego Library, 11555 Via Rancho San Diego, El Cajon.  The public is invited for a chance to chat with Lemon Grove Sheriff’s Station Captain, Pete Callewaert, in a casual environment to exchange ideas and concerns.

Celebrating our cultural & agricultural roots

JUNE 19 4:30-7:30 PM AT HERITAGE OF THE AMERICAS MUSEUM, EL CAJON

    Enjoy:

• International foods from Dolci Cafe Italiano, J's Greek Cuisine, Tiramisu Trattoria, Rubio's  & more
• Wine tasting with Campo Creek Vineyards, Maness Vineyards, and other wineries
• Meet authors of books on local history and culture from Sunbelt Publications
• Native American dancing with Eric RunningPath; Native American flute music by Jim Hannibal
• Live music by Krista Timm and Vicky Archibold from San Diego Performance Academy
• Learn from farmers, wine makers, a beekeeper, a chicken expert, A.R.C.H.E.S. and  San Diego Farm Bureau
• Get tips on solar power from Sullivan Solar
• Take a free museum tour
• Play the East County Trivia Quiz game and be on the radio!
• Win great prizes including  a resort vacation getaway, golf, restaurant gift certificates, garden basket, hand-made soaps, martial arts lessons, music lessons, pet owners' basket, Wild West Fest tickets, wine lovers' gifts, and more.

Don't miss this fun and festive event! Click "read more" and scroll down for details.

June 10, 2013 (La Mesa) – Crime didn’t pay for a pair of burglars caught fleeing the scene of a break-in at Vista La Mesa Academy.  On June 6 at 2:28 a.m., La Mesa Police responded to an alarm activation at the elementary school, located at 3900 Violet Street.  As officers arrived, they heard glass breaking inside.  More officers, including a canine team, responded.

Two suspects were seen carrying computer equipment out of the school and fleeing south through the playground area. Both were taken into custody as they jumped a fence at the south end of the school grounds. The property taken was recovered.

June 10, 2013 (Lakeside) – Sheriff’s deputies executed a search warrant in the 12000 block of Old Barona Road in Lakeside on June 5 and found a large marijuana cultivation, Sgt. Craig Johnson reports.

During the search, two women, ages 83 and 61, were detained but not arrested. The house on the property had been burned down during the Cedar fires and had not been rebuilt. The women were living in tents on the property.

By Lori Abbott, California News Service

June 10, 2013 (Sacramento)--A bill that aims to get the lead out of ammunition is being considered by lawmakers in Sacramento. AB711 would phase out the use of lead bullets and shot for all hunting in the Golden State.

 

June 8, 2013 (Julian) – The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service released its proposal this week to remove Endangered Species Act protections for gray wolves across most of the country. Only the Mexican gray wolf, a subspecies of which only about 75 exist in the wild in Arizona and New Mexico, would retain federal protections. Without federal protections, states can decide whether to protect wolves or remove or reduce populations that begin to establish.

“This proposal is bad news for wolves still on the path to recovery, including in California,” says Patrick Valentino, director of California wolf recovery efforts for the California Wolf Center in Julian, a nonprofit wildlife conservation, education and research center that has been working to reestablish gray wolves to their native habitat. “Wolves have a long way to go before they are fully restored to their crucial role on the landscape.”

By Nadin Abbott

June 7, 2013 (San Onofre) – Southern California Edison (SCE) announced today that it will permanently decommission both reactors at its troubled Onofre nuclear generation plant.  (SCE has made this decision due to the uncertainty brought by the increased requirements for safety from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). 

“Looking ahead,” said Ron Litzinger, SCE’s President, “we think that our decision to retire the units will eliminate uncertainty and facilitate orderly planning for California’s energy future.” 

The nuclear waste on-site will remain there in dry cask storage—encased in stainless steel and concrete—until national leaders come up with a permanent storage solution, Patch.com reported.

By Miriam Raftery

June 6, 2013 (Campo) – On Sunday,  June 9, the Campo Band of Mission Indians’ general council ( tribal members age 18 and over) will be asked to vote on whether to approve or reject  Invenergy’s Shu’luuk Wind Energy project proposed to be built on the reservation, according to a meeting notice and agenda obtained by ECM.   

ECM has also obtained a letter sent by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to Robert Eben, Superintendent of the Bureau of Indian Affairs in Riverside. The EPA letter raises serious concerns over the project’s Draft Enviornmental Impact Statement (DEIR), concluding that there is “Insufficient information” on impacts of three project versions and that health impacts of noise and low-frequency sound on nearby residents have been ignored.

June 6, 2013 (Crest)--U.S. Retired Marine and author, Joe C Noriega will discuss his new book “The Arizona Rangers” and will be available for book signing at the Crest Library at 6 p.m. on June 11.

This is Joe Noriega’s second book. His first book is titled “03 Why Me?” He is a freelance writer who is currently residing in El Cajon where he is a sharecrop farmer who plants red grape vines and makes red wine.

June 6, 2013 (San Diego's East County) -- ECM World Watch helps you be an informed citizen about important issues globally and nationally. As part of our commitment to reflect all voices and views, we include links to a wide variety of news sources representing a broad spectrum of political, religious, and social views. Top world and U.S. headlines include:

U.S.

• Report: Secret court order requires Verizon to turn over phone records of millions (CNN)
• A new civil rights movement frees communities from corporate control (Positive News)
• Chinese cyberattacks hit key US weapons systems. Are they still reliable? (Christian Science Monitor)
• Mothers are breadwinners in record 40% of U.S. households: Study (Marketplace.org)
• Bike-Sharing Programs Roll Into Cities Across The U.S. (NPR)

WORLD

• U.S. genetically modified wheat strain stokes fears, Japan cancels tender to purchase U.S. wheat (Reuters)
• Israel warns Russia it's prepared to strike weapon shipments to Syria (Christian Science Monitor)
• Russians proving that small-scale organic farming can feed the world (Reclaim, ,Grow, Sustain)
• Report: Iranian and Russian arms giving Assad edge in Syria (Jerusalem Post)
• Ethiopia diverts Blue Nile for dam (BBC)
• Magnitude 6.5 earthquake strikes Taiwan, some damage (Reuters)
• Court says Egypt legislature illegally elected (U-T San Diego)
• Thousands take to streets in Turkey, clash with police (Reuters)
• Thousands march for rights in rare Ethiopia protest (Reuters)  
• Czech PM declares emergency as floods threaten Prague (Reuters)  

UPBEAT STORY OF THE WEEK:

• A guerilla farmer in South Central Los Angeles (You Tube)

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