WATER POLO: Wildcats defeatTigers in first round MORE IN SPORTS:Youth shooters compete,C1 Preps volleyball update, C2
Fi rst college football playoff rankings announced, C3
THE MOTHER LODE'SLEADING INFORMATION SOURCE SINCE 1854 • SO NORA, CALIFORNIA
WEDNESD AY NOVEMBER 4, 2015
High-speedchaseonHighway108
Tuolumne County
TODAY 'S REABiRBOA RB
Leaders debate medical
BRIEFING
Sheriff update-
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The Calaveras County Board of Supervisors waits to determine new sheriff. A funeral procession for Sheriff Gary Kuntz will begin at10a.m. Friday in San Andreas.A2
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By ALEK MacLEAN
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The Union Democrat r r
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— Sonora experienced an unexpected thunderstorm Tuesday afternoon.A2
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Vital Stats — Aist of births, marriages and deaths recorded in Tuolumne and Calaveras counties.A3
HOLISefire — Astructure fire Monday in the Twain Harte area was contained.A3
Erosion expertAn expert will speak to Butte Fire victims Wednesday in San Andreas.A3
Guy McCarthy /Union Democrat
Tuolumne County Sheriff's personnel search a white Ford F-150XL pickup Tuesday next to Highway 108 during a manhunt for a suspect who allegedly led law enforcement on a 90 mph pursuit.
OPlnlOn —Elias: Public utility reform veto sends wrong message; Parker: Leader needs vision to see big picture.A4
Authorities: Man linked to several burglary attempts By TORI THOMAS and GUY McCARTHY
TUDwork- Mo~or-
The Union Democrat
ists can expect delays on Racetrack Road because of sewer upgrades.AS
A man wanted on three felony charges led law enforcement officerson a 25-
mile chase Tuesday that reached 90 mph through western Tuolumne County before he abandoned the truck,jumped a fence and
BUSINESS
• DESIGNING LIFE: Jamestown business helps spruce up home, closet.B1 • OPEN HOUSE: The InnovationLab in Sonora and the Big Oak Flat/Groveland Unified School District will hold an open house.B1 • DONATION:Sierra Pacific Foundation donates to Grandma's House.B1
ran into rangeland east of Highway 108. More than three hours later, deputies called ofF the search, saying the man eluded them. Tuolumne County SherifFs Sgt. Deborah Moss identified the suspect as Joshua Willis, 31, of Tuolumne. Moss said the pursuit began at Star Mobile Estates
on Jamestown Road. eWe had a deputy who startedthe pursuit of a vehicle," Moss said. The man got out of a Chevrolet pickup truck and into a Ford F-150, and led authorities on a pursuit on Highway 108. "He ended up running from his vehicle on Highway 108, near Keystone Ranch,"
Moss said. "He ran across the road and he ran south into the field." More than half a dozen County SherifFs Office and the California Highway Patrol, including deputies with K9s and rifles, converged on the area between O'Byrnes See CHASE / Back Page
See POT/Back Page
Coalition gets grant to reduce By LACEY PETERSON
Maggie Beck(left), Guy McCarthy (above) / Union Democrat
A Stanislaus County Sheriff's helicopter crew aids in a manhunt for a suspect who allegedly led law enforcement on a90 mph pursuitTuesday through western Tuolumne County (above). Tire marks from an attempted theft can be seen at the C8tC Mini Mart in Jamestown (left).
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CalaverasCountyBoard ofSupervisors
Site evaluations for FEMA modulars OK'd An engineering geologist will test each potential site to determine if a unit should be placed at a particular locaThe Calaveras County Board of Su- tion. pervisors approved a process Tuesday to FEMA representatives told county ofevaluate which properties in the Butte ficials they would not put a modular on Fireburn area can accommodate manua site because of the debris flows. The factured houses from the Federal Emer- county agreed to take the most consergency Management Agency. vative approach to evaluate a site, said More than a month afler the Butte Brian Moss, Calaveras County assisFire destroyed nearly 500 homes, flood- tant county administrative officer. ing and debris flow are a risk with the Peter Maurer, Calaveras County potentially inclement weather. planning director, who was part of a By JASON COWAN The Union Democrat
CORRECTION A child's name was misspelled in a caption in Tuesday's Union Democrat. The child playing in the snow is Ethan Medina.
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The Board of Supervisors
officers from the Tuolumne
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Marijuana growers in the
Lake Don Pedro area have created problems forSally Miller and other residents of therural subdivision that straddles the Tuolumne and Mariposa County lines. Miller lives on the Tuolumne County side less than a mile from an outdoor grow that produced about 100 marijuana plants this year, she told the Tuolumne County Board of Supervisors Tuesday. She's identified four other commercial growing operations in the area that she estimates yielded a total of 450 plants. Since the grows began cropping up in 2013, Miller said she can occasionally hear gunfire that she suspects are warning shots intended to intimidate local residents. "I'm fearful when I sit on my deck," she said in an interview aRer the meeting, adding that she also has concerns about the impact of marijuana cultivation on the
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taskforcepresenting tothe supervisors on Tuesday, said that burn areas will face the highest potential risk of flooding or debris flow this winter. "Thisyear will be our worst year," Maurer said. "As plants reestablish and the area recovers slowly, the risk of flooding and debris flow will diminish over time. Typically, in the range from 3-to-5years,the risk is atits greatest. ARer five years, the possibility will reSee FEMA/ Back Page
The Union Democrat
The Tuolumne County Board of Supervisors accepted a grant Tuesday that will enable local health officials, educators and law enforcement to move forward with a
plan to curb opiate addiction and overdose deaths. In September, the board voted tosupport the efForts of the Tuolumne County Opioid Safety Coalition, which is made up of representatives from public health, social services, schools,law enforcement, behavioral health, doctorsand pharmacists. The coalition will be led by Dr. Liza Ortiz, Tuolumne County Public Health Department health officer. In early October, Public Health, on behalf of the coalition, applied to the California HealthCare Foundation for its "Regional Opioid, Safety Coalitions: Bringing See GRANT/Back Page
Weather P age C6
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Friday:High 64, Low 33
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• Center for Spine Health
Join Spine Specialists Dr. tulle Long and Dr. Garth Greenwell who will present several techniques and treatments used for back pain.
vtt Sonora Regional Medical Center ~Adventist
Held at Elks Lodge at 100 Elk Drivein Sonora. Light appetizers will be served.
Health
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