Tag archives: law enforcement
The permits have been filed, and installation is on the way. Montecito will host four new Flock Automated License Plate Readers. We first covered this in September of 2022, when the sheriffs came to our Montecito Association Board meeting to show us the new readers, and request help from our community with placing them. These […]
Few and far between are folks who are not familiar with the Miranda warnings, the ones that police have to read to criminal suspects that remind them of their right to be represented by an attorney and to refuse to answer questions at all. Far fewer are the people who know anything at all about […]
The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office will install automated license plate readers to aid in law enforcement investigations as part of a one-year trial. The trial is part of the National Policing Institute’s Automated License Plate Reader (ALPR) study. ALPRs are helpful in crimes where a vehicle was used. The purpose of the study is […]
Two years ago, on July 28, 2020, The Santa Barbara Independent published my article “An Unfair and Forced Choice: Objections to Cannabis Retail at Santa Claus Lane.” There I explained that the decision to place a cannabis retail outlet in either Summerland or Santa Claus Lane was forced because the county arbitrarily insists there must […]
The annual Fun with the Force is more than just another fundraiser. It is an opportunity to support the men and women who risk their lives for the communities they serve every day. Money raised at this year’s event goes directly to the rapidly expanding 911 At Ease International (911 AEI), a nonprofit that offers […]
Senior Moments Congratulations on the new column, Senior Portrait. Just read the wonderful article on Peter van Duinwyck, whom I knew years ago from our Montecito Association Board. He certainly made big contributions to the success there and to all his other involvements, then and now. Sure miss our “good old days” and look forward […]
Many in Montecito are conflicted. The senseless killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis has jarred 100 percent of us into re-examining the fight for equal rights and justice under the law. Unfortunately, while our country attempts to come together in its search for racial justice, a highly visible minority of violent rioters and anarchists has […]
Happy 4th of July Even though COVID means we are unable to celebrate the 4th of July at the traditional firehouse pancake breakfast, we can still stop by this month and donate the price of our meal tickets to show our support for the firefighters and staff who keep our community safe. Our family and […]
I’m confused. Prior to May 25, law enforcement officers, along with firefighters, doctors and nurses, were celebrated as America’s heroes for showing up as first responders when other workers were told to shelter-in-place. What has happened to unleash a flood of angry protestors with signs that read “Eat the rich. Hang Bankers”; “F*** Capitalism”; and […]
A sea of blue swept over, Bella Vista, the Summerland estate of hotelier Pat Nesbitt and his wife, Ursula, when they hosted the fifth annual Fun with the Force with a record 900 guests raising around $300,000 for the ten-year-old Santa Barbara Police Foundation. The popular organization provides financial support for injured and ill police […]
While it promises to be a good time, the 5th annual Fun with the Force event is also expected to save lives. “It is a fun event, but it’s not your typical fundraiser,” said the event chair, Jim Nigro. The party, including dozens of top named local restaurants and vineyards, and a performance by Kenny […]
A special demonstration took place recently on the steps of the building at 1187 Coast Village Road. On hand to demonstrate the abilities of a 36″x18″x10″ Vantage tactical robot developed and produced by Transcend Tactical Vantage Robot – was Juan Camarena, a SWAT Lieutenant and Commander of the Isla Vista Foot Patrol Station. The robot […]
The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office has lost its first and only female K-9 to work for our agency. Retired K-9 Betti passed away September 14 at age 14 due to health complications from old age. Betti, whose full name is Betti Blue Van Haus Pe-ja, worked for the Sheriff’s Office for eight years before […]
Earlier this week, travelers driving along southbound Highway 101 at night and in the early-morning hours were detoured off the freeway along Coast Village Road, as Caltrans began a four-month project to replace the bridge rails on the 101 overcrossing at Olive Mill Road. Full overnight closures are expected through the end of the week, […]
The Sheriff’s Office has released the name of the decedent who was fatally injured on July 19, when he was struck by a northbound Amtrak passenger train east of Olive Mill Road in Montecito. The decedent is 50-year-old Rogelio Perez of Santa Barbara. Next of kin has been notified, and his death is being ruled […]
Late on the night of Wednesday, July 18, and into Thursday, July 19, Montecito residents were on edge as Santa Barbara Sheriff’s deputies searched for – and ultimately arrested – three suspects wanted for residential burglary. The incident began Just before 10:30 pm on July 18; the Santa Barbara County Public Safety Dispatch Center received […]
Sheriff’s deputies assigned to the Coastal Division have made several arrests the past week on a case involving a number of residential burglaries and auto thefts in the Carpinteria area. Sheriff’s deputies arrested two suspects on June 24, at an illegal camping area in Carpinteria and located items stolen from several residences in the region. […]
Sometimes it takes a village. That point was well demonstrated three weeks ago, when dozens of Montecito residents – mostly strangers to each other – gathered at a community roundtable to share what they’d learned so far from the Thomas Fire and Debris Flow insurance claim experience. There was some initial trepidation the group might […]
(Information provided by the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department) Sunday, 3 June 2018, 9 am – A homeowner in Montecito called 911 after finding a 17-year-old male inside of her home, which is located in the 300-block of Woodley Road in Montecito. The homeowner found the juvenile, whom she did not know, using a computer […]
Brian Thielst is the newly appointed lieutenant, overseeing all law enforcement operations in Montecito. Lieutenant Thielst has an impressive history with the Santa Barbara Sheriff’s Department, where he started as a deputy in 1986. Since that time his experience with the department includes service as a senior deputy, mountain patrol deputy, sergeant, member of the […]
