Author: KION

Jeanette Bent

MONTEREY COUNTY, Calif. (KION-TV) — The Monterey County District Attorney’s office announced Friday that a scheme to sell and distribute non-permitted and unrefrigerated food from Merced County continues to happen, posing a public health risk to the Central Coast community.

The DA’s office says that the roadside food stands are easy to recognize because they have blue and red tents covering tables, grills and vertical rotisseries.

“Investigators have traced ownership of these stands to kingpins operating out of Merced County,” said the DA’s office. “Food sold at the stands in Monterey County is reportedly prepared in Merced and then transported over two hours all over the central coast, including Monterey, Santa Cruz, San Benito, and Santa Clara.”

Officials are saying that there is no refrigeration or coolers to maintain proper meat and condiment temperatures, which could create dangerous pathogens like E. coli, salmonella and listeria.

This investigation dates back to September 2024 when Merced authorities say they had already found large-scale unsanitary food preparation sites in warehouses and garages operated by the same kingpins.

Officials also saying that they discovered equipment used in these inadequate conditions matches the same culinary equipment used in some Monterey stands along with questionable foods.

The Environmental Health Department says that since late 2024, they’ve seized unsafe foods from stands in Pajaro, Royal Oaks, Castroville, North Salinas, Fort Ord, Soledad and Greenfield.

On May 22, investigators with Environmental Health inspectors say they impounded food, equipment, and a vehicle from an unpermitted food stand near Highway 68 and Canyon Del Rey, near Del Rey Oaks and another at 348 San Juan Grade Rd Salinas.

“All these sites have been traced back to the Merced County operation,” they said. “At these sites, health inspectors have found that the unpermitted vendors do not meet even the most basic food safety standards – meat is not kept at safe temperatures, no hand-washing stations are present, and cross-contamination risks are high.”

Investigators are now saying that the whole operation has generated approximately $100,000 in cash per month for the — who they’re calling — Merced kingpins.

Officials also saying that despite the profits, it does not appear that individuals recruited to work thestands are being paid minimum wage.

District Attorney Investigators say they are continuing to gather more evidence related to the leaders of the unlawful enterprise, and are asking that consumers refrain from financially supporting the operation.

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Mickey Adams

MONTEREY, Calif. (KION-TV) – The city of Monterey moved forward last night to permit the establishment of a rainbow crosswalk at the mouth of Alvarado Street.

The city says the funding would come from private contributions.

The news of the approval comes after the Monterey County Republican Party called the project a waste of city resources amid ongoing budget issues.

“The city doesn’t have the money it needs to do the key things it needs. Yet, over the last several weeks, we’ve looked at increasing Council salaries, and now we’ve got this proposal,” one person said during public comment at a meeting back in May.

City of Monterey considers adding rainbow crosswalks amid controversy

MONTEREY, Calif. (KION-TV) – The City of Monterey is exploring the installation of at least one rainbow crosswalks in the city, meant to symbolize inclusivity and support for the LGBTQ+ community.

Monterey’s mayor, Tyller Williamson, introduced the idea for areas around Monterey.

“If that one child comes by and sees this crosswalk and it makes the difference from them killing themselves, it is absolutely worth it,” Williamson said.

However, the Monterey County Republican Party is calling the project a waste of resources when the city is already dealing with money problems.

“The city doesn’t have the money it needs to do the key things it needs. Yet, over the last several weeks, we’ve looked at increasing Council salaries, and now we’ve got this proposal,” one person said during public comment.

The issue was discussed at a special Monterey City Council meeting on Friday. The crosswalks are meant to symbolize inclusivity and support for the city’s LGBTQ community. Three locations have been proposed for the crosswalks, each one with cultural or historical significance to that community.

“It can go a really long way for people who have otherwise felt underrepresented, unrecognized and invisible for a very long time,” another person said during public comment.

Lighthouse and Reeside avenues is being considered due to its proximity to the former site of a popular gay bar called After Dark, now known as Peak Hour.

Alvarado and Pearl streets are being considered to create a “starting line” for the city’s annual pride parade.

Pacific and Madison streets is being discussed due to its proximity to city government and services, along with being in view of the city’s annual pride flag raising in June.

The cost for the project is estimated at $2,000 to $15,000 per crosswalk, something that the County Republican Party says they take issue with.

The party released a statement saying “The mayor’s focus on personal symbolic gestures while real city needs go unmet is deeply troubling. His willingness to avoid transparency should concern every Monterey resident, regardless of political affiliation.”

