Author: KION

Katie Nicora

SOLEDAD, Calif. (KION-TV) — People incarcerated at the state prison in Soledad now have a chance to learn new job skills while they’re serving out their sentence. 

The California Prison Industry Authority (CalPIA) is partnering with surplus service and the CDCR to launch the new program.

They say it will offer valuable training to incarcerated folks for careers in the e-waste management industry, learning how to refurbish and repair electronics.

People in the program are hopeful about their futures beyond prison. 

“To actually thrive in a career where I can contribute, where I could provide for my family, where I can contribute to my community and society as a whole through this program,” said Andre Freer, an incarcerated man.

CalPIA says its programs have a 15% return-to-custody rate after three years, meaning 85% of program participants do not ever return to prison.

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Katie Nicora

SALINAS, Calif. (KION-TV) — Communities on the Central Coast commemorated the lives lost 24 years ago in New York City on September 11.

Multiple cities held ceremonies Thursday morning, including the City of Salinas.

A bell rang out as members of the Salinas fire and police departments joined city leaders and people outside city hall.

They say that September 11 is about honoring the people killed and coming together as brothers and sisters in public service, adding how important it is to share the meaning of 9-11 with new generations. 

“Taking a day like this to have a ceremony, to bring people together, to practice the traditions, help us teach the new generation of fire service, help them never forget,” said Salinas Fire Chief Sam Klemek. “That’s how we carry on this legacy.”

Chief Klemek says as September 11 grows further away in people’s memories, it’s important for everyone to remember and teach younger generations about how the tragedy brought Americans together on that day.

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Ata Shaheen

WATSONVILLE, Calif. (KION-TV) — Watsonville is almost doubling the amount of Flock license-plate-reading cameras.

The city council voted to expand police surveillance despite an extraordinary showing of public commenters from the group Get the Flock Out.

Watsonville city council voted 5 to 2 Tuesday evening give the police department a quarter of a million dollars to expand its contract with Flock Safety.

Upon adoption, the audience in the council chambers erupted with booing and chants of “shame.”

The council had just listened to dozens of public comments denouncing the cameras.

“Not only do we not need to go 37, we need to talk about taking down the 20,” said one public commenter, eliciting cheers and applause.

Organizers with Get the Flock Out are concerned about privacy and personal freedoms, and what the cameras could mean for Watsonville’s immigrant community amid the Trump Administration’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement crackdown.

“The only way to make sure that surveillance data are not used to help ICE terrorize, kidnap, and deport members of our community is to not collect it at all,” said another public commenter.

Watsonville Police said the 20 flock cameras already up have been a big help with recovering stolen cars, tracking missing persons, and making police chases safer.

“We all want privacy. So some privacy measures that are already in place, that you deploy. All data is owned by Watsonville PD and will never be sold to, uh, sold to private third parties,” said Interim Police Chief David Rodriguez.

There are multiple state bills – both in effect and making way through the assembly – that regulate local cooperation with federal agencies like ICE.

“My concerns are not necessarily the integrity of the police, but the integrity of the company that they’re working with. Flock has repeatedly breached their contracts. They have let information go that was crucial to people’s safety,” said a public commenter.

One example – an Illinois state audit found Flock illegally shared data with federal agencies.

“It’s not worth it. You can sue for damages, but you can’t un-deport someone.”

Some of the public commenters said Watsonville made it clear that it doesn’t care about it’s residents.And they said they will continue fighting for a removal of the cameras around the county.There has been success in similar efforts. In late August, Evanston Illinois dropped its contract with Flock after the aforementioned state audit.

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Jeanette Bent

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY, Calif. (KION-TV) — Beeps fill the air as patrons waiting in line at the Santa Cruz County Fair enter on site for its first day, a sound that represents safety and security measures.

“I can say that we have an enhanced level of security,” said Ron Haedicke, the fair’s marketing director. “I would say that at any one time, we’ve got 30 to 40, if not more, security people on the grounds wandering around to make everybody’s stay here even happier.”

Haedicke has been involved with the fair since the 1980s, having held down multiple roles.

He said that security at the fair consists of not only a private team, but also officers from other local departments as well as fair staff.

This comes on the heels of an incident at the Monterey County Fair on August 30 that forced people to evacuate, police saying that a possible shooting and several fights may have prompted this evacuation.

“I think people are concerned, and I understand that, but we hope that they will come and enjoy this fair as they always have,” said Haedicke. “We have protocols set up for every type of incident that could possibly happen here, and we do work together and have meetings so that we’re all on the same page.”

The Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s office says that they feel comfortable with their level of security ahead of the fair, staffing the event this year the same as they have in years past.

“We have two shifts that are kind or split up at the fair. We have a morning shift and an afternoon shift. Most of the shifts are going to be about four to five deputies,” said Sergeant Zach West. “We’ll also have deputies in a booth handing out sheriff’s office swag.”

