Lake Arrowhead Community Services District Wants Federal Help Eluding PFAS Liability

The Lake Arrowhead Community Services District is seeking federal assistance in dealing with its perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances contamination problem.
Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as PFAS, and perfluorooctanoic acid, known as PFOA, compose a family of more than 5,000 man-made and mostly unregulated chemicals that have been produced since the 1950s. They are commonly referred to as “forever chemicals” because they are resistant to degradation in the environment and when degradation occurs, it results in the formation of additional PFAS compounds or constituents.
The precise source of the contamination has yet to be established. In October 2023, the California Environmental Protection Agency published a finding that Lake Arrowhead had a total PFAS concentration levels of 26. It has been theorized that Lake Arrowhead’s PFAS contamination is a byproduct of its Grass Valley Wastewater Treatment Plant which processes the sewer effluent from Lake Arrowhead and recycles water to irrigate the golf course at the Lake Arrowhead Country Club. The theory is that the inadequate filtration of the water has resulted in eliminating other contaminants while compounding the concentration of PFAS. Continue reading

March 29 SBC Sentinel Legal Notices

SUMMONS – (CITACION JUDICIAL)
CASE NUMBER (NUMERO DEL CASO) CIVSB2313029
NOTICE TO VICTOR BELTRAN; MONICA MARIA BELTRAN; and DOES 1 through 50, inclusive
YOU ARE BEING SUED BY PLAINTIFF:
(LO ESTA DEMANDANDO EL DEMANDANTE):
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA EDISON COMPANY
NOTICE! You have been sued. The court may decide against you without your being heard unless you respond within 30 days. Read the information below.
You have 30 CALENDAR DAYS after this summons is served on you to file a written response at this court and have a copy served on the plaintiff. A letter or phone call will not protect you. Your written response must be in proper legal form if you want the court to hear your case. There may be a court form that you can use for your response. You can find these court forms and more information at the California Courts Online Self-Help Center (www.courtinfo.ca.gov/selfhelp), your county law library, or the courthouse nearest you. If you cannot pay the filing fee, ask the court clerk for a fee waiver form. If you do not file your response on time, you may lose the case by default, and your wages, money, and property may be taken without further warning from the court.
There are other legal requirements. You may want to call an attorney right away. If you do not know an attorney, you may want to call an attorney referral service. If you cannot afford an attorney, you may be eligible for free legal services from a nonprofit legal services program. You can locate these nonprofit groups at the California Legal Services Web site (www.lawhelpcalifornia.org), the California Courts Online Self-Help Center (www.courtinfo.ca.gov/selfhelp), or by contacting your local court or county bar association. NOTE: The court has a statutory lien for waived fees and costs on any settlement or arbitration award of $10,000 or more in a civil case. The court’s lien must be paid before the court will dismiss the case.
¡AVISO! Lo han demandado. Si no responde dentro de 30 dias, la corte puede decidir en su contra sin escuchar su version. Lea la informacion a continuacion
Tiene 30 DIAS DE CALENDARIO después de que le entreguen esta citación y papeles legales para presentar una repuesta por escrito en esta corte y hacer que se entreque una copia al demandante. Una carta o una llamada telefonica no le protegen. Su respuesta por escrito tiene que estar on formato legal correcto si desea que procesen su caso en la corte. Es posible que haya un formulano que usted puede usar para su respuesta. Puede encontrar estos formularios de la corte y mas información en el Centro de Ayuda de las Cortes de California (www.sucorte.ca.gov), en la biblioteca de leyes de su condado o en la corte que le quede mas cerca. Si no puede pagar la cuota de presentación, pida si secretario de la corta que le de un formulario de exencion de pago de cuotas. Si no presenta su respuesta a tiempo, puede perder el caso por incumplimiento y la corta le podrá quitar su sueldo, dinero y bienes sin mas advertencia.
Hay otros requisitos legales. Es recomendable que llame a un abogado inmediatamente. Si no conace a un abogado, puede llamar a un servicio de referencia a abogados. Si no peude pagar a un a un abogado, es posible que cumpia con los requisitos para obtener servicios legales gratu de un programa de servicios legales sin fines de lucro. Puede encontrar estos grupos sin fines de lucro en el sitio web de California Legal Services, (www.lawhelpcalifornia.org), en el Centro de Ayuda de las Cortes de California, (www.sucorte.ca.gov), o poniendoso en contacto con la corte o el colegio de abogados locales. AVISO: Por ley, la corte tiene derecho a reclamar las cuotas y los costos exentos gravamen sobre cualquier recuperación da $10,000 o mas de vaior recibida mediante un aceurdo o una concesión de arbitraje en un caso de derecho civil. Tiene que pagar el gravamen de la corta antes de que la corta pueda desechar el caso.
The name and address of the court is: (El nombre y la direccion de la corte es):
Superior Court of California, County of San Bernardino, 247 West 3rd St, San Bernardino, CA 92415-0212, Branch Name: San Bernardino Justice Center
The name, address and telephone number of plaintiff’s attorney, or plaintiff without an attorney, is: (El nombre, la direccion y el numero de telefono del abogado del demandante, o del demendante que no tiene abogado, es):
JENUS K. NOURAFCHAN. Esquire
LEVY & NOURAFCHAN
9454 WILSHIRE BLVD., SUITE 500
BEVERLY HILLS, CA 90212
Phone: (310) 274-9993
Fax: (310) 888-3255
DATE (Fecha): June 8, 2023
Clerk (Secretario), by Kylie Meneses
Published in the San Bernardino County Sentinel on March 8, 15, 22 & 29, 2024.

