ARCATA, Calif. – Experience the majestic beauty of ancient redwood stands on a guided hike with the Bureau of Land Management along the Salmon Pass Trail and immerse in the wonders of nature.

These hikes in the southern part of the Headwaters Forest Reserve are planned for weekends from mid-May through mid-November at the south end of the Reserve. Registration on Recreation.gov  is required for each outing. Registration will open on March 17. The BLM will announce hike dates and open registration two months before each hike. The registration links on Recreation.gov will close three days prior to each hike. 

Hikers can expect to cover three miles in the outings that last three to four hours. The trek is moderately strenuous, with 360 feet of elevation change.

The 7,472-acre Headwaters Forest Reserve protects the world’s last intact, old-growth redwood forest ecosystems. It supports threatened species including coho salmon, the northern spotted owl and the marbled murrelet.

The BLM Arcata Field Office manages the Reserve in consultation with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife to protect old-growth redwood groves, other forest stands, creeks, and wildlife.

BISHOP, Calif. — The Bureau of Land Management Bishop Field Office is offering a $1,500 reward for information on the individuals responsible for damaging petroglyph panels at the Volcanic Tableland, north of Bishop. The perpetrators vandalized three locations within the site.

“Those responsible have destroyed an irreplaceable part of our national cultural heritage,” said Bishop Field Manager Sherri Lisius. “We have increased surveillance of our sites and are determined to bring the responsible parties to justice.”

The site is protected under the Archaeological Resources Protection Act and is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. This site is one of the most significant rock art sites in the region and has significant cultural importance to the local Tribes. Violating the Archaeological Resources Protection Act can lead to felony charges. First-time offenders can be fined up to $20,000 and face up to two years in prison. Repeat offenders may face fines up to $100,000 and up to five years in prison. The law also allows federal or tribal authorities to impose civil fines. Courts can also seize vehicles and equipment used during the violation as an additional punishment.

If you have any information regarding this vandalism you are encouraged to call WeTip immediately at 1-800-78-CRIME (27463), or report online by scanning the QR code or visiting www.wetip.com. You can remain anonymous and may be eligible for a reward of up to $1,500 if your tip results in an arrest and conviction.

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3. Former law firm partner censured over sex…

Ethics

Former law firm partner censured over sex with associate and legal assistant, stay-quiet offers

By Debra Cassens Weiss

February 26, 2025, 8:55 am CST

A former partner at a Boise, Idaho, law firm has been publicly censured after he allegedly tried to entice an associate and a legal assistant to keep quiet about an incident in which he had sexual relations with them at the office.

The Idaho Supreme Court publicly censured Boise lawyer W. Dustin Charters in a Feb. 6 order, the Idaho Statesman recently reported.

The enticements involved money and a lightened workload, according to the public censure.

Charters was a mentor for the associate and supervised her work. She had joined the firm in August 2023, the month before the sexual incident, according to the censure order. The associate was 26 years old, and Charters was 37 years old, according to allegations cited by the Idaho Statesman.

Afterward, the order said, Charters offered compensation to both women if they did not report his conduct. He also offered to complete work for the associate that she could bill as her time and suggested that she falsely bill his completed work on a case as client development, according to the order.

Both women turned down the offers, and the associate did not falsely bill her time. They reported Charters’ conduct to the firm Sept. 26, 2023, three days after the incident, according to the allegations. Charters was fired two days later.

A stipulation in the case said Charters had no previous discipline and had acknowledged his misconduct, according to the Idaho Statesman. The stipulation also said he had received counseling and agreed to perform 100 hours of community service.

Charters did not immediately respond to the ABA Journal’s request for comment made in an email and a voicemail.

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3. Federal judge offers ‘unreserved apology’…

Judiciary

Federal judge offers ‘unreserved apology’ after order says his Alito criticism violated ethics rules

By Debra Cassens Weiss

December 18, 2024, 12:09 pm CST

Senior U.S. District Judge Michael A. Ponsor of the District of Massachusetts is offering an “unreserved apology” and a commitment to “scrupulously avoid” future transgressions after he was found to have violated the judicial code of ethics for criticizing U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito in an op-ed in the New York Times.

Ponsor’s apology letter resolves the ethics complaint, according to the Dec. 10 order by Chief Judge Albert Diaz of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at Richmond, Virginia. Diaz investigated after the case was transferred to his court from the appeals court with jurisdiction in Massachusetts, where Ponsor is located.

The Wall Street Journal broke the story on Diaz’s order, followed by coverage by Reuters and Bloomberg Law.

Ponsor, an appointee of former President Bill Clinton, had criticized the display of an upside-down flag at Alito’s home and an “Appeal to Heaven” flag at the justice’s vacation home in the May op-ed.

The flags are associated with stolen-election claims and Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol rioters. Alito has said his wife erected the flags.

“Flying those flags was tantamount to sticking a ‘Stop the Steal’ bumper sticker on your car,” Ponsor wrote in the op-ed. “You just don’t do it.”

Noting Alito’s claim that his wife flew the flags, Ponsor offered a hypothetical. If his wife had expressed her view of the death penalty when he had a case pending on that issue, Ponsor said, he would have recused himself based on the appearance of partiality.

Diaz said Ponsor’s criticism harmed public confidence in the integrity of the judiciary, and its “political implications and undertones” violated a ban on commenting on the merits of pending cases.

