Well, the Magic is gone — bizarrely, no less — from the once-proud Los Angeles Lakers, and the incompetent Dan Guerrero has settled on his latest solution to not turn around the once-proud UCLA Bruins.
L.A. basketball fans are down to the Clippers, which drew the short straw and have to face California’s premier team, the Golden State Warriors, in the first round of the NBA playoffs. Sorry, Clips, but I’m rooting for a Golden State three-peat.
Team Noozhawk continues to outpace what passes for our competition in Santa Barbara County, with another high-profile week of local news coverage. According to our Google Analytics, we played before an audience of 153,184 readers over the last seven days.
This is my take — i.e., my opinion — on your Top 5 stories from our starting lineup. Fair warning: The news is mostly foul, with one odd exception.
1. Authorities Release Name of Man Who Jumped from Cold Spring Bridge
A 29-year-old Los Angeles man died April 5 after leaping from the Cold Spring Canyon Bridge on Highway 154 in the Santa Ynez Valley.
According to the California Highway Patrol, the incident was reported at 5:15 p.m. Officers arrived at the bridge to find a vehicle abandoned in the eastbound lane on the two-lane span, but had little more to go on.
The highway was shut down in both directions for about an hour during the evening commute as emergency personnel responded to the scene. Stagecoach Road, in the canyon below the bridge, also was closed.
With the assistance of a Santa Barbara County helicopter, authorities eventually located the body in the creek, about 400 feet underneath the bridge deck.
County firefighters and sheriff’s deputies, Search & Rescue and Los Padres National Forest personnel, and an American Medical Response ambulance joined in the search and recovery.
On April 8, sheriff’s spokeswoman Kelly Hoover identified the dead man as Daniel Lacy.
According to his obituary in the Los Angeles Times, Daniel May “Danny” Lacy was an actor, artist, animator, comedian and writer.
His IMDB entry credits him with several TV movie appearances, and he created and wrote the animated series, Crack-Duck, a Mondo Media show that aired on Adult Swim. Lacy designed all the characters and provided voiceovers for a number of them.
The 2007 graduate of Agoura High School is survived by his parents, Julia Duffy and Jerry Lacy, and his sister, Kerry Lacy. In lieu of flowers, the family encourages donations to NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness.
Click here for suicide prevention information and resources that are available 24/7.
The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is available 24/7 at 800.273.8255, and the Santa Barbara County 24-hour, toll-free hotline is 800.400.1572.
2. Police Confirm Sighting of Large, Adult Mountain Lion in Santa Barbara
The 700 and 800 blocks of Laguna Street in downtown Santa Barbara aren’t exactly mountain lion territory, but there one was — as big as day, or even bigger — just before dawn April 6.
According to Santa Barbara police spokesman Anthony Wagner, a large, adult lion was spotted prowling around between 4:30 and 5:30 a.m.
“The Santa Barbara Police Department and state Fish and Game officials physically sighted the animal during a sweep of the area,” he said. “It was identified by state experts as a large, possibly male, adult mountain lion.”
Wagner didn’t say why the wildlife officials themselves were catting about at that hour, but maybe this is more of a Cougar Town than we thought.
At any rate, the mountain lion disappeared into the darkness as mountain lions so effortlessly do.
The sighting came a few days after a U.S. Postal Service employee rescued an abandoned, 3-pound lion cub along Cebada Canyon Road near Lompoc.
3. Couple Robbed at Gunpoint in Rural Area Near Goleta
Farren Road, west of Goleta, provides some of the most magnificent views you’ll find on the South Coast, and is a popular hiking and biking destination for locals looking for solitude.
At night, it’s just a remote, rural lane running up into the foothills, and probably not the best place to be parked in the dark on the side of the road.
One young couple learned that the hard way about 9 p.m. April 9 when they were beset by four men who brandished a gun, smashed their car’s rear window and robbed them.
“One of the suspects was armed with a pistol,” sheriff’s spokeswoman Kelly Hoover said. “The suspects smashed the rear window to the vehicle. The victims handed over their cell phones, wallets and keys, and the suspects sped off.”
She said the suspects were described as Hispanic men, and were in a red or orange Dodge Charger.
The couple ran to a nearby residence to call 9-1-1, but Hoover said responding sheriff’s deputies and California Highway Patrol officers were unable to locate the perps.
Anyone with information that might assist sheriff’s investigators is asked to call 805.681.4100. Click here to leave an anonymous tip online, or call 805.681.4171.
