By Miriam Raftery

July 25, 2021 (El Cajon) – A rally and march in El Cajon is being planned today at 2 p.m. by pro-Palestinian groups, in reaction to a “We are Israel” rally slated for 3 p.m. at a separate location that Palestinian leaders locally describe as "Zionist" and "anti-Palestinian."

Organizers of the “We are Israel” rally at 3 p.m. on Prescott Promenade at 201 East Main St. have stated that their event is in response to the record number of violent attacks on Jewish people and synagogues in the U.S. and in San Diego County, not policies in the Mideaast.

Organized by Shield of David, that rally is slated to include former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo as keynote speaker and El Cajon Mayor Bill Wells as one of several other speakers, as ECM reported.  Pompeo, as Secretary of State under President Donald Trump, broke with decades of U..S. foreign policy tradition by declaring that Israeli settlements in the West Bank did not violate international law. But Pompeo also helped broker a peace deal between Israel, the UAE and Bahrain.

By Briana Gomez

Photo:  Othman Al-Kusairy (far left) and Sally Bachori (middle left), Ahmed (to the right of Sally) and Sam (far right) stand with other Iraqi organizers and signs in memory of lives lost

July 23, 2021 (San Diego) -- A group of Iraqi organizers held a protest in Balboa Park last Sunday. The group calls itself “End Impunity in Iraq” and is calling for accountability.

"Our contributions to this country are innumerable. Yet, there’s no path to citizenship for us. We pay taxes, build the economy, and contribute to our communities during a pandemic. Yet, we are rejected and insulted once more. Every day that we live without a path to citizenship, is a day filled with anxiety and fear.” -- Dulce Garcia, an undocumented immigrant and attorney who chairs the San Diego Immigrant Rights Consortium.

By Miriam Raftery

July 22, 2021 (San Diego) – San Diego immigrant advocates are reacting in shock to a federal judge’s ruling which orders the Biden administration to halt approval of any new Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) applications. The judge also issued a stay temporarily protecting those already granted DACA protections from deportation – but warned that Congress must act to make protections permanent, or the stay might be lifted.

DACA was created through an executive order by President Barack Obama, protecting thousands of young people brought to the U.S. illegally as children to stay here, hold jobs and attend school. Known as “Dreamers,” many have been here nearly their entire lives. The ruling creates an uncertain future for 305,000 DACA recipients and another 854,000 eligible for DACA in southern border states, according to the Southern Border Communities Coalition. Some have been in the U.S. for many years, and some are now married or parents of U.S. citizens.

Source: County Communications Office

July 21, 2021 (San Diego) -- The number of COVID-19 cases in San Diego has spiked  in the past week, prompting County health officials to urge residents to continue getting vaccinated. In the past seven days, 3,465 COVID-19 cases were reported in San Diego County. That’s 1,566 or 82% more cases than the previous seven-day period.

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

Photo:  Defendant John Earnest during a witness’ testimony in 2019.  Pool photo

July 20, 2021 (Poway) - John Earnest pleaded guilty Tuesday to murder and other state charges in the 2019 shooting at the Chabad of Poway synagogue that killed one woman and injured three other people.

By Briana Gomez

July 19, 2021 (El Cajon) - The first of four redistricting meetings in El Cajon took place last Wednesday.

Local governments redistrict every 10 years to reflect a change in local population. The redistricting plan will affect how residents elect their council members.

SDSO advising residents of Parc One to shelter in place

East County News Service

Photo credit: Google and in-house

July 19, 2021 (Santee) -- The initial response to the Parc Fire (also appearing in some places spelled Park Fire) in Santee appears to have been successful, and poses little danger to neighbors. Parc One residents are being asked to shelter in place.

SD County Fire Scanner broke news of the fire and its early containment on twitter at approximately 2:20 p.m. this afternoon July 19, and and the fire is (almost) out before it even started. They report that firefighting crews expect to be "mopping up" over the next 2-3 hours.

