Seat belt crack down

The Turlock Police Department will be exercising a period of maximum enforcement in the upcoming weeks for the Click It or Ticket campaign. Officers will be actively looking for those individuals failing to comply with California's seat belt laws.

Accused tagger faces jail, fine

A 15-year-old boy is facing felony vandalism charges and a hefty fine for a series of taggings in Delhi, the Merced County Sheriff's Department reported.

Bank victim of break in artists

A break-in at a bank on Thursday could have been the plot of a Hollywood movie or a scheme hatched up on a hit television show, but instead it happened up close and personal in Turlock.

Winton party ends in violence

A 19-year-old man is in critical condition from gunshot wounds he sustained when he and several other people crashed a birthday party in Winton Saturday night.

Thieves trickery comes to no avail

An attempt to lure police officers away from a house they had surrounded to a nonexistent crime scene proved fruitless Thursday and ended with the arrests of several people and the recovery of stolen property.

Accident victim identified

The 70-year-old Turlock man who was struck and killed while walking in a crosswalk Tuesday night in Turlock has been identified as Charles Arnold by the Stanislaus County Coroner's Office.

Former publisher faces sexual battery charge

The San Joaquin County District Attorney's Office has filed one misdemeanor charge of sexual battery against the former publisher of six community newspapers, including the Turlock Journal.

Woman dies at county public safety center

A woman waiting to be booked into the Stanislaus County Public Safety Center was found dead in a holding cell, the Stanislaus County Sheriff's Department announced Thursday.

ATV wreck injures two

An all terrain vehicle collision with a Honda in Delhi on Monday sent two people to area hospitals with major injuries.

Murder suspect arrested in DUI stop

A traffic stop on a potential drunk driver in Delhi By the California Highway Patrol led to the apprehension of a murder suspect out of Fresno.

Elder abuse town hall

State Senator Jeff Denham and Stanislaus County Sheriff Adam Christianson are hosting a town hall meeting to discuss elder abuse prevention.

Robbers strike three times in one day

A string of robberies that took place within less than a hour's time left some Turlock residents shaken and the police department searching for the armed suspects.

Jury returns guilty verdict for park shooter

A Waterford man who shot his estranged girlfriend and sparked a five-hour standoff at Turlock's Donnelly Park was convicted by a Stanislaus County jury on attempted murder charges.

Alleged road rage attacker pleads not guilty

Michael Hoyt, the 49-year-old Turlock man facing a homicide charge related to a road rage incident, pled not guilty at his arraignment in Stanislaus County Superior Court Wednesday.

Purse snatchers strike again

A pair of prolific purse thieves have struck at another Turlock shopping center, but this time police have a picture of the suspect's vehicle.

Trial set for former detective

A trial date for Kari Abbey, the former Stanislaus County sheriff's detective, has been set for September. Abbey is facing charges of conspiracy to forcibly enter a home, embezzlement from a government entity, cultivating marijuana, and permitting a child to be endangered. A trial date has been set for Sept. 25. Abbey was initially facing charges of second-degree murder and voluntary manslaughter for the death of Rita Elias. Abbey was accused ...

Inmate found hanged in jail cell

The Stanislaus County Sheriff's Department is investigating the death of an inmate in custody at the Stanislaus County Jail. The sheriff's department has released few details about the death. The name of the man has not been released, though the department has said he was 23 years old and was from Turlock. Sheriff spokesman Sgt. Anthony Bejaran said the death appeared to be a suicide. The man was discovered around 5 p.m. ...

Vehicle crashes into church

Someone drove a vehicle into the front of Turlock church and then promptly took off, leaving the police department to wonder if it was an accident or an intentional act. The Holy Ground Ministry at 305 W. Canal Dr. sustained significant damage to the front of the building from the encounter. The front door was ripped from the frame and the wood and brick frame work at the base of the building were ...

Horses killed on rural road

A gruesome scene greeted California Highway Patrol officers Saturday morning when four horses were killed on a rural road west of Turlock.

Bullet grazes teen

A Delhi teen was grazed by gunfire Saturday night and is refusing to tell law enforcement any of the details.

Jail escapee caught, along with girlfriend and wife

The inmate who escaped from the John Latoracca Correctional Facility in El Nido on Valentine's Day is back behind bars, as is his wife and girlfriend.

Inmate breaks out of Merced correctional facility

A manhunt is underway for the inmate who escaped from a Merced County jail Tuesday morning by tunneling out of the facility. The escape from the John Latoracca Correctional Facility in El Nido has been identified as Zachary William Johnson, 32, of Morgan Hill. Johnson's disappearance was noticed around 7 a.m. when correctional officers were conducting a routine headcount of the dorms. When the count came up one short an inspection of ...

Methadone sale nets prison time

A Turlock man convicted of selling methadone was sentenced to prison for 11 years and eight months, according to the Stanislaus County District Attorney's Office. Jerry Jay Edgar, 55, also admitted two prior convictions for drug sales offenses from 1997 and 2002, and admitted a prior prison commitment from 2002. On July 31, 2009, officers from the Turlock Police Department responded to a report of possible drug sales occurring at a trailer ...

Investigators seek burglary suspects

The Turlock Police Department is seeking the public's assistance in identifying two men believed to be responsible for a home burglary last year. The burglary happened sometime between Oct. 29, 2011, and Nov. 4, 2011 and was reported by the 75-year –old victim on Nov. 27, 2011, said police spokesman Sgt. Stephen Webb. Among the various items taken during the residential burglary was an ATM card belonging to the victim. On ...

Grant to aid prosecution in drunken driving cases

The Stanislaus County District Attorney's Office was awarded a one-year grant from the Office of Traffic Safety aimed at preventing deaths and injuries on the roadways and holding those at fault accountable. The $344,055 grant will fund two deputy district attorneys to prosecute felony and misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter cases involving drugs or alcohol, felony driving under the influence and causing great bodily injury cases, as well as felony and misdemeanor driving under the ...

Serial bank robber sentenced

A man convicted of robbing six banks in Turlock and Ceres was sentenced to multiple decades behind bars. Marty Rojas, 38, of Modesto was convicted on Jan. 20 of six counts of bank robbery. On Friday he was sentenced to 23 years in prison, according to the Stanislaus County District Attorney's Office. The prosecution said Rojas robbed Bank of America twice and was responsible for robberies at County Bank, Citibank, Union Bank ...

Man charged with rape

A Turlock man has been arrested on a rape charge after allegedly admitting to attacking a female relative. Miguel Angel Mendoza, 37, was arrested Thursday on suspicion of rape and is being held in Stanislaus County Jail on a $150,000 bail. According to the Turlock Police Department, the alleged rape occurred in May 2011 but wasn't reported until December. Mendoza initially denied the attack in December, but during a subsequent interview with ...

Preliminary hearing set for Denair teen charged with murder

A preliminary hearing for the murder case against Denair teenager Shanna Wills has been set for June 12. Wills, 18, is charged with murder, attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon. The charges stem from an encounter between Wills and her father Kenneth Wills, 62, and her mother, Susan Wills, on Mother's Day of last year that resulted in the death of Kenneth Wills and the hospitalization of Susan Wills for severe ...

Large marijuana grow found in Turlock following traffic stop

State clears abundance of DNA samples awaiting analysis

A backlog that slowed DNA testing in the state and jeopardized criminal prosecutions has been cleared, the California Attorney General's Office announced Wednesday.