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What do you get when you combine the Easter Bunny, kids, dogs, and a charity whose mission is to train service dogs to assist veterans in need? The result was Operation Freedom Paws'  Annual Easter Egg Hunt, where for $5 kids and parents had good wholesome fun on a perfect Spring day, while helping to match service dogs with veterans.

The announcement this week from China that it intends to impose retaliatory tariffs on 128 U.S. products sent shock waves across U.S. agriculture, especially in California.

The family of Tara Romero, a local teen who was gunned down in a drive-by shooting in 2011, and the residents of Morgan Hill are nearing the home stretch in their commitment to bring a life-size bronze sculpture of her likeness to a prominent public location.The City of Morgan Hill recently established a fundraising campaign at gofundme.com to fund the remaining expenses to complete the statue of Romero and transport it from southern California. The goal of the campaign is to raise $10,000, specifically for statue refinements, a cement base, plaque, transportation and installation, according to the fundraising page found at gofundme.com/tara-romero-memorial-sculpture.When the artwork is complete, it will be placed at “a central location” in the public pedestrian plaza between City Hall and the Morgan Hill Library, on the west side of town in the area of Peak, Alkire and West Main avenues, according to city staff.While the statue, titled “Never Forgotten,” is created and commissioned to depict a young girl in Romero’s likeness, it will also represent the many other young lives taken too soon by violence, according to her parents and others in the community who united in response to the 2011 shooting. It will also serve as an inspirational symbol of hope, peace and unity for young people growing up in Morgan Hill, according to city officials.“With the (ongoing) movement against violence, it’s time for young people to make their voices heard,” said Lisa Washington, who sits on a Library, Culture and Arts commission subcommittee for the gofundme campaign. “The timing is there, and the city is behind it. It’s meant to be uplifting.”The Morgan Hill City Council approved the placement of the statue as a public art piece in 2012, but did not dedicate public funds to the project. In the years since Romero’s death, her family has paid more than $22,000 to Los Angeles-based artist Dee Spellerman to create the sculpture.Romero’s father, Joseph Romero, a Fresno resident, said the statue is mostly finished. The artwork is about six feet tall, depicting a young girl gazing up at El Toro mountain above City Hall, with her right hand stretched upward and lifting a butterfly. Joseph is getting ready to create a plaque that will be attached to the base of the statue, describing why it is there.The parents continue to struggle with their daughter’s death, as the criminal proceedings against one of the five men accused of killing her continues to drag through the courts, and another acquitted in a 2016 trial. Romero’s mother, Annette Nevarez, of Morgan Hill, said the statue will offer her a place to sit and reflect.“My life has been on hold,” Nevarez said. “I feel like she’s there with me. (The statue) will be a place where I can go sit down and see her. I’ll be a lot happier. She was such a good little girl.”Romero was a 14-year-old freshman at Sobrato High School when she died in a drive-by shooting at the intersection of Cosmo and Del Monte avenues on Nov. 4, 2011. The shooting took place just outside the Village Avante apartment complex, less than one mile south of the statue’s proposed location.The shooting happened when five men in a Chrysler drove by the intersection and opened fire on a group of teens standing in a grassy area on the corner. Romero was pronounced dead at the scene, and three of her friends and classmates at Sobrato were injured by the gunfire.Police said the suspects were members of an illegal street gang, and fired at the victims thinking they were members of a rival gang with whom they had been feuding in the preceding weeks. The teen victims had no history of involvement in any gang activity.Morgan Hill Police surrounded the suspects inside a nearby residence within minutes after the shooting, and arrested them a few hours later after convincing them to surrender.Three of the suspects have been convicted of murder and attempted murder in relation to the drive-by shooting that took Tara Romero’s life. One was acquitted of all charges following a lengthy jury trial in 2016. The fifth suspect has been ruled not competent to stand trial, and remains in custody at a state mental hospital until he is well enough to face the charges against him.Joseph Romero added that for him, the statue will be a place he can visit and “lay a flower there and memorialize Tara.” For the community at large, it’s a reminder that such a violent death “could happen to anybody.”As of April 3, the gofundme site for the Never Forgotten statue has raised just over $1,500. The city’s LCAC formed a subcommittee to organize the effort and encourage residents, civic organizations, community leaders and businesses to contribute to the cause.   The subcommittee consists of Washington, Tara’s brother Joey Romero (also an artist), Morgan Hill Community Services Supervisor Jennie Tucker, Community Services Director Chris Ghione, as well as LCAC commissioners Paul Lake, Katie Khera and Daniel Redfield.Washington’s daughter, Tyler, was one of Tara Romero’s best friends.“During this season of renewal and fresh beginnings, it’s a perfect time to support Tara’s family in their desire to memorialize her young life, and to creatively express the right of ‘everyone’s child’ to envision and achieve their dreams in a peaceful, nonviolent community,” Lake said. “With your contributions, we’ll be able to officially unveil the sculpture in the coming weeks alongside members of the Morgan Hill City Council.”

