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Thursday, December 31, 2015 - January 6, 2016
Since 1996
COMPLIMENTARY COPY VOLUME 19, NO. 53
Soaring Over Paradise in 127th Rose Parade in Pasadena BY TERRY MILLER
In a few hours, all the floats participating in the annual Rose Parade will be tooling down Colorado Blvd. in front of hundreds of thousands of fans, still cameras, and television crews sending images to audiences the world over. But what makes all these floats so unique is the volunteer effort that put the finishing touches to the major designs at the two major float builders, as well as the smaller float builders like Sierra Madre Rose Float Association. Hundreds of hours are devoted each year to the tiniest details; using seeds and flowers to create the designer’s vision. It is estimated that it takes 60 volunteers working 10 hours a day for 10 days to decorate one float. Every square inch of the exposed surface of a float entered in the Rose Parade must be covered with flowers or other natural materials. The rules are strict. These other decorative applicants include bark, seeds, SEE PAGE 4
Volunteers work on the intricate details of the Dole float at Fiesta Floats in Irwindale Monday. The pressure is on for the completion by New Year’s morning for the world to see. – Photo by Terry Miller
Rose Parade, Bowl - No Drone Zone As the 127th Rose Parade and 102nd Rose Bowl Game approach on Friday, Jan. 1, 2016, Pasadena’s fire, police and health departments offer the following safety tips and reminders for those who plan to attend the parade, post-parade viewing, and bowl game activities. Remember, If You See Something, Say Something by calling the Pasadena Police Department at (626) 744-4241. For all life-threatening emergencies, always call 911. Public safety and event SEE PAGE 12
Pasadena Police Arrest Pomona Arsonist Who Set Wife on Fire BY J. SHADÉ QUINTANILLA
Fish eye view of the Rose Bowl.
- Photo by Terry Miller
On Sunday, Dec. 27, police finally captured a runaway fugitive who was accused of setting his wife on fire. Clarence Durwell Dear of Pomona, 51, was placed into police custody after officers caught him boarding a bus in Pasadena. Police were searching for Dear since Christmas Day when he allegedly doused his wife in gasoline and set her on fire during a domestic dispute. According to the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department, Pasadena officers and
sheriff deputies were able to track Dear down on a Metro bus in Pasadena on Foothill Boulevard and Halstead Street a few minutes after 10 a.m. “Information was received that Clarence Duwell Dear had boarded a bus in the city of Altadena,” Pomona police officials said in a statement. “Pasadena police, along with Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputies, responded and located the bus and took suspect Dear into custody without incident.” Dear was later turned over to Pomona police and booked for suspicion of
murder According to officials, Dear and his 41-year-old wife, Dawn Hensley, were engaged in a heated dispute that turned fatal on Christmas Day around 1:45 p.m. As their argument escalated, Dear allegedly chased his wife outside of their residence in Pomona, poured gasoline on her and set her into flames. Police believe that Hensely was possibly set ablaze with a lit cigarette. Witnesses told police that they saw Hensley running out of her home on SEE PAGE 13