Fresno District Attorney Lisa Smittcamp blamed Gov. Gavin Newsom for the early release of Nathaniel Dixon, accused of killing police officer Gonzalo Carrasco Jr. in Selma. However, facts indicate that Smittcamp's office made the decision that led to Dixon's release under AB109, a California law aimed at reducing the state's...
Dyer Makes Pitch for Unity in Sun Soaked State of City Address
In normal years, the State of the City is a formal affair, with fancy tablecloths, rolls and the obligatory rubber chicken lunch. After a year when the annual mayoral address presented by the Fresno Chamber of Commerce went virtual, the event returned in-person, in the morning and in a relaxed...
Fresno Developer Criticizes District Attorney as Council Delays Granite Park Vote
One day after Fresno County District Attorney Lisa Smittcamp sounded a warning about a Fresno City Council vote on settling a lawsuit about Granite Park, Terance Frazier criticized the move. The City Council was scheduled to vote on settling a lawsuit Frazier and his nonprofit Central Valley Community Sports Foundation...
District Attorney: ‘No Authority’ to Enforce Curfew Order
Add Lisa Smittcamp to the list of local law enforcers who plan to ignore a statewide curfew order set to go into place Saturday night. The Fresno County District Attorney joins Fresno County Sheriff Margaret Mims and other regional sheriffs in saying they will not enforce the curfew. "The Order...
Fresno’s Top Cops Call Out Newsom on Closed Prisons
Fresno's top law enforcement officials called out Gov. Gavin Newsom to reopen prisons. After an increase in violent crime in the city, Fresno County District Attorney Lisa Smittcamp and several law enforcement leaders addressed the media at a Wednesday afternoon news conference at the county Plaza Building. Smittcamp Calls Out...
Radio Ad Slams Arambula Over Run-in with Supervisors
Assemblyman Joaquin Arambula's confrontation last week with members of the Fresno County Board of Supervisors has made him the target of conservative activist and campaign consultant Tal Cloud. Also in Politics 101: Will there be a City-County workshop next week? Groups concerned over access to meeting. Two more candidates running...
DA: No Charges Against Arias for Protester Altercation
Fresno City Council President Miguel Arias will not face charges for a May 12 altercation with protesters led by conservative activist Ben Bergquam at Arias' downtown condominium. The incident, captured on several videos and posted to the internet, found several people at Arias's doorstep protesting the city's shelter-in-place orders. The...
Nickey Stane Charged in 1996 Killing of Debbie Dorian
Fresno County District Attorney Lisa Smittcamp formally charged a suspect Wednesday in the Debbie Dorian cold case homicide. Nickey Duane Stane, 52, faces murder and rape charges for the Aug. 22, 1996 killing of the 22-year-old Dorian. She was found bound in duct tape in her apartment near Fresno State....
Parole Denied in Murder of Developmentally Disabled Clovis Man
Gov. Gavin Newsom has blocked parole for the killer of a developmentally disabled Clovis man who was buried alive in 1980. Newsom on Thursday reversed an August decision by a state panel to grant parole to David Weidert. Listen to this article: Weidert, who is incarcerated at Soledad State...
Judge Orders Hmong Murders Suspects to Remain Jailed
Three suspects accused of conspiracy in the killing of four men at a football-watching party on Nov. 17 will remain in detention, a federal judge in Fresno ruled Wednesday afternoon. Jhovanny Delgado-Marcelo, Pao Choua Vang, and Johnny Xiong were denied release by Judge Stanley Boone. The three face conspiracy charges...