AccidentA gray BMW SUV collided with the side of a residential building at 310 E. Dunne Ave. The accident was reported 2:51pm March 22.A silver pickup truck drove off the road and onto the property of a residence, coming to a stop after becoming stuck on a retaining wall. The accident happened in the area of La Crosse Drive and La Bella Court. It was reported 6:22pm March 26.A Nissan Altima collided with a bicyclist in the area of Burnett Avenue and Monterey Road, resulting in minor injuries to the cyclist. The accident was reported 6:59pm March 27.Suspicious personA witness called police to report that a man was walking along the railroad tracks I the area of Saint Agatha Lane and Diana Avenue, with his pants pulled down below his buttocks. An officer contacted the man, who “agreed to move along and keep his pants up.” The incident was reported 6:35pm March 22.BatteryAn employee of Saint Louise Regional Hospital called police to report a patient was receiving treatment after being assaulted by two suspects at Gavilan College, at the Morgan Hill Community and Cultural Center, 17000 Monterey Road. The victim suffered busted teeth and facial injuries. The crime was reported 9:22pm March 22.A Safeway employee was “jumped” by three unknown suspects in the parking lot of the store at 235 Tennant Station Way. The battery was reported 11:04pm March 23.Petty theftA thief stole two television sets worth about $400 from Target, 1061 Cochrane Road. The crime was reported 12:15pm March 27.A female suspect stole hair spray and other beauty items from Safeway, 840 E. Dunne Ave. The crime was reported 12:15am March 28.Someone stole a backpack that a customer accidentally left at Burger King, 1107 Cochrane Road. Inside the backpack were four French passports, four ID cards from Mexico, four L.A. Lakers tickets, four tickets to Universal Studios in Los Angeles and one credit card. The theft was reported 10:16am March 28.A customer of DSW, 1015 Cochrane Road, stole two pairs of shoes from the store and left the area in a silver Honda. The theft was reported 5:33pm March 24.A suspect stole two Fitbit devices, worth about $300 each, from Target, 1061 Cochrane Road. The crime was reported 9:25pm March 25.A thief stole two bottles of alcohol from Safeway, 235 Tennant Station Way. The crime was reported 7:17am March 26.Narcotics complaintAn employee of Ross Dress For Less, 16955 Monterey Road, complained that two customers inside the store were acting suspiciously. One of the male customers, who was in a wheelchair, was seen carrying a gun in his pocket. The incident was reported 2:03pm March 28. FraudA thief or thieves used a victim’s debit card number to make a purchase for about $1,230, plus $40 cash back at Rite Aid, 16000 Monterey Road. The fraud was reported 11:50am March 26.TheftSomeone stole a gas leaf blower and electric compressor from an unlocked shed at Woodland Estates, on the 100 block of Walnut Drive. The crime was reported 12:15pm March 23.BurglaryA resident of Murphy Court returned home to find the residence ransacked and a truck missing. A door into the garage was open. The crime was reported 2:19pm March 23.A resident of Tarragon Avenue returned home to find the residence burglarized. The burglar or burglars ransacked the home. The burglary was reported 5:37pm March 23.FightA male customer of the Metro PCS store at 16415 Monterey Road got into a fight with employees of the store. The fight was reported 5:19pm March 23.At least four males were fighting in the rear parking lot of the M&H Tavern, 17365 Monterey Road. The subjects had been celebrating a 21st birthday party. One of the fighters’ mother arrived to take them home. The fight was reported 12:07am March 25.Stolen vehicleSomeone stole a black Honda Civic from an apartment complex on the 100 block of Cosmo Avenue. The crime was reported 3:15pm March 24.Auto burglarySomeone smashed the window of a blue Honda on the 200 block of Burnett Avenue. The victim said two other vehicles on the same street appeared to have been broken into. The crime was reported 3:06pm March 25.A thief or thieves broke into a Ford F250 in the parking lot of 24 Hour Fitness, 850 Tennant Station Way, and stole a credit card and $100 cash. The credit card was later used at a Best Buy store. The burglary was reported 3:35pm March 29.Grand theftA thief or thieves stole outdoor playground equipment from Trinity Bible Church, 16100 Caputo Drive. The approximate value of the stolen items was $2,000. The crime was reported 5:06pm March 25.Domestic incidentA female resident of Thomas Grade Avenue told police that her husband had spread gasoline all over the interior of the house, and poured gasoline on her leg. No injuries resulted, and the man was arrested. The incident was reported 7:07pm March 25.Animal controlA dog that lives on the 2900 block of Bent Oak Lane was bitten by the neighbor’s dog, and it was the second time it has happened since summer 2017. The victim dog suffered two large puncture holes in the latest incident, which was reported 6:22pm March 28.A resident of the area of Oak Canyon and Jackson Oaks drive saw a large mountain lion disappear into the bushes, just outside a public works substation near the road. The predator sighting was reported 10:57am March 20.VandalismSomeone ripped the door to a small utility room on the 15500 block of Monterey Road off its hinges. The crime was reported 9:57am March 29.All subjects are innocent until proven guilty. Information is compiled from public records.

