Visalia, California - Nicholas Bozick of Mecca, California was unanimously re-elected to a fifth term as Chairman of the Board of Sunkist Growers following the citrus cooperative's 116th annual meeting in Visalia, California on February 17. Bozick is President of Richard Bagdasarian, Inc., a family run multi-commodity produce, growing packing and shipping business in the Coachella Valley. In addition to citrus, the company also handles table grapes and vegetables. He has served on the board of directors of both Sunkist and Fruit Growers Supply Company, a manufacturing and supply cooperative affiliate of Sunkist. Bozick is a former chairman of the California Grape and Tree Fruit League, having served on that organization's executive committee for eight years and on the board for close to 20 years.

Re-elected Vice Chairmen for 2009 are Craig Armstrong of Palm Desert, California; Gerald Denni of Strathmore, California, and James Finch of Ojai, California.

Armstrong was elected to the Sunkist board CONTINUED »

Visalia, California - “Sunkist’s experience in managing through difficult times helped turn what could have been a very bad year, into a relatively good one,” Sunkist’s Board Chairman Nick Bozick told the growers and guests at Sunkist Growers 116th annual meeting in Visalia. He credited hard work, strategic planning, and discipline with rewarding Sunkist growers with some of the highest returns per acre generated in the industry this past year.

“The marketplace in which we operate today,” said Sunkist President and CEO Russ Hanlin “is far different than that of even a decade ago. However, despite the dramatic changes – the consolidation of buyers and the growing amount of competition – the challenges that citrus growers faced are very similar to those that prompted the creation of Sunkist in 1893. By consolidating marketing strength, we are able to secure the best returns possible. That was true in 1893 and it is true in 2010.

“Sunkist’s success, and the success we help CONTINUED »

Senator Feinstein has proposed a balanced amendment that would modify water pumping restrictions in California. These federal restrictions on water supply, imposed under the Endangered Species Act, have fallowed hundreds of thousands of acres of productive farmland and crippled agricultural communities. Senator Feinstein’s amendment does not suspend the Endangered Species Act, but provides temporary relief to these communities while long-term solutions to the state’s broken water system are being worked out. Her amendment promotes the co-equal goals of balancing ecosystem needs and water supply needs.

Senator Feinstein’s Amendment Will Create Thousands of New Jobs. Federal restrictions on water supply have fallowed hundreds of thousands of acres of productive farmlands and devastated agricultural communities. Senator Feinstein’s amendment has the potential to save more than one million acre-feet of water. For farmers within the Central Valley Project, who otherwise would get virtually no water, it would provide enough water to restore production on 288,000 acres of fresh fruits and vegetables. According to experts at the University of California, Davis, a conservative estimate of the farm labor jobs that this much new agricultural production would yield is 7,200 jobs. These workers would come from small, rural communities, many of which are suffering unemployment rates of nearly 40 percent.

How Much Water Are We Losing? The federal restrictions CONTINUED »

FRESNO, Calif. -- Farmers last week were celebrating a reprieve from water pumping restrictions in California's Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. Five days later, it's over.

A federal judge Wednesday rejected an emergency request by water districts representing cities and San Joaquin Valley farmers to delay a new set of pumping restrictions in the delta.

U.S. District Judge Oliver W. Wanger's ruling means... http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/news/photos/story/1009289.html

MIKE CHRISMAN looks out from his SUV as he drives through seemingly endless rows of walnut trees on his property near Visalia, in central California. “I have to be optimistic, I’m so tied to this land,” he says. His great-grandfather, after trying his luck in the Gold Rush, settled in Visalia in the 1850s, and the family has been there ever since. But as California’s secretary for natural resources—a job at the intersection of the environmental and farming lobbies, perennially at loggerheads over the state’s scarcest resource, water—Mr Chrisman also knows that optimism has become a minority view.

His land is in California’s Central Valley, a region that covers... http://www.economist.com/world/united-states/displaystory.cfm?story_id=1...

