News

35-YEAR-OLD MAN IN CUSTODY DIES

East County News Service

August 31, 2025 (San Diego)—A 35-year-old man arrested Aug. 29 was found unresponsive in his cell yesterday afternoon at San Diego Central Jail and later died at a hospital.  He was the seventh person to die in custody this year in a San Diego County detention facility.

According to the Sheriff’s department, several incarcerated persons in the jail notified deputies at 3:08 p.m. that the victim was in medical distress. Deputies found the man unresponsive in his cell and called 9-1-1. They requested additional help from the facility’s medical staff and began life-saving measures.

Paramedics and the San Diego Fire Department assumed lifesaving measures upon their arrival and the man was transported to a local hospital, where he was pronounced deceased at about 4:31 p.m.

The man had been in Sheriff's custody since August 29 and was facing charges for vehicle theft and possession of stolen property.

Like the other six in-custody deaths this year, the deceased was awaiting trial and had not been convicted when he died.


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HOMICIDE ARREST IN EL CAJON

East County News Service

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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Horses of Tir Na Nog Holds Fundraiser Sept. 20; Group also seeking support for moldy hay

Story and photo by Karen Pearlman
 
Aug. 30, 2025 (Descandso) -- 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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Safe parking site reopens in El Cajon, serving people living out of their cars

By Paul Levikow

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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Lemon Grove Sheriff’s Substation holds ribbon cutting and grand reopening after flood damage

By Paul Levikow

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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Drug toxicity caused death of woman in Las Colinas Detention Facility

East County News Service

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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Passages: Randy "Duke" Cunningham, Congressman and Decorated Aviator

East County News Services
 
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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The rights of women are under assault: leadership that distrusts its people

By Alexander J. Schorr

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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International postal services suspect deliveries to U.S. after Trump ends tariffs exemption

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 CNNDozens 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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Rollback of "Roadless Rule" to allow logging and road construction in National Forests draws opposition from tribes and ecologists

 

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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Santee approves warehouse distribution center at drive-in-theater site, despite community opposition

 By Mike Allen

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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Supervisors Anderson, Aguirre Supporting Cease-and-Desist Order to Expand Sewage Treatment from Tijuana River

East County News Services
 
Aug. 28, 2025 (San Diego County) -- San Diego County Supervisors Paloma Aguirre and Joel Anderson (photo, left) are praising the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board for approving a cease-and-desist order that will expand treatment capacity at the International Boundary and Water Commission's South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant.
 
The order authorizes the plant to treat an additional 10 million gallons per day, increasing 25 million gallons to 35 million gallons, a major step toward reducing untreated sewage flows through the Tijuana River Valley.
 
Aguirre, who represents District 1, is Chair Pro Tem; Anderson oversees District 2.
 
"South Bay families have been forced to live with toxic pollution for years now," Sups. Aguirre and Anderson wrote in a joint statement.
 
"This cease-and-desist order is an urgently needed step to protect public health and finally bring some relief to South Bay residents. We want to thank the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board (SDRWQCB) for approving the cease-and-desist order to expand treatment capacity at the International Boundary and Water Commission's South Bay plant. This is an important step forward."

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San Diego Trolley improvements coming to East County Orange line

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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Toxic Algae Bloom at Mission Trails Dam Site

Source: San Diego River Park Foundation

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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East County Neighborhoods Could Be Impacted By Proposed State Law to Allow Significantly More Multi-Family Housing Projects

By Paul Levikow

Image, left, via United Neighbors

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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Firefighters rescue workers trapped on roof of burning T.J. Maxx building under construction in La Mesa

Story and photos by Josh Stotler

 

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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Does the San Diego region have adequate aerial firefighting capability for the coming fire season?

By Miriam Raftery

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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Amid remap push, Democrat Ammar Campa-Najjar files to run against Rep. Issa

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

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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Maggie T. Watkins is newest GHD board member

By Karen Pearlman
 
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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Supervisors to weigh reducing County reserve funds in wake of federal cuts to Food and Health programs for those in need

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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Calif. Congressional district maps favoring Democrats approved by state legislators, signed by Governor, heads to special election in November

By Paul Levikow

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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Have your say on County's legislative priorities

By Tracy DeFore, County of San Diego Communications Office

Photo:  California State Capitol Building.  Image credit:  Shutterstock

August 20, 2025 (San Diego) - The community is invited to a virtual meeting on August 27 to learn about the County’s state and federal legislative priorities and give feedback on what they think is important for the 2026 Legislative Program.


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Heat Warnings Today Through Saturday, Monsoonal Rains May Soak Region Starting Friday

 

By Miriam Raftery

 

August 20, 2025 (San Diego’s East County) – The National Weather Service has issued an extreme heat warning for desert areas including Borrego Springs, where temperatures could soar to 116 degrees today through Saturday.

In addition, a heat advisory is in effect for San Diego County’s inland valleys, where temperatures could hit 103 degrees in areas that include El Cajon, La Mesa, Escondido, Poway, San Marcos, and Santee.


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The Palms Restaurant and Banquet Hall Granted New Permit to Stay Open in Downtown El Cajon

By Paul Levikow

August 19, 2025 (El Cajon) – The El Cajon Planning commission voted unanimously Tuesday to grant a new Conditional Use Permit (CUP) to The Palms Restaurant and Banquet Hall on Main Street downtown, avoiding imminent closure on Oct. 1.

