Local News

Max Rodriguez Named Grand Marshal of 2019 Old Timers’ Day Parade

MADERA – Madera Sunrise Rotary in collaboration with the Madera Downtown Association has selected Max Rodriguez as this year’s Grand Marshal for the 88th Annual Old Timers’ Day Parade. Rodriguez is a lifetime resident of Madera and four-term Supervisor representing Madera County’s 4th District which primarily encompasses the east-side of the City of Madera and the unincorporated communities of Parkwood and Parksdale.

“I feel very humbled and honored to have been selected by the committee for this prestigious honor,” Rodriguez said. “But more importantly, I’m just glad to see the Old Timers’ Day Parade and the tradition continues thanks to good people of Madera Sunrise Rotary and Madera Downtown Association.”

Former MC Supervisor Gordon Kennedy Appointed to Fill Vacant MUSD Trustee Position

MADERA - The Madera Unified School District Board of Trustee’s appointed former Madera County Supervisor J. Gordon Kennedy to fill the Board vacancy created by the resignation of Trustee Ricardo Arredondo Tuesday evening. Trustee Arredondo’s resignation was filed with the Madera County Superintendent of Schools on August 2, 2019, and was effective on that date.

Mr. Kennedy will hold office until the next regularly scheduled election for District board members, which will occur on November 3, 2020. The newly appointed trustee said he would only serve in the interim and would most likely not run for office in 2020.

California Senate Votes to Block Face Recognition on Police Body Cameras

SACRAMENTO – Today, the California Senate passed AB 1215: The Body Camera Accountability Act, legislation to block law enforcement agencies from using facial recognition surveillance against Californians on officer-worn body cameras. Introduced by Assemblymember Phil Ting (D-San Francisco), AB 1215 passed the Senate just weeks after the ACLU released test results showing that facial recognition software incorrectly “matched” 26 California state lawmakers with mugshot photos from an arrestee database.

“Face-scanning police body cameras have no place on our streets, where they can be used for dragnet surveillance of Californians, our locations, and our personal associations,” said Matt Cagle, Technology and Civil Liberties Attorney for the ACLU of Northern California. “AB 1215 helps ensure Californians don’t become test subjects for an invasive and dangerous tracking technology that undermines our most fundamental civil liberties and human rights.”

Kern Valley State Prison Investigating Inmate Death as a Homicide

DELANO – Kern Valley State Prison (KVSP) officials are investigating the death of an inmate as a homicide. At approximately 10:30 a.m. on Sunday, Sept. 8, staff observed two inmates attacking a third inmate on the Facility D middle yard. Officers ordered the inmates to stop but the men continued their assault.

Less-than-lethal force options were used to stop the attack. Staff immediately performed CPR on Enrique Hernandez and transported him to a medical unit inside the prison. He was pronounced deceased at 11:13 a.m.

Guatemalan Man Charged with Marijuana Cultivation Operation in National Forest in Tulare County

FRESNO - A federal grand jury returned a four-count indictment today against Oscar Alfredo Castanaza-Ortega, 34, of Guatemala, charging him with conspiring to manufacture, distribute, and possess with intent to distribute marijuana, manufacturing marijuana, damaging public lands and natural resources, and possessing a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, law enforcement officers located 2,864 marijuana plants in the Twin Springs area of the Sequoia National Forest in Tulare County. Castanaza was found in the grow site with a loaded .38-caliber firearm and a box of .38-caliber ammunition.