Sacramento Police K9 Bodie is retiring after three years of devoted service as a result of injuries sustained during a critical incident.  Bodie is one of only two Sacramento Police canines that have been shot in the line of duty. Bodie has gone above and beyond the call of duty while serving the Sacramento community and will now proudly be the first ever honorary Sacramento Police reserve K9. In November of 2010 Officer Randy Van Dusen began training K9 Bodie. K9 Bodie is a German Shepherd dog that was imported from Germany for police work. After two months of training that included obedience, agility, search and suspect apprehension, Bodie was certified as a police canine. Bodie was ce

The 17th annual Sacramento St. Patrick's Day parade was held Saturday March 16, 2013 in Old Town Sacramento. Several thousand people watched as hundreds of marchers, floats, horses, clowns, and vehicles wound their way through the streets of Old Town. It truly was a sea of green with many parade watchers following the lead of the leprechaun and dressed in Irish spirit. Here are photos of the festivities, some of the marchers, floats, and parade watchers.                        Even the volunteers from Old Sacramento Living History got into the spirit.     City Council member Kevin McCarty added his greetings to the festivities.   Look Mom......   a clown!

A disappointing week Maybe it’s just me but I’ve had a disappointing week at the movies – probably not helped by wishful thinking if not actually especially high expectations. And the near future isn’t looking any better, but more on that next week. This week’s major releases include a comedy starring people whose work I’ve generally liked, until now, and a thriller against a backdrop of prescription drug use from a director I normally appreciate far more than this.   Identity Thief Directed by Seth Gordon The idea of a comedy starring Jason Bateman and Melissa McCarthy appeals to me – before you could even tell me a subject matter or a premise, that idea would pique my interest. And t

The name of the suspect involved in a police standoff Wednesday in Tahoe Park has been released, and officials say he may have been running due to his warrant from another county.  Antwan Adger, 49, was eventually arrested on suspicion of kidnapping, false imprisonment, burglary and his outstanding arrest warrant, according to the Sacramento Police Department. Following a high-speed chase with the California Highway Patrol that ultimately ended when Adger hit a parked car on Kroy Way and Broadway, he allegedly fled on foot and holed up in a nearby home. The female resident was taken hostage, but eventually walked out of her home uninjured, with two dogs, to awaiting officers. Not much la

A woman was found shot at the Chevron gas station on 65th Street and S streets in Sacramento early Saturday morning. The Sheriff's office sent out the following information in a press release: "At approximately 3:15 a.m., Sheriff’s deputies responded to the aforementioned intersection in response to a call from the Sacramento Police Department. When SPD arrived at the scene for an accident investigation, it was discovered that a 20 year-old woman had sustained a gunshot wound to her upper body. Preliminary investigation suggested that the vehicle the victim was in had been struck by gunfire at a different location, within the county of Sacramento. Detectives are investigating a possibl

In the wake of a string of pedestrian robberies that rocked Midtown, the Sacramento Police Department will join community leaders for a meeting on public safety this Thursday night. Councilman Steve Hansen, the Midtown Buisness Association, the Marshall School/New Era Park Neighborhood Association, the Midtown Neighborhood Association and the Alkali/Mansion Flats Historic Neighborhood Association, will be on hand at the Hart Senior Center at 915 27th Street from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., to "discuss tips on being prepared and staying safe," according to the event's Facebook page. Hansen, who is visiting a series of neighborhood associations this week, said the purpose of the meeting was to

A Sacramento Police Department officer spotted a stolen vehicle Friday just before 8:30 p.m. while patrolling Midtown and arrested the female driver.  Police followed the vehicle from the 19th Street and K Street area, traveling eastbound K Street, then east on 17th Street then eastbound on O Street near 18th. “The vehicle was followed by two patrol vehicles with a Sac PD helicopter overhead,” Midtown resident Anthony Cathey said.  Police officials said the vehicle was stolen in the Sacramento area, in the California Highway Patrol’s jurisdiction, however information on what part of Sacramento the vehicle was stolen from was not immediately available. The vehicle, described as a 1994 m

