News

Manfredi Report on Water Rates Released to Madera City Council

MADERA - The following is provided to complement and offer additional background regarding the Saturday, April 7, 2018 headline of the Madera Tribune: “Water rates should stay high (Manfredi says years of low rates have created problems)”. Because I understand that sometimes deadlines and limited space constrains the press from providing extensive reporting on complex matter, I am providing addition details included in my Wednesday, April 4th City Council presentation.

Because the impetus for my review was partially initiated as the result of criticism of City of Madera’s Water Rates and related complaints that total Management & Administrative Overhead “Cost Allocation” to Enterprise Funds such as Water Rates were excessive, my review focused on the actual categories or “cost centers” that constitute the City’s Total Water Services Cost Expenditures.

Seven Kings County & Tennessee Residents Indicted for Firearms Trafficking Conspiracy

FRESNO - A federal grand jury returned an indictment today charging seven Tennessee and California residents with various firearms offenses, including conspiracy to traffic in firearms by an unlicensed person, illegal transportation of firearms, and being a felon in possession of firearms, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced. None of the defendants is licensed to deal or import firearms.

Rafael Sanchez Jr., 38, of Kettleman City, Califorinia, is charged with one count of conspiracy to traffic in firearms by an unlicensed person, three counts of illegal transportation of firearms and three counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Former U.S. Bureau of Prisons Employee Sentenced to over 11 Years in Prison for Sex Trafficking

SACRAMENTO - Charles Carstersen, 55, of Manteca, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Garland E. Burrell Jr. to 11 years and three months in prison to be followed by 10 years of supervised release, for sex trafficking a minor, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced. According to court documents, beginning in April 2014, while employed as an information technology technician at the Bureau of Prisons, Carstersen met the 16-year-old victim and engaged in sex acts with her for money.

Between February and March 2015, knowing the victim was underage, he pursued a romantic relationship with her and encouraged her to participate in prostitution, renting hotel rooms for her in the Sacramento area and helping her to post online prostitution advertisements. He also encouraged her to engage in prostitution with two other females that he knew.

Mendocino County Woman Pleads Guilty to Sex Trafficking of a Minor

SACRAMENTO - Monica Merlin Morales, 26, of Point Arena, pleaded guilty this week to sex trafficking of a minor, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced. According to court documents, Morales and co-defendant Tion Makeise Foster, also of Point Arena, transported a 16-year-old girl to various places in the Eastern District of California and the San Francisco Bay Area in August 2016 so that she could engage in commercial sex acts for their financial benefit.

Court documents indicate that Morales and Foster picked up the victim in her hometown after meeting her online. They bought her lingerie, took photos of her, and posted the photos in online prostitution advertisements. The victim did several “dates” during the week she was with the defendants. Morales and Foster ultimately returned to her hometown, but both they subsequently conspired to traffic the victim again in November and December that same year.

Ten Years of Hands Free Law The Challenge Remains: Put Your Phone Down. Just Drive!

FRESNO - Drivers are using their cell phones less often while driving, 10 years after “hands-free” became the law, but distracted driving remains a serious safety challenge in California. Observing April as Distracted Driving Awareness Month and the first week in April as California Teen Safe Driving Week, safety advocates will focus on education and enforcement efforts statewide.

The Fresno Police Department has join law enforcement throughout the state to step up enforcement along with awareness efforts by the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) to discourage distracted driving. Officers will have a special emphasis this month on enforcing all cell phone and distracted driving laws. The goal is to increase voluntary compliance by drivers, but sometimes citations are necessary for motorists to better understand the importance of driving distractions.

California Man Pleads Guilty to Trafficking in Counterfeit Sports Apparel

SACRAMENTO - A Mountain House, California man pleaded guilty today in Sacramento for trafficking in counterfeit sports apparel. Acting Assistant Attorney General John P. Cronan of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Special Agent in Charge Sean Ragan of the FBI’s Sacramento Field Office and Sheriff Scott Jones of the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department made the announcement.

Seyyed Ali Noori, 50, pleaded guilty to two counts of trafficking in counterfeit goods before U.S. District Judge Garland E. Burrell Jr. of the Eastern District of California. Noori was indicted by a federal grand jury on Jan. 14, 2016, and will be sentenced on June 15.

California Communities Resist State's Sanctuary Law

SANTA BARBARA - Orange County, California, supervisors voted this week to join the federal lawsuit against California's sanctuary state legislation that prohibits law enforcement from cooperating with federal immigration enforcement officers. Other communities have also pledged resistance to SB 54 signed by Gov. Jerry Brown in October.

"Community leaders understand that law enforcement officers at all levels – local, state and federal – need to work together," said Toby Nicole White of Californians for Population Stabilization (CAPS). "Failure to cooperate means that criminals will go free and innocent victims will suffer. We applaud the communities in California that are taking a stand against poor policies that put Californians and many others, from across the country and around the world, who come to the state for business and fun at risk."