August 31, 2025 (El Cajon) – El Cajon Police have arrested a suspect for a deadly stabbing that occurred at 5:30 p.m. last night in the parking lot of an apartment complex in the 900 block of South Sunshine, El Cajon.
According to Lieutenant Eric Thornton, two men were in an altercation when one man stabbed the other, causing severe injury. The victim, a 59-year-old El Cajon man, was transported to a hospital, where he died.
The suspect, Steven Matthews, 29, of La Mesa was found on scene and arrested.
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Aug. 30, 2025 (Descanso) –Horses of Tir Na Nog, the nonprofit animal rescue group with a ranch and more than 100 animals, is having a fundraiser at Kings Inn in September.
The group is also trying to cover the cost of hay that was compromised during a storm in late August.
The fundraising evening starts at 5:30 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 20 at Kings Inn at 1333 Hotel Circle South in Mission Valley. The event will include a fiesta buffet featuring a chile relleno casserole, chicken fajitas, Mexican rice and beans and a vegan garden salad.
There will also be a horse-themed opportunity drawing and a presentation featuring ranch residents.
A surprise thunderstorm that hit San Diego County on Aug. 25 also rained on the parade of hay at Horses of Tir Na Nog, the nonprofit animal rescue group in rural Descanso.
The organization reports that the storm lasted more than two hours and left behind close to two inches of rain, according to local rain gauges.
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August 30, 2025 (El Cajon) – An overnight safe parking site for people living out of their vehicles reopened on Magnolia Avenue in unincorporated El Cajon Friday, after a yearlong, $3 million renovation project. It’s open daily from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 a.m.
Improvements announced at a news conference include flushable restrooms with running water, showers, additional parking spaces, meeting space, a place for staff, security, a dog run, meals, and an upgraded picnic area.
“This location is near and dear to our heart, as this is our very first safe parking site,” said Dijana Beck, Director of the County’s Office of Homeless Solutions. “It was borne out of a journey to resolve a large encampment that was forming in this area.”
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Photo, left: Sheriff Kelly Martinez cuts ribbon on renovated Lemon Grove substation
August 28, 2025 (Lemon Grove) – San Diego County Sheriff Kelly Martinez and Lemon Grove Mayor Alysson Snow presided over a ribbon cutting and grand reopening of the Lemon Grove Sheriff’s Substation Thursday, 19 months after it was devastated by torrential rain.
On Jan. 22, 2024, the San Diego area recorded 2.73 inches of rain in a 24-hour period. Martinez’s team assessed the damage around the county in Sheriff’s jurisdiction to ensure that deputies could continue to provide the services that were needed and respond to flood victims, conduct evacuations and other emergency responses.
“By far, the worst damage was here in Lemon Grove. And I’m so grateful for the tenacity and resilience of my team,” Martinez said. “There was a lot going on to get this station back reopened. This really epitomizes who the Sheriff’s Office is. We serve our community and we do it very well.”
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August 29, 2025 (Santee) – The San Diego County Medical has completed an autopsy on Callen Lines, 31, who was found unresponsive in her cell at Las Colinas Detention and Reentry Facility in Santee on May 12 at 7:25 p.m. After emergency efforts by paramedics and Santee Fire Dept. personnel, she was pronounced dead at a local hospital a short time later.
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Aug. 29, 2025 (San Diego County) – Randall Harold (Randy) “Duke” Cunningham, a highly decorated naval aviator whose political career crashed after he was convicted of accepting more than $2 million in bribes during his tenure as a United States Congressman, has passed away.
Cunningham, who won a seat as a Republican in the House of Representatives 44th District in 1990 after a career as a celebrated fighter pilot during the Vietnam War, died Aug. 27, 2025 at age 83, in Hot Springs Village, Ark.
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Image: suffragists rallied outside White House in 1917, calling for the right to vote.
August 29, 2025 (Washington. D.C.) — Women’s rights in the United States are in danger of being eliminated or rolled back to pre-1960s, before women gained civil rights, equal pay rights, and reproductive rights. Even women’s right to vote has been weakened and some advocate eliminating the 19th amendment that granted women the right to vote in 1920. Earlier this month, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegsdeth reposted a video by a conservative pastor calling for repealing women’s right to vote.
