Kayaker missing after making 911 call from water
A 65-year-old man who called 911 from a kayak at 3 p.m. Thursday last week off the coast of Malibu is still missing, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. Sheriff’s department spokeswoman Nicole Nishida said Malibu/Lost Hills Sheriff’s Station officials received a 911 call around 3 p.m. Thursday from Louis Robert Piatt stating he was in the waters off the coastline in Malibu having chest pains. Thirty minutes later authorities found an overturned kayak and a life jacket floating two miles off the coast. Piatt’s car was later found parked in a parking lot nearby.
Nishida said several area hospitals were searched, but Piatt was not found in any of them.
The incident is now a missing person’s case and is being handled by Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department homicide detectives, Malibu/Lost Hills Sgt. Vivian May confirmed Tuesday.
Motorcycle chase ends in Malibu
A motorcycle chase that began in Los Angeles ended near Paradise Cove in Malibu Monday, Malibu/Lost Hills Traffic Sgt. Philip Brooks confirmed.
California Highway Patrol units began pursuing motorcyclist Howard Thorne, 46, for speeding. After he failed to pull over, the chase began, heading west from Los Angeles to the coast then up Pacific Coast Highway. CHP officials eventually lost sight of Thorne and alerted Malibu/Lost Hills Sheriff’s Station deputies.
Soon after, an LAPD helicopter spotted the suspect at Paradise Cove. Thorne abandoned his motorcycle there and ran into a vacant home at 28012 Sea Lane Dr. A command post was set up and a police dog located the suspect in a shed behind the home. Thorne was arrested and booked by the CHP at the Malibu/Lost Hills Sheriff’s Station for felony evading. He was scheduled to appear in court this Tuesday.
The chase occurred because “apparently he had received a citation earlier in the day and said he could not afford to pay a second ticket,” Brooks said.
Little League tryouts this weekend
Tryouts for the Malibu Little League are taking place this weekend at Majors Field at Malibu Bluffs Park.
Hardball tryouts are Saturday from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. for 11-and 12-year-olds and from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. for nine-and 10-year-olds. Hardball tryouts continue Sunday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. for players ages six through eight and from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. for players who missed their tryout slots. Softball tryouts take place Saturday from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. and Sunday from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.
For more information and registration fees visit malibulittleleague.org.
Malibu Canyon crash causes one fatality
A two-car accident Thursday morning last week on Malibu Canyon Road left one person dead and one seriously injured, a statement from California Highway Patrol Public Information Officer Leland Tang said. Traffic was closed from Mulholland to Piuma Road after the crash, which happened just after 10 a.m.
The victim was Lyssa Marie Hand, 48, from Simi Valley; Keith William Imrie, 47, from Camarillo, sustained serious injuries.
Hand was pronounced dead at West Hills Hospital and Medical Center Thursday. Imrie was flown to UCLA Medical Center with severe injuries.
According to the CHP statement, Hand was driving a Ford Expedition southbound on Malibu Canyon Road just north of Piuma Road when she collided with a Toyota pickup driven by Imrie. Hand’s vehicle reportedly drifted into oncoming traffic while going around a turn and collided head on with Imrie’s truck.
Malibu resident Alan Ruzicka told The Malibu Times he was driving 40 to 50 yards behind Imrie’s truck heading northbound when the truck entered a blind curve going uphill to Piuma Road.
“It look like there was nothing there, and then all the sudden that SUV was across the double yellow line. Just like that,” Ruzicka said. “That poor guy in the pickup truck had no chance.
“Upon impact the pickup truck got lifted and flew inverted over my car to the right. The SUV was still coming at me. I swerved to the left to avoid the Toyota pickup truck, and then I had to swerve to the right to avoid the Ford Explorer.”
The CHP press release stated, “The Toyota rolled over onto its roof and Imrie sustained major injuries as a result of this collision. The Ford spun around and stopped, blocking the [northbound] traffic lane.”
Traffic was blocked for several hours along the road Thursday after the accident.
Parks head to leave for Yosemite
Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation head Woody Smeck will leave his position to become deputy superintendent at Yosemite National Park March 30, the Ventura County Star reports.
Smeck, 49, of Moorpark, has been superintendent of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area for more than a decade.
Smeck was named Citizen of the Year by the Las Virgenes Homeowners Federation in May 2011 for his contributions to preserving the natural resources of the Santa Monica Mountains. He has worked on outreach programs to educate the public, habitat protection, expanding wildlife corridors and making recreation trail connections, among other causes.
Smeck was also awarded the Superintendent of the Year for Natural Resource Stewardship by the National Park Service in 2006.
The Santa Monica Mountains are comprised of more than 150,000 acres, five different area codes and 26 zip codes. It serves as a local recreation area for about 17 million people. The area is a mix of local, state and federal parks.
Yosemite National Park, one of the first wilderness parks in the United States, is spread over nearly 1,200 square miles. It is overseen entirely by the National Park Service.
County lawyers file to dismiss Gibson suit
Lawyers for Los Angeles County have filed a motion to dismiss Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputy James Mee’s case against the county in connection with his 2006 DUI arrest of Mel Gibson, and a hearing is scheduled for Jan. 12, according to the Los Angeles Daily News via City News Service. In response, Mee’s attorneys filed court papers opposing the dismissal motion that included a sworn statement by the deputy last Thursday.
Mee arrested actor Mel Gibson for drunk driving in July 2006 in Malibu. During the arrest, Gibson made a number of anti-Semitic comments and slurs. The actor later apologized, blaming his behavior on alcoholism.
After Mee, who is Jewish, included Gibson’s remarks in his arrest report, he alleges he was told to remove the comments by his superiors and place them in a separate report, giving Gibson preferential treatment.
Mee says he was subjected to repeated disciplinary action after the incident and overlooked for six or seven other positions, including that of motorcycle deputy. The deputy sued the county in September 2007 in response to the treatment he alleges he received.
State home production continues to rise
California housing production increased for a fourth consecutive month in November, the California Building Association announced. However, the state is still on its way to ending the year with the third-lowest housing starts tally on record.
In November, permits were pulled for 4,011 total housing units, up 21 percent from November 2010, according to statistics compiled by the Construction Industry Research Board. Permits for single-family homes numbered 1,486, a four percent increase from November 2010, but down one percent from the pervious month. Additionally, multifamily homes totaled 2,525, up 33 percent from a year ago and a 123 percent rise from October.
During the first 11 months of 2011, permits were pulled for 41,123 total homes, an eight percent increase from the first 11 months of 2010. Permits for single-family homes were down 12 percent while permits for multifamily units were up 36 percent.
“It’s heartening to see housing starts increase on a year-over-year basis for the fourth month in a row, but the reality of the situation hits home when you look at the overall numbers,” said Mike Winn, CBIA president and CEO. “We do seem to be recovering, albeit at a very slow rate, which is not enough to signal any meaningful impact on jobs or the economy.”