We take a look at some of the biggest stories of the week. This
week: The arrest of a man for the alleged rape of a 19-year-old
mentally disabled male, the council’s decision to not require
entertainment permits for downtown businesses, and the little-known
connection between the rise of foreclosures and the increased
danger of West Nile Virus.
1. Police arrest alleged rapist of mentally disabled teen
Police arrested Gyasi Terran Thursday afternoon on suspicion of raping a mentally disabled 19-year-old man in a Miller Park bathroom early Wednesday morning, police said.
An anonymous online Gilroy Dispatch reader spotted Terran, 24, outside Togo’s on First Street at 3:30 p.m. Thursday, police said. About 36 hours after the assault, Gilroy Police Department officers arrived at the Contempo Plaza shopping center after they got the tip and arrested Terran without incident, police said, four hours after the Dispatch posted his description and about 90 minutes after police released his mug shot.
Also with this story: a video of the crime scene and a map of where the incident occurred.
Read this full story.
3. Foreclosures and West Nile?
Property foreclosures do not usually conjure up images of mosquito clouds carrying the West Nile virus, but for a handful of Gilroyans who live near abandoned homes, the sour housing market implies more than just tough economic times.
Unattended pools can become breeding grounds for mosquitoes and watering holes for crows and other birds susceptible to the West Nile virus. As the summer season builds, this pathogenic recipe frightens residents such as Tony Weiler, a local elementary science teacher, who lives next door to a foreclosed home. The green, mosquito-ridden pool in the backyard is also the final resting place of a few rotting birds.
“My wife and I stay indoors now when sunset comes,” Weiler said outside his home on London Place last week. “I have no desire to get West Nile.”
