Baseball is back and Freddie Freeman’s a Los Angeles Dodger. Boy, am I excited now.
But before I look forward to the season ahead, let’s look back at the week that was on Noozhawk. This weekly column is my recap of the Top 5 stories you were reading during that period, as tracked by our Google Analytics.
According to those analytics, we had an audience of 106,610 readers this past week.
It’s at this point that I remind you this is my opinion column, not a news story. But you should know that by now.
Thanks for reading.
1. Transient Arrested on Homicide, Robbery Charges in Death of Woman on Lower State Street
A 50-year-old homeless woman was found dead in downtown Santa Barbara the morning of March 14, and another transient was arrested later that day as a suspect in the killing.
The story is as infuriating as it is tragic. The suspect has a lengthy criminal record, was released from Santa Barbara County Jail just four days before the alleged attack and, for good measure, was sporting a GPS tracking ankle monitor at the time.
As our Tom Bolton first reported, Santa Barbara police responded to a 9-1-1 call about 7:30 a.m. after an unresponsive woman was discovered in the parking lot of a Lower State Street business.
Sgt. Ethan Ragsdale said the woman — identified by the District Attorney’s Office as Theresa Carina — was pronounced dead at the scene. He added that an informant and evidence pointed to a potential suspect who just so happened to be wearing an ankle monitor.
The suspect, identified as 46-year-old Gabriel Jose Zepeda of Santa Maria, was arrested hours later in the 2900 block of State Street.
On March 16, our Giana Magnoli reported that Zepeda was charged with first-degree murder with special allegations of committing the killing during the commission of a robbery; murder while out on bail on his own recognizance in a different criminal case; having a prior “strike” conviction of a serious or violent felony; and having a prior conviction of a serious felony.
According to the DA’s Office, the prior serious felony was from 2015 when Zepeda was convicted of attempting to interfere with a witness.
Given his recent body of alleged work, it’s probably not surprising that Zepeda’s been a familiar face in local courtrooms. Previous convictions and pending Superior Court cases include burglary, stalking, false imprisonment and contempt of court for violating a protective order.
Zepeda’s arraignment was continued to April. This time he’s being held in County Jail without bail.
Not coincidentally, the appalling circumstances surrounding Zepeda’s recent incarceration, or lack thereof, caught the attention of the Board of Supervisors at its March 15 meeting.
With nationwide crime rates rising almost as fast as gas prices and inflation over the last 14 months, elected officials are belatedly realizing that simply emptying the jails is, well, insane.
Apparently, the Sheriff’s and Probation departments and the DA’s and Public Defender’s offices are collaborating on a better process for risk and needs assessments for people in the criminal justice system.
County Executive Officer Mona Miyasato said reforms are needed to reduce the jail population but there are limits on how low they should go.
“Every criminal-justice partner will say and believe that there are people who need to be in jail,” she said. “Your public defender will say that.”
Theresa Carina was robbed of her right to say that, but maybe one of these newly awakened politicians will do it for her.
2. Firefighters Battling Difficult-to-Access Vegetation Fire at Hollister Ranch
A wind-whipped brush fire that ignited March 12 on remote Hollister Ranch on the Gaviota coast grew to 120 acres before firefighters were able to gain the upper hand.
As of March 17, the wildfire was 90% contained, according to Santa Barbara County fire Capt. Daniel Bertucelli.
Amid gusty conditions at the peak of the fire last weekend, about 30 homes and ranches were ordered evacuated, but no structures were damaged.
As many as 175 firefighters were deployed at one point, including crews from throughout the county and the Central Coast. Water-dropping helicopters and fixed-wing aerial tankers also were making regular runs during the blaze.
Two firefighters were treated for injuries.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
3. Pedestrian Critically Injured in Collision on State Street in Santa Barbara
A Santa Barbara man was struck by a car as he crossed State Street at the Broadmoor Plaza intersection west of Las Positas Road the night of March 14. He suffered critical injuries in the collision but, tragically, died two days later.
Santa Barbara fire Capt. Jon Turner told our Tom Bolton that the man was walking north, toward the 7-Eleven, when he was hit by a sedan about 8:30 p.m.
Turner said witnesses estimated that the eastbound car was traveling at 40 to 45 mph, and the collision’s impact propelled the victim into the middle of the intersection.
The man was transported by American Medical Response ambulance to Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital. His identity and medical condition were not immediately available.
On March 17, Santa Barbara police Sgt. Ethan Ragsdale identified the victim as 40-year-old Justin Howze Juniel, and said he had died of his injuries the day before.
If Juniel’s name rings a bell, it’s because he was just in Noozhawk two weeks ago when he was arrested after an altercation with police that left one officer with a broken hand.
Police were responding to reports of a prowler in the 3000 block of Calle Noguera around 1 a.m. March 3, when they encountered the suspect — later identified as Juniel — about a block away near the intersection of East Calle Crespis and State Street.
“When officers were able to catch up to him, he started to physically fight the officers,” Ragsdale said at the time. “Officers utilized control holds to take custody of Juniel.”
He said Juniel was booked into County Jail on suspicion of prowling, a misdemeanor, and resisting a police officer by force, and also had an outstanding felony arrest warrant.
The circumstances of the March 14 wreck are under investigation by SBPD, but alcohol or drugs are not suspected.
My friend, Mark Dewey, just happened to be driving past not long afterward and texted me some photos of the scene. Mark is the founder and publisher of Austonia, the Noozhawk of Austin, but is a part-time Santa Barbara resident.
