Archive By Author - Jim Holt
Experts describe wounding of lifeless little girl
SAN FERNANDO - A veteran emergency room physician said Friday he had never seen a patient injured as badly as tiny 5-year-old Desarie Elizabeth Saravia when she arrived lifeless at Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital one afternoon in 2004.
Tragic details unfold through pictures
SAN FERNANDO - A crayon drawing done by a badly beaten boy three days after his 5-year-old sister was savagely beaten to death in a Castaic park bathroom gave jurors a glimpse into the children's shared suffering Thursday as a murder trial continued. On Nov. 15, 2004, Brian Saravia, then 6, remained silent when a doctor specializing in cases of child abuse asked him a few questions at the University of California Los Angeles ...
Meadows works out with the best of ’em
Having exercised with students almost every other day for a month, teachers at Meadows Elementary School will have little problem jumping for joy today when they learn their school is a finalist in a statewide challenge to keep kids fit.
Reliving Desarie’s final moments
SAN FERNANDO - Two Castaic women described in court Wednesday what happened the day a lifeless, naked young girl ended up on their quiet suburban street.
High cost of salt wars
The victor of a water war over chloride levels in the Santa Clara River, pitting upstream suburbanites against downstream farmers, could be determined with the flourish of a pen on two emerging fronts this summer, The Signal has learned following a month-long investigation.
Downstreamers’ plight
VENTURA COUNTY - As he makes his way through a furrow that cuts one strawberry mound from the next, his steps are slow and sure, one dusty boot in front of the other.
SCV pays to pass the salt
Snow melting atop mountains in Plumas County, some 480 miles from the Santa Clarita Valley, is as clean as state legislators demand in their Porter-Cologne Act of 1969, and it's as clean as the Feds demand in their Clean Water Act of 1972.
Of woolly mammoths and farming
As the glaciers melted about 10,000 years ago, torrents of freshly melted ice and snow were sent rushing down the Santa Clarita Valley.
Man charged with assault on woman
A woman is conscious but suffering serious head injuries today after a man allegedly hit her in the face, causing her to fall and strike her head on the pavement.
Lines drawn in salty river
You and three friends sit down for lunch at a Santa Clarita Valley restaurant, and each of you orders the soup of the day.
Jets, comets, mystery
It's been about one month since the heavens over Santa Clarita opened up with a roar and revealed - something. It's still not absolutely clear what caused such a commotion at about 8:30 p.m. May 4. Initial reports referred to a "jet doing doughnuts," according to a complaint filed with Edwards Air Force Base, and to "two jets" according to several e-mails to The Signal. After a month of probing, the skies over Santa Clarita ...
Medic: ‘I did all I could’ for fallen Pfc. Suter
A U.S. Navy medic assigned to the same U.S. Marine Corps division as the late Pfc. Jake William Suter says he did all he could to help the local hero the day he died.
NEW PHOTOS: Loved and lost: Community supports fallen Marine
While parents of a young soldier killed in Afghanistan wait to learn how he died, a community has provided them one irrefutable reminder - their son was loved.
CHP reports rise in arrests
California Highway Patrol officers arrested twice as many people in Santa Clarita for drunk driving this Memorial Day weekend compared to those arrested during last year's long weekend. In Santa Clarita, the CHP logged 28 alcohol-related arrests this past weekend as opposed to 17 the same time last year. "I think the best thing about these numbers is that it's bad there were more drunks on the road, however, we're getting them off the road," ...
UPDATED: Vigil set for fallen Marine
The outpouring of love for fallen United States Marine Corps Pfc. Jake William Suter is expected to spill out on to the Stevenson Ranch street he lived on tonight during a candlelight vigil in his honor.
Articles By Author - Jim Holt
UPDATE: Valencia: Sheriff’s deputies chase, capture suspected vandal
A suspected graffiti vandal was detained at gunpoint today after a brief foot chase in Valencia, a sheriff's spokesman said.
Valencia: One injured in collision of motorcycle and car
One person was taken to the hospital with undisclosed injuries Thursday following a traffic collision involving a motorcycle and a car in Valencia, a Sheriff's Department spokeswoman said.
UPDATE: Suspected ‘blond scammer’ taken into custody by Ventura deputies
SAN FERNANDO - A woman suspected of being the "blond scammer" - who stalked other women at grocery stores, stealing their wallets and then using their IDs to obtain cash or expensive jewelry - appeared briefly in court today only to be arrested by Ventura County sheriff's deputies, a bailiff said.
Stevenson Ranch: 5 ID theft suspects make court appearance Wednesday
Five people suspected of identity theft after being arrested at a Stevenson Ranch hotel this week made a court appearance Wednesday and were scheduled to be arraigned next month.
Saugus man gets probation in online dating thefts
A Saugus man charged with three felonies for stealing from local women he romanced online received a suspended sentence and three years' probation this week after pleading no contest to the charges.
Resolution possible for Valencia pair charged with possessing illegal weapon
SAN FERNANDO - The lawyer representing a young Valencia man who made national news last fall for allegedly posting online comments about hurting children told a San Fernando Superior Court commissioner Wednesday he anticipates a "possible resolution" in the case.
5 due in court Wednesday on ID theft charges
Five people arrested at a Stevenson Ranch hotel Monday are expected to appear in court Wednesday on felony identity theft charges, a local sheriff's spokesman said.
UPDATE: Canyon Country: One taken to hospital following fight near fast-food restaurant
A man was taken to the hospital today following a fist fight near the McDonalds Restaurant on Soledad Canyon Road in Canyon Country, emergency response officials said.
UPDATE: Admitted Stevenson Ranch rapist sentenced to 43 years to life
SAN FERNANDO - A 19-year-old man who admitted to a brutal rape last year, then tried to withdraw his admission, was sentenced to 43 years to life in prison Monday after a judge said he couldn't change his mind about the plea.
Newhall: Man arrested on suspicion of van theft
Sheriff's deputies arrested a man in Newhall this morning on suspicion he stole a van, a sheriff's spokesman said.
UPDATE: Acton crash survivor listed in good condition
A 9-year-old girl who survived a vehicle crash that killed her father in Acton is expected to be released from the hospital Tuesday, a California Highway Patrol official said Monday.
All for the competition
More than 160 young people on their way to becoming police officers competed in a series of challenges Sunday similar to what law enforcement officers experience day to day.
UPDATE: Attempted homicide charge filed in bar beating
A Castaic man was charged with attempted murder after he allegedly beat another man in a Sunland bar Monday night, using a "mini baseball bat," officials said Thursday.
Alleged gang members to stand trial for Canyon Country bank robbery
SAN FERNANDO - Three men identified by prosecutors as Rollin 40s Crips gang members were ordered to stand trial Wednesday for a take-over bank robbery in Canyon Country last September.
Valencia woman faces felony charge in hit-and-run
A Valencia woman faces a felony hit-and-run charge today for allegedly hitting a bicyclist in Newhall on Friday, then leaving the scene, court papers show.