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Suspensions are temporary and in some cases, indefinite
By G. A. McNeeley
August 29, 2025 (Washington D.C.) -- Australia, Japan, Mexico, and Taiwan have joined a growing list ofcountries that are suspending certain parcel shipments to the United States, following the implementation of new rules under President Donald Trump’s Administration that will end tariff exemptions, according to CNN. Dozens of countries suspended postal services to the United States, to take time to adjust to the new rules and account for increased expenses.
The “de minimis” exemption, that previously allowed shipments of goods worth $800 or less to enter the U.S. duty free, was eliminated on Friday, August 29.
Starting today, packages will be subject to fees relating to the tariff rates applying to their country of origin, making postage more expensive. Postal services will either have to cover the increased cost or pass it on to customers, according to The Guardian.
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Trump administration opens 21-day public comment period Aug. 29-Sept. 19
By Miriam Raftery
Photo: Cedar Creek Falls, one of the most scenic hiking destinations in San Diego's East County, is in a roadless portion of Cleveland National Forest.
August 29, 2025 (San Diego) -- The Trump administration announced it is seeking public comment on its proposal to rescind the 2001 Roadless Rule and the environmental impacts it would cause.
The Roadless Rule prohibits road construction and logging on 58.5 million acres of wild areas in national forests in order to protect habitats and ecosystems. Rescinding this rule will allow road construction and timber harvesting on nearly 59 million acres of the National Forest System, including 71,000 designated roadless acres of Cleveland National Forest including scenic areas in San Diego’s East County.
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Image, left: Aerial rendering of planned new warehouse site
August 29, 2025 (Santee) -- Santee traded a defunct drive-in theater/swap meet for an industrial distribution center with 42 dock bays and the promise of 185 jobs following approvals from the City Council this week.
The fact that the 13.5 acre site at 10990 North Woodside Avenue has been vacant for more than a year made no difference to the dozens of people who showed up to City Hall to oppose the massive warehouse, which developers said will be a “state of the art facility with all the bells and whistles.”
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Aug. 28, 2025 (Santee) -- Joseph Carlos “Joey” Veizaga, CEO and owner of Mr. Joey's Music Store in Santee, was found guilty of domestic violence against his spouse on June 25, 2025 by a jury in Riverside County Superior Court.
Veizaga is the founder of Los Reyes del Ritmo, a Gypsy Kings-style band that plays at local venues. His store also offers music lessons to local students.
Veizaga pleaded not guilty. However the jury found him guilty of inflicting corporal injury on his spouse and an enhanced charge of great bodily injury/domestic violence was found “true.”
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August 28, 2025 (Kearny Mesa) — The San Diego County Fire Protection District has upgraded a lifesaving tool to their advanced life support (ALS) ambulances and its jointly operated county helicopters with the deployment of 35 new Zoll AutoPulse NXT Resuscitation Systems.
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Aug. 28, 2025 (Jacumba) -- The next first Saturday will once again be an evening for visitors and locals to shop, eat, drink and soak in the high desert.
The Jacumba Bathhouse is holding its next First Saturday bazaar from 5 to 9 p.m. on Sept. 6 at 44450 Old Highway 80 at Jacumba Street.
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Riders should plan for weekend delays during construction through early 2028
By Paul Levikow
August 27, 2025 (El Cajon) -- The San Diego Metropolitan Transit System Wednesday announced details of the San Diego Trolley Orange Line Improvement Project, or Rail Ready, on the stretch of tracks from San Diego to El Cajon. The $151 million improvement project will modernize the Orange Line between the 32nd and Commercial Street Station in San Diego to the El Cajon Transit Center on S. Marshall Avenue.
Riders will experience weekend service disruptions about once a month over the next two-and-a-half years, according to MTS officials, but they will have access to bus shuttles between those stations at no extra charge.
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August 28, 2025 (San Diego) – Water samples collected last week at Old Mission Dam in Mission Trails Regional Park have tested positive for a cyanotoxin that can be harmful to people and pets.
The San Diego River Foundation has posted caution signs, in cooperation with the California Water Boards San Diego Region and rangers from the park owned by the city of San Diego.
