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San Jose police arrested a Morgan Hill man on suspicion of sexually assaulting two women Dec. 17, according to authorities.Sometime on Dec. 17, San Jose officers responded to the 1600 block of Stokes Street in San Jose on a call reporting a sexual assault in progress, reads a press release from SJPD.Upon arrival, officers determined Kenneth Bridges, 26, sexually assaulted two female adult victims, police said. The victims are 54 and 63 years old.Bridges was arrested at the scene and booked at Santa Clara County Jail, police said. Bridges was on active parole for robbery at the time of the incident.Anyone with information about this incident can contact San Jose police at (408) 277-4102, or the anonymous Crime Stoppers Tip Line at (408) 947-7867.

At first glance, he appears just your average four-legged, golden-colored canine. But this dog, known as Booker, is no ordinary pup.

Miss Kitty is a 2-year-old calico who enjoys sunny patios and the view from the tops of cat trees at Pet Friends. She can be shy with new visitors, but loves being brushed, is affectionate and sweet. Miss Kitty invites the company of other cats and will charm her way into your heart as well. To meet her, call Pet Friends at (831)-634-1191 or visit petfriends.org.

Artist Christine Hwang was born and raised in northern California and studied business economics at UCLA before switching her major to art history. She spends much of her time studying different art fields at a local community college.

The winter holidays are a time of festivity, cheer and, for many partygoers, alcohol consumption. That’s why police are warning Santa Clara County residents that if you’re celebrating with alcohol this holiday season, they’ll be keeping an eye out for you on the roads.The Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office warns motorists to “Drive sober or get pulled over.” From Dec. 12 to Jan. 1, law enforcement agencies throughout the county are increasing their impaired driving enforcement due to the increase in drunk-driving accidents and fatalities at this time of year, according to a press release from the sheriff’s office.The first weekend of the holiday campaign, Dec. 12-13, saw 60 motorists arrested countywide on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, according to Sheriff’s Sgt. Kurtis Stenderup. In 2013, law enforcement agencies arrested 87 people countywide for the initial holiday crackdown weekend.Increased efforts, organized by the Avoid the 13 Task Force, include DUI/drivers license checkpoints, 38 “roving saturation patrols” and a DUI warrant and probation sweep, authorities said.These efforts include the following in Morgan Hill in Gilroy:—Dec. 19 saturation patrols by Morgan Hill and Gilroy police;—Dec. 20 saturation patrols by sheriff and Gilroy police;—Dec. 26 saturation patrols by Gilroy police;—Dec. 27 DUI/drivers license checkpoint by sheriff;—Dec. 31 saturation patrols by Gilroy police.The facts are grim, according to the sheriff. On average, nearly one-third (31 percent) of all crash fatalities in America involve drunk driving. In December 2012, 830 people were killed nationwide in crashes involving at least one driver with a blood alcohol concentration above the legal limit of .08.On Christmas day 2012, the number of accidents involving at least one drunken driver jumps to 36 percent, the press release continued. Twenty-six people died in DUI-related accidents that day. For the entire year, more than 10,000 people died nationwide in DUI accidents in 2012, with 802 of those in California alone.As part of the national “Drive sober or get pulled over campaign,” law enforcement will increase their number of patrols and enforcement operations, and use local and social media to reach all drivers, the sheriff’s press release said.Authorities recommend finding ways other than driving to get home safely if you have been drinking. These include designating a sober driver ahead of time, calling a friend or family member, using public transportation or calling a taxi.If you see a vehicle on the roads that appears to be driven by an impaired motorist, call 911, authorities suggest.Avoid the 13 Task Force funding is provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The Office of Traffic Safety offers a free mobile app – DDVIP – aimed at thanking the sober designated driver with perks and free offers at area bars and restaurants.

