Author: Ethan Stewart

Tern Massacre

Though the investigation is still being conducted, it appears hundreds of seabirds may have died on a barge that served as the staging area for the Independence Day fireworks extravaganza in Santa Barbara. The mystery began a couple of hundred miles to the south in the days leading up to the Fourth when hundreds of dead baby terns washed up on the shores of Long Beach near Island White. According to sources at the International Bird Rescue Research Center (IBRRC), approximately 2,000 adult terns and their chicks had been nesting in recent months on two barges moored off Long Beach.

Naples Debate Returns

More than six months behind schedule, the draft Environmental Impact Report for the proposed development of Santa Barbara Ranch was released late last week. The long-awaited report – compiled by the URS Corporation – identifies several Class I (i.e. significant) environmental impacts within Orange County developer Matt Osgood’s plan to put 54 luxury homes on the 485-acre area popularly known as Naples.

Boards Merger

Longstanding rumors came true last week when locally based surf industry giant Channel Islands Surfboards (CI) was bought out by an East Coast snowboard company. Living in the tenuous times of the post-Clark Foam shutdown, Al Merrick – the mastermind behind arguably the most famous surfboards in the world – announced last Thursday afternoon that his privately held multi-million- dollar international business is now owned by Vermont native Jake Burton and his equally world-renowned snowboard company, Burton.

Let it Shine

Responsible for helping multiply CDs’ memory capacity by five, creating streetlamps that don’t attract bugs, and working to bring brighter and more energy-efficient light bulbs to the world, UCSB professor Shuji Nakamura (pictured) was recognized last week by the international scientific community with the 2006 Millennium Technology Award. Nakamura – who has been a Gaucho professor of electrical and computer engineering since 2000 – was given the “Holy Grail of semi-conductor research” for his work with light emitting diodes (LED) and the blue laser diode that reads CDs and DVDs.

Closing Time

The rumors are true. One of Santa Barbara’s most beloved eating and drinking establishments is calling it quits at the end of next month. July 29 will mark the last call for alcohol and egg rolls at Jimmy’s Oriental Gardens on East Canon Perdido Street. A staple in the local community since it opened in 1947, Jimmy’s has been a favorite of downtown workers, the theater community, and anyone just looking for a good drink and a welcoming place with arguably the best jazz soundtrack this side of the Mississippi.

Street Fight

SBPD Accused of Police Brutality

Emotions ran high this week at City Hall as several UCSB students – a majority of them black – publicly accused the Santa Barbara Police Department of brutality during a late-night arrest gone terribly wrong last week. With Police Chief Cam Sanchez looking on, a dozen witnesses gave their accounts of the scene outside Cooney’s Bar late last Thursday night, relaying teary and outraged stories of unwarranted pepper spraying, excessive use of batons, and a woman being “dragged by her hair across the street with her breast hanging out.”

Rape Trial Wrap-Up

Closing arguments in the rape trial of former Devereux School employee Darren Boyer Thomas (pictured) concluded this week, with a jury verdict expected as soon as this Friday. Thirty-nine-year-old Thomas – who is charged with raping and impregnating a developmentally disabled resident at the school in December 2003 – took the stand on Monday afternoon as the sole witness for the defense.