Advertisement

Rearview Mirror: OC Week in Review

Share

Sunday, 05.03.15

Medina, Keating win OC Marathon

Ivan Medina of Mexico won the 11th annual U.S. Bank OC Marathon. Medina passed the finish line alone to win his first marathon — in 2 hours, 30 minutes, 21 seconds at the OC Fair & Event Center in Costa Mesa. Bonnie Keating, 30, of San Diego won the women’s marathon for the second straight year in 2:47:31. The 26.2-mile race began early in the morning at Fashion Island in Newport Beach. (Daily Pilot)

Making way for Haggen grocery store

Advertisement

Corona del Mar’s Albertsons grocery closed at 6 p.m., and staff gathered outside for a final photo in front of the blue sign on the front of the building. Then hundreds of workers immediately began converting the store to a Haggen grocery. The opening was scheduled for the next day. (Corona del Mar Today)

Monday, 05.04.15

Corinthian Colleges files for bankruptcy

Corinthian Colleges Inc. formally filed for bankruptcy a week after closing its remaining two dozen campuses and leaving 16,000 students scrambling for alternatives. The move brings closure to years of troubles for the Santa Ana company, one of the nation’s largest for-profit education providers. It still faces lawsuits and investigations by more than a dozen state attorneys general and federal authorities over allegations of fraudulent marketing to recruit students. (Los Angeles Times)

Critics launch attempt to recall judge

A group behind the effort to recall an Orange County Superior Court judge filed the necessary paperwork with the county’s registrar of voters to get the process underway. Judge M. Marc Kelly has come under fire in recent weeks for what some say was an inappropriate sentencing of a convicted child molester. Kelly handed down a shorter-than-required prison term — 10 years instead of the legal minimum of 25 — in early April, explaining that the guilty 20-year-old seemed remorseful and didn’t fit the profile of a sexual predator. (Los Angeles Times)

Tuesday, 05.05.15

Tet organizers accused of embezzlement

Two Vietnamese American youth leaders who helped organize the hugely successful Orange County Tet Parade are accused of embezzling more than $100,000 following an internal investigation, officials say. Nina Tran, longtime president of the Union of the Vietnamese Student Assns. of Southern California, or UVSA, and Helen Nguyen, who worked as treasurer, are accused of taking nearly $118,000, according to a statement. (Los Angeles Times)

Deputies arrest teacher on molestation charge

A longtime Orange County teacher was arrested on suspicion of child molestation and possession of child pornography, authorities said. Ezequiel Barragan, 48, is accused of having sexual contact with a boy under the age of 14 over the last two years, according to the Orange County Sheriff’s Department. Investigators would not disclose in what capacity Barragan, a Spanish teacher at Dana Hills High School in Dana Point, knew the alleged victim. (Los Angeles Times)

Laguna to close downtown street

The Laguna Beach City Council will temporarily close most of Forest Avenue in an effort to boost aesthetics and create a more pedestrian-friendly downtown. The council agreed to close the avenue from Coast Highway to Glenneyre Street for a period in August and September and create gathering spaces known as parklets. (Coastline Pilot)

Fiery Anaheim crash ends in arrests

Three people were in custody after a police pursuit of a stolen vehicle ended in a fiery crash in Anaheim, authorities said. The incident began about 11 a.m. when officers spotted a stolen vehicle and began following it, according to Anaheim Police Department Sgt. Daron Wyatt said. When officers tried to pull the vehicle over, it took off. Within a few hundred feet, the car ran a red light at South Beach Boulevard and Orange Avenue and collided with another vehicle. That second car spun around and burst into flames, but the driver was not visibly injured, Wyatt said. The stolen car careened into a light pole, the Orange County Register reported. Two men and a woman got out of the stolen car and ran, but all were caught. All three were taken to the hospital as a precaution. (KTLA)

Wednesday, 05.06.15

Suspect dumps chlorine into marine sanctuary

Police say they are searching for an intruder who broke into the Pacific Marine Mammal Center in Laguna Beach last week and attacked a group of recovering sea lions by dumping chlorine into an enclosure. The chemical hurt all 17 sea lions in the tank, most of which had already recovered from the injuries they suffered in the wild and were scheduled to be released the next day, according to authorities. (Coastline Pilot)

Supes name Frank Kim county CEO

Frank Kim, a longtime Orange County employee, was named county executive officer. Kim, who previously served as chief financial officer, won the appointment from the Board of Supervisors. He started with the county in 1995. Kim will replace Mike Giancola on May 12, pending official approval of Kim’s contract. (County of Orange)

Thursday, 05.07.15

Man convicted in cold case

A Costa Mesa man was convicted Thursday in the decades-old kidnapping and slaying of a man he believed raped his former girlfriend. An Orange County jury decided that Gianni Anthony Van, 45, was guilty of first-degree murder for hacking 24-year-old Gonzalo Ramirez to death in April 1995 and dumping his body along a muddy road in Irvine. Van is expected to be sentenced to life in prison without parole at a hearing July 10, according to the Orange County district attorney’s office. During the trial, which began April 15, prosecutors alleged that an enraged Van helped plot brutal revenge on Ramirez after Van’s former girlfriend Norma Patricia Esparza — then a 20-year-old student at Pomona College — told him that Ramirez had sexually assaulted her. (Daily Pilot)

Friday, 05.08

Overnight storm hits OC harder

Overnight showers Thursday and early morning Friday were stronger in Orange County than other parts of the region. More than an inch of rain fell in Silverado Canyon, but no problems had been reported, the National Weather service said. Hail was also reported in Costa Mesa. (Los Angeles Times)

Big development planned for Anaheim

A Chinese developer is planning a nearly $500-million residential, hotel and retail complex next to Angel Stadium in Anaheim as a potential anchor for a future downtown area. Plans call for a mega-development complete with a 28-story condo tower, a 26-story hotel, a theater, alfresco dining and an indoor surfing park. The Anaheim project — planned on 14 acres at State College Boulevard and Orangewood Avenue — is part of a wave of Asian investment in large-scale Southern California developments. (Los Angeles Times)

Advertisement