Lions Park receives upgrades for field

Lantz Bell, 10, who plays on a team in the Newport Harbor Baseball Assn., looks at the lights Thursday above Davis Field during a ceremony to celebrate the improvements made for the facility at Lions Park in Costa Mesa. (SCOTT SMELTZER, Daily Pilot / February 2, 2012)

Lions Park in Costa Mesa was the site of a lighting ceremony Thursday evening, where new eco-friendly lights illuminated the upgrades.

Some $520,000 of Costa Mesa’s redevelopment agency funds was used to provide Davis Field with new vinyl-coated perimeter fencing, 50-foot baseball netting and a new lighting system, according to a city news release.

The lighting system for the West 18th Street facility will cut energy use by about 1.2 million kilowatt hours and 873 metric tons of carbon dioxide over a 25-year period. The system can also be turned on and off via phone and online.

– Sarah Peters, @speters01, Daily Pilot

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D.A. files murder charges in wrong-way crash

Ruben Gurolla (Courtesy Orange County district attorney's office)

Authorities charged a Pomona man Friday with murder after prosecutors alleged that a night of drinking that started in Newport Beach ended with a fatal, head-on collision on a freeway in Anaheim.

Ruben Gurrola, 23, is scheduled to be arraigned Monday in Orange County’s Central Jail in Santa Ana on murder, driving under the influence causing great bodily injury, and driving with a blood-alcohol content above the .08 legal limit.

He faces up to 19 years to life in prison, if convicted on all charges. He is being held in lieu of $1-million bail.

– Joseph Serna, @JosephSerna, Daily Pilot

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CHP responds to two crashes on 405 at Euclid

Multiple people were sent to the hospital after two separate vehicles crashes on the San Diego (405) Freeway on Thursday morning, according to California Highway Patrol.

The first crash occurred at 8:57 a.m. on the northbound lanes at Euclid Street when an SUV struck the center divider, partially blocking the left lane. There were no known injuries, according to CHP.

A second crash occurred at 9:12 a.m. at the same location, involving two taxi vans, with possible injuries.

Costa Mesa Fire crews responded and were still at the scene as of 10:15 a.m. Thursday.

It is not known if the two crashes were related.

— Sarah Peters, @speters01, Daily Pilot

Obama coming to Corona del Mar

President Obama addresses a crowd at a townhall meeting at the Orange County Fairgrounds in 2009. (Daily Pilot File Photo)

President Obama plans to fundraise in Newport Beach this month during a swing through Southern California.

A Corona del Mar couple recently announced they will host a breakfast for the president Feb. 16, with proceeds benefiting Obama’s reelection campaign and the Democratic National Committee.

While Newport is better known as a Republican Party fundraising bastion, Obama raised more than $1 million here in a 2008 campaign stop at the Balboa Bay Club. Local Democrats say they expect another strong showing.

– Mike Reicher, @mreicher, Daily Pilot

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Man barricaded in peninsula home wanted on larceny charges

Authorities have surrounded a house on the Balboa Peninsula where a man has barricaded himself inside after U.S. Marshals tried to serve him with an arrest warrant.

U.S. Marshals said Geoffrey Earl Patton refused to come out of a home in the 100 block of 25^th Street on Wednesday afternoon when marshals tried to arrest him for a warrant out of Westchester County, N.Y.

Balboa and Newport boulevards have been blocked off from between 22^nd and 29^th streets, officials said.

Police are not sure if Patton is armed, but he does have guns legally registered in his name, said Deputy U.S. Marshal Laura Vega.

Marshals called Newport Beach and told them about the situation about 1:15 p.m., Police Department spokeswoman Kathy Lowe said. Newport Beach’s SWAT team is assisting in getting Patton out of the home, she said.

– Joseph Serna, @JosephSerna, Daily Pilot

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Former superintendent takes on job for the interim

Robert Barbot, left, will serve as interim superintendent for Newport-Mesa Unified. In 2006, he passed his duties to Jeffrey Hubbard, right. (Don Leach, Daily Pilot)

The Newport-Mesa school board named Rob Barbot the interim superintedent Wednesday evening.

Board President Dave Brooks announced that the board approved Barbot, who served as the school district’s top leader for eight years, according to Daily Pilot archives, for the position during the continuance of a special closed session meeting.

The district has been without its top leader since former Supt. Jeffrey Hubbard was unanimously fired Jan. 23 after being convicted of two felony counts of misappropriation of public funds related to his previous job as head of the Beverly Hills Unified School District.

– Britney Barnes, @BritneyJBarnes, Daily Pilot

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Mariners school locked down while police search for suspect

Mariners Elementary School was on lockdown Wednesday morning during a search for a man suspected of possessing a stolen vehicle.

Costa Mesa and Newport Beach police responded about 8 a.m. near Irvine Avenue and 19th Street in Newport Beach after a report of a suspicious vehicle, according to Costa Mesa Police Lt. Rob Sharpnack.

Two suspects were found in a 1991 Volvo that was reported stolen Jan. 19 in Costa Mesa, Sharpnack said.

– Joanna Clay, @JoannaClay, Daily Pilot

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Police: Suspect robbed CdM bank Tuesday

(Courtesy Newport Beach Police)

Newport Beach police are searching for a man they believe robbed a Corona del Mar bank, authorities said Wednesday.

The suspect, described as wearing a gray undershirt with black sweatpants, allegedly slipped a teller a note at Union Bank, 2865 E. Coast Hwy., and demanded cash about 4:45 p.m. Tuesday, according to police.

The suspect left with an undisclosed amount of money, and witnesses told police the man had long hair and a goatee, said spokeswoman Kathy Lowe.

Anyone with information is asked to call the department at (800) 550-NBPD, or Orange County Crime Stoppers at (855) 847-6227.

— Lauren Williams, @lawilliams, Daily Pilot

Costa Mesa police change shift structure

The Costa Mesa Police Department earlier this month switched to a new schedule that officials say will give the city coverage at times it needs the most.

But one outside expert who has studied police shifts cautioned that fatigue can be an issue for officers assigned to longer days.

About half the city’s patrol officers are now working 12 hours three days a week, Friday through Sunday, said Lt. Bryan Glass.

The rest put in 10-hour shifts four days a week, Monday through Thursday.

City CEO Tom Hatch said in an email that the shift changes do not affect the department’s budget, but instead provide for more coverage in the field for responding to emergency calls.

– Lauren Williams, @lawilliams30, Daily Pilot

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Learn about the ‘teenage mind’ at Sage Hill forum

Sage Hill School, in partnership with the Brain & Behavior Research Foundation, is hosting “The Teenage Mind: What Every Parent Needs to Know” at 7 p.m. Feb. 9 on campus, 20402 Newport Coast Drive.

“Sage Hill School is pleased to welcome the Brain & Behavior Research Foundation to our campus to provide cutting edge information on the important issue of teenage mental health,” Jason Gregory, Sage Hill director of community life and public purpose, said in a statement. “As an educational institution, we are committed to providing purposeful opportunities to educate and empower our students, our families and our community.”

– Britney Barnes, @BritneyJBarnes, Daily Pilot

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