Riverside County

Public health officials in Riverside County are urging residents to steer clear of bats acting strangely after a 15-year-old Hemet boy was bitten. The bat was rabid and the teenager was treated by a doctor last week after the bite. The boy found the bat flopping around on the ground during the day, according to the county Department of Animal Services. When he tried to pick it up, it bit him. His condition was not known. "If you see a bat during the day, something is not right with that bat," said Sharon Fortino, assistant nurse manager for the county Department of Public Health.

The Soboba Band of Luiseno Indians placed its chairman, Robert Salgado, on administrative leave Tuesday, one day after he pleaded not guilty to 36 counts of bribery. The tribal council said Salgado would be on leave until the charges against him are resolved. The council also said he was not authorized to "conduct business or represent the Tribe in any capacity" although he is still chairman. Salgado, 67, was arrested by FBI agents last week on charges of accepting more than $250,000 in bribes from vendors doing business with the reservation near San Jacinto.

A temporary dam failed to keep a construction area dry at Prado Dam after the weekend's rainstorms, the Army Corps of Engineers said Monday. Two years ago, more than 2,000 residents of Riverside and Orange counties were evacuated after engineers detected seepage from a similar structure. "There is no impact on the safety and operation of Prado Dam," said Bob Koplin, chief of the engineering division at the corps' Los Angeles District. The overflow went into a work area near new outlet gates in the dam. Recent rains brought an increase in water retained by the dam, but the basin is only about 7% full, corps officials said.

A federal judge in Riverside said Monday that he was prepared to close a sprawling trailer park in Thermal within two weeks unless its owner presented a detailed plan to repair water, electricity and building code violations at the property that is home to 6,000 tenants. "If I get the feeling that this is not going to happen, I'm going to close the place down. I'll send out federal marshals, and that will be it," said U.S.

A woman accused of setting a fire that destroyed six trailers, rendered eight families homeless and resulted in the evacuation of a notorious mobile home park in Thermal was acquitted on all charges Friday by a jury in Indio. An emotional Guadalupe DeAnda, 52, sobbed uncontrollably as the verdict was read, said her lawyer, public defender David Prendergast. The case went to the jury Thursday.

A slow-moving storm brought modest amounts of rain to the region, causing a minor mudslide in Riverside County and wreaking havoc on some roads before pushing out to the east. In its wake, forecasters expected chilly but sunny weather today, with heavy surf at some beaches. The storm brought 0.68 of an inch of rain to downtown Los Angeles by Sunday evening, and larger amounts elsewhere, contributing to seasonal totals that were already well above average. In Riverside County, up to 3 feet of mud oozed across Soboba Road in Gilman Hot Springs, engulfing two cars and trapping one driver, who was rescued by firefighters, county Fire Capt.

Statewide Orange County Riverside County -- Los Angeles County State Assembly Member District 55 -- -- Warren Furitani (D) 15,182 69 Herb Peters (Lib) 3,443 16 Charlotte S. Gibson (AI) 3,370 15 -- -- Acton-Agua Dulce Unified School District Measure -- -- 41% precincts reporting Votes % -- -- V -- School improvement bond Requires 55% vote Yes 340 46 No 404 54 -- -- Downey Measure -- -- 61% precincts reporting Votes % -- -- G -- Term limits Yes 3,818 32 No 8,155 68 -- -- Huntington Park Measure -- -- 33% precincts reporting Votes % -- -- B -- Communications users tax Yes 1,253 79 No 332 21 -- -- Inglewood Measure -- -- 26% precincts reporting Votes % -- -- F -- Prohibition on fireworks Yes 2,561 46 No 3,066 54 -- -- Long Beach Community College District Measure -- -- 38% precincts reporting Votes % -- -- E -- School improvement bond Requires 55% vote Yes 26,763 74 No 9,384 26 -- -- Los Angeles Measure -- -- 17% precincts reporting Votes % -- -- S -- Reduction of tax rate Yes 88,566 66 No 45,494 34 -- -- Pasadena Measure -- -- 9% precincts reporting Votes % -- -- D -- Utility users tax continuation Yes 3,575 62 No 2,204 38 -- -- Redondo Beach Unified School District Measure -- -- 33% precincts reporting Votes % -- -- C -- School improvement...

A federal judge took partial control of the Duroville mobile home park Monday, appointing three overseers, including a former diplomat, to investigate conditions, make emergency repairs and temporarily take over all financial operations of the Thermal shantytown. U.S. District Judge Stephen Larson in Riverside could have closed the park but decided instead to give the experts two months to make recommendations. "After 60 days I want to be able to make an intelligent decision," he said.

Riverside County: An article in Section A on Jan. 28 about ballot issues said Riverside County extended from the Colorado River west to the San Jacinto Mountains. It reaches the Santa Ana Mountains.