Bloody apartment leads to search for bodies of missing mom, 2 boys

Shazer Limas. (Courtesy Orange Police Department)

Police are searching for the bodies of a woman and her two young sons, who they believe were slain  by the woman’s boyfriend in Orange County.

Shazer Limas, 31, was arrested Thursday night on suspicion of killing Arlet Hernandez, 31, and her two sons, a 2-year-old and a 3-month-old, after he led police on a high-speed chase on Orange County freeways, said Sgt. Dan Adams of the Orange Police Department.

Authorities became suspicious of Limas after managers from his former apartment reported finding blood and other evidence in the unit he had just vacated. Limas lived in the unit with Hernandez.

After Limas was spotted near the border of Santa Ana and Costa Mesa on Thursday night, he led police on a freeway pursuit down the 405 and 5 freeways.

The pursuit ended in a standoff on Interstate 5 at Camp Pendleton, near the San Onofre nuclear power plant. The freeway was closed in both directions, backing up traffic for miles. After about an hour, Limas surrendered. He was unarmed.

The reason for the suspected killings is unclear, but the couple recently had some sort of altercation, Adams said.

He said police believe the three victims were killed inside of the apartment, possibly a week ago.

They were searching in Orange County and outer areas for the bodies, he said.

“I’m not sure exactly where, but investigators have certain locations they’re looking into,” Adams said.

–Los Angeles Times, @LANow

Rohrabacher wants moratorium on San Onofre-style nuclear plants

The San Onofre nuclear plant. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Huntington Beach) said after a tour of the shuttered San Onofre nuclear plant that he plans to call for a moratorium on building old-style nuclear facilities and press the U.S. government to put its research money into building prototypes for safer nuclear power generation.

Rohrabacher joined a parade of elected officials — including Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Vista) and Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) — who have made trips to the plant in the three months since operator Southern California Edison took it offline due to equipment issues.

Rohrabacher said he made the trip Thursday to find out whether the plant was secure from a terrorist attack and to find out about Edison’s handling of safety concerns relating to the issues with the plant’s steam generators.

The congressman said he was satisfied on those points but felt that the problems at San Onofre are the result of outdated technology in old-style “light water” reactors.

“There’s no reason for us to build any more of the old San Onofre-type reactors,” he said. “We should be moving forward very quickly to develop new nuclear technology.”

He pointed to research being conducted by San Diego-based General Atomics, which is developing a compact fast reactor that runs on the spent fuel waste of old-technology plants.

Rohrabacher said he plans to use his seat on the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology to “pound the desk,” and may introduce legislation to promote his position.

–Los Angeles Times, @LANow

County superintendent to retire

The Orange County education superintendent on Thursday announced his intent to retire at the end of the year.

Superintendent of Schools William M. Habermehl will retire June 29 after 11 years on the job, he told the Orange County Board of Education at its meeting, according to a new release.

“It has been a great honor and privilege to have served as superintendent of this exceptional county,” Habermehl said, according to the release. “I have had the opportunity in this position to work with outstanding staff, educators, board members, parents and community members who are doing incredible work for the students of Orange County.

“I will miss everyone very much, but I know that I am leaving this office in good hands, and I am confident that our youngest citizens will continue to receive world-class educational services.”

Habermehl was appointed to the position in April 2001 and kept the seat through election in 2002, 2006 and 2010.

He has worked in public education for 45 years as a director, assistant superintendent and associate superintendent for the county and as an administrator at Fullerton Join Union High School. His career started as a science teacher and football coach in the Garden Grove Unified School District.

— Britney Barnes, @britneyjbarnes, Daily Pilot

Pacific Symphony featured in new series at Soka University

A chamber ensemble from the Pacific Symphony, under the baton of Carl St.Clair, performs at Soka University's Performing Arts Center in Aliso Viejo in February. (Steven Georges)

The Pacific Symphony will be among the performers lined up for the 2012-13 season at Soka University’s Performing Arts Center, according to a news release issued Monday.

The Costa Mesa-based orchestra will be playing at the Aliso Viejo venue in a new afternoon series dubbed “Sundays at Soka,” which will feature the music of Mozart.

“These informal, yet up close and personal, musical soirees will reflect the mastery of Mozart’s talents,” Pacific Symphony conductor Carl St.Clair said in a release.

The scheduled performance dates are 3 p.m. Nov. 18; Feb. 24, 2013; and April 21, 2013. The repertoire includes some of Mozart’s concertos that feature either violin, piano or clarinet.

The Pacific Symphony has been a part of the Performing Arts Center since its inception. It was the featured ensemble for the acoustically acclaimed hall’s grand opening on Sept. 17, 2011.

–Bradley Zint, @BradleyZint, Daily Pilot

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United Airlines halting all flights to Hawaii from JWA

Beginning Monday, United Airlines will be end flights between Orange County’s John Wayne Airport and Honolulu, Hawaii, due to a decrease in demand. Some pre-booked flights in June between the two destinations will be the exception.

