Ballico News

Nathanial Nishido, 4, of Riverbank, and David Monaghan, 6, of Pleasant Hill, have cornstarch on their hands to keep them from sticking to the mochi at Tomodachi Gakko on Tuesday, July 1, 2008.

Merced County sheriff's investigators found 5,117 marijuana plants in a remote rural area of northeast Merced County on Thursday -- a growing operation they say had a street value between $3 million and $5 ...

A 15-year-old girl is recovering after she was allegedly stabbed Monday by a 21-year-old man.

Tuesday is election day in Merced County. While presidential elections get all of the attention, local political leaders have a much larger impact on the lives of Merced County residents.

Incumbent Kelsey has outraised opponent's grass-roots campaign by a wide margin.

Christine Long of Hilltop Ranch, an almond processor near Ballico, is the 2008 chairwoman of the Almond Board of California.

Their election may not be the shakeup the board needs, but it would be a step in the right direction.

A 29-year-old man had to be flown to a Modesto hospital after he was allegedly stabbed in the back during a fight - with his own brothers.

Christine Long of Hilltop Ranch in Ballico has been named chairwoman for the Almond Board of California for the 2008-09 year. via Atwater Signal

“I would think it's a good thing because obviously the industry is growing in California”

The state's olive oil industry, a trickle compared with Mediterranean producers, could flourish with help from a new research center. via The Modesto Bee

Merced County authorities appear to have solved what had been a perplexing case of pigpen pilfering. via The KCRA Channel

“I'm lost; I've never seen anything like this. I'll rebuild, I don't know where, but I'll be back.”

A Winton bar and liquor store were destroyed and surrounding stores damaged by an early morning fire Tuesday blamed on electrical causes. via Fire Engineering

Merced County Sheriff's deputies discovered a methamphetamine "super-lab" where they believe criminals cooked drugs worth as much as $500,000 on the street. via My58.com

“Organophosphates are bad stuff”

Scrambling to spray orchards during January's rainstorms, a local orchard owner apparently sprayed trees illegally, fouling the Merced River. via Fresno Bee

The Breakfast and Book Sale sponsored by the Delhi-Ballico Lions Club will be Sunday. via The Modesto Bee

Merced County Superior Court Judge Hugh Flanagan continued arraignments this afternoon for four men charged with the burning death of a Livingston woman after the public defender cited a conflict of interest in ... via The Modesto Bee

The Merced County Sheriff's Department announced two new arrests in a North Valley murder case on Friday. via KMPH-TV Fresno

“We have lowered the bar on what a life is worth. She met them (attackers) a couple weeks previous and allegedly ripped them off. They (drug traffickers) are ruthless”

Rosa Avina was murdered over $750 worth of drugs, Merced County Sheriff Mark Pazin said Wednesday, and five people have been arrested in connection with her savage death. via Modesto Bee

Merced County Sheriff Mark Pazin has scheduled a news conference for Monday afternoon to announce the arrest of several people connected to the murder of a North Valley woman. via KMPH-TV Fresno

“They are taking it pretty hard”

A woman who was bound, gagged and burned died over the weekend, Merced County sheriff's investigators announced Monday. via The Modesto Bee