Following the flags controversy, Democrats had called for Alito’s recusal in pending cases involving obstruction charges against accused Capitol rioters and President-elect Donald Trump’s immunity from prosecution in the federal election-interference case.

The public might have interpreted Ponsor’s op-ed “as a commentary on partisan issues and as a call for Justice Alito’s recusal” in pending Jan. 6 cases, Diaz said.

Ponsor’s apology letter said the ethics violations were “unintentional at the time but clear in retrospect.”

The Article III Project, a conservative group, had filed the ethics complaint against Ponsor.

“The courts and Judge Ponsor took this seriously,” said Mike Davis, the founder of the Article III Project, in a statement cited by Reuters and the Wall Street Journal. “I accept his apology letter at face value.”

BISHOP, Calif. — The Bureau of Land Management Bishop Field Office is offering personal use Christmas tree cutting permits online, from now until Dec. 24. The permits allow the public to harvest up to five Christmas trees on designated BLM-managed public lands near Benton and Bridgeport in Mono County.

“We are again offering an online purchase option for Christmas tree permits this year,” said Bishop Field Manager Sherri Lisius. “We are excited to be able to continue this holiday tradition for the community.”

Permits are available for purchase at $5 per tree and permit stipulations must be followed. To purchase a permit online, please visit forestproducts.blm.gov. The public can also review maps of designated cutting areas and read these helpful tips to plan their trip in advance and be well prepared.

To process a permit online, select the map icon of California and the Benton Range-Bridgeport cutting areas, then follow the prompts to complete the purchase. The site will direct the purchaser to pay.gov to process payment for the permit via credit card or bank transfer. The process takes just minutes, and the website will email a copy of the electronic permit. For questions, please call the Bishop Field Office at 760-872-5000.

Those interested in tree cutting in the Lida Summit area of Nevada, or other areas managed by the BLM Tonopah Field Office, call 775-482-7800 to have a permit mailed. Please allow one week for processing.

REDDING, Calif.  –  The Bureau of Land Management has announced a virtual option via Zoom to expand opportunities for participating in a meeting of the agency’s Northern California Resource Advisory Council set for Thursday, Feb. 1, at the Northern California District Office, 6604 Lockheed Drive in Redding. The meeting begins at 8 a.m., with time reserved at 11 a.m. for public comments. Anyone interested can attend the meeting either in person or virtually.

Those interested in participating virtually can register for the meeting at https://ow.ly/wSEc50QtllH. 
After registering, participants will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. 

Agenda items include an update on development of the Northern California Integrated Resource Management Plan, overviews of the BLM fire and law enforcement programs and reports from the BLM California Acting State Director and field offices of the Northern California District.

The 15-member council is composed of varied public land interests including recreation, livestock grazing, timber and forest products, environmental organizations, wild horse and burro management, local government, the academic sector, state natural resource agencies and the public at large. It focuses on lands managed by the Northern California District, which includes land in far northwest Nevada.

More information is available from BLM Public Affairs Officer Jeff Fontana, 530-260-0189
 

SUSANVILLE, Calif.  –  The Bureau of Land Management has announced a virtual option via Zoom to expand opportunities for participating in a meeting of the agency’s Northern California Resource Advisory Council set for Thursday, Oct. 26, in Susanville. The meeting begins at 8 a.m. Pacific Time, with time reserved at 11 a.m. for public comments. 

Those interested in participating virtually can register for the meeting here. After registering, participants will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. 

Anyone interested can attend the meeting in person at the BLM Eagle Lake Field Office, 2550 Riverside Drive, Susanville. 

The RAC will discuss business plans for recreation facilities managed by the Arcata and Redding field offices, hear an update on development of a new land use plan for northwest California public lands and hear updates on activities in northern California field offices. 

The 15-member council is composed of varied public land interests including recreation, livestock grazing, timber and forest products, environmental organizations, wild horse and burro management, local government, the academic sector, state natural resource agencies and the public at large. It focuses on lands managed by the Northern California District, which includes land in far northwest Nevada. 

More information is available from BLM Public Affairs Officer Jeff Fontana, 530-260-0189. 

BISHOP, Calif. — The Bureau of Land Management Bishop Field Office is offering personal use Christmas tree cutting permits online, from Nov. 17-Dec. 24. The permits allow for members of the public to harvest up to five Christmas trees on designated BLM-managed public lands near Benton and Bridgeport in Mono County.

“We are again offering an online purchase option for Christmas tree permits this year,” said Bishop Field Manager Sherri Lisius. “We are excited to be able to continue this holiday tradition for the community.”

Permits are available for purchase at $5 per tree and permit stipulations must be followed. To purchase a permit online, please visit forestproducts.blm.gov. The public can also review maps of designated cutting areas and read these helpful tips to plan their trip in advance and be well prepared.

To process a permit online, select the map icon of California and the Benton Range-Bridgeport cutting areas, then follow the prompts to complete the purchase. The site will direct the purchaser to Pay.gov to process payment for the permit via credit card or bank transfer. The process takes just minutes, and the website will email a copy of the electronic permit. For questions, please call the Bishop Field Office at 760-872-5000.

Those interested in tree cutting in the Lida Summit area of Nevada, or other areas managed by the BLM Tonopah Field Office, call 775-482-7800 to have a permit mailed. Please allow one week for processing.