This was detected at the lowest tier of the three tiered levels, but visitors should:
* avoid touching algae/scum
* do not drink the water
* do not let pets enter or drink the water
* keep children away from algae in the water and shore
* do not eat shellfish from the water
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August 27, 2025 (La Mesa) - The City of La Mesa announces that the Community Services Department has officially changed its name to the Parks and Recreation Department. The change clarifies the department’s role and highlights its focus on managing local parks, facilities, as well as offering a diverse range of recreational programs. From youth sports to senior fitness, summer camps to community events – the Parks and Recreation Department believes in the power of play to connect people, create memories, and improve the lives of our residents.
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August 26, 2025 (East County) – Large-scale, high-rise apartment complexes could soon be built within a half mile of a bus stop or trolley station near you, under a proposed state law that would take away local control of developments and turn single-family neighborhoods into high-density housing.
State Senate Bill 79, the Abundant & Affordable Homes Near Transit Act, was introduced by Sen. Scott Weiner (D-San Francisco) earlier this year and passed by the Senate in June by a vote of 21-13. Sen. Brian Jones (R-Santee) voted no. Sen. Akilah Weber Pierson, M.D. (D) voted yes. They both represent East County. The vote was not entirely down party lines; Catherine Blakespear, a North County Democratic from Encinitas, voted no.
The State Assembly is scheduled to hold its next hearing Friday in the Appropriations Committee and could release the bill for a full Assembly vote next week. Meantime, rallies opposing SB 79 were held around the state over the weekend, including local residents rallying in a Clairemont park.
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August 26, 2025 (San Diego) - When people think of hunger, they often imagine faraway places or extreme poverty. But hunger is a very real issue right here in San Diego County. It’s in our neighborhoods, schools, and workplaces affecting families, seniors, military households, and children in every ZIP code.
This September, during Hunger Awareness Month, the San Diego Food Bank urges our community to look closer and recognize the hidden faces of hunger.
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Aug. 26, 2025 (La Mesa) -- Local environmental-focused nonprofit I Love A Clean San Diego is hosting a clothing swap at the La Mesa Library from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Sept. 6.
The event allows community members the opportunity to trade gently-used clothes, accessories and shoes for those donated by others for the swap.
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August 25, 2025 (La Mesa) -- Just before 3:30 p.m. , a structure fire broke out in the under-construction building slated to house T. J. Maxx and an Ulta beauty store on the former site of the Toys “R” Us at 8800 Grossmont Center Drive in La Mesa.
As the first engines arrived, thick, black smoke and flames could be seen coming from the roof of the structure with stranded construction workers shouting and waving for help.
An employee of a nearby business claimed she “heard a loud explosion” before the fire broke out.
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There are plenty of greens to tee off from in San Diego County’s eastern areas
By Karen Pearlman
With more than two dozen golf courses scattered across the foothills and valleys of inland San Diego County, players of all skill levels will find affordable and diverse landscapes away from the coast for putting and driving amid scenic mountain, valley, and desert views.
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August 24, 2025 (La Mesa) -- Last weekend, the San Diego County Sheriff’s department teamed up with local law enforcement agencies to help get unwanted weapons off our streets through a Gun Safety Event in La Mesa.
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August 24, 2025 (San Diego’s East County) -- As we approach peak fire season, Cal Fire/County Fire has a press conference set for Tuesday to discuss the many preparations the agencies have made. But questions have been raised over air power readiness, due to temporary closure of the Ramona airport due to expansion and SDG&E losing its Erickson Aircrane that has helped fight fires in recent years.
ECM has researched these issues and obtained the following information:
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August 24, 2025 (Santee) - The Santee Fire Department this week held a push-in ceremony with its new home-type 3 brush engine, a symbol of the department’s commitment to safety and efficiency. The brush rig is designed to handle any emergency with precision and speed.
The cost of the apparatus was $627,000, with a generous grant of $407,000 from the San Diego Regional Fire Foundation and the San Diego River Conservancy, to help assure the safety of the Santee Community and the broader San Diego County region.
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Photo: Ammar Campa-Najjar (left) and Darrell Issa. (Times of San Diego file photos)
August 24, 2025 (San Diego) - With his prospects enhanced by potential redistricting, Democrat Ammar Campa-Najjar on Friday filed papers for a rematch against Rep. Darrell Issa in the 48th Congressional District.