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Redlands School District Giving Golden Parachutes To 149 Employees

The Redlands Unified School District is shedding 149 employees this calendar year, all of whom are leaving voluntarily, based upon the district offering, and their accepting, supplementary retirement plans, otherwise known as “golden handshakes” or “golden parachutes.”
The action comes as school districts throughout California are contracting in the face of diminishing revenues and enrollments, and as other districts are engaging in layoffs of their personnel.
Between 2020 and well into the 2022-23 school year, school districts were being artificially protected from harsh economic circumstance by special augmentation money provided to them by state and federal government in the form of federal COVID relief aid passed to them through the state government along with state money directed to them for that purpose. That funding however has been drawing to a close. A year ago, many of the state’s school districts were beginning to wean themselves from that temporary funding, as was reflected in the layoffs of 316 certificated employees. With all of the COVID funding drawing to an end at the close of the 2023-24 school year, the state’s school districts are getting much more serious about reducing their expenses, meaning primarily payroll. Throughout California as of the end of February, 1,400 teaching positions had been eliminated with indications that number would triple. Under California rules intended to protect teachers and other school workers, school districts are required to submit their plans for layoffs and position eliminations to the state superintendent of schools office by March 15 and finalized those lists by May 15 to give teachers an opportunity to seek teaching positions elsewhere. It is believed that statewide by the middle of May, something like 4,200 of the state’s 307,400 teachers will be laid off. In addition to teachers, who are among the school systems certificated workers, schools employ so-called classified workers, ones who do not have teaching certificates or educational credentials, but who perform necessary tasks such as clerical work, maintenance, running cafeteria, bus driving and the like. Schools are eliminating substantial numbers of those employees as well. Continue reading

20 Arrested In Needles Raids

NEEDLES—The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department, utilizing officers drawn primarily from its Colorado River Station and its Inter-Regional Narcotics Enforcement Team, assisted by the San Bernardino County Probation Department, arrested 20 Needles residents during a series of search and arrest warrant executions throughout the 31.08-square mile city on March 7.
The joint operation utilized 33 law enforcement personnel divided into three teams, which executed ten search warrants. The 20 subjects – eleven men and nine women – taken into custody were arrested for various crimes, including maintaining a residence for the use of narcotics, possession of narcotics, possession of stolen property, active felony warrants, and possession of manufacturing equipment to make fraudulent credit cards.
“This operation was conducted to combat the ongoing battle of violent crimes occurring in the city, coupled with the sales, distribution, and use of fentanyl, which is a known narcotic that is consuming lives daily in our community,” according to the sheriff’s department. Continue reading

United Parcel Service Eliminates An Entire Shift – 333 Employees – At Ontario Airport

United Parcel Service will lay off 333 of its workers now employed at its Ontario International Air Hub a little over five weeks from now, the Sentinel has learned.
Rumors to the effect that the cargo handler was going to engage in some downsizing locally had begun to spread in February, after dire developments and announcements in late January. Confirmation of that came in a notice the company made to the California Employment Development Department on March 6.
According to information available to the Sentinel, the action that United Parcel Service will take extends to the total elimination of a single shift at the hub.
“We often evaluate our operations and flex our network to meet volume demands,” United Parcel Services announced on March 13. “This allows us to continue delivering industry-leading service while also maintaining competitive prices.”
While many sectors of the U.S. and international economy suffered during the COVID pandemic that hammered society beginning in March of 2020, cargo transport and both internet sale/telephone sale delivery of products increased, an economic reality that was reflected locally. Continue reading

San Bernardino Settles Lawsuit Over Gun-Toting Man Shot At The Scene Of His Previous Robbery Arrest

The City of San Bernardino has announced that an agreement has been reached to settle for $4 million a $100 million lawsuit stemming from a 2022 officer involved shooting, filed by the estate of Rob Marquise Adams.
“San Bernardino agreed to the settlement recognizing the costs and attorneys’ fees to take a federal civil rights case to trial, as well as the risks associated with a civil jury, given the current climate in the courts,” said attorney Steven Rothans, who represented the city with regard to the matter.
The incident in question occurred on July 16, at which time Adams was apparently on the prowl in the back parking lot shared by several commercial establishments, including an illegal online gambling business located in the 400 block of West Highland Street as well as Golden State Medical & Oxygen Service at 424 West Highland Avenue, one of an abundance of areas in San Bernardino where illegal activity proliferates. That parking lot is a locale at which a concentration of vice activity, including drug dealing and pimping, is known to take place. Continue reading