News

Watsonville Police Chief Jorge Zamora (left) is recognized by detective Colin Travers Friday during a farewell lunch at the Watsonville Police Department. Following 33 years of service with WPD, Zamora worked his way through a list of ranks and titles, including Chief for the...

Dientes Community Dental Care celebrated Give Kids A Smile Day on Feb. 9 by partnering with six volunteer hygienists from the Monterey Bay Dental Hygienists’ Association to provide 48 uninsured children with free dental care.

SANTA CRUZ—A motorcade rolled through Santa Cruz County on June 4 as part of a 22,300-mile, cross country journey to honor 338 law enforcement officers who died in the line of duty in 2020. The Beyond the Call of Duty End of Watch Ride to...

SANTA CRUZ—The man accused of multiple sexual crimes against minors will remain in jail after a Santa Cruz County Superior Court judge on Thursday ordered him held without bail. Carlos Gomez Velasco, 39, has been charged with several felonies, including assault with intent to rape,...

WATSONVILLE—Watsonville Community Hospital (WCH) has begun Chapter 11 bankruptcy procedures, which officials say will provide the funding necessary to continue operating as the case commences and a local group prepares to purchase it. The case was filed in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern...

SANTA CRUZ—Santa Cruz Police on Tuesday arrested a man who they say stole a bicycle from a 10-year-old girl as she rode home from school with her friends the day before. Jordan Howard, 33, listed as transient, was charged with robbery and false imprisonment. He...

SANTA CRUZ—The family of the 8-year-old girl who was murdered in 2015 is facing a new tragedy after someone stole the urn containing her ashes. Madyson “Maddy” Middleton’s family says that her father Michel Middleton was keeping the urn in the glovebox of his unlocked...

CASTROVILLE—The North County Fire District held a badge pinning ceremony Tuesday at its main fire station in Castroville, welcoming seven newly promoted firefighters. Attendees to the ceremony included 2nd District Supervisor John Phillips and his staff, Fire District board members and friends and family of...

As the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors prepares to approve its $1.04 billion budget—a process that includes presentations from every department later this month—they must consider a grim prediction: a recession will hit this year, and is estimated to last the better part...

The year 2020 will go down as one of the most challenging in modern history. The pandemic affected everyone in one way or another; some of us lost loved ones, and everyone dealt with isolation and stress. Racial unrest tore through the country following the...