By Miriam Raftery

July 27, 2022 (Pine Hills) – The body of Terry Hughes, 76, has been found, according to a post by Cheryl Bakken on the Find Terry Hughes Facebook page. Hughes left his Pine Hills home near Julian for a walk Monday around 4 p.m.

East County News Service 

July 26, 2022 (El Cajon) -- Do you recognize any of these jewelry pieces? El Cajon Police

detectives are working a burglary series associated with elder abuse. Victims who were being cared for by a caregiver had personal items stolen, ECPD reports on its Facebook page. 

By Miriam Raftery

Photo: Miriam Raftery and Henri Migala (Elijah McKee, also a winner, was not present)

July 26, 2022 (San Diego’s East County) -- East County Magazine continues to be recognized for its high quality reporting on news in the public interest in San Diego’s inland region.

On July 21^st, the Society of Professional Journalists held its annual journalism awards presentation.  East County Magazine received three awards, bringing our total number of professional journalism awards to 140 since our inception in 2008. The winning journalists are Elijah McKee, Henri Migala, and Miriam Raftery.

By Miriam Raftery

July 24, 2022 (San Diego’s East County) – The National Weather Service is forecasting cooler temperatures and possible thunderstorms today through most of next week in San Diego County’s mountains and deserts.

Gusty winds, lightning, heavy rain and small hail may also occur with afternoon thunderstorms.  The odds are slight for today, but increase later in the week.

By Miriam Raftery

July 21, 2022 This morning, President Biden tested positive for COVID-19.  According to a White House briefing, he is fully vaccinated and twice boosted and experiencing very mild symptoms.    The 79-year-old President has begun taking Paxlovid, an anti-viral medication effective during the first several days after symptoms appear.

According to the White House physician Kevin O’Connor’s letter, those symptoms include a runny nose, fatigue and a dry cough.

The President’s last negative test was Tuesday; the positive result was found during routine testing for the President. All contacts since Tuesday will be notified, per the White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.

“Consistent with CDC guidelines, he will isolate at the White House and will continue to carry out all of his duties fully during that time.  He has been in contact with members of the White House staff by phone this morning, and will participate in his planned meetings at the White House this morning via phone and Zoom from the residence,” the release states.

By Christianne McCormick and Miriam Raftery

View full hearing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrUa0hfG6Lo&t=189s

July 21, 2022 (Washington D.C.) – Last Tuesday’s hearing by the House Select Committee investigating the January 6, 2020 attack on the U.S. Capitol revealed new evidence, which exposed then-President Donald Trump’s use of social media to influence his followers, including violent extremists in designated hate groups.

Testimony revealed that instead of conceding the election after extensive briefings by top legal advisors informing him that he lost, Trump instead took actions that incited violence and inspired coordination among extremist groups including the Oath Keepers and Proud Boys, whose leaders have been charged with seditious conspiracy. Evidence also showed coordination between key Trump advisors and extremist leaders in the days leading up to the January 6^th insurrection. A former Oath Keepers member testified to how he was swayed by Trump's deceptions and a documentary filimmaker confirmed the group's violent intentions.

Trump's White House Counsel Pat Cippolone, former Attorney General Bill Barr and others have testified that Trump was fully informed that no fraud sufficient to overturn election results had been found, after 60 judges found no evidence to overturn any election results. But the President continued to spread the false claim that the election was stolen, pressured Vice President Mike Pence to illegally stop certification of electoral votes, and sought to corrupt the Department of Justice to make false claims.

Republican Senator Liz Cheney said of Trump, “He had access to more information than almost any other American that the election was not stolen,” adding, “No rational or sane man could ignore that or reach an opposite conclusion.” Yet Trump ignored advice of top legal advisors and his own campaign chairman, relying instead on unsubstantiated and debunked legal theories promoted by his personal attorney, Rudy Giiuliani,

The committee presented evidence laying out a disturbing timeline of events:

By Miriam Raftery

July 21, 2022 (Washington D.C.) – After the Supreme Court ruled that states can ban or restrict abortion access, overturning Roe v. Wade, the Biden administration has taken several actions to protect abortion access in certain circumstances. Specifically:

• The administration cited a law on the books since 1986, the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA), which requires abortions be allowed in all states if a woman’s life or health is at stake; hospitals that refuse can lose Medicare and Medicaid funding.
• The Health and Human Services (HHS) Department warns that pharmacists must dispense medications used for miscarriages and early-term abortions, or face potential criminal penalties. Attorney General Merrick Garland similarly issued a statement that states cannot ban mifepristone, a drug approved by the FDA for early pregnancy termination among other uses.
• HHS launched a website to help people nationwide find reproductive care and understand their rights at https://reproductiverights.gov/
• President Joe Biden signed an executive order to protect patient privacy and access to emergency contraception and medication abortions.
• HHS has advised pharmacies not to discriminate based on types of contraception sold, if any birth control items are sold in their retail stores.
  

By Miriam Raftery

Photos via Sara Jacobs’ Facebook

July 19, 2022 (Washington D.C.) – Seventeen members of Congress including San Diego Congresswoman Sara Jacobs were arrested today during a peaceful protest outside the U.S. Supreme Court over its controversial ruling that overturned Roe vs. Wade and allows states to ban or restrict abortions.

By Miriam Raftery

July 19, 2022 (Pine Hills) – Authorities are search for Terry Robert Hughes, 76, who was last seen yesterday afternoon. He failed to come home after a walk near Pine Hills. Search and rescue crews are combing roadways in the area and ask public help to bring him home safely.

By Miriam Raftery

Photo by Denise Thomas Photography, courtesy of ECM news partner 10 News

July 19, 2022 (Alpine) – Bonnie Baum Roth, 35, was taking her young daughters to a dance competition in Long Beach on Friday when she lost control of her SUV, which plummeted down an embankment on I-8 near Alpine. She was ejected from the vehicle and died at the scene, according to the California Highway Patrol.

By Chris Jennewein, Times of San Diego, a member of the San Diego Online News Association

Photo:  U.S. Rep. Sara Jacobs. Photo by Chris Stone

July 16, 2022 (Washington, D.C.) - Rep. Sara Jacobs of San Diego joined with three other Congresswomen Friday in advancing a bill to protect women’s rights to use contraceptives in the wake of the Supreme Court ruling overturning Roe v. Wade.

By Elijah McKee

Photo: CC via Bing

July 15, 2022 (El Cajon) — It is no secret that 9-1-1 medical calls are sometimes not placed for life-threatening emergencies — yet for lack of any other system, those moments are often forced to be treated with urgent responses, such as ambulance rides to emergency rooms. 

By Jessica Des Lauriers, CAWA, San Diego Humane Society SVP & Chief Operating Officer

July 14, 2022 (San Diego) - The days are long, the weather is warm and who better to share your summer with than a new furry friend? San Diego Humane Society currently has more than 600 adoptable animals — just waiting to give and receive love — and San Diego Humane Society is calling on the community to help us make space in their shelters.

By County News Center, County of San Diego Communications Office

July 14, 2022 (San Diego) - The continued increase in local coronavirus cases has prompted the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to move San Diego County to its high-risk level for COVID-19.

Source:  NASA

Image credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, and STScI

July 12, 2022 (Washington, D.C.) - NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has delivered the deepest and sharpest infrared image of the distant universe so far. Webb’s First Deep Field is galaxy cluster SMACS 0723, and it is teeming with thousands of galaxies – including the faintest objects ever observed in the infrared.