Some unusual items were reported to Lamorinda police in the first half of October:

from Lafayette police:

Wednesday, Oct. 3
THEFT— Checks worth $12,000, $13,000 and $2,500 were stolen from the mail box of a Hope Lane resident.

Tuesday, Oct. 9
PUBLIC INTOXICATION — A 52-year-old Orinda woman was arrested at the intersection of Moraga Road and Mt. Diablo Boulevard on public intoxication charges. She was dancing in the road and cursing at cars, according to police reports. She had two bottles of vanilla extract in her pocket, the report said, which the officer believed she drank to get intoxicated.

Fromt the Moraga police:

Friday, Oct. 12
BATTERY — An assistant principal at Campolindo High School reported a student was injured during the football game. The student was wearing the school mascot costume during the game. During half-time, an Acalanes High School student approached the student and pulled on the costume head, removing it. The student ended up on the ground with a slight injury to her neck. The student identified the responsible Acalanes student to school staff.

Monday, Oct. 15
GRAND THEFT— Officers contacted a citizen regarding a theft report.. She said she had parked her car in her designated carport on Miramonte Drive at 8 p.m. Oct. 14. She returned to her vehicle at 6:30 a.m. Oct. 15 and noticed items missing, including a toilet seat still in the box.

From the Orinda police

Tuesday, Oct. 2
ILLEGAL ENTRY — A family residing in the first block of El Gavilan reported to police at 8:47 a.m. that their home had been invaded by eight juveniles. The suspects were found drinking and using drugs inside the home. The group left when confronted.

Monday, Oct. 8
PETTY THEFT — At 2:01 p.m., a woman reported her laptop stolen while she was at a park in the first block of Orinda Way. Reports state she left the device on a bench for 45 minutes, and when she returned it was gone.

Thursday,Oct. 11
STRONG-ARM ROBBERY— A resident in the first block of El Sueno reported being attacked while in his garage at 9:05 p.m. According to police reports, a man grabbed him from behind the neck and took his wallet, containing credit cards and $800 in cash. He and two others waiting outside then took off. No vehicle was seen or heard.

THERE’S something about “American Bandstand”-style flicks that just seems to draw Travoltas. John Travolta’s cross-dressing turn in the new movie “Hairspray,” a musical comedy that revolves around a “Bandstand”-esque television show, has been making headlines lately. But John’s older brother by four years, film director Joey Travolta, just finished directing a slew of local teens in a very different version — a retro “American Grandstand” made during an unusual film camp at Moraga’s St. Mary’s College.

The two-week camp caters to teenagers with autistic spectrum disorders and their friends, though you’d have been hard-pressed to figure out who was who on the set. That, says Travolta, is exactly the point.

“I don’t see a difference,” says Travolta, “because I treat everyone the same.”

To learn more, click here.

Ex-Lafayette man killed in plane crash
ASSOCIATED PRESS

Dr. Bruce Kennedy, a former Lafayette resident and Acalanes High School graduate, was among the..five people who died Tuesday when a small plane crashed while trying to make an emergency landing in Sanford, Fla.

Kennedy, husband of International Speedway Corporation President Lesa France Kennedy, was on the plane that killed five people, including pilot Michael Klemm, and started two house fires that seriously burned three other people, authorities said.

Authorities said an adult and two children died in the homes that were quickly gutted by the fire after the airplane crashed in the suburban Orlando neighborhood around 8:40 a.m. (EDT).

Matt Minnetto, an investigator with the Sanford Fire Department, said the plane was scattered in several pieces across the area. Among the three survivors was a boy about 10 years old who had burns over 80 to 90 percent of his body, Minnetto said.

The 53-year-old Kennedy, a plastic surgeon based in Daytona Beach, Fla., graduated from Acalanes in 1972.

According to Ken Clapp, a Danville resident and close friend of the France family, Kennedy moved to Florida roughly eight years later and started working as a dentist.

Lafayette police report:
A swastika and a racial slur were found on two doors at Stanley Middle School. The symbol and word were written in black marker. The date the vandalism occurred was unknown but occurred sometime during summer break.

See our unique graphic take on what’s hot in the world of graduating seniors in our 2007 Graduation issue of the Sun, coming out this Friday. From text lingo to the Wii and the war in Iraq, it was a year worth remembering.

Lamorinda’s three high schools are in a state of high excitement (and mild panic) with finals underway and graduation this Friday. But if you were wondering about the sound of hammering and buzz saws echoing from the Acalanes, Campolindo and Miramonte campuses, it’s parent volunteers doing final set-up for Grad Night — the traditional all-night extravaganza for graduating seniors. The community is invited to sneak a peek on Thursday evening from 7 till 9 p.m. and frankly, it’s always a blast. We’ve already peeked at Campolindo’s Disney-themed decor and it’s spectacular — can’t wait to see Miramonte’s Midway (the carnival game decor’s on display from 6 till 8, the other schools go 7 till 9) and Acalanes’ James Bond splash for the Class of 007. It’s free, but donations are always welcome.
– Jackie Burrell

Political reporter and blogger Lisa Vorderbrueggen writes about some amazing Orinda students in her blog.

Tyler Pavey, Lana Olmer and Scott DeMunck, students at Miramonte High School in Orinda, will be interviewed live today at 11:30 A.M. PST on C-SPAN’s “Washington Journal.”

– Aaron Crowe

The Moraga police log reports:

Tuesday, April 24
PETTY THEFT — A Campolindo High School freshman and his mother came to the police department to report the theft of his 30 GB iPOD Video from the boys locker room during PE class. He said he closed his locker but the lock jammed and could be opened without force. The freshman mentioned a sophomore’s name as a possible lead. He reported the incident to the school administration. The loss was about $350.

AUTO BURGLARY — Officers contacted the owner of a black 2007 Porsche Turbo who reported someone smashed the passenger door window and removed a brief case containing cash, an iPod and various papers.

David Tung-Ming Tse of Orinda has won $2,000 for his first-place essay on “Becoming a Superhero” as part of the Growing Up Asian in America program.

Tse is an eighth grade student at Orinda Intermediate School.

The “Superheroes” theme aimed to uncover what characteristics young people value and how they define courage and danger, contest organizers said.

The winning entries are hosted on the Asian Pacific Fund web site, which receives almost 1,000 page hits every day.

About 35 Acalanes High School students walked off campus Tuesday morning to protest the Iraq war and call for troops to be withdrawn.

The group left school at lunch and crossed the street to the southwest corner of Pleasant Hill and Deer Hill roads in Lafayette. For about 40 minutes, they stood on the vacant lot holding signs reading “Bring the troops home” and “Draft Bush.”

For updates on this story, see our website _ cctimes-com _ by clicking here.
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