Firefighters, medics and police were dispatched to X Street and 18th Street just before 3 o’clock Saturday afternoon for a two car collision that sent three people to the hospital. According to on scene authorities, the driver of a gray Pontiac Grand Am was eastbound on X Street when the vehicle collided with a black Jeep Cherokee heading north on 18th Street. One victim was extricated from the Cherokee. As ambulances arrived, firefighter/medics treated the victims, placing them on backboards and preparing them for transport to the hospital. The actual cause and fault of the accident is under investigation. Editor’s note: The “News Digest” goes out every Tuesday morning and highlights

UPDATE - On Friday, January 4, 2013, a male and female associated with Carlito Montoya were arrested for assault with a deadly weapon related to this incident. Amber Scholz-36 is believed to have instigated the altercation and her husband Charles Fowler-Scholz-34, was involved in the physical fight that preceded the deadly shooting. No further details are available at this time.   UPDATE - Suspect identification: According to a Sacramento Police update, the suspect, 22-year-old Carlito Montoya, is in police custody in an area hospital. Montoya is receiving medical treatment for multiple gunshot wounds.   A 22-year-old man wanted in connection with a New Year's Eve shooting in Old Sacra

Sacramento Police Public Information Officer Dough Morse explains what happen during a disturbance at the Arden Fair Mall on Wednesday, Dec. 26: <[ View the story "Update: Arden Fair back open after teens start huge ruckus in food court " on Storify] Update: Arden Fair back open after teens start huge ruckus in food court Storified by The Sacramento Press· Thu, Dec 27 2012 07:48:50 Three teens were arrested yesterday at the Arden Fair Mall after a mass brawl involving a group of about 20 juveniles who were caught on camera throwing signs and pushing people in the food court, according to the Sacramento Police Department.  The incident caused a mass exodus from the mall as panicke

Gun rights advocates have been on the defensive after the mass shooting in Newtown, Conn. last week, but that didn't stop one group in Sacramento from demonstrating their opposition to gun control in a way that was sure to get attention.  Sacramento police questioned and then released a group of men who walked down one of the city's busiest streets with shotguns over their shoulders Sunday evening. Two of the men in the group were carrying shotguns when police stopped them at 10th and J streets around 9:20 p.m., according to officer Michelle Gigante. They were found to be in compliance with current open carry laws as the guns were not loaded, Gigante said. One of the suspects told offic

A series of bangs echoed throughout the College Greens neighborhood at around 2:45 p.m. Saturday as a police SWAT team swarmed into the Jack in the Box on Folsom Boulevard where a man was holding a woman hostage. The suspect was shot by a police sniper and transported to a hospital. His one remaining female hostage escaped unharmed. Earlier, another woman had also escaped. Police said the incident began at 12:30 p.m. as a robbery of the restaurant at 8349 Folsom Blvd. in the College Greens Shopping Center. When officers arrived shortly after, a standoff ensued. The SWAT team, a hostage negotiation team and dozens of patrol cars surrounded the building. "We tried for several hours for thi

A bicyclist was killed in a hit-and-run accident Sunday night on Stockton Boulevard in an area that is considered to be one of the most dangerous for bicyclists and pedestrians in Sacramento. Terry Preston, the complete streets coordinator for the nonprofit organization Walk Sacramento, explains why:  Sacramento police are still searching for the driver of the white pickup truck that struck 61-year-old Molly Arndt at 5:28 p.m. while she was crossing Stockton Boulevard on her bicycle near Lawrence Drive. The truck is believed to be a 1992-1998 Chevy Silverado 1500 with a toolbox in the back, and a broken left headlamp and damage to the driver's side front grill area, according to Officer

Police arrested 35-year-old Elpidio Tellez on Thursday for the shooting death at 15th and S streets Wednesday night, Public Information Officer Doug Morse said Friday. "An outside agency ended up arresting someone on warrants, and through investigative leads we realized that was the shooter," Morse said, adding that it's not Sacramento Police Department policy to discuss which outside agency was involved. Details at this point are scant, and no motive was given for the shooting. Police responded to gunshots at about 8:40 p.m. Wednesday, and when they arrived on the scene, a man in his 30s was dead outside the Monte Carlo Club. To read more about the search that night, click here.