United Airlines spokesman Mike Trevino said that this particular route began in March 2010, just before the onset of a merger in October of that year between United Airlines and Continental Airlines. The merger operated as United Continental Corp. until last month, when the Federal Aviation Administration awarded United Airlines with a single operating certificate.

According to JWA spokeswoman Jenny Wedge, all eight airlines at JWA have been approached to pick up the route, but none have pursued it for financial reasons.

“We had some pretty good service to Hawaii back in 2007,” Wedge said Thursday, “and even before that by Aloha Airlines, which ran five flights a day and was very popular, but then Aloha went out of business in 2008 and no other airlines have been able to pick up that market.”

Wedge also noted that the decrease in usage of this route by Orange County residents is unusual, as other national mainland carriers are increasing their service to the archipelago destination state.

United also recently ended services between JWA to Kahului, Hawaii, for similar reasons.

— Jenny Stockdale, Daily Pilot

3 dead, 1 missing after sailboat disappears south of San Diego

Three people are dead and a fourth missing at sea after a mishap Saturday involving a 37-foot sailing boat near the Coronado Islands south of San Diego, the Coast Guard reported.

The vessel, called the Aegean, was participating in a race from Newport to Ensenada, Mexico, when it was reported missing shortly before noon.

Three bodies were found by midafternoon, one by a Coast Guard helicopter, and two by a civilian crew, in an area where debris was spotted, the Coast Guard said. The three bodies were brought to San Diego for examination by the medical examiner.

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All About Food: Our take on the healthy diet

Fresh strawberries sold at Peters Landing Farmers Market in Huntington Beach. (KEVIN CHANG)

To us, it seems that many dietary supplements are falling out of fashion in favor of real food.

For example, every day some new study says that multivitamins are no competition for a healthy diet. Some supplements even have a deleterious effect when taken in large doses.

We have been collecting bits and pieces of current information on what constitutes a healthy diet, and we want to share them with you.

Most people think that chicken is a healthy food, but here’s a dramatic piece of news: Arsenic, which is a carcinogen, has been found in chickens. How did it get there? The poultry industry uses it in feed to kill parasites.

This is not a problem with organic chicken. Everyone knows that organic is healthier and, in most cases, it is. However, organic doesn’t necessarily mean safe, because arsenic has recently been detected in organic baby food.

The new buzzwords are “anti-inflammatory,” “glycemic index,” “anti-oxidant” and “pro-biotic.”

–By Elle Harrow and Terry Markowitz, HB Independent

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Fair Board names Hoban CEO

Jerome Hoban

The Orange County Fair Board has promoted Jerome Hoban, vice president of operations, to chief executive officer.

Hoban, 38, will take over for CEO Steven Beazley on Tuesday.

“What I liked about Jerome is he has institutional knowledge of the fair history,” said Fair Board member Stan Tkaczyk. “He started from the ground up and has a real passion. I see it in the individual energy in how he presents himself, how he talks about projects he’s involved in.”

Beazley, who has spent much of his adult life working for the fairgrounds, will retire four years to the day from when he was appointed CEO on May 1, 2008.

Hoban, an Orange County native, was a member of 4-H growing up and worked with fair livestock in the summers.

“I was in the middle of an urban setting but doing all this agricultural stuff,” he said. “It gets in your blood. You see what it does for you. The fair became like a home to me, and I think it does for a lot of people.”

–Joseph Serna, @JosephSerna, Daily Pilot

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Report: Irvine the most fashionable city in America

You’ll never guess which city was just ranked as the most fashionable in the country. Not Los Angeles, home to Hollywood fashionistas. Not New York, with its famous Fashion Week and legions of pouty, leggy models. No, the title goes to Orange County’s Irvine.

That’s according to Bundle, a website that analyzes spending patterns. List-makers came to their conclusion not by polling the nation’s Anna Wintours but instead by looking at “fashion-conscious households.”

Those households were deemed as such if they had spent money at least four times at top-end designer merchants in the last 30 months.

And because Irvine not only has good schools but also high incomes and stellar shopping nearby, it ranked nearly four times above the U.S. average in clothing spending. Major malls stuffed with designer labels such as South Coast Plaza and Fashion Island are all within driving distance. Irvine’s median family income, according to the Census Bureau, is $84,950.

–Los Angeles Times, @LATimes

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Fountain Valley considering sex offender ban

Fountain Valley may soon join the handful of cities throughout Orange County that have banned registered sex offenders from entering city parks.

The City Council on April 17 directed staff to consult with other cities’ laws and come up with an ordinance that would ban registered sex offenders from entering Fountain Valley’s parks. The ordinance would seek to protect children who gather there for various activities, said Councilman Steve Nagel.

The law would allow offenders to visit parks on a case-by-case basis after obtaining permission from the police department or a designated staff member.

“This is just to put them on notice that we’re aware they’re going to be there,” Nagel said.

Those caught in city parks without prior permission would be charged with a misdemeanor.

Fountain Valley has 38 registered sex offenders, said City Manager Ray Kromer.

– Mona Shadia, @MonaShadia, Huntington Beach Independent

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