Over 400 ranchers, farmers, nurseries, packing/supply houses and oil field sites all watching out for one another...

Crooks strike at all Hours:
8 P.M Attempt Theft of Avocados - Foothill Rd @ N. Kimball Rd, Ventura - The foreman at the ranch reported that he found stacks of avocados freshly picked in piles, clearly ready for someone to come back and pick up. Deputies responded and investigated. Major Crimes Detective Ray Dominguez was notified of the attempt theft and we sent out our C.S.I to process the scene for evidence.

C.S.I is more than Television Show:
Sheriff Brooks and all of us at the Sheriff’s Department are real proud of our C.S.I Unit. They are highly skilled at solving the nearly unsolvable, from homicides to Ag-Theft. C.S.I responds to crime scenes 24 hours a day. Your responding deputies are trained to process the scenes for fingerprints, tire tracks and such and in addition we bring out C.S.I when we have DNA evidence (yes.. even in Ag Theft), remnant blood trails from crooks and other fragile evidence. These “behind-the-scenes” Sheriff’s Scientist have solved many rural crimes.

The Orange Theft Suspect Caught:
On 01/27/2010, Deputy Gabe Gonzales was driving on CONTINUED »

From Sheriff's Office of Emergency Services and Sheriff's Search and Rescue:
Good morning Farm Watch.
Time to prep those culverts on the ranch. I know I have put off some of that work, but it is a perfect chore for Saturday.

It appears we're going to be on the receiving end of a series of storms with some significant rainfall totals. The forecast is also calling for some thunderstorm activity, high winds, and increased swell heights (again).

Due to expected rain next week, we want to remind Farm Watch that the Sheriff's Department has 3,000 sandbags filled and ready for emergency pick up on a 24/7 basis at the Todd Road Jail. Government agencies and the public are welcome.

If you have a flood emergency call 911. You can also pick up sand bags at your nearest fire station and or Todd Road. Jail. If you go to Todd Road, you will be given further instructions via intercoms at the gate or public lobby entrance.

Commander Morris reports that In the event more sandbags are needed, we have inmate crews available to fill up to 10,000 additional bags.

UPDATE:
For our area, the weather events will begin Sunday late afternoon/evening, and last through Monday. This first storm appears to be carrying about 1-2" for the coast,and 2-4" for the mountains. Snow levels could drop to around 4000 feet Monday night, and the offshore gales will produce high swells ans surf along the coast. Some of the rainfall rates could approach 1"/hour during thunderstorms.

Tuesday night, another 1-2" coastal, and 2-4" for the mountains, with the snow level around 5000 feet. ((his may be our "break" next week!)

Wednesday afternoon through Friday looks like another 2 impulses with the potential for thunderstorm activity bringing rainfall rates over 1"/hour for extended periods. Rainfall totals could approach 4-7" inches along the coast, and more in the mountains. Heavy snow above 6000 feet. Debris flows in the areas of the recent burns are highly possible/probable, as are small stream and urban flooding. Once again, there will be high swells and surf along the coast, however the height of tide will be lower that this week.

We are out today surveying any issues with reported homeless areas along the Santa Clara riverbed.
Farm Watch has been advised that County Fire will be staffing additional personnel and equipment during the event.

The Sheriff's Department Search and Rescue and Office of Emergency Services will monitor the situation, and advise you if we hear of any further information.
We have attached some county weather map slides in a word format from our Sheriff's Emergency Service National Weather Service briefing.

Be safe,

Tim

Welcome to our newest members. We are now joined by the S.C.E. They are vital Farm Watch eyes, as their service crews are constantly traveling our rural areas and can bring great tips for rural crime prevention and apprehension.

Farm Watch would like to thank Carol McCrone of Monterey County Sheriff's Department. We are also now linked via Farm Watch to Monterey and San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Departments. She made that link happen. Carol will keep us apprised of rural farm and ranch crime trends in our neighbor counties to the north.