Sacramento was featured in the Sunday New York Times, with a blurb teasing to the article on 1A of the Northern California print edition. The topic isn't what the Convention & Visitors Bureau would have hoped for. The piece is about how deep cuts in the Police Department have coincided with a rise in crime, and how other cities across the county are facing similar challenges. The article is well-timed for supporters of Measure U, the ballot measure that, if passed onTuesday, will increase the sales tax by one-half cent and direct the money to city services, including the Police Department. The link: Crime Increases in Sacramento After Deep Cuts to Police Force, by Erica Goode. A few key

It is no surprise that anti-tax and chamber-of-commerce types oppose Measure U, the measure to raise sales taxes in the City of Sacramento. Their knee-jerk reaction to raising revenues is predictable. But progressives have plenty of reasons to oppose Measure U as well. Measure U is a regressive sales tax. That means that poor and middle-income families will pay the same rate as Sacramento’s wealthiest citizens, essentially subsidizing the rich for services that we all receive. According to Citizens for Tax Justice, since seniors, students and low-income families spend most of their money on essentials, a sales tax hits them the hardest. Measure U will cost these families hundreds of doll

A notice from the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department about a DUI checkpoint in Rancho Cordova this weekend: The Rancho Cordova Police Department Traffic Unit will be conducting a DUI/Drivers License Checkpoint on September 21, 2012 at an undisclosed location within the city limits between the hours of 7:00 pm and 2:00 am. DUI checkpoints are a proven enforcement tool effective in reducing the number of persons killed and injured in alcohol involved crashes. Research shows that crashes involving alcohol drop by an average of 20 percent when well-publicized checkpoints are conducted often enough. Officers will be contacting drivers passing through the checkpoint for signs of alcohol an

A Sacramento woman was one of the masterminds behind a gang of bank robbers who stole about $2.5 million without firing a shot – and she’s on the loose and is about to be featured on TV. Niesha Jackson, who police describe as a master of disguise, will be featured on the CNBC show “American Greed: The Fugitives” at 6 and 9 p.m. Wednesday. According to CNBC, Jackson and her boyfriend masterminded a scheme of exploiting prepaid debit cards, allowing a string of criminals to take thousands of dollars in cash per transaction at banks across the country. Jackson – dubbed the “bank-robbing babe” – pleaded guilty to bank fraud, but she escaped before sentencing and remains on the loose. Polic

Representatives of the family of Linnea Lomax, the 19-year-old UC Davis student missing since June, confirmed late Friday that she was found dead earlier in the day. "The Lomax family has received confirmation tonight that the deceased person found by the American River this morning is their daughter Linnea Lomax," according to a Friday night press release. Volunteers searching near the American River Friday morning uncovered remains. Preaprations are being made for a celebration of life, and, according to the press release, the details will be made public once they are available.

The search for missing 19-year-old Linnea Lomax uncovered human remains near the shore of the American River Friday morning, according to a press release. The remains discovered by volunteers have not been identified, and the Sacramento Police Department is currently conducting investigations, the release stated. Lomax disappeared June 26 from an outpatient clinic near the 800 block of Howe Ave. Since then, searchers have continued to comb the area. The search has continually expanded, with searchers recently searching in the Placerville area. Family members plan to hold a press conference sometime within the next 24 hours to discuss more details. Lomax is described as a 5-foot-2-inch,