City Council also brought up the idea of private contributions to help cover the costs.

No final decision was made during Friday’s meeting and the item will be continued at a future meeting in June.

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Jeanette Bent

PRUNEDALE, Calif. (KION-TV) — A fire broke Thursday morning at an ADU in the Vierra Canyon and Vierra Meadows area.

North County Fire says that the fire was five-by-700 square feet and stayed on the exterior of the building into the attic.

Fire crews kept four engines on scene with one water tender.

North County Fire headed the call with help from Cal Fire.

The cause of the fire has not been determined yet.

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Jeanette Bent

WATSONVILLE, Calif. (KION-TV) — Chief Jorge Zamora announced his retirement Thursday after over 30 years serving the Watsonville Police Department.

He says that his last official workday will be August 30, 2025.

Chief Zamora’s office says that he started his police career as a cadet at age 15 before becoming a full-time officer in 1996.

“Throughout his career, he served in patrol, SWAT, narcotics, detectives, and as a youth mentor and instructor,” wrote the City of Watsonville Thursday. “In 2022, he became Watsonville’s 16th Chief of Police and the first first-generation Mexican-American to hold the position.”

During his time with the Watsonville Police, Chief Zamora faced many challenges, including staffing shortages and evolving community expectations around public safety.

He created a Chief’s Advisory Board and increased community engagement efforts.

“I am especially grateful to this community for believing in a young man who grew up in a neighborhood where gang violence was prevalent, and expectations for success for children of farmworkers were low,” said Chief Zamora. “The odds were against me, but you gave me the opportunity to rise, serve, and lead.” 

City Manager Tamara Vides will appoint Assistant Chief David Rodriguez as Interim Police Chief until a permanent replacement is named.

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Victor Guzman

MONTEREY, Calif. (KION-TV) — Monterey Police say a sinkhole has forced a closure along David Avenue at Oak Street in Monterey overnight.

Police say the sinkhole is located between Newton and Pine streets.

According to police, the sinkhole happened because of a water main break in the area.

Right now there’s no estimated time for reopening and crews are at the scene attempting to patch up the road.

This is a developing story

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jose.romo

MONTEREY COUNTY, Calif. (KION-TV) — Growing concern about wildfires and insurance premiums rising throughout the state of California.

State Farm has announced a potential second price hike in just weeks. State Farm looks to increase homeowner insurance policies just weeks after approval of a 17 percent hike. The insurance company is claiming costs after the Southern California fires, prompting the change. 

“Here in Monterey, we do have wildfire risk. We do have areas of very high, high, and moderate fire hazard severity zones that were identified by the state fire marshal’s office,” Monterey Fire Division Chief Justin Cooper said.

Cooper also reiterates that it is important to be prepared after the damage shown in the Palisades fire. 

“It is very being proactive out in the communities as part of fire prevention. We work hand in hand with our forestry division here in Monterey, also with our adjoining cities, to help mitigate some of these hazards.” 

State Farm announced the additional increase would not surpass the 30 percent increase requested initially in June of last year. Still, homeowners and renters will see a significant change to their bills come June first. In a statement, State Farm said, “The overall request of 30 percent would not be on top of the 17 percent interim rate change. State Farm General is still pursuing the full rate request. A hearing on the full rate request is expected to be held this year.”

On Tuesday, the city of Monterey adopted new hazard maps. The chief said insurance premiums should not go up due to these risk models.

“They’re not supposed to be used by insurance companies for risk models,” Cooper said. “They use their own set of criteria to determine risk, and then they manage that risk, obviously, with insurance premiums and so forth for homeowners.”

State Farm added that they’ve paid more than $3.5 billion, handled more than 12,692 claims since May 12. They add that they need these emergency rate increases to continue to serve California residents.

These additional increases will need to be debated through the California Department of Insurance pending approval. The next hearing is set for October, where State Farm is expected to try to justify the rate hikes.

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Jeanette Bent

HOLLISTER, Calif. (KION-TV) — The Hollister Fire Fighters Association sent a letter to City Manager David Mirrione Tuesday that denied confidence in his ability to lead the city.

In the letter, the group said that although the decision was not made lightly, they feel that “deep and ongoing concerns that have escalated over time,” need to finally be addressed.

“We are writing to formally express a vote of no confidence in your leadership as City Manager of Hollister,” they wrote to Mirrione.