Avocado Theft:
Sheriff Brooks has a zero tolerance policy on theft and the Agricultural crimes are no exception. We are happy to report that we just recently arrested Hildaldo Hermanlindo and Adrian Zavala for stealing about 228 avocados (115 lbs.) from a Santa Paula ranch. Both suspects were booked on charges of Grand theft 487(b)(1)(A) PC. This is a Farm Watch arrest. Our Farm Watch growers in the Santa Paula area have been active in prevention and reporting suspicious persons. They are responsible for this arrest.
In addition, we are using County and State ordinances to help us check for stolen agricultural commodities and search for thieves during picking seasons. Be patient if you are hauling a small quantity such as a bin or less and get asked by deputies about your proof of ownership documents. For avocados, proof is required with possession of 40 or more pounds. All other citrus is 100 pounds or more. The Agriculture Commissioner's Office can give more details of commodity documentation.

Gun Seizure:
As you may recall, we have been reporting CONTINUED »

First of all once again, a warm welcome to our newest 7 members this edition of Farm Watch. We have included you to our interactive community of public safety, farmers, ranchers, packing houses, nurseries and suppliers. A Farm Watch promise: You will never get spammed or inundated with emails.

I was so excited to write about the following "Farm Watch" caper. I thought hard for a subtitle. So here it goes.

What Does a Golf cart, two Turkeys and a Farmers trailer all have in common?

The answer is "Farm Watch." As you recall, our Ag Crimes Detectives and deputies search "Craigslist" and other media outlets looking for stolen fruit and stolen agriculture equipment being traded. Remember, it doesn't mean that every farm implement on Craigslist is stolen, just buyer beware. Do your homework. When in doubt, remember....If it appears too good to be true, it likely is..

Trailer:
About 2 weeks ago we came across and online add in Craigslist. It was posted by a Santa Paula farmer who had his ranch Ag-trailer stolen off his property. He included the license plate and D.M.V vehicle identification information (VIN).

We contacted the farmer through "Craigslist" and CONTINUED »

