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MADERA - Madera County elected it’s third female supervisor in the county’s 126 years history yesterday. Leticia Gonzelaz, the chief of staff for current district four supervisor Max Rodriguez, was a head all evening and right now sits with a two to one lead of her closest opponent Ric Arredondo with 25.19% of the votes counted.

Both Gonzlaez and Arredondo moved into District Four from Madera County’s District Three to run for this seat. Arredondo also resigned his seat on the Madera Unified Board of Trustees.  In District Three, incumbent Supervisor Robert Poythress ran unopposed and scored over 3500 votes, more votes that all of the candidates in District Four received. 

FRESNO -  On Feb. 20, a federal grand jury returned an eight-count indictment against Heather Christiansen Stanley, 47, of Bakersfield, charging her with five counts of wire fraud, two counts of mail fraud, and one count of attempt to evade and defeat the assessment of a tax, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced. The indictment was unsealed following Stanley’s arraignment on Wednesday.

According to court documents, Stanley, a divorce attorney in Bakersfield, represented to her clients that she could hold funds for them in a bank account for safekeeping during the pendency of their divorce proceedings. These monies were her clients’ funds and were not owed to Stanley for legal fees or otherwise.

FRESNO -  On Friday, Feb. 21, Justin Deger, 28, of Fresno, pleaded guilty to two counts of access device fraud and one count of possession of stolen mail, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced. According to the plea agreement, from Dec. 5, 2018, through March 28, 2019, Deger broke into mailboxes at various Fresno area residences.

He stole over 2,000 pieces of mail, including 26 credit cards or account access devices. He subsequently activated some of those devices and made unauthorized purchases and cash withdrawals at retailers and casinos totaling thousands of dollars. As part of the plea agreement, Deger agreed to pay full restitution to the victims and forfeiture.

VACAVILLE – Inmate Roy Lewis Norris, 72, died of natural causes at 8:40 p.m. on Monday, February 24, 2020, at California Medical Facility.  Norris had been serving a 45-year-to-life sentence from Los Angeles County for four counts of first-degree murder, one count of second-degree murder, two counts of forcible rape, and robbery.

Between June 24 and Nov. 20, 1979, Norris and his crime partner Lawrence Sigmond Bittaker, kidnapped, raped, tortured and murdered five teenage girls. Norris was on parole at the time after serving time for a conviction from San Diego County for assault with a deadly weapon and rape.

MADERA  -  On September 7, 2018, at approximately 10:43 a.m., Sasha Marie Watson was driving a vehicle with passengers including her mother, Heidi Lynn Vanzeyl, and two minor children. While driving westbound on SR-145, the defendant drove into the oncoming lane of traffic to pass another vehicle.

She attempted to pass a second vehicle while remaining in the oncoming lane of traffic as the center dividing line changed to a double-yellow line. As the defendant crested the top of a hill, she collided with a vehicle being properly driven eastbound by Karrie Lynn Petersen. Ms. Petersen and Ms. Vanzeyl were killed in the crash. The two minor passengers and the defendant were all injured by the crash.

MADERA - A Madera County jury convicted Amy Chavoya last week of first degree murder of her adopted daughter, Mariah, as well as torture of Mariah and her brother Christopher. She faces life in the state prison as a result of her convictions.

The defendant was charged with five counts: first degree murder of Mariah, torture of Mariah, torture of her brother Christopher, as well as two counts of felony child abuse. The abuse and torture of Christopher occurred between July 1, 2010 and March 25, 2015. The abuse and torture of Mariah occurred between July 1, 2010 and October 10, 2014, the day that the defendant murdered her.