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Aug. 22, 2025 (La Mesa) – Maggie T. Watkins is a familiar name in the San Diego County healthcare world, and now she is the Grossmont Healthcare District’s newest board member.
The GHD Board voted 4-0 on Thursday, Aug. 21 to appoint Watkins to fill the seat of Gloria Chadwick, a registered nurse who resigned earlier this year after three decades serving the community on the GHD board of directors, citing a need to focus on her own health.
The board chose Watkins, who lives in Dehesa Valley and has been residing in East County for three decades, after she and four other prospective candidates were interviewed at the board’s Aug. 21 meeting at GHD Headquarters.
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August 23, 2025 (El Cajon) – “State-sponsored kidnapping loophole” is the epithet lobbed at Assembly Bill 495 by local “Restore San Diego” newsletter.
The bill, officially entitled AB 495: Family Preparedness Plan Act of 2025, outlines a series of revisions to existing laws surrounding parental rights and legal guardianship proceedings. Specifically, lawmakers seek to widen the class of persons eligible to file a Caregiver’s Authorization Affidavit, to establish temporary guardianship protocols, and to institute immigration-related protections in public schools. The introduction of the bill states that these measures have become necessary to protect children and provide continuity of care in circumstances where parents may be abruptly deported or detained by immigration enforcement officials.
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Update: Supervisors approved dipping into reserve funds by a 3-2 vote, with Supervisors Anderson and Desmond opposed.
By Miriam Raftery
August 22, 2025 (San Diego) – On Tuesday, Aug. 26, San Diego Supervisors will consider a proposal to revise the county’s reserve policy to allow use of some reserve funds to cover critical services being cut by the federal government. The plan, Item 23 on the agenda, is proposed by Supervisors Monica Montgomery-Steppe and Terra Lawson-Remer, but has drawn opposition from Supervisor Joel Anderson.
According to the agenda item overview, “The County now faces threats from deep cuts due to the passage of H.R. 1, or the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act”—a law that hands massive tax breaks to billionaires and big corporations while slashing the critical services thousands of our residents rely on. In San Diego, the impacts are immediate and severe: over $300 million in new annual costs to the County, and significant cuts to food assistance, healthcare, and core social services that put local families, seniors, and veterans at risk.”
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August 21. 2025 (Sacramento) -- The California Senate and Assembly voted in favor of Gov. Gavin Newsom's state congressional redistricting plan Thursday, in an effort to counter balance the Texas legislature’s efforts to turn five Democratic leaning districts to favor Republicans.
The vote went mostly along party lines. Among East County legislators, State Senator Brian Jones and Assembly member Carl DeMaio, both Republicans, voting no, while State Senator Akilah Weber-Pierson and Assemblymember LaShea Sharp Collins, both Democrats, voted yes.
The passage by a two-thirds majority in both chambers comes on the heels of the California Supreme Court’s Wednesday rejection of a lawsuit filed by Republicans to block the redistricting plan.
Governor Gavin Newsom signed the legislation within hours of passage by the Senate and Assembly.
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Photo from left to right: Jordan Z. Marks, San Diego County Assessor-Recorder-County Clerk (ARCC) and Andrew Potter, Executive Officer, Clerk of the Board of Supervisors.
August 21, 2025 (San Diego's East County) – Land in East County has never been worth so much.
According to Jordan Z. Marks, San Diego County Assessor-Recorder-County Clerk (ARCC), the recently completed 2025 tax roll assessment revealed the gross assessed value of taxable properties, including residential, commercial and industrial land, in the East County.
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Story and photo by Karen Pearlman
East County News Service
East County News Services
By Alexander J. Schorr
By G. A. McNeeley 
By Miriam Raftery
Source: San Diego County Fire
East County News Service
Source: San Diego River Park Foundation
Source: City of La Mesa
By Paul Levikow
By Casey Castillo, CEO, San Diego Food Bank
East County News Services
There are plenty of greens to tee off from in San Diego County’s eastern areas 
Source: San Diego County Sheriff
By Miriam Raftery
Photo and story by Patrick Ward
By Chris Jennewein and Ken Stone, Times of San Diego, a member of the San Diego Online News Association
By Karen Pearlman
By Jesse Kendrick
East County News Service
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