Recent historic rainfalls in South County soaked the ground, threatened flooding and raised reservoir levels, but authorities say the drought is far from over and key local water supplies remain even lower than they were a year ago.“As of last Friday (Dec. 12), even though we got about five inches of rain (in some areas), the reality is that we need six or seven more storms like that to get us through the drought,” said Santa Clara Valley Water District Director Dennis Kennedy, who represents South County on the board.Last week’s storm, which dumped heavy, persistent rain on the area for more than 24 hours straight, brought about four inches of precipitation to southwest Morgan Hill, where local weather enthusiast Chris Henry keeps daily measurements.Since that rainfall, a series of smaller storms hitting the coast this week have dropped another 2.67 inches on Morgan Hill as of 8 a.m. Dec. 17, Henry said.That brings the total rainfall for December to about 9.62 inches, and the year-to-date tally to about 12 inches, which is about half the region’s average annual rainfall, Henry said.Another frontal band moving in off the Pacific Ocean was expected to bring even more showers to South County Thursday and Friday, before tapering off Saturday, Dec. 20, according to National Weather Service Forecaster Bob Benjamin. Starting Sunday, chances of rain will be “dwindling to zero” with the area likely to remain dry at least through Christmas Day.While some South County reservoirs saw sudden and drastic jumps in water levels following last week’s storm, it is the groundwater basin that has suffered most among local water sources during the drought, according to SCVWD spokesman Marty Grimes.“That’s going to be the biggest challenge to recover,” Grimes said. “All that water (from storms) doesn’t percolate into the groundwater. We’re expecting our groundwater will be about 100,000 acre-feet less than it was a year ago, and that’s going to take many months to recover—maybe years.”2013 was the driest year on record in the state of California. The Santa Clara Valley groundwater basin won’t be at a “normal” level until it’s holding about 300,000 acre-feet, and authorities are projecting it to be storing about 200,000 acre-feet at the end of this winter, Grimes said.An acre-foot of water is enough to supply a family of five for two years.By contrast, the district’s 10 reservoirs, which store surface water, have a total capacity of about 169,000 acre-feet, but were only holding 64,000 acre-feet as of Wednesday morning. Storage is up considerably at some of those reservoirs, such as Chesbro in southwest Morgan Hill, which jumped from 1 percent of capacity to more than 10 percent in the last 10 days.“Once it starts raining, it’s impressive how (Chesbro and Uvas reservoirs) can rebound, but that does not mean the groundwater basin has rebounded as quickly,” Grimes said.Another key drought factor that won’t be determined for months is the snowpack in the Sierra Nevada mountains, Kennedy added. Runoff from that melting snowfall supplies key sources outside Santa Clara County from which SCVWD imports water for the county’s 1.8 million residents.As a result of these supply uncertainties, the district is still asking water retailers to cut water use by 20 percent, at least until the middle of 2015, Grimes added. The district does not supply water to individual residents, but rather sells it wholesale to retailers such as the cities of Morgan Hill and Gilroy.It is the retailers’ responsibility to urge individual residents to conserve water through local restrictions. Morgan Hill, for example, is the only city in SCVWD’s jurisdiction so far to restrict outdoor watering to one day per week during the winter, Grimes said.The City of Morgan Hill, for the month of October, reported the highest monthly rate of conservation—24 percent—of any local retailer since the call for conservation was initiated early this year. However, retailers countywide have cumulatively reported only a 12 percent total rate of conservation since February.Although last week’s storm brought flooding, power outages and damages to areas north of South County, Morgan Hill was relatively unscathed, according to city staff.While downtown Morgan Hill and other areas along Little Llagas Creek, which flows along the west side of Monterey Road, are prone to flooding during heavy rains, no significant deluges were reported.“We had some standing water in the gutters, but no true flooding,” Morgan Hill Communications Manager Maureen Tobin said Tuesday. “We were really fortunate this big storm and yesterday’s rain didn’t cause any issues.”Local officials remain determined to continue lobbying for federal funding to complete the $137-million-plus Llagas Creek Flood Protection project, which has been in the pre-planning stages for more than 50 years.Kennedy said recent efforts to lobby Congressman Sam Farr resulted in an additional $12 million in federal funding for the 2015 Watershed Rehabilitation Program for the Natural Resources Conservation Service. Those funds are a good start, but a lot more work remains before the project becomes a reality.“We’re still working to make sure that portions of the funding get to the Upper Llagas project, and not just for the program as a whole,” Grimes added.

The ribbon-cutting for One To Another Thrift Shop, 381-B First St. was held Dec. 4. The store is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. A ministry of Pleasant Valley Church, it supports charities with a portion of proceeds going to locals in need. For more information, call (408) 842-1434.

Suspicious circumstances