News

FRESNO -  U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd sentenced Adam Alan Henry, 39, of Turlock, today to 20 years in prison to be followed by 15 years of supervised release, for child exploitation offenses, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced. During the supervised release, Henry will be required to register as a sex offender, and his access to minors, the internet, and computers will be restricted. He was also ordered to pay $2,500 and $500 in restitution to two victims whose images Henry obtained.

On November 17, 2017, a federal jury in Fresno found Henry guilty of conspiring to sexually exploit a minor and receiving child pornography. According to court documents and evidence produced at trial, from May 2012 until September 19, 2013, Henry conspired with another person to create video and still images of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct. From 2007 through September 2013, Henry used a file-sharing program to receive child pornography.

FRESNO - Thousands of farmworkers have asked the California Supreme Court to protect their rights. Even though the Court of Appeals ordered that the state Agricultural Labor Relations Board count the workers' votes, the agency still wants to destroy the ballots and instead force a non-negotiated "contract" on the workers; a contract the workers don't want and won't even be allowed to vote on.

The Jerry Brown-staffed agency created the "contract" it tried to force on the workers, which would have lowered their wages and required them to suddenly pay to keep their jobs or be fired. "We never had to pay to keep our jobs before, now they tell us we will be fired if we don't pay," said Farm Labor Leader Silvia Lopez.

MADERA - The owner of The Tap House, Dustin Franklin is working diligently to open a smokehouse restaurant in the former Cool Hand Luke’s space at the Madera Fairgrounds located at 1830 West Cleveland Avenue. The name Sugar Pine reaches back to Madera’s roots referencing the former Sugar Pine Lumber Company that established the town of Madera with its booming lumber business.

The restaurant will specialize in barbecue cuisine including smoked entrees. “ We will be using a smoker to complement our barbecue dishes, our menu items will include appetizers, soups, salads, steaks, seafood, burgers, and desserts”, said Franklin.

BASS LAKE - On September 3, 2018 around 3:08pm, the Madera County Sheriff’s Office received a call for service regarding a boating accident at Bass Lake. According to witness statements, a privately owned ski boat was pulling two individuals on an inflatable tube. While the ski boat was stopped, a pontoon boat struck both tube passengers. Deputies responded to the scene along with EMS and located two injured persons, ages 32 and 7.

The 32 year old male, Brandon Harris, was transported to local regional hospital by ground ambulance, while the 7 year old female victim was airlifted to a local regional hospital. The 7 year old female, Lily Harris, was later pronounced deceased at the hospital. The father and daughter are both residents of Fresno, but maintain a residence in the Bass Lake area. The operator of the pontoon boat is a resident of San Mateo, but also maintains a residence in the Bass Lake area.