State Supreme Court to decide on juvenile justice law
SAN FRANCISCO—The family of an 8-year-old girl who was allegedly raped, tortured and murdered by a 15-year-old suspect is urging the California Supreme court to overturn a law that could allow him to walk free when he is 25.
A.J. Gonzalez, now 21, is facing...
Salud Para La Gente gets $100K grant from Kaiser Permanente
WATSONVILLE—Watsonville-based health provider, Salud Para La Gente, has received a $100,000 grant as part of a $1 million distribution of funds to Santa Cruz County organizations from Kaiser Permanente.
The grants aim to increase access to healthcare for those who often don’t have health insurance, said...
Popular Watsonville eateries reopen for pick-up and delivery
NOTE: Part of this story was written by reporter Tarmo Hannula.
While some Watsonville restaurants have remained open since the countywide shelter-in-place order went into effect over two months ago, many have taken their time adjusting to the industry’s changing landscape.
This includes two Watsonville mainstays:...
New School program offers field trips, education, life skills
WATSONVILLE—Deep in Second Harvest Food Bank’s cavernous warehouse on Thursday, a group of New School Community Day School students was hard at work, surrounded by pallets of produce and crates of canned goods.
The volunteer activity, which centered around preparing the food for distribution, was...
Human trafficking symposium draws hundreds
Standing in front of a large audience at Santa Cruz County’s first human trafficking symposium, Deborah Pembrook said that, when she was a young girl, a trusted family friend brought her to truck stops and seedy motels to sell her for sex.
Changing weather | Photo Gallery
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Suspect in deputy killing pleads not guilty
ALAMEDA—The man who allegedly shot and killed a Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s deputy before engaging in an explosive-laden crime spree in the Santa Cruz Mountains town of Ben Lomond on June 6 pleaded not guilty Thursday to a host of charges in Alameda County...
City’s state-mandated housing goals expected to increase
WATSONVILLE—Although the city of Watsonville has made modest gains in its state-mandated housing goals, it will need to nearly triple the number of units it has built over the past five years before 2023.
That sobering reality presented to the City Council at its virtual...
Several state, local races ongoing
SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—Bernie Sanders captured a majority of California’s votes – and the state’s 416 delegates – making a decent Super Tuesday win for the Vermont Democrat in a night where the majority of votes in 13 other states went to Joe Biden.
Santa Cruz...
Winged wonder | Photo Gallery
Do you have a recent photo you’d like to share? Send it to us for consideration by emailing it to [email protected] or mailing it to 21 Brennan St., Suite 14, Watsonville, CA 95076. Please include a brief description of the photo as well as the name...
Watsonville police investigating car wash shooting
A man was shot Wednesday morning at the Sofspra Car Wash on the 300 block of East Lake Avenue in Watsonville.
Watsonville Police initially got...