Vehicles

Police use a variety of tools, including handcuffs, guns, batons, persuasion and education, to fight crime. But Newport Beach police are now tapping into another resource: humor. In a short clip posted on YouTube, Newport Beach police urged residents to keep their cars locked — and to leave valuables at home, never in their cars. Officer Dave Darling crunches the numbers on how many property crimes in Newport are related to vehicles — 37% — and how many involved unlocked cars — more than 50%. In other parts of the two-minute, 37-second video, Darling says it takes an average of five seconds for potential thieves to steal valuables from a vehicle.

NEWPORT BEACH — School and police officials guided cars and pedestrians at a crosswalk near Newport Harbor High School on Thursday morning, two days after a girl was critically injured while crossing there. A Newport Beach Police Department motorcycle officer watched the intersection and chased errant drivers and bicyclists, while another officer guided students across the four-lane Irvine Avenue. It was all about minimizing risk after an allegedly intoxicated driver struck 17-year-old Crystal Morales on Tuesday afternoon.

Several car owners woke up Tuesday morning to see their tires slashed, according to Newport Beach police. Police received two calls about 7 a.m. with reports of vehicles in the vicinities of 33rd and Lake streets, and 32nd and Lake streets, having slashed tires. Police spokeswoman Kathy Lowe said 13 vehicles were vandalized. She said the police will note the affected cars and contact the owners via the license plate information. Lowe said the city has seen 352 acts of vandalism in the first 10 months of 2011, compared to 345 during the same period last year.

A vehicle struck a pedestrian on Friday night near the intersection of Irvine Avenue and Mesa Drive, sending one person to the hospital with major injuries, according to the California Highway Patrol. Newport Beach Fire Department responders drove the victim to Mission Hospital in Mission Viejo. At press time, it was not known if the person survived. The accident happened just after 8 p.m. in the southbound lanes of Irvine Avenue, south of Mesa Drive, the CHP reported. Because the area is technically unincorporated, investigation duties rested with highway patrol officers, according to Newport Beach Police, which also responded to the scene.

COSTA MESA - Were he still alive today, James Dean may have been a rebel with a "green" cause had he cruised the open highways in a 550 Porsche Spyder all-electric replica. The sleek, semi-automatic, fiberglass vehicle powered by two lithium-ion batteries - one in the front and one in the rear, which provides additional stability though equal-weight distribution - is the newest all-electric roadster launched by South Coast Electric Cars. The dealership held a grand opening ribbon-cutting ceremony Wednesday afternoon, with public and city officials present.

NEWPORT BEACH - Residents of a condominium complex near Hoag Hospital suspect that two men who look like Colonel Sanders and Ashton Kutcher are behind a series of bicycle thefts and car break-ins there. Villa Balboa residents say that some 15 bikes have been stolen from subterranean parking lots around the complex during the past four months. Using surveillance cameras in the garages, members of Villa Balboa's safety committee began reviewing taped footage of the alleged thefts and making DVDs - at $160 each - through an independent security company to send to police.

It will be a beautiful day in the neighborhood when picturesque red trolleys pick up Irvine Spectrum Center and Fashion Island shoppers for the first time beginning mid-August. The two Irvine Co.-owned shopping centers will offer free trolley rides to shoppers or just anyone who wants to experience a ride on the San Francisco-style vehicles. The first trolleys are designed by Laguna Woods-based Saddleback Golf Carts and Irvine Co.'s in-house design group. Additionally, trolleys — each custom built — will arrive as they are completed until each center has four, said company spokeswoman Erin Freeman.

COSTA MESA – Four police vehicles surrounded a car and two officers drew their guns Friday after a person ran away from a traffic stop. The incident occurred about 4:30 p.m. at Fairview Road and Baker Street. A police officer saw a car with a vehicle violation and attempted to pull the car over when one person in the car got out and ran away, said Costa Mesa Police Department Lt. Bob Ciszek. Three people were arrested for possession of prescription drugs, Ciszek said.

COSTA MESA — Reiterating its plan to inject millions into street repairs, vehicle maintenance and cash reserves, the City Council on Tuesday established expansive financial goals for the city in the next five years. "I see this as introducing the items, looking for some broad feedback, some broad direction, as we move forward," said city Chief Executive Tom Hatch. Admittedly offering some conservative estimates for revenue over the next five years, city staff gave reports that showed Costa Mesa can expect about $16 million more in revenue over the next five years, with total expenditures increasing by about $10 million.

A former Newport Beach fire official accused of racking up $26,000 in unpaid toll road fees while using a city vehicle has sued the city for alleged discrimination and retaliation against an injured worker, court records show. Paul Matheis, a former divisional fire chief, filed a lawsuit against the city of Newport Beach in Orange County Superior Court claiming that the city began to retaliate against him after a shoulder accident that required time off in 2009, according to a May 25 lawsuit.