POLICE PROBE STABBING IN ROSEVILLE/FLEETRIDGE NEIGHBORHOOD
Investigators are looking into a late-night knife assault on Aug. 18 in which a man was stabbed three times in the chest on Scott Street in the Roseville/Fleetridge neighborhood.
Police said two males became involved in a dispute shortly after 10:30 p.m. when one of them began yelling and causing a disturbance in the front of their residences. The suspect, identified only as a 48-year-old man, produced a knife and stabbed the 59-year-old victim in the chest. According to investigators, the suspect retreated to his residence after the stabbing. When police arrived, he was taken into custody without incident. The victim’s stab wounds were not considered to be life threatening, said officials. Anyone with information is encouraged to call Crime Stoppers at (888) 580-8477. GAS STATION GUNMAN LANDS 25-YEAR SENTENCE
A man who held up a USA service station at gunpoint in the Sunset Cliffs area has been sentenced to 25 years in state prison after he pleaded guilty to all charges.
Because police recovered all the stolen money, there was no restitution order for Steven Joshua Balistreri, 36, by the Superior Court judge. Balistreri was given credit for already serving 180 days in jail and fined nearly $10,500.
Deputy District Attorney Jim Koerber said the admitted use of a gun in the March 9 incident added 10 years to the other charges of robbery, two auto thefts and being a felon in possession of a firearm. Balistreri also admitted being out on bond in a Riverside County case when he committed the robbery, which added more time to the sentence.
Balistreri also pleaded guilty to stealing a car in Murietta, where he is from, which added even more time. His prior conviction for residential burglary added five years, said Koerber, who had asked for a 34-year sentence for Balistreri.
Koerber said Balistreri stole $241 from the female clerk and then apologized to her before fleeing in a stolen Nissan Pathfinder. During a traffic stop, a police officer discovered the gun and arrested him near Robb Field. Police found the money in his pocket.
— Neal Putnam OB MAN ACCUSED OF BRUTAL HATCHET BEATING PLEADS GUILTY
An Ocean Beach man pleaded guilty Aug. 19 to attempted murder and robbery of the owner of a jewelry store who was repeatedly struck with the blunt end of a hatchet.
Travis Scott Kelley, 25, also pleaded guilty to two assault charges and has agreed to a 14-year state prison term that he must serve 85 percent of, said Deputy District Attorney Gordon Davis.
Sentencing is set for Sept. 18 before El Cajon Superior Court Judge Laura Halgren. The sentencing is in El Cajon because the Jan. 22 incident took at place at Hamlin Jewelers, at 2234 Fletcher Parkway.
The owner, Carl Hamlin, 75, testified about the injuries he received, which included a concussion and a skull fracture. He needed more than 200 stitches to close a head wound. Kelley’s getaway driver, Ali Armeen Toombs, 21, of La Mesa, pleaded guilty to robbery and burglary. Davis said Toombs didn’t go into the store and faces a sentence ranging from prison to probation.
Kelley was also charged with attempted mayhem, three burglaries, assault, elder abuse, grand theft firearm and fraudulent use of another person’s credit card, but those counts were dropped after he pleaded guilty to the other charges. The store’s security camera footage captured the incident and Davis said Kelley’s fingerprints were found on the inside door. The victim’s blood was found on him, as well as on the passenger side of the getaway car.
Kelley was arrested Jan. 24 in Ocean Beach by the San Diego Regional Fugitive Task Force. Kelley and Toombs remain in custody without bail.
— Neal Putnam PLANNERS SET SEPT. 17 WORKSHOP ON NIMITZ COMMUNITY VISION PLAN
A workshop to discuss the community’s vision for Nimitz Boulevard will be held Wednesday, Sept. 17 from 7 to
8:30 p.m. at Point Loma Presbyterian Church Family Life Center, 2129 Chatsworth Blvd.
The workshop is being hosted by the Point Loma Association (PLA), which recently completed a median-enhancement project at West Point Loma Avenue and Nimitz Boulevard.
The PLA is now seeking support, input and funding for further improvements along the Nimitz corridor.
Toward that end, a Nimitz Visioning Task Force comprising Peninsula leaders and recent and past city planners has been formed.
Cecilia Carrick, past PLA chairwoman, talked about the group’s expectations for the workshop.
“We want the whole community to come in and give us input on what their vision is for Nimitz Boulevard,” she said. “Do they want more or fewer bike lanes? More landscaping? Road improvements? Public art? We’d love to hear from the community and also share what our mission is.”
The Nimitz Task Force includes: Ron Brooks, PLA Beautification Committee chairman; Carrick; Coleen Clementson, a planner with the San Diego Association of Governments; Ned Daugherty, landscape architect; Karen Davis, PLA master gardener; Kerri DeRosier, PLA newsletter editor; Dan Dennison, PLA board member; Jim Hare, former San Diego city planner; architect Lee Hope; PLA chairman Robert Jackson; architect Dick Lareau; former San Diego planning director Betsy McCullough; and former San Diego City Councilman Byron Wear.
For more information, email [email protected]. ASSEMBLY SPEAKER ATKINS TO HOST COMMUNITY OFFICE EVENT
Californa Assembly Speaker Toni Atkins will host a “community office” for all local beach residents in Pacific Beach on Tuesday, Sept. 16 so citizens may meet with her staff and obtain information on state services or assist with any state-related agency. Topics and issues with state-related agencies include discussions on:
• Department of Motor Vehicles
• Consumer complaints
• Veterans Affairs
• Medi-Cal and Covered California (Affordable Care Act) • Property-tax issues • Unemployment and disability insurance • State Franchise Tax Board • Express an opinion
• Suggest changes to a law
• The state budget
• State agency phone numbers
• State Capitol tour requests
The community office takes place from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the Pacific Beach Branch Library, located at 4275 Cass St.