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Thursday, October 14, 2010

Cannabis Canned?…Monterey Superior Court Judge Lydia Villarreal has ruled that the city of Monterey’s temporary ban on medical pot means the My Caregiver co-op on Lighthouse Ave must shut down. Co-op attorney Richard Rosen says his clients will appeal. [RU]

Chief for Change…Former Seaside Police Chief Steve Cercone endorsed Mayor Ralph Rubio’s opponent while jabbing at the City Hall leadership that ousted him last year: “Felix Bachofner will put trust, accountability and especially honor back into a public building that sorely needs it.” [KA]

Host Arrested…The feds charged Monterey radio host and real estate broker Barbra Alexander with fraud. Prosecutors say she used her show, MoneyDots on KION, to lure investors into a Ponzi scheme. [JJB]

Fostering More Care…Gov. Schwarzenegger has signed a bill extending foster care benefits to youth in the county care until they’re 21, providing they’re in school, working or in job training programs. [RU]

Smoky Skies…Ash rained on the Peninsula Oct. 8, the season’s last day of controlled burns on Fort Ord, as part of an effort to remove unexploded ordnances from the Superfund site. [KA]

[UPODATE: This Buzz was corrected on Oct. 19, 2010 to reflect that the local air pollution control district did not advise against the Oct. 8 burn.]

Target on Gangs…Congressman Sam Farr, Salinas city and Monterey County officials announced a new gang-fighting partnership with the feds, which they say will pay off in cash and ideas. [RU]

More Gunshots…A shooting in Salinas leaves a 14-year old North Salinas High School student dead and another wounded. Salinas PD have arrested suspects in connection with a separate Oct. 1 homicide. [JJB]

Silent Win…The Naval Postgraduate School’s Eleanor Uhlinger nabbed national honors as 2009 Federal Librarian of the Year, with special props for low-cost renovations that yielded double-digit increases in loans and reference requests. [KA]

Campaign Ammo…The latest campaign disclosure reports show Sheriff Mike Kanalakis' pockets are still deeper than challenger Scott Miller’s. Kanalakis reports more than $280,000 in campaign spending so far, more than twice Miller’s. [JJB]

Music and Movies…Mr. Brainwash did Carmel, Erin Clark purred about Jaguars, and Clint and Dina Eastwood bantered on love and movies at the Carmel Art and Film Festival Oct. 8-10. Elsewhere in the county, guitars ruled the weekend: Al Jardine at Big Sur’s Henry Miller Library, Zion I and Para La Gente at CSUMB’s revived Black Box Cabaret, and Matt Baldwin at East Village Café. Read more at www.mcweekly.com/buzz; check pics and vids at www.mcweekly.com/photoblog. [WR/NC/ST]