Update July 28, 2021: The deceased man has been identified as Victor Sosa-Soto, 33,  of Villa Hidalgo, Mexico, according to the San Diego Medical Examiner.

Story and photo by Miriam Raftery

Photo: Grave of an unknown migrant in Hemet, one of 10,000 people estimated to have died crossing the U.S.-Mexico border since 1994, according to Border Angels. The San Diego Union-Tribune reports that the rate is increasing, with more migrants dying crossing the border in the first three months of 2021 than in all of 2019.

July 18, 2021 (Dulzura) – On June 30, a search and rescue group found the body of a male believed to be from Mexico, part of a group of undocumented immigrants crossing the international border.

East County News Service

Photo: U.S. Army helicopter training, cc via Bing

July 17, 2021 (San Diego’s East County) – San Diego County has issued a noise advisory for East County’s Descanso and East Alpine communities due to military set for Wednesday, July 21 and Monday, July 26.

By Miriam Raftery

July 17, 2021 (Julian) – For the past 37 years, the Julian News has been the voice of Julian, a historic gold-mining town in San Diego’s mountain region.  Michael Hart and his wife, Michele Harvey, have owned and run the independent weekly publication since July 4, 2004, covering everything from major firestorms to community events.

By Zayna Syed, CalMatters

CalMatters is a public interest journalism venture committed to explaining how California’s state Capitol works and why it matters

July 15, 2021 (San Diego) - Sixth grade teacher Hilary Hall had just started teaching one Monday morning in September when her teacher’s group chats at Newhall School District exploded with confused messages. Teachers in the Santa Clarita school district — located just north of Los Angeles — were panicking.

Lane closures and one-way traffic control may cause delays

Source:  CalTrans

July 15, 2021 (Ramona) - Crews will begin pavement microsurfacing operations on several small sections of State Route 67 (SR-67) in the community of Ramona for six consecutive nights beginning Sunday at 8 until 5 in the morning, according to Caltrans. 

By Miriam Raftery

Photo by Miriam Raftery: Outdoor dining at Antica Trattoria in La Mesa

July 15, 2021 (La Mesa) – Expanding onto sidewalks and parking lots provided salvation to many local restaurants and shops during the pandemic, when indoor dining was banned or capacity limited.

To help local businesses recover financially over the next year, La Mesa’s City Council recently voted to extend temporary outdoor permits in public spaces for restaurants and stores through July 16, 2022.

Update July 16, 2021:  D.A. announces no charges filed -- Gabriela Shepherd was scheduled to be arraigned at the El Cajon courthouse Thursday, but District Attorney spokeswoman Tanya Sierra said in a statement,"Charges are not being filed at this time. The investigation is ongoing and we will review the case as we get more information."  Shepherd has been released from Las Colinas and will be reunited with the couple's two children, NBC 7 reports.

By Miriam Raftery

July 14,2021 (Lemon Grove) – Gabriela “Gabby” Rose Shepherd, 26, has been arrested on suspicion of murder in the shooting death of her husband, Rev. Noah David Shepherd, 29.  The couple has two young children, Sam and Joel.

Sheriff’s deputies responding to a call reporting gunfire on July 12 around 6 p.m. found the victim in the backyard of the couple’s home in the 2500 block of Camino de las Palmas, Lemon Grove. Despite lifesaving efforts by deputies until fire personnel arrived, Noah Shepherd was pronounced dead shortly after arrival at a hospital.

Gabby Shepherd claimed that she had accidentally shot her husband when he entered their home through a back door, said Lt. Mike Arens with the San Diego Sheriff’s Department. However following an investigation by the Sheriff’s Homicide Unit, Gabby Shepherd was arrested on suspicion of first-degree murder.

After getting shot at, Sheriffs obtain a search warrant and allegedly find guns, drugs and flammables

Source: San Diego County Sheriff's Department Bureau of Media Relations