Archive By Author - Jim Holt
In remembrance of their sacrifice
From the tragic minutes that unfolded nine years ago on Sept. 11 to the tragic minutes that recently claimed the life of a local, young United States Marine Corps hero, first responders to the terrorist attacks and our latest responders were remembered Saturday.
No fine lines for water board
Water-law enforcers have hit the Santa Clarita Valley with some of the largest fines in Southern California during the past few years, including a half-million-dollar fine against the city and close to a million dollars in penalties against Six Flags, The Signal has recently learned.
Water board levies four more fines
A nonprofit marine institute devoted to understanding and minimizing human impact on oceans is among the latest agencies to be fined by the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board for polluting water.
Smyth to float bill
Santa Clarita Valley Assemblyman Cameron Smyth wants the regional water boards that issue "devastating fines" against small towns to be more accountable to the public and is calling on an oversight body to see that it happens.
The faces behind the fines
Santa Clarita Valley has a chance to control its own water destiny this fall when most of the seats on the ruling water board come up for grabs.
Crashed and burned
An explosive, fiery crash shut down Highway 14 for hours and sent a truck driver to the hospital Wednesday after his big rig, which was hauling several cars, reportedly collided with a parked Caltrans truck north of Sand Canyon Road, authorities said. The driver, whose name has not yet been released, was taken to Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital with undetermined injuries. The driver was conscious and moving after the crash, according to motorists stopped ...
No silver bullet for salt
After talking to farmers, water officials, engineers, scientists and city officials from the San Joaquin Delta to the Pacific Ocean, a monthlong investigation by The Signal into chloride in the Santa Clara River and those who enforce a clean water balance comes down to one simple observation: We're adding too much salt to our state.
Salt-of-the-earth solution
DIXON - If you take Interstate 80 from Oakland to Sacramento, you'll pass near the tiny farming town of Dixon.
High cost of compliance
FILLMORE – Never has the Santa Clara River been filtered so vigorously, so urgently and at such great cost to tiny towns as it has in the last two years.
SCV challenges water cops
At a raucous public hearing in July, Santa Clarita Valley residents made it clear they have no intention of shelling out $210 million from their own pockets so farmers downstream can raise salt-sensitive crops in the Santa Clara River Valley.
Patented rides
A Santa Clarita man has reinvented the wheel - and put a bicycle seat on it. Local inventor Doug Fraser now holds the U.S. patent for a bicycle in which the seat is directly attached to the back wheel. For more than 30 years, Fraser has pursued his vision of perfecting a revolutionary new style of bike that's more than a unicycle, but less than a conventional bike. "I got little boys knocking on my ...
‘Fair and firm’ cash grab
You might call them the water police. Their beat runs from storm water runoff to overt dumping and extends throughout California. Their staff of 12 is evenly split between scientists and Special Investigations team members, their cases made and culprits exposed through lab work. While they carry no firearms, the sting of their punishment - including millions of dollars in fines - has proven so punitive and persistent that it's prompted some cities to band ...
Hate-crime handling questioned
The Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff's Station is one of two Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department stations singled out as lacking in the way it investigates hate crimes, according to a county report examining stations throughout Los Angeles County.
Ex-deputy sentenced on drug charge
An "aggressive" undercover probe by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department led to the arrest, conviction and sentencing of three people, including a former sheriff's deputy, trying to smuggle drugs into the North County Correctional Facility, a spokesman says.
Coastal domination
The board that decides the issue of chloride in the Santa Clara River includes two advocates of Ventura County strawberry farmers.
Articles By Author - Jim Holt
Newhall woman found guilty of second-degree murder
An Arizona jury has found a Newhall woman guilty on all criminal counts including two counts of second-degree murder in connection with a fatal 2011 crash near the Arizona state line that claimed the lives of two children, a court official said.
Water is topic at VIA lunch
More than 120 of the Santa Clarita Valley's movers and shakers learned about the importance of water Tuesday during a luncheon of the Valley Industry Association of Santa Clarita.
Prosecutors wrap up case against Newhall woman charged with murder
Arizona prosecutors have wrapped up their case against a Newhall woman charged with two counts of second-degree murder for allegedly killing two children with her car near the Arizona state line in 2011, a court official said.
Indictment says street racers drove more than 100 mph
Two men identified as street racers charged with murder in connection with a fatal crash that claimed the life of their friend a year ago allegedly drove more than 100 miles an hour, on the wrong side of the road and made unsafe lane changes during their alleged "speed contest," according to details of the grand jury indictment filed against them.
UPDATE: LAPD officer charged with child molestation pleads not guilty
An officer with the Los Angeles Police Department pleaded not guilty in court Tuesday to charges he molested two young girls he allegedly lured to his Castaic home on Saturday, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office.
Luncheon shows attendees importance of water
More than 120 of the Santa Clarita Valley's movers and shakers learned about the importance of water Tuesday during a luncheon at the Valley Industry Association of Santa Clarita.
Local homicide suspect arraigned in court
A Canyon Country man accused of killing his father Thursday was arraigned in court Monday on the felony charge of murder, court papers show.
Torch run for fallen officers
Close to three dozen local sheriff's deputies walked and cycled in honor of their fallen fellow officers Saturday.
Gorman fire is out
A brush fire burning near Gorman swelled to 10 acres from 2 acres in less than an hour Monday, an emergency response official said.
Body of Jane Doe found last month identified
Investigators with the Los Angeles County Coroner's office believe they've identified the woman whose body was found wrapped in a tarp and dumped at the side of San Francisquito Canyon Road last month, a coroner's spokesman said.
Men identified as street racers headed for trial
Two men identified as street racers charged with murder in connection with a fatal crash that claimed the life of their friend a year ago are going straight to trial without a preliminary hearing following a grand jury indictment in the case, a spokeswoman for prosecutors said.
One injured in multi-vehicle crash in Newhall
One person was injured and taken to the hospital following a four-vehicle traffic collision in Newhall Monday afternoon, officials said.
Ten acre fire quickly knocked down near Gorman
A brush fire burning near Gorman swelled to 10 acres from 2 acres in less than an hour Monday, an emergency response official said.
Kids walk for arthritis awareness
More than 1,000 people turned out for the annual Arthritis Walk at Six Flags Magic Mountain Sunday morning, many of them children.
Four-car crash causes traffic delays in Newhall
A multi-vehicle crash in Newhall stalled southbound traffic on Railroad Avenue Sunday afternoon, officials said.