Sergeant West did mention rigorous preventative training that local officials participate in prior to large events like this one.

“We actually kind of host an active shooter training. It’s a week-long training,” Sergeant West. “It really encompasses all the law enforcement agencies in Santa Cruz County as well as fire and EMS personnel.”

As carnival rides and games fill up throughout the first day of the fair, Sergeant West wants to remind people that if or when an emergency incident does unfold…

“Obviously these are rapid unfolding situations and they can be very dynamic, and so we want to ensure everybody’s safety so if a situation does unfold, just follow the direction of law enforcement,” said Sergeant West. “And secondly, obviously protect yourself.”

Officials say that they take a proactive approach when it comes to any suspicious activity at the fair.

Despite the Monterey County Fair incident over a week ago, people waiting in line to enter the fair right before it opened, said they were not concerned about their safety and security.

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Jeanette Bent

MONTEREY COUNTY, Calif. (KION-TV) – Monterey Police say people, mostly teenagers, are now facing charges of assault with a deadly weapon.

Two adult suspects are being identified as 19-year-old Mario Giovanny Perez Luis and 20-year-old Roberto Mendez.

Police added that the case is being investigated as a gang crime, and more charges may be brought against the suspects.

Ricardo Geronimo Pacheco is being sought in connection with the shooting incident that happened after a fight at the Monterey County Fair. Courtesy: Seaside Police

Seaside Police have also released photos and the name of another suspect they are seeking in connection with a shooting shortly after the Monterey County Fair fight incident.

According to Seaside Police, the suspect they are looking for is a 19-year-old Ricardo Geronimo Pacheo.

A warrant was served yesterday in Marina at a home on Tallmon Street searching for a suspect, though that suspect was not home at the time of the search.

Marina’s shelter-in-place Wednesday in connection with the Monterey County Fair incident

MARINA, Calif. (KION-TV) — A shelter-in-place in Marina issued around 12 pm on Wednesday, according to police, was related to the Monterey County Fair fight and evacuation incident that took place on August 30.

The order was lifted for the 3200 block of Crescent Avenue, Tallmon Street, Johnson Place and Sierena Del Mar.

Marina Police saying that the police activity was to issue a search warrant at a home on Tallmon Street, that person not home when police arrived.

Shortly after the shelter-in-place orders were lifted, Marina Police turned over the incident to Seaside Police.

Seaside Police saying that the warrant was for a suspect in relation to a shooting shortly after the gang-related incident that prompted the evacuation at the Monterey County Fair over one week ago.

“We are looking for a couple more suspects in relation to this incident as the investigation continues,” said Seaside Police’s Commander Mathew Doza.

Commander Doza said that they’ve already made one arrest in connection to the incident at the fair.

Adrian Lopez Bernal

Adrian Lopez Bernal (image above) was recently arrested for felony charges of attempted murder and conspiracy to commit crime with a bail set to $2 million, according to police.

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Victor Guzman

CENTRAL COAST, Calif. (KION-TV) — Being a college student can be tough. A number of things can take a toll on a student’s mental health, from finances to simply transitioning from high school to college.

“It’s been different from high school but I’m trying to manage it,” says CSUMB student Makena Coleman.

Jessica Lopez at CSUMB’s Personal Growth and Counseling Center says other stresses include a student’s sudden busy schedule as they also consider the transition to adult hood.

A study out of U.S. News finds when students are getting mentally overwhelmed by stress, only around 37% of them try to seek help.

This is despite more than 70% of upper class college students reporting having mental health issues once they started college.

The survey indicates one other contributing factors to mental health challenges for students includes the current political and cultural climate in the U.S.

“There’s a lot going on that has to do with family or [political] demonstrations or budget cuts,” says CSUMB student Brandon Calvario.

Lopez says campuses can provide unique resources and opportunities to manage stress.

She says in the past she’s asked students what are some barriers in place that are preventing them from talking to counselors at CSUMB.

“A lot of them mentioned embarrassment, lack of time or feeling as though somebody else’s problems are maybe more deserving than theirs,” she says.

For CSUMB specifically, Lopez says getting help while in college can be simpler for students, plus they often won’t have a co-pay or out of pocket expense while attending school.

“Lots of times we don’t learn from our families how to do things like schedule an appointment or have an annual check up or what insurance provider we have and what coverage we have,” says Lopez.

Lopez says CSUMB pushes for early intervention. Adding that they would rather have students get the help they need as soon as possible instead of waiting for things to get worse.

“We want them to come in early, regularly and that’s how we can better support them for their goals,” Lopez says.

Students who are ready to get help can visit CSUMB’s Personal Growth and Counseling center at the Wellness Services Building.