For the first time in its 14-year history, the Poppy Jasper International Film Festival has added a second location, expanding into two buildings in downtown Gilroy.The Granada Theater, the Morgan Hill Community Playhouse and the Grange Hall in Morgan Hill, will continue to host the bulk of the four-day festival.Festival President Mattie Scariot is hoping for significant attendance increases from the expansion of the venues for the April 5-8 event. Her goal of 3,000 tickets is three times the previous festival high of 1,000 tickets in the 2004 inaugural year.The increased ticket sales could be a boost for local downtown restaurants and bars in downtown Morgan Hill and Gilroy.“We expect the festival to have a big impact on local restaurants,” Scariot said. “We will not serve food at the event, so people will need to go out for lunch and dinner. I think it will create a lot of economic vitality for those restaurants.”For Scariot, the high expectations are following on the heels of several years of dropping ticket sales. Ticket sales have ranged within the hundreds, and the festival's weakest showing in 2016 at Gavilan College in recent memory. To help right the ship, Scariot has led a serious of changes to how the festival is marketed."We’re doing a lot of things differently," Scariot said. "We changed our branding, our logo, the website, and we added new programs to appeal to more people. We want to get filmmakers from outside of the community, but we also want to include those from within the community."In both Morgan Hill and Gilroy the film festival will be centered downtown.In Morgan Hill, the Granada, 17440 Monterey Road, will be the center of the festival screenings, with the Opening Gala on April 6. The Morgan Hill Community Playhouse, 17090 Monterey Road will open the festival April 5 with a Local Filmmakers Day, with selected films screened on April 6.The Old Strand Theater in Gilroy, at 7588 Monterey Road, formally the Vix, will open its 5,000 square-foot-event space for a film screening room all day on Saturday, April 7.A building at 7652 Monterey Road, formerly The District, will host a filmmaker’s lounge on that day, where music videos will be screened, and live bands will perform, followed by a midnight movie.“Rather than scramble to find a new place, I have a building that is currently under negotiations to lease, so I donated the building so we can keep the festival downtown,” said The District building owner Gary Walton. He was optimistic about the festival’s benefits for Gilroy.“Obviously, if you have thousands of people here the restaurants and hotels will benefit,” Walton said. “We’ll get the hotel tax dollars; some will shop at the outlet stores. In a broader sense, we’re looking to bring people into the community.”Aside from providing a home at his Granada Theater for the festival’s opening gala, and its closing awards ceremony, owner Frank Léal has also assisted with the festival's marketing."Frank Léal has been a tremendous help.," Scariot said. "They are helping us to make radio and television commercials that are getting a lot of airplay on local airwaves. He’s a good person and a great supporter."Since the films will run late in the evening, Scariot believes that most festivalgoers will stay locally. The Holiday Inn Express in Morgan Hill is the official hotel of the festival. The Holiday Inn has donated 10 rooms to the event for volunteers and visiting filmmakers.“The Holiday Inn Express was a huge coup for us, nobody has ever done that before,” Scariot said. They came to us saying they wanted to work with us.”Two of the festival’s special guests include two notable Gilroyans who’ve made an impact in Hollywood. Randy Spendlove, President of Paramount Music, and Emmy award-winning writer Kevin Rubio. “In Gilroy, the city council has been very supportive,” Scariot said. “Fred Tovar wants to put forth a proclamation to honor Spendlove and Rubio. Of course, Gary Walton has been a tremendous help. I would give him another ‘Man of the Year Award.”The Poppy Jasper International Film Festival is a 501 (3) c non-profit organization, and relies solely on about 60 volunteers.The Poppy Jasper International Film Festival will be held from April 5 - 8 in downtown Morgan Hill and Gilroy. Tickets and a complete festival schedule are available at pjiff.org.