Good morning Ventura County Farm Watch members.
For those of you that just joined our Sheriff Department Farm Watch, be assured that you will not get bombarded with Spam or overload on newsletters.
Farm Watch is only emailed out to our 400 ranches, farms, nurseries and agricultural suppliers when we have pertinent information to share and keep our agricultural and rural community safer.
Lets get started…
Our rural thefts that were on the rise in early October have settled down. You can take a peak at the 2 page crime trend file we have attached. It is in PDF format.
You can run but not hide:
The rural areas of Santa Paula, Foothill and South Mountain Road have been plagued with increasing graffiti issues. Our deputies have been working with Santa Paula Police, local residents and the County Roads Department in an effort to apprehend the vandals. The County GSA Department is providing our Sheriff's Station with recycled paint. You may see some of our deputies out painting over graffiti in the rural areas. We make this same paint available to any farming and community groups free of charge.
Remember Deputies Gene Torres and Matt Theobold? They are two guys who can’t stand graffiti. They volunteered to catch these crooks impacting our rural areas.
On 10-25-09, they got the moniker (the name they leave behind in paint) of one of our most busy taggers "NINJA." Matt and Gene have identified him through local help and Santa Paula Police helped us arrest him the following day.
They have identified four other members of his Santa Paula "tagging krew" and arrested two others for violating their probation. We expect more arrests by Gene and Matt. Both wanted me to let you know, and I quote “These guys are our crime projects right now, keep your tips coming, we always need your help.”
What’s up Ray?
Major Crimes Detective Ray Dominguez has great farm and ranch connections across the county and region. Ray has asked for help, of all places, Monterey County which was just hit with a serious tractor theft. The farmers up there are asking that we look out for a stolen, new John Deere JD5325 4X4 Farm Tractor. The crooks may try to sell it down here for 10 cents on the dollar. Remember…if the deal seems to good to be true, it usually is. Ray can email you the color photo and Monterey Sheriff theft poster.
His email is Ray.dominguez@ventura.org
On the Oxnard Plains, Rio Mesa Farms just had a large water pump stolen. Ray is looking for any tips by farmers who may have seen suspects in the area on 10/22/2009. We have to keep an eye out for these crooks that will drive right up to a PTO or Diesel pump, hook up and drive away.
Storage Container Thefts:
Last month, I said we would talk about a lock system that may be an inexpensive supplement to our rural storage security. Typically Ag-Thieves will use bolt-cutters to break into your farm or ranch sheds and/or your shipping container type storage.
We found a new lock system for under $100 that will help deter this type of theft. You can order them at any reliable locksmith. The lock and attachment are resistant to bolt cutters. The lock “plugs” into the hasp and there is no room for bolt cutters to break the system. There may be multiple brands out there. I attached a P.D.F photo of the sample lock system with this newsletter. Remember to keep your storage areas free from cover where burglars can hide. When feasible have them lighted and or near caretaker houses.
Assaults:
Interface of Ventura County and our Sheriff’s Crisis Team is there to help. During the last three months, we have noticed a 30% increase in assaults and domestic/ family violence in our county rural areas. If you know of any families that need our help, contact us to help get resources and counselors before the situation escalates. You can email me at Tim.hagel@ventura.org or call in confidence and we can help them as a community.
Steckle and Dennison Parks:
Vandalism are also on the rise in our parks. In addition, alcohol related disturbances have led to increased assaults. We are increasing our foot patrols by deputies and ask that you can call us early if you see any problems. You can call 805-524-2233 or 911.
Ag Cards:
The Sheriff’s and County Agriculture Departments supply County Disaster Agriculture I.D Cards. Your ranch can use the Disaster I.D cards in order to assist your "out of area" employees when entering areas open to “local residents only.”
Often times, agriculture workers will have a driver’s license address that is out of the ranch or farm area they work. The Ag Cards help identify them as needed farm workers in the effected area. Contact Ray Dominguez if you need assistance in obtaining the cards.
Ray.Dominguez@ventura.org
From the Sheriff:
Sheriff Brooks has fostered and supported the use of Reverse 911 in our county.
This week, he has sent "farm watch news" a great overview of its use and success.
I’d like to share it with you.
“During the recent Guiberson Fire, eleven Reverse 911 evacuation warnings were launched from the Emergency Operations Center. 3,643 calls were sent out to farmers, ranchers, nurseries and rural residents with information and evacuation orders in areas affected by the fire. It would have been impossible to provide up to date information and this type of advance notice of evacuations without the help of technology. This system allows us to focus the efforts of all of our deputies and volunteers on mandatory evacuations and road closures.
REVERSE 911® is a telephonic community notification system that may be used to deliver outbound messages in the event of an emergency.
Residents from the cities of Camarillo, Fillmore, Moorpark, Ojai, Oxnard, Port Hueneme, Santa Paula, and the unincorporated areas of Ventura County are covered by the REVERSE 911® system.
Since the Sheriff's Department began utilizing the reverse 911 system, we have activated the system over 40 times to deliver evacuation notices, deliver community policing alerts such as providing information to residents when an armed suspect was in their neighborhood, fires, disasters, alerting residents that a homicide had occurred, or asking residents to beware of mountain lions or bears spotted in their area.
The REVERSE 911® system automatically includes all land-line telephone numbers. Residents however must go online and register their personal cellular, voice-over-Internet-computer based phones (VoIP), or teletypewriter (TTY) telephone numbers.
You can do this at www.countyofventura.org/disasterinformation, or by calling the Sheriff's Department at 648-9283, or e-mailing reverse911@ventura.org.
To date, over 4,800 residents have registered their cell phones with the system.
The Sheriff's Department currently utilizes the terms Voluntary and Mandatory for evacuations during natural or man-made disasters/incidents. During fires in particular, County Fire or City Fire authorities make the recommendation that we evacuate a certain area - and what level of evacuation based on the proximity of the fire - and those evacuations are often accomplished initially with the Reverse 911 system followed by deputy contact at those locations not reached through the Reverse 911 system (on mandatory evacuations). Often, deputies from the Sheriff's Tactical Response Team handle those follow-up contacts, and those deputies note who is and is not home, and who leaves and who decides to stay and shelter in place.
If a voluntary evacuation notice is given by Reverse 911, that means the fire is in the general area and would allow extra time for residents to remove their children, the elderly or persons with special needs, along with any large animals that are becoming spooked by the smoke.
Areas under voluntary evacuation have "soft" road closures or none at all, allowing persons who live in the area and persons with Agriculture (Ag) passes to access those areas.
Once a mandatory evacuation notice is given either at the request of fire authorities or by law enforcement personnel who witness unsafe conditions, residents should leave immediately and road closures become "hard," meaning no one passes onto those roads that is not in an emergency response vehicle.
Hard road closures exclude residents and Ag workers (even with passes), and allows for emergency vehicles to pass freely without the obstruction of persons trying to leave when those large vehicles are trying to respond to their area to fight the fire. Even under a mandatory evacuation notice authorities will not force persons to leave during fires in particular (i.e., you will not be arrested if you don't leave), anyone who does leave will not be allowed back into that area until the area is determined to be safe by public safety authorities (no electrical lines down, no gas leaks, etc.).
There has been a movement lately by fire authorities to change evacuation terminology from Voluntary/Mandatory to Evacuation Warnings and Evacuation Orders. Should that language be used, areas under Evacuation Warnings should have soft road closures and areas under Evacuation Orders will have hard road closures. When these notices are given, public safety agencies will provide this information to the media, on the Sheriff's website, and through Nixle and Twitter accounts to keep everyone abreast of the dangers in their areas.”
Your cooperation during the recent fires helped us to keep everyone safe and allowed firefighters to battle the blaze with full access to affected areas.
Thanks for being an important part of our public safety team.
BOB BROOKS, Sheriff
We will catch up in a few week, until then be safe Farm Watch,
Captain Tim Hagel, Fillmore