Walk-in hours are Monday through Thursday from 1 to 4 pm and Crisis appointments are available Monday through Friday.

Bathrooms across campus have magnetic information cards with additional information on services provided.

CSUMB also has services for students and community members who want to be trained in starting a conversation around Mental Health. It’s called Mental Health First Aid and is a 7-hour training for anyone interested.

“The PGCC provides Let’s Talk – an informal way to meet counselors and talk about mental and health and wellness,” says Enrollment Management and student Affairs Vice President Ben Corpus. “Let’s Talk is located in central locations on campus to increase accessibility and reduce stigma.”

For more on CSUMB’s services, click here

For non-CSUMB college students, here’s a list of other mental health resources across other campuses on the Central Coast:

UC Santa Cruz Student Health & Wellness Center

Cabrillo College Student Health Services

Hartnell College Crisis Counseling & Emotional Wellness Services

Monterey Peninsula College Student Health Services

Gavilan College Student Health and Wellness Services

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jose.romo

SAN BENITO COUNTY, Calif. (KION-TV) — Trouble remains for the San Benito Sheriff’s Office as it battles an ongoing county budget deficit and subsequently a significant staffing shortage. 

“It’s been very clear we’re not cutting public safety,” District 5 Supervisor Ignacio Velasquez said. “(The Sheriff Department) does have vacancies. He’s trying to fill the funding is there for those vacancies; it’s just having a tough time, as agencies around the state and the country are having a hard time finding new people’s staff.”

In 2024, a report by the Pacific Research Institute stated their sheriff’s office was one of the state’s lowest-staffed agencies despite the county being one of the fastest growing in California from 2020 to 2023. At the time, the sheriff’s office staffed 17 deputies of the 40 recommended.    

“I think it’s a lot of recruitment, really going out, trying to find people that want to get a career in public safety,” Velasquez adds. “A lot of young people are out there looking for a career. We really gotta make the effort of reaching out to them, bringing them in. 

Sheriff Eric Taylor spoke out on Monday after an inmate seriously injured a sergeant and several corrections officers. In a press release, he said, “Our jail continues to operate below recommended staffing levels, and I firmly believe that some of these injuries could have been prevented had we been adequately staffed.” 

“I just want to say, thoughts and prayers with the jail personnel. I hope they’re recovering,” District 2 Supervisor Kollin Kosmicki showing appreciation for county staff. “I will say that the county board, last year, we got behind and championed a very, very significant increase in compensation to the jail officers, the corrections officers.”

In 2024, the county approved a $400 thousand boost for correctional staff compensation in efforts to increase recruitment and retention. 

Kosmicki adds, “We’re having significant budget challenges, so I think it really does say a lot how much we do get behind our public safety employees that we were willing to implement those increases, but yeah, we were like other jurisdictions were facing really significant budget challenges.”

Just last month, the sheriff reported ot the county supervisors saying they have 29 filled positions with ten job openings, of which four of those remain frozen. The state recommendation, however, is to staff 40 deputies for safe operations.

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Katie Nicora

GREENFIELD, Calif. (KION-TV) — The City of Greenfield is considering increasing sewer rates as a way to pay for the replacement of the city’s wastewater treatment plant.

A city report says the new plant is expected to cost more than $110 million.

The same report suggests modernizing the sewer rate structure and new capacity charges to help finance it.

The new structure would see a uniform fixed charge for each structure along with a variable charge per each thousand gallons of water up to five thousand gallons.

The average single family rate payer would see their payment increase from an average of about $63 per month to a little over $91 per month next year.

Non-single family bills will vary based on water use.

Greenfield could also apply for grants and a small loan to pay for the project, or it could borrow the full amount, which could see rates increase even more to prepare for higher annual payments.

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Jeanette Bent

Disclaimer: There is strong, explicit sexual language quoted from the complaint below. The full court document is embedded at the bottom of this article.

MONTEREY COUNY, Calif. (KION-TV) — The Monterey County Superior Court reported a lawsuit against the County of Monterey Friday, claiming an alleged sexual harassment and discrimination case against a former deputy and a current captain with the Sheriff’s Office.

According to court documents, the plaintiff worked for the County of Monterey since 2014, having held roles within crisis negotiations, search and rescue, defense tactics, first aid, jail operations, recruitment, and the collision committee.

The allegations state that the defendant, retired Sergeant Michael Smith’s, “behavior escalated from unprofessional/inappropriate to blatant, severe sexual harassment and overt gender discrimination,” citing an approximate four-year timeframe (2019 until 2023).

Screenshot from page 5 of the complaint

“Mike would tell plaintiff that she was a ‘whore’ and that it was okay ‘because all women are whores, just some more than others,'” according to the compliant. The compliant states: “Mike routinely objectified and sexualized plaintiff and spoke about her physical appearance on a regular basis.”

