News

This year Kitayama Brothers, a cut flower grower based in Watsonville, is celebrating its 73rd year in business.  Not long after World War II, brothers Tom and Ray Kitayama landed in San Francisco’s east bay and began working for Yoshimi Shibata and Dan Shinoda, two...

Watsonville police officer Chance Denecke photographs a bullet at the Sunny Meadows apartment complex Wednesday after two men reportedly carjacked a vehicle. WPD spokeswoman Michelle Pulido said a victim told police two suspects took a Mercedes Benz 250 sedan just after 2pm from him...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—The county’s first Filipino American judge was recently appointed as a Santa Cruz County Superior Court judge by Gov. Gavin Newsom. “My knees went weak when I got the call,” said Jerry Bustos Vinluan III. “I was overwhelmed. It was later in the...

WATSONVILLE—The city of Watsonville recently agreed to settle a lawsuit over the 2018 death of a Watsonville man. Robert Castillo, 44, died after being struck by multiple cars on Highway 1 hours after he was detained on Nov. 23, 2018 by a Watsonville Police Department...

SANTA CRUZ—Santa Cruz police arrested two men suspected of vandalizing a large Black Lives Matter mural in Santa Cruz on Saturday by making a series of long, sinuous skid marks over it with a pickup truck carrying the United States flag. Brandon Bochat, 20, of...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—A Watsonville man wanted on suspicion of attempted homicide for a drive-by shooting in Live Oak was arrested Monday in Idaho. Patrick Diaz, 29, was taken into custody for his alleged involvement in the Jan. 13 shooting of a man on Soquel Drive...

Watsonville firefighters respond to a small fire in the Resetar Residential Hotel on east Lake Avenue Wednesday, which forced the evacuation of dozens of residents and closed East Lake Avenue for a short time. According to Watsonville Fire Battalion Chief Corey Schaffer, the fire...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—Anyone who lived in or visited Santa Cruz in 2018-2019 most likely noticed the red electric bicycles being ridden and parked across the city. Santa Cruz had partnered with Jump Bikes, a company providing affordable short-term bike rentals for trips within city...

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—On June 29 firefighters from fire departments throughout the Santa Cruz Mountains were blanketed in surprise when three women showed up with a number of free, handmade quilts. Almost 80 firefighters from the Boulder Creek, Felton, Zayante and Ben Lomond fire protection districts...

WATSONVILLE—A man was arrested Wednesday morning after he reportedly tried to break into a vehicle and then led Watsonville police on a high-speed chase down Green Valley Road. Watsonville Police Department Sgt. Mike Ridgway said the incident began when the suspect started banging on the...