OXNARD, CALIF.--While many flowers and deciduous trees become dormant in November, others are just starting their growing season and will keep gardeners busy throughout the fall and winter, says Agromin, an Oxnard-based manufacturer of premium soil products that are made from recycled green material primarily from Ventura County. One of its facilities is in Santa Paula on the Limoneira ranch.

Native Flowers: Native California plants are on a different clock than non-native plants. They thrive in cooler weather when the rains come, bloom in spring and become dormant-like during the dry, hot summer months. Most are drought tolerant Plant native flowers now including Ceanothus (perennial blue flowers), Monkey Flower (perennial orange flowers), California White Sage and California Poppy. Also, consider planting wildflowers from seed. The California Native Plant Society (www.cnps.org) identifies native California vegetation so you can choose the flowers to fit your garden. It also lists nurseries specializing in native plants.

Planting Trees: Fall is one of the best times of the year to plant trees. The bigger the tree doesn't mean the tree is healthier and will do well when planted. Transplanting younger trees, with a smaller branch system can mean less stress on the root system. Select the tree location carefully before choosing the tree. Do you want a deciduous tree with leaves that change colors or one that stays green all year long? How tall and wide will the tree become at maturity? Does the location have enough room to accommodate the tree's root and branch system? Once those decisions are made and the tree is selected, amend the soil before planting and surround the tree with mulch (six inches or more from the trunk) to keep in moisture and prevent erosion.

Still Time to Plant Cool Season Vegetables: While the variety of cool season vegetables is less abundant than their summer counterparts, enjoying the taste of homegrown vegetables can't be beat. Plant broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, lettuce, peas and spinach. Water as needed. If rains are frequent, no watering or once-a-week watering is all that is required. If hot, dry Santa Ana winds kick up, water once a day until the hot weather passes.

