Double-warrant chase results in four charges
An Agua Caliente man wanted for driving without a license and DUI was arrested for driving without a license, again, and felony evading arrest after he led deputies on a brief chase and three-hour search Friday night in the Mayacamas Mountains.
Around 8:30 p.m., Aug. 15, a Sonoma police deputy was following a vehicle southbound on Highway 12 at Nuns Canyon Road, Sonoma County Sheriff’s Sgt. Dave Thompson said. The deputy flashed his lights at the suspect car and the driver, 30-year-old Carlos Najera, pulled over to the shoulder of the roadway – then roared off before the deputy could make contact with him.
Najera, with the deputy in close pursuit, turned eastbound up the winding and narrow Trinity Road at speeds between 25 and 45 m.p.h. Thompson said Najera was driving through both lanes of the road and, at one point, nearly collided with a motorcyclist. Reaching Trinity Road’s intersection with Cavedale, Najera pulled over and leapt from his vehicle, fleeing on foot into the thick roadside brush.
More deputies arrived at the scene and sheriff’s helicopter “Henry-1” swooped overhead to aid in the search, but Najera could not at first be found. Then around 11:40 p.m., the deputy who made the initial traffic stop and who was still “staking-out” the area spotted Najera walking down Trinity Road near Jensen Road, Thompson said. Najera was arrested without incident and booked into Sonoma County Jail on both the two earlier $20,000 warrants and the new charges.
Sanders and Gallian are sole contenders for City Council race
A s of the 5 p.m. deadline on Aug. 13, only Mayor Joanne Sanders and newcomer Laurie Gallian have filed the necessary papers to stand for election to the Sonoma City Council’s two available seats in the Nov. 4 election.
Two other residents, Alain Piallat and Thomas J. Crystle, pulled papers but failed to file by the appointed deadline.
The available seats are those currently held by Sanders, who is seeking re-election, and by councilmember Stanley Cohen, who announced in May his decision not to seek another term.
Under the provisions of the California Election Code, the city council must decide by Aug. 25 whether to cancel the election and appoint the two candidates to the two open seats, or to hold the election with the two names appearing on the ballot. The city council was scheduled to consider the matter at its regular meeting on Aug. 20.
Authorities raise bridge toll but vote down additional congestion charge
A fter Labor Day, southbound Golden Gate Bridge drivers will pay more to cross the bridge. However, they will not pay an additional toll to solve the city’s congestion problems or contribute to the aesthetic improvement of Doyle Drive.
“This is good news for the North Bay commuters,” said Sonoma Mayor Joanne Sanders, who sits on the board of directors of the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and transportation District. “We prevailed. It was unfair to harness the commuter with aesthetic improvements to a San Francisco roadway.”
In July the board of directors passed a $1 increase in the cash and FasTrak toll and a change to the “persons with disabilities” toll, which will take effect on Sept. 2. The increase is set to close a five-year, $91 million bridge district deficit. The board voted down the scheme to add additional tolls during peak hours to help with the Doyle Drive improvement plan and also to discourage congestion during peak hours.
The new toll will be $6 for cars paying cash and $5 for FasTrak, and $3 for cars bearing an official state disabled placard.
