novato

Man accused of

impersonating officer

Novato police officers arrested a man for allegedly impersonating a law enforcement officer so that he could get free food at a restaurant.

Around 8:40 p.m. Saturday, authorities were notified about the incident at the Vintage Oaks shopping center. Lt. Sophia Winter reported that the suspect earlier presented false police identification to the restaurant staff and threatened to arrest them if they did not follow his food order. He exited after the staff told him to leave.

Officers later detained the suspect while he was walking on Rowland Boulevard. They also learned that he had a warrant for his arrest out of Napa County for fraudulently impersonating a police officer, Winter said.

Balazs Schreil, 57, of Woodland Hills was arrested on suspicion of a new charge of fraudulently impersonating a police officer. He was booked into the Marin County Jail where his bail was set at $15,839.

the legislature

Connolly moves

16 bills to Senate

More than a dozen bills authored by Assemblymember Damon Connolly were approved by the state Assembly, his office announced Friday. The bills will move to the state Senate for approval.

Connolly, a Democrat, represents Marin County and southern Sonoma County in Assembly District 12. The 16 bills cover a wide range of topics from wildfire prevention and agriculture policy to education and the environment.

Highlights include Assembly Bill 1140, which would create a pilot program to oversee four state prisons move 10% of their inmates into single-occupancy cells. Connolly collaborated with San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins on the bill that seeks to reduce California’s rate of formerly incarcerated individuals returning to custody.

“It’s creating an environment where the people who we have to send to prison are able to rehabilitate themselves and have another chance at life, and that translates to fewer victims down the line,” Jenkins said in March.

Connolly’s pair of Assembly bills 456 and 806 focus on improving conditions for mobile home park residents. AB 456 would prevent park managers from requiring residents to repair their homes before the properties can be sold. AB 806 halts park managers from stopping residents from installing cooling devices.

The Assembly also approved AB 1777, which intends to enhance staffing for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. Also accepted was AB 1 that Connolly believes will help the state’s Safer from Wildfires program offer insurance relief to residents who harden their homes against wildfires.

the county

Assessment boards

accepting applications

Residents with backgrounds in law, real estate, accounting and property appraisal are invited to apply for the county’s assessment appeals boards.

Board members are appointed to the two panels by the Board of Supervisors and hear appeals from property owners on assessed value. Appointees are paid a stipend per meeting.

The application deadline is 5 p.m. Aug.1.

Apply online or learn more at 415-473-7331. Applications may be requested by writing to the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors, Suite 329, 3501 Civic Center Drive, San Rafael, 94903.