Bathroom

A woman reported seeing a man standing on a chair in her backyard while peering into her bathroom early Tuesday morning, police said. The victim, a 25-year-old Costa Mesa resident, described the man as 6 feet tall and 200 pounds. She said he was in her yard around 5:50 a.m., said Costa Mesa police Sgt. Phil Myers on Wednesday. The man fled before police arrived on scene. — Lauren Williams Twitter: @lawilliams30

Danette Goulet NEWPORT BEACH - An unsuspecting 6-year-old girl found herself trapped by a transient man in a bathroom stall at Mariners Elementary School Thursday morning. The 34-year-old man, whose name police have not yet verified, was arrested on suspicion of false imprisonment. The girl escaped apparently unharmed, said Sgt. Steve Shulman of the Newport Beach Police Department. The first-grader entered the bathroom at about 8:15 a.m. while her grandmother, who had walked her to school, waited outside.

An unattended candle in a “four-plex” on Hilaria Way killed two dogs and caused $15,000 in damage before Newport Beach firefighters managed to extinguish it, authorities said. At 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, 21 Newport Beach firefighters rushed to the scene, after reports of smoke and high heat coming from the area. A candle left burning in the bathroom sparked the blaze, according to authorities. “We were alerted because of the smoke,” said fire department spokeswoman Jennifer Schulz.

A Newport Beach nursing home is contesting a state citation relating to a patient's death, company officials said Tuesday. The California Department of Public Health this week issued its heaviest possible fine — $100,000 — and most severe citation against the Newport Nursing and Rehabilitation center after it says the facility failed to properly supervise an elderly woman who was suffering from dementia, osteoporosis and recovering from hip...

-- Danette Goulet Another bomb threat has been found scrawled on a high school bathroom wall, this time at Newport Harbor High School. But police in Newport Beach said they are not taking the threat seriously. "Something was written in the bathroom regarding a bomb threat, but we took it as a suspicious circumstance incident and not a crime because we don't believe it is credible," said Newport Beach Police Sgt. Steve Shulman. Shulman said when investigators studied the writing on the bathroom wall Tuesday, they felt it was not a real threat.

Deciding on a paint color is stressful. Light, dark, bold, soothing: Sometimes it's hard to fit all of my moods into one can of color. I believe in tester quarts and foam brushes. There are times when rooms in my house have looked like patchwork quilts. It's important to see how the color adjusts to morning light, evening light and artificial light. After you have made the difficult color decision, you breathe a sigh of relief and head off to the paint store -- only to be hit with a new series of questions.

The following is a guide of tips from my student to yours in choosing a bathroom at a high school or junior high school in this district: 1. Don't drink anything all day, so you won't have to use the bathroom at school. I know it is bad for your health, especially if you have a big workout in physical education, but better to be safe than sorry. 2. If you ignored Rule 1, don't wait until the last minute to try to find a bathroom. Many of the bathrooms are locked right after lunch, so forget about making that mad dash, as things get more desperate.

A Newport Beach restaurateur was arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon after allegedly firing a revolver over beachgoers' heads in front of his Balboa Peninsula home late Thursday, police said. Edward Joseph O'Neill, 45, owner of the Ho Sum Bistro restaurant on Newport Boulevard, allegedly fired one shot toward the water around 8:30 p.m. because he thought a group of people on the beach were being disruptive, Sgt. Bill Hartford said.

We’ve all watched “This Old House” or similar shows on television where they go in and redo a house. It looks so easy. So when the wife and I discussed remodeling one of our bathrooms several months ago, we decided to take on the project ourselves. How hard could it be? A little tiling, putting in a new bathtub, toilet and sink, and a little paint. I remember a friend of mine telling me at the time “that’s what professionals are for.” Well, here’s the good news: My wife and I are not divorced, yet. Actually, our attempt at what we thought was going to be a fun project we would do and enjoy together has become a comedy of errors.

Freedom Homes, a large Westside neighborhood, is one of the oldest in the city. Many of the small, aging houses share a common floor plan with three bedrooms, one bathroom and a one-car garage or carport, which families often find inadequate, according to neighborhood resident and real estate broker Mary Fewel, who is trying to change that. To push community members to add extra space to their houses, Fewel and Mayor Eric Bever brought the city a proposal to hire an architect to compile a book of ideas designed to fit the particular style and layout of the homes in the 830-house tract in hopes that it would encourage people to build additions.