4. 2 People Killed, 3 Others Injured in Highway 166 Crash East of Santa Maria
Two Bakersfield residents were killed and three Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo students were seriously injured April 6 in a horrific head-on collision on high-risk Highway 166 east of Santa Maria.
According to the California Highway Patrol, the driver of a westbound Honda Accord crossed the center line on a curve near Rock Front Ranch, about 25 miles east of Highway 101, and slammed into an eastbound Nissan Sentra.
The CHP said the Honda’s occupants — identified by sheriff’s spokeswoman Kelly Hoover as driver Brian Scott Adams and his passenger, Ashley Nicole Castillo, both 29 — were pronounced dead at the scene of the 12:30 p.m. wreck.
The Nissan’s driver — identified by the CHP as 20-year-old Erica Kemp — escaped with minor injuries, but her passengers, Mariana Silverman, 21, and Keilani Waxdeck, 20, were seriously injured in the crash. The three women were on their way to do some Super Bloom sightseeing.
Waxdeck was airlifted to Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital with severe injuries. According to a GoFundMe page established by family friends, she remains in critical condition in a medically induced coma with a traumatic brain injury. She also suffered abdominal injuries along with broken ribs, a broken pelvis, a broken ankle and a broken foot.
Kemp and Silverman were transported by American Medical Response ambulance to Marian Regional Medical Center in Santa Maria. Details on their conditions were not available.
The CHP is investigating the cause of the collision, but alcohol and drugs are not suspected.
Waxdeck, a gifted artist, photographer and Art and Design major from Castro Valley, is expected to be hospitalized for four to six months. Her mom, an emergency room nurse in the East Bay, and her dad have basically relocated to Santa Barbara to help with her care and the months of rehabilitation that are ahead of her.
As of April 12, friends have raised nearly $46,000 of a $50,000 goal to help Waxdeck’s family with medical expenses. Click here to make an online donation.
5. Bill Macfadyen: In Tragic Twist, Marcie Kjoller Died Doing What She So Obviously Loved
A cause has not yet been determined in the March 31 death of Marcie Fuller Kjoller. The former All-American collegiate swimmer, triathlete and Santa Barbara Charter School teacher died while swimming off East Beach.
But our Brooke Holland was among several hundred people who turned out for her April 7 memorial and paddle-out. As tragic as the circumstances were, the event truly was a celebration of a woman who lived her 50 years to the absolute fullest.
R.I.P.
• • •
Last Year on Noozhawk
What was our most-read story this time last year? No Damage Reported as 5.3 Earthquake Shakes Santa Barbara County.
• • •
Bill Macfadyen’s Story of the Week
Pass the mashed potatoes, please: Declassified — That Time the U.S. Military Made Flying Saucers.
• • •
Best of Bill’s Instagram
Noozhawk 93108 Style columnist Judy Foreman and I dropped by the @rosewoodmiramarbeach for the April 10 ribbon-cutting on a project that was 19-freaking-years in the making. It sure is beautiful now, and some of it’s in my Instagram feed.
• • •
Watch It
Why are baby goats so jumpy? Who cares! They’re hilarious and adorable, and just what you need after this week.
(Sunflower Farm Creamery video)
• • •
How You Can Help Noozhawk
Noozhawk is proud to be the go-to source of news for locals like yourself. You trust and rely on us to provide timely, relevant and thorough coverage of the issues that shape Santa Barbara County.
And we get up early — and stay up late — excited to report what’s going on in our community so we can keep you informed and engaged.
While most of Noozhawk’s revenue comes from advertising and sponsorships, we believe that reader contributions are a vital source of support — financially and fundamentally. We believe that if we ask our readers to contribute what you think we’re worth, we can build a sustainable business model for local news.
Yes, I’ll set up a monthly donation today!
Yes, I’ll set up a monthly donation today!
Yes, I’ll set up a monthly donation today!
Yes, I’ll set up a monthly donation today!
Yes, I’ll set up a monthly donation today!
Yes, I’ll set up a monthly donation today!
Yes, I’ll set up a monthly donation today!
Yes, I’ll set up a monthly donation today!
Yes, I’ll set up a monthly donation today! Yes, I’ll set up a monthly donation today!
Your loyalty membership helps us continue to provide you with unmatched local news and in-depth reporting on the issues that you care about.
Please note that personal contributions to Noozhawk are not deductible as charitable donations.
Thank you for your support.
— Bill Macfadyen is Noozhawk’s founder and publisher. Contact him at wmacfadyen@noozhawk.com, follow him on Twitter: @noozhawk and Instagram: @bill.macfadyen, or click here to read previous columns. The opinions expressed are his own.