Welcome back... This is our first newsletter since our county-wide brush fires a few weeks ago. We didn't want to overwhelm you with a newsletter while you were recovering from the fire damages and displacement.
First of all, the fires generated 23 more Farm Watch members. Seems your forwarded emails caught some attention!
Next issue, we will talk about some new storage container security systems. Sheriff Brooks will also comment about reverse 911.
For now...We have a lot to catch up on.
Service Above All:
Volunteers are an important part of the Sheriff's Department. We couldn't do our job without the hundreds of volunteers spread across the Department. Recently, Sheriff Brooks honored Sheriff Volunteer Gil Koehler who is assigned out of the Santa Clara Valley Substation.
Farm Watch asked Gil to give some life tips.
After all, he is our oldest employee, at 97 years old... Gil actively serves and keeps on serving.
Gil, what is it that drives you to volunteer?
"I feel honored that you want information from me. Believe me the time I have spent in the Sheriff's Department has been one of great pleasure to me. I discovered a long time ago that there is great pleasure in being able to serve others and the more work you do the better for the others and satisfaction for myself.
When you see someone needing help and are there and helpful it is a wonderful feeling. When I was in a service club many years ago they had a motto "Youth to be served, must serve" and that is true today. It follows the old adage, "Love thy neighbor"
My favorite moment as a Sheriff Volunteer was CONTINUED »

Ventura County Sheriff's Department

Between 7/27/2009 and 7/28/2009, 15 pallets of Haifa "Multicote" Special Strawberry Mix fertilizer were stolen from Success Valley Farms, located at 5150 Rose Avenue in Oxnard. Each pallet contains forty 50 - pound bags of fertilizer. The estimated value of the fertilizer was $1300. The bags were identical to the one shown below and had a sticker with the lot #102366. The case number is 09-08308.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Detective Ray Dominguez at (805) 477-7029 desk.

Greetings Farm Watch...

Welcome to our newest members. We have added 14 new farm and ranch members since our last newsletter a few weeks ago.

Joining us is new members from the agriculture packing and distribution.

Also please welcome C.H.P Captain Andy James. Captain James is newly assigned to our area and heads up the Ventura Area CHP Office.

Remember, Captain Cliff Williams heads up the Moorpark Office and is an original member of Farm Watch. These two, help our Fam Watch members with issues that effect the safety on our rural roads.

Locals have noticed their stepped up traffic enforcement on Grimes Canyon.

Our current membership is at 394 ranches, farms, packing houses, CONTINUED »

SEAN HANNITY, HOST: And ladies and gentlemen, you are looking live at the thousands of people who have shown up here in the Central Valley of California. They want their farms back, they want their jobs back, and they want the water turned back on...

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,552081,00.html

Enlarge Photo

Enlarge Photo

On September 26 and 27, alpaca breeders from across the United States and Canada will invite the public to come to their farm or ranch to meet their alpacas and learn more about these inquisitive, unique animals. From 9 AM to 4 PM, Rancho Keleje Alpacas will welcome guests for an up close and personal glimpse into the alpaca lifestyle! Featured at the ranch will be walking tours, educational displays and demonstrations. Alpaca raw fleece, yarn and knitted products will also be available for sale.

Rancho Keleje Alpacas is owned and operated by Leslie Warren and Jeff & Jackie Warren. It is located six miles east of Fillmore near Piru at 3626 Howe Rd. Admission is Free!

About Alpacas
Alpacas, cousins to the llama, are beautiful, intelligent animals native to the Andean Mountain range of South America, particularly Peru, Bolivia, and Chile. The United States first commercially imported alpacas in 1984. There are now over 150,000 ARI (Alpaca Registry, Inc.) registered alpacas in North America.

