district attorney

The annual opportunity for citizens to take part in the 2013-2014 El Dorado County Grand Jury by submitting their names for possible nomination has arrived.

The Grand Jury is an excellent vehicle for committed men and women to keep government close to and responsible to all of our County’s citizens. Applicants must be Untied States citizens, at least 18 years of age, have resided in the County for at least one year at the time of the swearing-in date, and cannot hold an elected office.

“We are here today because two lives were destroyed, but only one by choice,” El Dorado County Assistant District Attorney Hans Uthe told the court Wednesday.

Let’s start with the elephant in the room: A councilmember has been linked to a bribery investigation. If anything is amiss, the repercussions will be significant. If nothing is amiss, the devastation to this councilmember, her reputation and her family is immeasurable and horrific.

But no matter the outcome, the damage has already been done. Trust and confidence in the city’s leadership has been shaken. A big question mark — “what now?” — hangs in the air. Which brings us back to the room: The City of South Lake Tahoe.

CARSON CITY – A little-known benefit of Nevada’s public employee pension plan is the right to purchase up to five years of service towards retirement.
Referred to by some as “air time,” or the ability to add years of retirement without actually putting in the time in a public sector job, the benefit can allow state and local government workers to retire early, collecting annual pensions years before they would be eligible otherwise.

The caseload at the East Fork Township in Douglas County does not require an additional judge at this time, Justice of the Peace Tom Perkins has decided.
The announcement was made public in a news release sent Monday.
State law requires that an additional judge be added to the township when it reaches 34,000 in population. According to Nevada's demographer, the population of East Fork Township is 39,907. In a letter written to the Legislative Counsel Bureau, Judge Perkins said:

By Heather Gould
As of October 1, nine new inmates have been incarcerated in the El Dorado County jail who would have previously gone to state prison. With the state short of funds and under a court mandate to relieve overcrowding in its state prisons, those committing non-violent, non-serious and non-sex offenses will be housed in county jails rather than state prisons under a program dubbed "realignment."

A spokeswoman for the El Dorado County District Attorney's Office told Lake Tahoe News her office is waiting for the police department to finalize reports before they would contemplate issuing a c...