Significant assets belonging to Infineon Technologies, including a plant in Morgan Hill, has been sold to Cree Inc. for $428 million on Mar. 6, a move made by Cree to expand its 5G wireless market. The sale will not include Infineon's Chip Card and Security operations in Morgan Hill. Cree plans to merge the new acquisition with their Wolfspeed radio frequency division.Infineon, which produces chips, sensors and microcontrollers, is a leader in wireless technology. With the acquisition, Cree hopes to bolster its transition to 5G cellular technology.“The acquisition strengthens Wolfspeed’s leadership position in RF GaN-on-SiC technologies and provides access to additional markets, customers and packaging expertise,” said Cree CEO Gregg Lowe in a press release. “This is a key element of Cree’s growth strategy and positions Wolfspeed to enable faster 4G networks and the revolutionary transition to 5G.”Infineon’s products are also used in self-driving cars.Between Infineon's operations in Morgan Hill, North Carolina, and Arizona, Infineon has about 260 employees. Worldwide, the Neubiberg, Germany based Infineon Technologies AG employs over 30,000 employees.As part of the deal, Cree intends to hire the approximately 260  employees in the US locations of Morgan Hill and Chandler, Arizona, as well as in Finland, Sweden, China and South Korea. While the company has built in a transitional period, the former employees of Infineon will become part of Cree Wolfspeed.“Cree is a strong new owner for this portion of our Radio Frequency business and has an excellent reputation in the industry,” Reinhard Ploss, CEO of Infineon said in a press release. “We are excited about the business rationale and the prospects for the combined businesses. At the same time, we will be able to focus our resources more effectively on Infineon’s strategic growth areas and will retain a strong technology portfolio for the wireless market.”Included in the sale is the main packaging and test operations facility in Morgan Hill, existing intellectual property, and existing customers. With the acquisition, Cree expects to increase annual revenues by $115 million.“We are looking forward to combining our strengths with Cree,” said Gerhard Wolf, Vice President, and General Manager, RF Power Products at Infineon. “With our highly skilled and dedicated team, advanced technologies and commitment to business excellence, we look forward to serving our customers seamlessly as the 5G mobile standard ramps up.”5G technology is the successor the 4G mobile wireless data technology, and it promises faster internet speed. As the type of information that's conveyed via the internet becomes more complex, 5G technology will be better able to handle the huge amounts of data that are needed. As the technology behind autonomous cars advances, the evolution of 5G technology becomes more important.Cree is a Durham North Carolina manufacturer of LED lighting and power components.

The community of San Martin held a citywide cleanup Saturday, March 24—the second of its kind since the small unincorporated town of 7,800 added a chamber of commerce in August 2017. The County of Santa Clara acknowledged San Martin with a ribbon cutting ceremony Saturday morning—honoring its Trash Bash as an ongoing community event.Connie Ludewig, San Martin Chamber of Commerce membership chair, said the group of more that 85 volunteers gathered from local schools and organizations collected 4,000 pounds of trash including soiled baby diapers, a dead goat in a bag, and an undelivered package that was taken to the San Martin post office.Ludewig praised the efforts of the community for all the people who showed their support for “The Jewel of South County—to protect our history, environment, and rural neighborhoods.”With the rains clear for much of the morning, the organizers were delighted with the energy of the crowd and the people who showed up to contribute.“It warms my heart to know that there were community-minded folks from as far as San Jose, to San Juan Bautista who showed up, and collected at least two tons of trash from the San Martin roads and creeks,” said Ludewig.Trina Hineser president of the San Martin Neighborhood Alliance and community liaison for the San Martin Chamber of Commerce, said the community is passionate about efforts because San Martin has long been viewed as a dumping zone and residents are working hard to rebrand themselves as “The Jewel of South County.”“Being active to beautify our area is one way the community is coming together to do that,” Hineser said. “We’ve seen the county step up and acknowledge the work we are doing. We’ve seen code enforcement more proactively addressing the concerns in our community.”Hineser said since the development of neighborhood alliance and the chamber, plus regular town hall meetings, the residents are more dedicated and energetic about their community.By being proactive and providing information ahead of time and getting community involvement and offering solutions together, Hineser hopes to build a stronger community.“We are gaining momentum and each time one more person is willing to pick something up,” Hineser said.