The association goes on to say that Mirrione has demonstrated fiscal mismanagement and lack in transparency over failing to publish the city’s Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (last publication date was in 2021).

“This absence of transparency not only violates public trust but raises serious questions about how taxpayer dollars are being managed,” according to the letter.

The Firefighters Association goes on to accuse Mirrione of jeopardizing public safety through “poor” handling of the fire protection negotiations. They say that relationships with partner agencies have become strained as a result.

Finally, the letter says that Mirrione demonstrated a consistent pattern of “micromanaging the department head’s responsibilities,” which limited his ability to lead and manage, as well as resulted in “low morale across the fire department.”

KION has reached out to both City Manager David Mirrione as well as the Hollister Fire Fighters Association for further comment. Neither have responded.

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Victor Guzman

HOLLISTER, Calif. (KION-TV) — The CHP confirms officers are investigating a deadly crash east of the Hollister Airport.

Dispatchers confirm to KION the crash happened just after 10 pm on Tuesday along Fallon and Scagliotti roads.

At least one person was killed, but the only additional information the CHP would provide is that the crash happened off-road and there was no impact to traffic at that time.

This is a developing story

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Jeanette Bent

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (KION-TV) — The Santa Cruz Fire Department said Sunday that they responded to reports of a structure fire at the Aqua Breeze Motel in Santa Cruz.

Upon arrival, firefighters say they learned that there was a disabled occupant trapped inside the building.

They say there was heavy smoke showing from the first floor, and hotel occupants were evacuating the building.

According to the City of Santa Cruz, firefighters from Engine 3110 and Truck 3170 extended a hoseline into the effected room and aggressively extinguished the fire while searching for victims.

They said that within seconds, units located an unconscious man in the room and carried him outside to awaiting medical care.

Firefighters who showed up later coordinated an effort to make sure that the fire did not spread to adjacent rooms as well as no further people in the building.

After the rescued man was treated by advanced medical care on scene, police say that he was transferred to an awaiting ambulance who took him to Dominican Hospital.

The City of Santa Cruz says that there are no updates on the victims condition.  

The fire is currently under investigation and not believed to be suspicious in nature.

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jose.romo

KING CITY, Calif. (KION-TV) –Today marks the last day of the Salinas Valley Fair. While it’s all about funnel cakes, turkey legs, and live entertainment for most, it’s also an opportunity for local ag students to showcase their hard work. Most of them say this experience has taught them time management skills along with creating a community.

“You really get to bond with animals you never thought you’d ever get to bond with,“ Jayce Duhon says. “You had to know the struggles and get to feed them ice cream.”

For Jayce, that is the most rewarding part of the annual Salinas Valley Fair. Celebrating the last day of their 81st weekend, organizers recognize the importance this fair has to the community. 

“This is a huge part of South County,” says Lauren Hamilton, CEO of the Salinas Valley Fair. “Everybody looks forward to our fair in May. They come out as such a fun family event, and it’s the annual celebration that everybody looks forward to.”  

For Nathan Marquez, owner of three food vending locations at the festival, his goal is to provide the community with the best customer care and great food options. “we appreciate all the customers and guests that are coming out. we say come out, have a good time, bring your family here.”

Once you get past the food and fun, the Salinas Valley Fair is also recognized for its livestock auctions. Many student members of Future Farmers of America and 4-H make their way here to sell the animals they’ve been working hard to raise.

Mekenzie Gearhart says, “the community is helping me out as well and also buying my goat. That also supports me as like a showman and a. person in high school.”

Jordan Davis, this year’s Miss Salinas Valley Fair, says she has worked closely with FFA and 4-H. She adds its a true learning experience. “Definitely time management. and… just not procrastinating on anything and figuring out what i have to get done throughout the and having a schedule ready to go.” 

The learning does not stop with the students. Jayce Duhon’s dad Justin says he has learned a lot from seeing his son and two daughters participate in these programs. “For Jayce, you know he’s got to overcome a huge animal compared to his size and just watch him kind of face some fears. It’s pretty neat and just the rewards. getting up early every day, go feed. say no sometimes to hanging out with friends because you’ve got to go feed at night.”

Jayce now gets to enjoy the rewards of his hard work. “I sold my animal for a surprising $8 thousand, which was amazing,” Jayce says with a smile. He adds that while his steer showed some nerves during the showmanship portion of the auction, he was able to pull through proud to have calmed it down. 

With the $8 thousand Jayce hopes to participate in a big baseball tournament in Cooperstown. He also hopes to buy his dream car.

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