4. Police Arrest Driver After Series of Hit-Run Collisions in Santa Barbara
I don’t know if the driver considered it a midday joyride but the end result was a miles-long trail of damaged vehicles in an alleged hit-and-run spree through Santa Barbara’s San Roque neighborhood, the Upper Eastside and downtown.
As our Tom Bolton first reported, 9-1-1 dispatchers were alerted just after noon March 14 about a reckless driver in a red Dodge pickup truck in the vicinity of State Street and Hope Avenue near La Cumbre Plaza.
As Santa Barbara police were responding, a motorist called 9-1-1 to report that a red pickup truck had just hit his vehicle in the 3500 block of Foothill Road, near North Ontare Road.
“In the course of fleeing from the first collision, three other collisions occurred,” Sgt. Ethan Ragsdale told Tom.
“The second was at Foothill and Tye Road, the third at Santa Barbara Street and East Mission Street, and the fourth was at Sola Street and State Street.”
Police were able to intercept the truck in the 1300 block of Anacapa Street downtown, and Ragsdale said the male driver was arrested on suspicion of misdemeanor hit-and-run and driving under the influence of drugs.
“The suspect is refusing to identify himself to investigating officers, and had no identification on them,” he said at the time.
SBPD is investigating the circumstances of the fender-bending bender. Fortunately, no one was injured in the road rampage.
5. Chick-fil-A Proposes Second Santa Barbara Restaurant, Near Starbucks on Calle Real
Chick-fil-A, Santa Barbara’s most popular restaurant, is looking to build on that popularity with a second location.
As our Josh Molina was first to report, company officials have filed a permit application with Santa Barbara County to open a new Chick-fil-A at the current site of an IHOP at 4765 Calle Real, just east of North Turnpike Road.
“We are always evaluating potential new locations in the hopes of serving existing and new customers great food with remarkable service, and we’re happy to confirm that we’re exploring an additional location in the Santa Barbara community,” Chick-fil-A spokesman Sean Ward said.
“We know demand is high, and we’re looking forward to providing more options for our many raving fans.”
With IHOP planning a move to Goleta, Chick-fil-A is asking to demolish the building and replace it with a state-of-the-art restaurant, including a drive-through lane.
Travis Seawards, deputy director of the county Development Review Division, told Josh that Chick-fil-A would need to go through the Planning Commission and secure a conditional use permit to open.
Neighborhood compatibility would be a major consideration, he added, noting that the location is next door to a Starbucks with a heavily used drive-through lane and across the intersection from In-N-Out Burger, which has an even more heavily used drive-through lane.
“There’s a lot of levels of analysis we have to go through before we make any recommendations,” Seawards said.
Ironically, the Santa Barbara City Council is threatening Chick-fil-A with a “public nuisance” declaration because city bureaucrats evidently didn’t undertake as many “levels of analysis” before approving a drive-through operation at the 3707 State St. location nine years ago.
Due to the customer demand for its delicious chicken and waffle fries, Chick-fil-A’s drive-through traffic sometimes backs up onto State Street. The company has hired additional employees to take orders and security guards to keep cars moving, and signs have been posted warning that it’s illegal to block sidewalks or stop on the street.
As Josh reported previously, the city and Chick-fil-A have agreed to take three months to try to come up with a more formal plan to reduce backups — before the council gets its chance to place a “public nuisance” order.
• • •
Good Reads
Here are four important stories that are worth your time, and our latest activities guide for your kids:
» Carpinteria City Council Awards $2 Million Contract for Skate Park Construction — After years of grinding, Carpinteria is finally getting a skate park. Our Serena Guentz has the details.
» Santa Barbara County Supervisors Reflect on 2 Years of COVID-19 Pandemic — Our Giana Magnoli checked in at the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors, which was looking forward to winding down its coronavirus resources allocation and promising to review what worked and didn’t work over the last two years of chaos and crisis. If they really want to know, they’ll talk to our news staff.
» Montecito Water, Sanitary District Boards Approve Funding for Consolidation Feasibility Study — Giana also reported on the Montecito Sanitary and Water districts moving ahead with the exploration of a potential consolidation.
» Four Cities, Sheriff’s Department Heading to Mediation After Talks Fail Over Proposed Cost Increases — Our Janene Scully digs into the contentious standoff between the cities of Buellton, Carpinteria, Goleta and Solvang and the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department that provides law enforcement services.
» ParentNooz Camp Guide — Check out Noozhawk’s 2022 ParentNooz Camp Guide for the latest youth activities opportunities.
• • •
Last Year on Noozhawk
What was our most-read story this time last year? Santa Barbara County Expected to Advance to Less-Restrictive COVID-19 Red Tier on Tuesday.
• • •
Bill Macfadyen’s Story of the Week
Come and take it: Russian Official Suggests Reclaiming Fort Ross on Sonoma Coast as Payback for U.S. Sanctions.
• • •
Best of Bill’s Instagram
Family and friends of the late John McIntyre held a “Celebration of Life” that exceeded every possible definition of those words, and still did not scratch the surface of his accomplishments and impacts. He gets top billing in my Instagram feed this past week. #rip
• • •
Americans Held Hostage: Day 200
Just a reminder that we left left hundreds of U.S. citizens and green-card holders to fend for themselves against the Taliban when we fled Afghanistan 200 days ago.
• • •
Watch It
I’m not a soccer fan, but I watched this. Thanks to Best of Bill reader Quinn Mitchell for the laugh.
(The Sun 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 Instagram: @bill.macfadyen, or click here to read previous columns. The opinions expressed are his own.