Screenshot from page 6 of the complaint

Screenshot from page 6 of the complaint

Among these, two explicit examples referenced in the court document stated inappropriate comments to the plaintiff as well as attempts to sexually engage with Smith.

In the document, it was stated that the Smith made “fairy dust” jokes referencing the plaintiff’s genitalia, stating that he “told the whole investigations unit that plaintiff has ‘fairy dust coming out of her vagina,’ that ‘her vagina is magical’ and that every man who experiences it seems to be under her magical spell.”

The plaintiff saying that he sent “group messages with ‘tinker bell’ waving a wand that releases fairy dust.”

Screenshot from page 10 of the complaint

The second example, as outlined in the court document, refers to a “snake shirt” incident:

“Plaintiff was in court to testify for a case on a Friday, and she wore a grey suit with a grey snake print shirt underneath. On Monday, when plaintiff returned to work, Mike said suggestively, ‘You wore my favorite shirt and you didn’t let me see it.’ Plaintiff responded that she didn’t know what he was talking about, and he said, ‘You know which shirt… The snake shirt.’ Plaintiff was surprised and bothered that Mike knew what she wore to court days before, and asked how he knew. She felt like he was stalking her.”

Screenshot from page 10 and 11 of complaint

In addition to this, the court documents reported that not only was the plaintiff being harassed by the Michael Smith, but also his wife Rebecca Smith and a captain at the sheriff’s office. Rebecca Smith is named as the second defendant in this case.

The document outlining multiple alleged instances throughout the four-year period where the husband-wife defendants reportedly harassed, discriminated and retaliated professionally, including throughout the duration of the plaintiff’s two pregnancies.

During one instance, the document outlined an alleged deliberate request from Michael Smith over sexual intercourse:

“Mike cut her off and said, ‘Are we going to fuck after this?’ Plaintiff asked what he meant, he repeated, ‘Are we fucking or not? Because if you aren’t going to fuck me, I really don’t care to know anything about you.’ She asked if he was serious and he responded yes.”

Screenshot from page 11 of the complaint

The court documents stating that tensions continued to escalate until the plaintiff claimed that she felt physically unsafe in the presence of Michael Smith.

“Plaintiff was frightened and began to cry,” according to the document. “She was afraid that her partners had left her alone with Mike when he was that angry.”

Screenshot from page 17 of the complaint

In June 2024, Sheriff Nieto’s response to altercations between the Smiths and the plaintiff were met with indifference. She said that after meeting with the Sheriff regarding a locker issue, she decided to relocate, saying that Sheriff Nieto responded with:

“Good because I don’t want to hear any of that drama. I don’t care if someone doesn’t like you or if you don’t like someone, that’s not something I’m going to spend time resolving.”

Screenshot from page 23 of the complaint

These allegations continued throughout 2024, the document stating that the “plaintiff is informed and believes that the MCSO took no actions to investigate her complaints of sexual harassment and retaliation, or to prevent further harassment or retaliation.”

Screenshot from page 24 of the complaint

The plaintiff, claiming that by the time it got to August 2024, she had experienced “severe emotional distress with catastrophic consequences for her mental and physical health. She has been enduring Mike and Rebecca’s torment since 2019, and despite reporting the harassment, discrimination, and retaliation, she knows that MCSO did nothing to stop Mike and Rebecca’s behavior. Respondent did nothing to protect plaintiff from unlawful, severe and pervasive harassment discrimination, and retaliation.”

Screenshot from page 26 of the complaint

Finally, at the beginning of 2025 and after being denied an interview for a new professional position after allegedly being the only candidate, the plaintiff took action against the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office by filing a lawsuit with six claims.

The claims are for sexual harassment; sex discrimination; failure to investigate and prevent harassment and discrimination; intentional infliction of emotional distress; and two counts of retaliation. The plaintiffs attorney is demanding a jury trial, damages, and individual action.

KION has reached out to the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office for comment, but they declined to respond.

The full court document:

MCSO LAWSUITDownload

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Jeanette Bent

SALINAS, Cailf. (KION-TV) — Salinas Police were called to the Central Coast Goodwill Monday morning over a suspected grenade that my have been donated to the facility.

“Upon discovery, the item was immediately isolated outside and law enforcement was notified,” wrote the Goodwill in a statement. “The donation center and outlet store were closed to the public, and approximately 80 employees working inside were directed to shelter in place as a precaution.”

They said that the bomb squad was called in to investigate the situation, but after a couple of hours, discovered that the object was not actually a grenade.

As a precaution, they detonated the object before clearing the scene.

The grenade-looking-object was located in a blue bin in the employee parking lot.

The Goodwill said that the origin of the device and how it came to be included in the donated items remains unknown.

An investigation is ongoing.

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