For The Madera Tribune Madera Police Department Chief Gino Chiaramonte, left, stands with four members of the Madera PD who graduated from the Fresno City College Police Academy last week. Fresno City College Police Academy graduated Class No. 179. The Madera Police Department had the privilege of graduating four police officers in this group. They worked hard for 26 weeks, and represented the department and the City of Madera in a wonderful way. “We look forward to their tr

For The Madera Tribune The front end of one of the vehicles in a three-vehicle crash Saturday sits on the side of the road. Two lives were claimed in the crash on Road 145 east of State Route 41. California Highway Patrol Madera officers responded to a three-vehicle crash on Road 145, east of SR-41 on Saturday at about 5:45 p.m. The initial CHP investigation found the driver of a 2018 Dodge Challenger traveling westbound lost control, crossed into the eastbound lane, and col

For The Madera Tribune This historic courthouse was torn down and replaced with a modern facility in 1953. Before that year was out, there had been three major breakouts at Madera’s new jail. In 1898, Madera did away with its old, wooden jail and replaced it with a brick and granite building. For years this stately structure, with its imposing tower, stood on 6th Street in all of its aesthetic glory. Then in 1937, a granite addition was added to the rear of the jail, and that

The Madera Police Department will conduct a driving under the influence (DUI/CDL) Checkpoint from 7 p.m.-1 a.m. at an undisclosed location Saturday. DUI checkpoint locations are determined based on data showing incidents of impaired driving-related crashes. The primary purpose of DUI/CDL checkpoints are to promote public safety by taking suspected impaired drivers off the road. Impaired drivers put others on the road at significant risk. Any prevention measures that reduce th

Wendy Alexander/The Madera Tribune Cesar Chavez Elementary School. Cesar Chavez, an icon in the farm labor movement, was accused of sexual assault by Delores Huerta, his partner in the movement. Sexual abuse allegations surface The iconography of the legendary Cesar Chavez was left shredded last week when Delores Huerta, his partner and confidante in the farm labor movement, accused the late union organizer of sexual assault. Huerta told New York Times reporter Manny Fernand

For The Madera Tribune The Madera County Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant Thursday on a suspected indoor marijuana cultivation operation inside a shop. Deputies seized two AR-15 rifles, three handguns, multiple rounds of ammunition, a body armor vest, more than $18,000, in addition an an ounce of cocaine and 9.5 pounds of processed marijuana. The Madera County Sheriff’s Office received an anonymous tip regarding a suspected indoor marijuana cultivation operation ins

For The Madera Tribune Christian Edwards. More than 4,000 digital files containing Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) were located during a search warrant at 50730 Granite Butte Way in Oakhurst. Madera County Sheriff’s detectives, working alongside the Central California Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, executed a search warrant Thursday at the residence based on a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) regarding the distri

For The Madera Tribune Sheriff Samson Westfall. When Samson Westfall ran against John Jones in 1910, and jerked the sheriff’s badge away from the two-term lawman, he thought the job would be a breeze. After all, he had served once before as sheriff of Madera County, from 1895 to 1899, and things had gone along smoothly then. He had reckoned, however, without Thomas Cook, who had been a thorn in the side of Westfall’s predecessor for months. According to police records, Cook w