There are two types of alpacas in the United States today. Although almost physically identical, what distinguishes the two types of alpacas is their fiber. The Huacaya (wa-Ki’-ah) is the more common of the two and has a fluffy, extremely fine coat. The Suri is the rarer of the two and has fiber that is silky and resembles pencil-locks.

Adult alpacas stand at approximately 36 inches at the withers and generally weigh between 150 and 200 pounds. They do not have horns, hooves, claws or incisors. Alpacas are alert, intelligent, curious, and predictable. Social animals that seek companionship, they communicate most commonly by softly humming.

About Alpaca Fiber
Alpacas are shorn, without harm, every twelve to eighteen months. They produced five to ten pounds of luxurious fiber. Long ago, alpaca fiber was reserved for royalty. Today it is purchased in its raw fleece form by hand-spinners and fiber artists. Knitters buy it as yarn.

Because of its soft texture, alpaca fiber is sometimes compared to cashmere. Making the fiber even more coveted, it has the luster of silk. Alpaca is just as warm as, yet 1/3 the weight of wool. It comes in 22 natural colors, yet can be dyed any desired shade.

Containing no lanolin, alpaca fiber is also naturally hypoallergenic. Most people who are sensitive to wool find that they can wear alpaca without the itching or irritation they feel from wool because alpaca fiber is smooth. Additional performance characteristics include: stretch, water repellency, and odor reduction. For travelers, clothing made from alpaca is desirable because it is wrinkle-resistant.

About AOBA
Headquartered in Nashville, TN, the Alpaca Owners & Breeders Association (AOBA) serves to facilitate the expansion of a strong and sustainable alpaca industry through the growth and development of the national herd and its products. Since AOBA’s formation in 1988, its membership has grown steadily to more than 4,000 members with over 150,000 registered alpacas in North America.

To find out more about National Alpaca Farm Days visit www.NationalAlpacaFarmDays.com. To learn more about Rancho Keleje Alpacas, visit our website at www.ranchokelejealpacas.com or call 805-794-2405.

ANYONE DOUBTING THAT OUR nation's environmental and economic policies can get seriously out of whack from time to time need only look to the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta...

http://spectator.org/archives/2009/09/11/emptying-reservoirs-in-the-mid

Good evening Farm Watch.

We want to welcome our 6 new members.

Farm Watch is preserving public safety in our rural communities by partnering your Sheriff Deputies in the field with local ranchers,farmers, nurseries, oil production and supply houses.

Your help makes a difference.

Attempt to Locate:

Usually, we would send out a Watch Alert to you asking for help locating a theft suspect. This week is different. An official "thanks" to a West Santa Paula Avocado Farmer and longtime Watch Member who used his cell phone camera to snap a photo of an elusive farm theft suspect.

The Farm Watch member emailed us the photo and in 4 hours it was sent to all the deputies in the Santa Clara River Valley.

Deputy Tom Brown picked up on the photo and began searching the Santa Paula area for subjects matching the description. Brown found a pedestrian about 5 miles away that was wearing a similar and unique jacket.

Deputy Brown did great police work and verified that the male was our suspect. Turns out that our 'mystery suspect" is a convicted probationer who has many priors for farm theft.

Without Farm Watch and it's quick thinking Santa Paula member, we would have never caught the suspect. This is how we roll at Farm Watch! CONTINUED »

