By Miriam Raftery

October 17, 2018 (El Cajon) – El Cajon Police have released call records documenting that a process server reported being threatened by Councilman Ben Kalasho with an attack dog.  The records were released in response to a records request by East County Magazine, after Kalasho posted this denial on Facebook:

Source: Heartland Fire & Rescue

Photo:  Steve Swaney, new Heartland Fire Chief

October 17, 2018 (San Diego’s East County) --The Cities of El Cajon, La Mesa and Lemon Grove, which jointly manage Heartland Fire & Rescue, have selected Steve Swaney as the next Fire Chief.  The City Managers for the three cities (Graham Mitchell of El Cajon, Yvonne Garrett of La Mesa, and Lydia Romero of Lemon Grove) made the announcement that Swaney will begin serving in this capacity on October 20, 2018.  Chief Swaney replaces Colin Stowell, who recently was appointed Fire Chief for the City of San Diego.

Ethics a key issue in the race

East County News Service

Photo, left: Mike Schaefer; Democrat, disbarred from practicing law in two states for fraud, lost $1.83 million judgment for "slum" conditions at his rental property

Photo, right: Senator Joel Anderson, Republican, fined for campaign finance violations, reprimanded for comments to lobbyist

October 17, 2018 (San Diego's East County) – A low-profile, political race for a state office to represent nearly 10 million residents in five Southern California counties may be falling under the radar for many voters.  

Up for grabs is an open seat for District 4 on the California Board of Equalization (BOE), a state agency that oversees county property tax assessors and sets other taxes, including the alcoholic beverage tax, railroad car tax and taxes for public utilities and insurers. District 4 encompasses all of San Diego, Imperial, Riverside and Orange counties and a small portion of San Bernardino County.

East County News Service

October 17, 2018 (La Mesa) – SANDAG will host a community conversation with East County on the future of transportation on Thursday, October 18^th at the La Mesa Arts Academy (4200 Parks Ave. in La Mesa) from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.. The even will be hosted by El Cajon Mayor Bill Wells and La Mesa Councilmember Kristine Alessio. Below are details.

East County News Service

October 17, 2018 (San Diego) – Approximately 1,000 of California’s wild horses are currently being rounded up by the federal government with many at risk of being sold for potential slaughter by the United States Forest Service (USFS). Today, California State Assemblymember Todd Gloria (D-San Diego) and 22 of his legislative colleagues demanded the USFS cease this inhumane roundup and protect these wild horses from slaughter.

East County News Service

October 17, 2018 (San Diego’s East County) -- This week’s Destination East County includes HauntFest on Main in El Cajon, a Julian melodrama, Borrego Days Desert Festival, the Laguna Mountain Rendezvous, pumpkin patches filled with festive fall activities, a haunted amusement park, spooky camp overs, safe trick or treating options for children, and a haunted train ride.

Plus, we’ll have a preview of coming attractions including a presentation of It’s a Wonderful Life by Pickwick Players in Santee, the Mother Goose Parade in downtown El Cajon, and Tony Orlando in concert at Sycuan.

So scroll down for all of these events and many more!

Source: Santee Fire Department

October 16, 2018 (Santee) -- An original art work honoring the sacrifice of first responders on September 11,2001 will make Santee its home for the next three months.

The 3-by-4-foot oil painting portrays a New York firefighter with is head in his hands standing below a tattered American flag with the iconic wreckage of the Twin Towers in the background.

Like our sports coverage?  Donate to help support ECM’s sports section!  Type “Sports” on the donation line!

Check out our sports section for more sports stories!

Follow @ECMagSports on Twitter for live sports coverage and in-game updates!

By Liz Alper

Videos courtesy goaztecs.com

For videos of Ryan Pope and Troy Cassidy's portion of the press conference, click "read more" and scroll down.

October 16, 2018 (San Diego) - After barely eeking out a victory over Air Force on Saturday, SDSU football head coach Rocky Long, senior offensive lineman Ryan Pope and junior linebacker Troy Cassidy sat down with the media today.

