FORMER DONS STANDOUT PHELPS RIDES HIGHS AND LOWS OF LIFE IN MAJORS / C1

OUR 156TH YEAR

SUNDAY, JUNE 26, 2011

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MIDSUMMER RITES
By SONIA FERNANDEZ
NEWS-PRESS CORRESPONDENT

Solstice parade makes State Street a Jungle

Santa Barbara sun worshippers welcomed the start of summer with the Solstice Celebration parade on Saturday. Revelers danced, drummed, strutted, rode, pranced, and found other ways to make it up State Street from Cota to Micheltorena in a movable celebration that converged at Alameda Park. It was the second day, and for some the apex of, a three-day community party. This years theme was Jungle, and the parade participants did their best to give their interpretations, clad in the jewel tones of dense foliage and bright flowers, the camouflage of big cats, or resplendent in fancy plumes. Participants flaunted their costumes, complete with body paint, animal-print fabric, grass skirts and all kinds of adornment, from eyecatching Aztec headdresses to whimsical monkey tails. Others took the opportunity to dress in far less. You should have seen this in the 80s, said Angela Retamoza, longtime Solstice celebrant. The costumes were often little more than strips of fabric sometimes not hiding enough, she said. Saturdays parade was the height of the Santa Barbara Solstice Celebration, one of the communitys biggest events along with Old Spanish Days Fiesta.

MIKE ELIASON / NEWS-PRESS

Please see SOLSTICE on A14

Nicole Arnold, 9, twirling a hula hoop at the top of her float, was a crowd favorite in Saturdays Solstice Celebration parade.

SAILING LOMPOC

With no video in patrol units, its cops word against DUI suspects
Final of five parts. By PETER LANCE
SPECIAL TO THE NEWS-PRESS

Behind the Series

PHIL KLEIN / NEWS-PRESS

Michael Clayton and Associates wave from their float in Lompocs Flower Festival parade Saturday. For full parade coverage, see A7.

Flush with funds, California is key to presidential candidates

By SEEMA MEHTA
LOS ANGELES TIMES

LOS ANGELES California voters will play a nominal role in the presidential campaign. But a steady stream of candidates is circling the state, wooing wealthy donors who will probably spend well over $100 million on the 2012 election.

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney on Thursday finished a three-day, five-city swing, picking up checks from GOP lawmakers at a luncheon in Sacramento, tech titans at a barbeque in a tony Silicon Valley enclave, and moneyed Republicans at events in Southern California. Former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman will hold four events on Sunday and

Monday, ending with a dinner at the upscale Island Hotel in Newport Beach. Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty also recently visited the state. Theyre coming here because theyre smart. California is home to the largest Republican donor base upon the planet, and any wellorganized candidate whos going to

work to raise money must include California, said Ron Nehring, former chairman of the state GOP. Many candidates are more focused on donors than voters at the moment, as the fundraising quarter ticks to a close June 30, and candidates seek to demonstrate their fiscal might in

In the 680 DUI arrests she took credit for from 2009 to 2010, Santa Barbara Police Officer Kasi Beutel put the handcuffs on drivers of every race and economic background. Rich, poor, student or scholar, her arrestees represent a true cross section of the community. Among them John Thyne III, a prominent lawyer and real estate broker whose run for the Santa Barbara City Council was derailed after the publicity he got following an encounter with Officer Beutel. Mr. Thynes case, which took several twists and turns, and a related traffic stop initiated by Officer Beutel are important for what they reveal, not just about the lengths she is willing to go to get a DUI collar, but the need for onboard video in Santa Barbara Police Department patrol units. The legal fate of drivers in this city shouldnt hinge solely on the word of an officer or a breath testing machine that can be manipulated, says local

n the morning of New Years Day, investigative journalist Peter Lance was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence by Officer Kasi Beutel of the Santa Barbara Police Department. The case is pending. After finding a number of misstatements of fact in the report of the incident, Mr. Lance started looking into other arrests involving the officer. The investigation, including interviews with others, resulted in this five-part series, which began June 22 and ends today. To read the entire series and for links to documents used in the research for this series, see newspress.com. For more on Mr. Lance, go to peterlance.com. To contact Mr. Lance, call 310-483-8813 or email triplecross @peterlance.com.

Please see FUNDS on A9

Please see DUI on A15

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