Sprinkler Thief:
We will have to check the spot price of brass recycling. We just had 16 commercial Rain Bird sprinklers stolen in the area. If you get solicited to buy sprinklers for your facility and it’s not from a known source or one of our local farm suppliers, give us a call. We would like to talk to the person selling them. Write down their license plate number, that’s a big help.
Skimmers:
Don’t worry, that’s not a new species of fish in your farm or ranch pond. Skimmers are a tool used by crooks to steal your identity and credit card info. In short, a skimmer is an electronic microcomputer the size of a small deck of cards. It is often used in a portable mode or installed at non-bank ATM’s and gas station pumps.
Crooks will use a skimmer to read your card and personal information. Then they manufacture a clone card and almost always use it within 30 days. The card may be used online for purchases, Ebay or out of state.
We often catch them because you are diligent watching your transactions at online statements etc.. Often the crooks won’t make purchases for weeks after they stole your info. During that time it is hard for the victim to remember where they used the card legitimately.
A Farm-Watch member just cracked open a case against some crooks putting a skimmer in place. The Farm Watch member noticed a small illegal credit card charge. He was very alert to where his card was used in the last 30 days and our detectives wanted to pass on a big thanks for his tip…
Piru Fest
The fun community event will feature local talent, food, games and more during Labor Day weekend, Saturday, September 5, 2009. It is a free, family event and a great time. It starts at 3 p.m and ends at 10 p.m.
I have been told, that this year, I will be attending at the festival’s dunk tank. It will help raise well-needed community money.
I’ve never been to a “dunk tank,” but apparently people will pay a small donation and be able to throw a donut at me while I sit above a shark infested water tank.
If the thrown donut makes it to the target, the seat drops and I swim with the sharks. I’m counting on the fact that it is a donut and it will never make it past me. Have you ever seen a cop that didn’t like a donut? I'm wet if it is not a donut thrown.
All told, this will be a fun event for Piru to showcase their community spirit.
Cell Sites:
The planned Piru Canyon Verizon Cell Site is rolling along through the permit process. This will really increase public safety in the area. I will keep you posted.
For fun, I have attached a photo of an existing local cell site in our rural area. The wood tank and tower is purely a prop. A huge thanks to Kevin Mc Sweeny for designing such a great agricultural element.
Do you know where this cell site is?
Santa Paula Canyon:
Our Farm Watch region covers over 455 square miles from upper Ojai to Newhall Ranch. I just looked at our Santa Clara River Valley and Upper Ojai crime stats and the area has already had 16 vehicle burglaries since May 1st.
This concerns us.
For example, we have just had a couple thefts from cars parked at Santa Paula Canyon. When the victims were interviewed, we found that the victim’s observed our theft warning signs but choose to leave their money and wallets visible in the cars. Make sure you use their experience to toughen up your car or truck security. Never leave personal items in the passenger area of a car or truck. Crooks know you will be hiking or horseback riding for hours.
County Roads:
Taggers have been hitting us hard on South Mountain Road. We have increased our patrols and your tips help us out. The County Roads Department has helped by using newly planted drought resistant landscape in the high “tag” areas such as the county gravel yard on South Mountain, 2 miles east of the 12th Street Bridge.
The County Roads Dept did a great job out there and our calls for service in that specific area have slowed down. Sergeant Dave Wareham has a crew of volunteers that each week head out to farm areas and help repaint as quickly as possible. It takes all of us as a team of farmers, ranchers, residents, Roads Dept, and CHP to stay vigilant in the rural areas.
If you have some significant tagging, you can photo it, repaint and call us for an investigation report. Our tagging crime fighter Deputies Matt and Gene love to catch these kids. We don't mind using your digital photos because we know you are anxious to get it covered up.
Rocks:
We have had some complaints from local rural drivers that subjects are hiding on foot and are throwing rocks at passing cars and trucks on State Route 23 near Fillmore. Let us know if this has happen to you. It is a serious crime and dangerous for all concerned.
Wandering Cattle:
Once and a while, ate at night, drivers will accidentally crash into wire fences along our ranch and farm roads. Many times, they try to get out of there before CHP or your deputies arrive on scene. I know that’s hard to believe.
Sometimes, the local range cattle and horses can escape and cause a hazard to driver and animal. If you do not know the phone number of the rancher, please call animal control and or the Sheriff’s Department. Many times our deputies know the ranchers and if not, we can get the State Brand Inspector to quickly identify the owner and facilitate a quick reunion.
Be safe Farm Watch…