Significant assets belonging to Infineon Technologies, including a plant in Morgan Hill, has been sold to Cree Inc. for $428 million on Mar. 6, a move made by Cree to expand its 5G wireless market. The sale will not include Infineon's Chip Card and Security operations in Morgan Hill. Cree plans to merge the new acquisition with their Wolfspeed radio frequency division.Infineon, which produces chips, sensors and microcontrollers, is a leader in wireless technology. With the acquisition, Cree hopes to bolster its transition to 5G cellular technology.“The acquisition strengthens Wolfspeed’s leadership position in RF GaN-on-SiC technologies and provides access to additional markets, customers and packaging expertise,” said Cree CEO Gregg Lowe in a press release. “This is a key element of Cree’s growth strategy and positions Wolfspeed to enable faster 4G networks and the revolutionary transition to 5G.”Infineon’s products are also used in self-driving cars.Between Infineon's operations in Morgan Hill, North Carolina, and Arizona, Infineon has about 260 employees. Worldwide, the Neubiberg, Germany based Infineon Technologies AG employs over 30,000 employees.As part of the deal, Cree intends to hire the approximately 260  employees in the US locations of Morgan Hill and Chandler, Arizona, as well as in Finland, Sweden, China and South Korea. While the company has built in a transitional period, the former employees of Infineon will become part of Cree Wolfspeed.“Cree is a strong new owner for this portion of our Radio Frequency business and has an excellent reputation in the industry,” Reinhard Ploss, CEO of Infineon said in a press release. “We are excited about the business rationale and the prospects for the combined businesses. At the same time, we will be able to focus our resources more effectively on Infineon’s strategic growth areas and will retain a strong technology portfolio for the wireless market.”Included in the sale is the main packaging and test operations facility in Morgan Hill, existing intellectual property, and existing customers. With the acquisition, Cree expects to increase annual revenues by $115 million.“We are looking forward to combining our strengths with Cree,” said Gerhard Wolf, Vice President, and General Manager, RF Power Products at Infineon. “With our highly skilled and dedicated team, advanced technologies and commitment to business excellence, we look forward to serving our customers seamlessly as the 5G mobile standard ramps up.”5G technology is the successor the 4G mobile wireless data technology, and it promises faster internet speed. As the type of information that's conveyed via the internet becomes more complex, 5G technology will be better able to handle the huge amounts of data that are needed. As the technology behind autonomous cars advances, the evolution of 5G technology becomes more important.Cree is a Durham North Carolina manufacturer of LED lighting and power components.

The morning of April 18, Morgan Hill will be covered with police officers from several area jurisdictions to conduct a citywide “high-visibility, directed traffic enforcement operation,” according to a press release from Morgan Hill Police Department.The operation is scheduled on city streets from 6:30am to 10am April 18. Traffic officers from Campbell Police Department, Sunnyvale Dept. of Public Safety, Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office, Mountain View PD, Milpitas PD, San Jose PD, Santa Clara PD and Los Altos PD will participate in the Morgan Hill operation.During the operation, these officers will pay “special attention” to traffic violations related to pedestrian and bicycle safety along Morgan Hill’s arterial roadways, according to authorities. These violations include “pedestrian right-of-way, jaywalking, 3 foot buffer for bicyclists, red light/stop sign violations, distracted driving, and any other dangerous violations that are observed.”The MHPD press release continues: “The goal of the program is to saturate problem areas with officers during commute hours to enforce traffic laws and reduce injury collisions.”Similar multi-agency traffic enforcement efforts will take place monthly in different communities throughout the year, rotating through participating cities within the Bay Area. A similar operation took place in Morgan Hill in April 2017, when officers from several agencies ticketed almost 200 traffic tickets in a four-hour period on local streets, according to police.In anticipation of the upcoming April 18 operation, MHPD reminded motorists, pedestrians and cyclists of the following traffic safety tips:• Pedestrians and bicyclists should cross streets at marked crosswalks or intersections, and obey traffic signals such as WALK/DON'T WALK signs;• Pedestrians and bicyclists should not wear headphones or talk on their cell phones while in the roadway;• Bicyclists should have their bicycle equipped with a white light on the front visible from a distance of 300 feet and a red reflector visible from a distance of 500 feet to the rear, during darkness;• Bicyclists operating on the roadway are subject to obeying all rules of the road, including stop signs and lighted traffic signals;• Bicyclists shall yield the right-of-way to any pedestrian.And MHPD advised motorists that the following violations can result in collisions, injuries and even fatalities:• Speeding;• Failure to stop for red lights or stop signs;• Failure to yield to pedestrians and bicyclists;• Distracted driving;• Blocking crosswalks;• Turning on permitted light (green signal) but not looking for pedestrian properly crossing in crosswalk.