The business will still be required to operate mainly as a restaurant under the new CUP, with up to 10 private events allowed per month. Alcohol sales and live entertainment are allowed as they were under the previous permit. The business proposes to operate from 11 a.m. to 1 a.m., Monday through Sunday, but the restaurant is not proposed to open until 6 p.m. New owners of The Palms say they are planning renovations both inside and outside of the business.

“We’re serious. We acquired this business because we see a vision,” new owner Jeff Mansour said. “We believe in it and we’re going to do what we say we’re going to do.”


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Deadly Carfentanil, 100 times stronger than Fentanyl, found in fake M-30 Oxycodone pills locally

By Miriam Raftery

August 19, 2025 (San Diego) – Carfentanil, a synthetic opioid that is 100 times stronger than fentanyl, has been found in the San Diego in fake M-30 oxycodone (pain killer) pills. District Attorney Summer Stephan warns, “Even tiny amounts can be deadly.”

Just one pill can kill.  Fentanyl test strips may not detect carfentanil, which was developed originally as an elephant tranquilizer. So a negative result does not mean a drug is safe.


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Robert F. Kennedy cuts $500 million in MRNA vaccine devleopment funds

Health experts slam action as irresponsible, putting Americans’ health at risk 

 

By G. A. McNeeley 

 

Photo: mRNA vacines help prevent diseases such as COVID-19; cc via Bing

 

August 17, 2025 (Washington D.C.) -- Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Secretary of Health and Human Services, recently announced that the government would cancel at least $500 million of federally funded mRNA vaccine development, which could potentially affect the United States’ preparedness for future pandemics. It also stands to crush enthusiasm for technology that has been seen as a potential promise for cancer vaccines, HIV vaccines, and more, according to ABC News

 

Kennedy also pulled back recommendations around the COVID-19 shots, fired the panel that makes vaccine recommendations, and refused to offer a vigorous endorsement of vaccinations even as a measles outbreak worsened, according to NPR


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California fires back at Texas gerrymandering with a midterm redistricting plan of its own

Both states convene legislators expected to vote August 18 on drawing new Congressional district lines

By Alexander J. Schorr      

Miriam Raftery contributed to this report

Photos, left:  Texas Governor Greg Abbott and California Governor Gavin Newsom push dueling redistricting plans

August 17, 2025 — It's a race against the clock between California and Texas, with governors of both states striving to draw new Congressional district maps promptly, instead of waiting for the next census as is customary.

The two states have the most Congressional seats in the nation (52 and 38 respectively), so the results of reapportionment could determine which party will control Congress after the 2026 midterm elections.

Key votes in both state legislatures could occur as early as Monday, August 18. Both states seek a partisan edge, instead of utilizing independent, nonpartisan redistricting options, though California's Governor contends his effort is a necessariliy response to a partisan gerrymandering battle launched by pro-Trump Texans.


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Find out if your vote could be affected by Newsom's redistricting plans

By Jeremiah Kimelman and Alexei Koseff, CalMatters

This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters.

August 16, 2025 (San Diego) - Gov. Gavin Newsom will ask California voters this November to approve new congressional lines that favor Democrats, part of a national redistricting battle launched by President Donald Trump. The map released Friday by the Legislature adds five more Democratic-leaning seats.  Many Californians could see their representative change. Read more about the districts that are the most impacted.


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Lemon Grove Mayor sues organizer of recall effort

Updated Aug. 21 with a statement from King.

By Karen Pearlman

August 14, 2025 (Lemon Grove) – After several months of rebuffs from the city of Lemon Grove, proponents of a recall effort to remove Lemon Grove Mayor Alysson Snow from office have finally received the city’s OK to move forward on their petition.

Snow, meanwhile, has filed a lawsuit in San Diego County Superior Court against the organizers of a recall effort, including main petitioner Kenneth King. The city of Lemon Grove’s election official Joel Pablo, the Lemon Grove City Clerk, is also named.

Snow, elected last November, is alleging that the group is fraudulent in its attempt to remove her from office. The lawsuit seeks to immediately halt the circulation of the petition that Snow claims fraudulently appends voters’ signatures to a previous Notice of Intention to Recall Petition, which Snow calls a “False NOI.”


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Migrant children sites in El Cajon and Lemon Grove shut down: Trump admin. drops lawsuit that accused operator of sexual abuse

 
Actions raise concerns over children’s wellbeing; their locations are undisclosed
 
By Karen Pearlman
Miriam Raftery contributed to this story; photos by East County Magazine staff
 
Updated Aug. 15 with responses from federal officials
 
Aug. 14, 2025 (El Cajon) – Nonprofit Southwest Key Programs Inc. (photo, left) is no longer operating its site in El Cajon that had been housing unaccompanied immigrant children since the first Trump administration.
 
El Cajon City Manager Graham Mitchell told the City Council and staff on Monday via email that the United States’ largest provider of housing and services for unaccompanied minors has left the city.
 
“Larger employers are required by law to inform the City if they go out of businesses or initiate a large-scale layoff,” the email said. “Earlier today, the City received a notice from Southwest Key (operating on Broadway) that they lost federal funding and will be shutting down. As you recall, Southwest Key has been operating at the site for many years operating as a facility for unaccompanied minors that have entered into the United States from the southern U.S. border.”

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