Community Corner

La Mesa Week in Review: Toddlers Drown Tragically, Council Denies Mayor's Trip

These stories and more as we take a look at the Week in Review on Mount Helix Patch.

At Mount Helix Patch, we know that in your busy lives there may be some stories that you can't read about the day they happen. With the "Week That Was" column, we'll provide a roundup of the most important stories of the week.

A tragic story continued to develop last week in La Mesa, when two toddlers died after being found unconscious in a backyard pool on Mt. Helix. Jason, 2, and Harley, 1, Bradford both died after being taken to hospital by their mother Tassie Behrens and another unidentified man.
 
Behrens first told police that the babies were found in a community pool at a Spring Valley mobile home park, but later admitted they drowned in a pool in La Mesa. 

The home where the toddlers were found belonged to a man who had an illegal marijuana grow in the basement. Larry Dangelo was arrested and charged with multiple felonies.

Two days later, it was reported that the children were one day away from going to live with their incarcerated father's family, before they died. 

Toddlers Were to Leave Mother's Custody One Day After Tragic Drowning in La Mesa

Update: Mother Admits Daughter Drowned in Backyard La Mesa Pool

La Mesa Patch got a whole new look last week, transitioning to its 2.0 platform. The new platform allows for more user engagement and has a new feature, the Boards, which lets users subscribe to certain topics. The bugs are still being worked out, and we appreciate your feedback and patience as we get all the kinks out.

Today on Patch: New Boards and a New Look

A La Mesa man, Mark Hernandez Cervantes, was arrested and charged with stabbing a man who was coming to the aid of his sister, who Cervantes had allegedly choked. Cervantes was arrested and booked for suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, assault with intent to cause great bodily harm, domestic violence and making criminal threats

Brother Coming to Sister’s Aid Is Stabbed, Critically Hurt; Boyfriend Arrested

We learned the uplifting tale of James Babbitt, a Spring Valley boy with cystic fibrosis, who battles the rare disease, but definitely doesn't let it bring him down.

Spring Valley Child Remains Cheerful In Spite of Medical Challenges

The Brian Malarkey experience in La Mesa is officially over, as his restaurant Gingham in the downtown Village is closing. Reps for the ownership group confirmed that the restaurant has been sold and is in escrow. It is unknown at this time what will fill the space, or who bought the property.

Brian Malarkey's Gingham to Shut Down in La Mesa

The La Mesa City council denied Mayor Art Madrid's trip to Las Vegas in June for an annual national mayor's conference, claiming that the trip did not have any business that was germane to the city.

No Vegas, Baby: Council Denies Mayor Madrid's Trip to Annual Conference

A Spring Valley man was arrested last week for allegedly beating his dog to death. Charles Alexander Dudley of Spring Valley was charged with one count of felony animal cruelty, a crime that could send him to state prison, force him to pay a fine up to $20,000 or both, officials said. The dog, a miniature pinscher, had apparently dug up a newly-planted tree, and was found severely beaten. It died later an animal hospital. 

For Digging Up Tree, Miniature Pinscher Was Beaten to Death, County Says


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