NEWS

  BIG SPRINGS, SISKIYOU COUNTY S heriff’s  Day after day,  deputies drive up and down the road outside Steve Griset’s 600-acre farm, pulling over anyone who appears to be hauling water for the thousands of marijuana greenhouses that have taken over the countryside here. Griset has become a target, even though he grows alfalfa. Last year, investigators with the Siskiyou County District Attorney’s Office raided Griset’s house with a search warrant looking for his business records, and the DA followed up with a lawsuit in civil court. Griset’s alleged transgressions? He was selling water from his well to his pot-farming neighbors, immigrants of Hmong descent who have helped turn this sparsely populated, volcanic-soiled section of California into a major source of cannabis production. After someone entered Griset’s property during the night and damaged his well pump with an ax earlier this month, it became clear he was caught in an escalating conflict in Siskiyou County that has raised fev

BY WIZANDY BLOG  Vaccinated Californians could  win up to $1.5 million in a lottery  Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Thursday, part of a $116.5 million effort to persuade more Golden State residents to get their COVID-19 shots. Ten Californians who got at least one dose will split a $15 million pot on June 15. Vaccinated Californians will also be automatically entered for chances to win $50,000, with 15 winners drawn June 4 and the rest drawn June 11. All Californians 12 years or older are eligible, except for those incarcerated as well as  some state workers and their families.  The money will be put in a savings account for minors until they turn 18. Winners must complete their vaccination to claim the prize. Undocumented Californians as well as other non-citizens are also eligible as long as they live in the state. With more than 22 million Californians having at least one shot as of Thursday, the odds of winning $1.5 million stands at 1 in 2.2 million. By contrast, the odds of winning