By Yvette Urrea Moe, County of San Diego Communications Office

Photo: CAL FIRE Forester Eric Just demonstrates how he clips and dries vegetation to check for fuel moisture content.

 October 16, 2018 (San Diego’s East County) - San Diego County area fire chiefs are preparing for a potentially dangerous peak fire season due to historically dry fuel conditions. Residents are reminded to take all precautions and be ready to evacuate if needed.

By Paul Kruze, Contributing Editor

Photo, from left to right:  Steve Babbit, Rebecca McRae, Jerry Lecko, Charda Fontenot

October 16, 2018 (La Mesa) - Political civility ruled when four candidates for three open positions on the La Mesa-Spring Valley School Board appeared at a community forum put on by the La Mesa First United Methodist Church in downtown La Mesa. Appearing at the event were Steve Babbit, Jerry Lecko, Chardá Fontenot, and Rebecca McRae. Declared candidates Megan Epperson, Brianna Garza, and Matthew Austin Sablove, although invited, were not present at the forum.

Like our sports coverage?  Donate to help support ECM’s sports section!  Type in “Sports” as your donation!

Follow @ECMagSports on Twitter for live in-game coverage and updates!

Does your son or daughter play a sport at a level other than varsity?  Comment on this story or tweet @ECMagSports to request coverage!

Check out our sports section for more sports stories!

Story and photos by Liz Alper

October 15, 2018 (Spring Valley) - In our first water polo match of the new school year, ECM Sports caught a glimpse of the Mount Miguel boys as they hosted the Castle Park Trojans in a non-conference matchup.  The Matadors, to put it nicely, are struggling at 1-10 overall and 0-7 in league play.

By Suzanne Potter, Public News Service

Photo:  A new rule from the California Public Utilities Commission will require more inspections of gas distribution systems in order to reduce leaks. (Wikimedia Commons)

October 15, 2018 (San Francisco) - The state's gas utility companies are going to have to spend about $300 million over the next three years to find, fix and prevent leaks of methane gas in their distribution systems – the result of a decision made by the California Public Utilities Commission on Thursday.

Review by Kathy Carpenter

Photos courtesy Eva Anderson

October 15, 2018, (City Heights) – Questa, the chronicles of an American family, is a celebration of director Spencer John Powell's ancestors from the beautiful little village of Questa, New Mexico. Alex Haley once said, "In every conceivable manner, the family is the link to our past, bridge to our future."  Powell celebrates his family with this dance tribute, performed by Visionary Dance Theatre  in 13 amazing contemporary dance numbers. 

By Miriam Raftery

Photos, top row--Challengers Kamaal Martin and Teresa Rosiak, bottom row--incumbent Councilmembers Jennifer Mendoza and Jerry Jones.

October 14, 2018 (Lemon Grove) – With Lemon Grove facing a budget deficit and 78% of its general fund spent on public safety, the City Council faces tough choices. Should the city consider the drastic step of disincorporating and reverting back to county control? Or can the city be saved through revitalization by bringing in new businesses, or by raising taxes? Proposals for the latter failed to win passage with the current Council majority, leaving the city faced with dipping into its reserves in the next fiscal year if the finances don’t improve.  

Those are among the issues addressed in our interviews with all four candidates, as well as concerns over crime, marijuana dispensaries, street repairs and more.The candidates are  incumbent Councilmembers Jennifer Mendoza and Jerry Jones, as well as challengers Teresa Rosiak, a medical credentialing specialist and former Chamber of Commerce president, and Kamaal  Martin, an educator with state and county governmental experience.

Hear our interviews aired on KNSJ radio by clicking the audio links below this story, and scroll down to read highlights from each interview.

Like our sports coverage?  Donate to help support ECM’s sports section!  Type “Sports” on the donation line!

Check out our sports section for more sports stories!

Follow @ECMagSports on Twitter for live sports coverage and in-game updates!

Story and photos by Liz Alper

October 13, 2018 (San Diego) - The last time we saw Aztecs men’s soccer, they took a tough 2-1 loss from Washington last Sunday.  Tonight they’re back in action looking for a better result against 7-4 UCLA.