Crime

A fire broke out near Sycamore and Church avenues and was visible from U.S. 101 shortly before 5:30 p.m. this afternoon, according to the California Highway Patrol traffic incident information page. Firefighters responded to the scene.

Morgan Hill police arrested two men staying at a local hotel on suspicion of possession of methamphetamine Sunday, and a search of one of the suspects’ home in Gilroy yielded two more arrests, according to a press release from the Morgan Hill Police Department. Officers contacted Greg Harrison, 49, and Tracey Mason, 43, at the Executive Inn on the 16000 block of Condit Road Sunday night, according to police. Police searched their room after officers learned Harrison was on active probation. Inside the hotel room, police found a fanny pack containing about 4.5 ounces of methamphetamine, police said. Harrison and Mason were arrested on suspicion of possession of methamphetamine, packaging materials used for the sale of narcotics and being under the influence of a controlled substance. Later Sunday night, MHPD officers and Santa Clara County Sheriff’s deputies went to Harrison’s home on the 2000 block of Bloomfield Road in Gilroy to conduct a search of the residence, the press release said. During that search, officers located wanted subject Jeraymond Luna, 25 of Hollister, and Eric Harrison, 29 of Gilroy, who was allegedly in possession of narcotics. All four subjects were later booked at Santa Clara County Jail. Anyone with information about this incident can contact MHPD at (408) 779-2101, or the anonymous tip line at (408) 947-7867. 

The Gilroy Police Department is seeking the public's help in identifying the suspect or suspects responsible for a shooting that took place early Sunday morning at an apartment complex located at 985 Montebello Drive.

A 26-year-old Hollister woman died Thursday evening on U.S. 101 in Gilroy after her vehicle hit a guardrail and flipped several times.

The sentencing has been delayed for the former Gilroy Unified School District Board of Education trustee who plead no contest to two felony counts of grand theft, three counts of perjury and one other count of grand theft.

The Gilroy Police Department responded to a variety of crimes in the past week, including burglary, participation in a criminal street gang, possession of a controlled substance for sale, hit and run and battery. Arrests are recorded from the GPD's blotter dating Oct. 3 through Oct. 15.

The City of Gilroy is “vindicated” after a U.S. Federal Court Judge in San Jose tossed out a controversial year-old lawsuit filed by former Fire Division Chief Edward Bozzo and current Fire Division Chief Phillip King, who claimed they were cheated out of a combined $30,000 in overtime pay.

Police arrested two people on suspicion of possession of counterfeit currency Tuesday when one of them allegedly purchased items at Target using a fake $100 bill. Morgan Hill police responded to Target, 1066 Cochrane Road, about 7:30 p.m. Tuesday on a report of a woman who used a suspicious $100 bill to purchase items at the store, according to a press release from MHPD. When officers arrived, they were told the woman, later identified as Shazda McCormick, 24 of Union City, was seen entering a white Cadillac in the store’s parking lot, police said. The vehicle was located in the same shopping center, in front of the Staples store. Officers contacted employees of Staples who told them McCormick made a purchase in that store using a counterfeit $100 bill, police said. McCormick was contacted by police as she attempted to leave Staples, according to the press release. A second suspect, Marcell West, 22 of Union City, was located inside the white Cadillac. A search revealed West had six more counterfeit $100 bills inside his pants pocket. McCormick and West were booked at Santa Clara County Jail on suspicion of passing counterfeit currency, police said. A number of downtown Morgan Hill retailers last week reported incidents of customers trying to pass counterfeit $100 bills. It is unclear if the suspects arrested Tuesday are related to the reported counterfeit incidents last week. Anyone with information about this incident can call Morgan Hill Police at (408) 779-2101. 

A high-speed pursuit of a Mercedes-Benz that started Monday in San Jose ended in Morgan Hill with two suspects being taken into custody.

An impaired driver attempted to outrun police early Monday morning by driving through a fence and through a field before trying to run away on foot, according to police reports. About 2:17 a.m. Monday a motorist reported the possible DUI, police said. The suspected impaired driver was traveling at a “high rate of speed” southbound on U.S. 101, just past the Cochrane Road exit. He was driving a white GMC pickup. Officers located the vehicle on the freeway and began following it, according to police reports. The suspect got off the freeway at San Martin Avenue, and turned west onto that road. The suspect ran a red light at Monterey Road, and continued driving through a dead end on San Martin Avenue, police said. The vehicle apparently crashed through a fence at the end of the street and was located in a nearby field. When officers approached the vehicle, nobody was inside, police said. The driver, Casey Riland, 44, was eventually found within walking distance of the vehicle, police said. Riland was arrested and booked on suspicion of DUI and refusing to comply with a traffic officer.