A Newport Beach nursing home is contesting a state citation relating to a patient's death, company officials said Tuesday. The California Department of Public Health this week issued its heaviest possible fine — $100,000 — and most severe citation against the Newport Nursing and Rehabilitation center after it says the facility failed to properly supervise an elderly woman who was suffering from dementia, osteoporosis and recovering from hip...

A woman reported seeing a man standing on a chair in her backyard while peering into her bathroom early Tuesday morning, police said. The victim, a 25-year-old Costa Mesa resident, described the man as 6 feet tall and 200 pounds. She said he was in her yard around 5:50 a.m., said Costa Mesa police Sgt. Phil Myers on Wednesday. The man fled before police arrived on scene. — Lauren Williams Twitter: @lawilliams30

HUNTINGTON BEACH - A guided tour of Robert Rizzo's home Friday offered an unusual peek into the affluent lifestyle he built while running blue-collar Bell. When he lived in the house near Huntington Beach's City Hall, the former city manager - who now stands accused of public corruption - walked on travertine flooring, looked through etched glass windows, passed through leaded glass doors and ate in a formal dining room beneath a coffered ceiling. He could choose between a steam shower or bathing under a chandelier in a bathroom lined in travertine, granite and marble.

To hear listing agent Jason Morrison tell it, the view from 3729 Ocean Blvd. alone is worth nearly $30 million. The 7,000 square-foot mansion called “Crown of the Sea” is on the market for $29,995,000. Built into a seaside cliff in Corona del Mar, the home has panoramic views of Catalina Island, Newport Harbor and Little Corona Beach. “It really makes you feel one with the ocean,” Morrison said. “The most unique thing about this home is that every room with living space enjoys an ocean view.

Pimco co-founder Bill Gross, who manages the largest bond fund in the world, has purchased an 11,000-square-foot mansion on Harbor Island for an estimated $23 million. One of 30 homes on well-heeled Harbor Island, the Southern colonial-style mansion features nine bedrooms, 12 bathrooms, and a dock for two 100-foot boats. “It has one of the best views on the bay in the city,” said real estate broker Bill Coté of First Team Estates, who represented the sellers, along with Gordon Cowan of Prudential Realty.

UCI police are working on a composite sketch of a man who assaulted a woman in a campus restroom Wednesday afternoon, officials said. According to a ZOT! Alert issued to university students, faculty and staff about 10:16 a.m. Thursday, a woman was assaulted as she washed her hands in a first-floor restroom of the UCI Information and Computer Science 2 building at 2:50 p.m. Wednesday. “We haven’t had any crimes reported in that building all year,” said UCI Police Lt. Baltazar De La Riva.

A Fountain Valley man is asking Newport Beach for $100,000 for psychological trauma he claims he suffered after a Newport Beach police officer allegedly caused him to urinate on himself. Police arrested Davin Palitz at the Villa Nova Restaurant, 3131 W. Coast Hwy., on suspicion of driving under the influence Jan. 3, records show. In a claim filed against Newport Beach earlier this month, Palitz alleges a Newport Beach police officer caused him to urinate on himself when he would not let him use the bathroom during his arrest.

A $1-million warrant has been issued for a Tustin man who punched a Costa Mesa police officer in 2006 and tricked authorities earlier this week to escape during his trial. Police are looking for Mark Thomas Georgantas, 46, who is proving to be a slippery one for Orange County Sheriff’s deputies. Georgantas was on trial at Santa Ana’s Central Justice Center Wednesday for credit card fraud and grand theft when he told the court he had to use the restroom. He was free on $50,000 bail, court records show.

A Moreno Valley man wanted in Costa Mesa and Riverside County was arrested Wednesday afternoon after Newport police said he spent the night hiding in a restroom. Police said Christopher Williams, 46, was found by an employee of Henry’s Groceries, 2112 Oceanfront West, inside the market’s bathroom in a detached storage area about 10 a.m. Wednesday. The employee called police who later found Williams in the area, scratched and bruised, wearing his jacket inside out as a disguise, Sgt. Evan Sailor said.