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Paula Lloyd

Jury finds mother not guilty of urging daughter to fight

Pablo Lopez, Paula Lloyd, The Fresno Bee

Last updated Thursday, April 14, 2011 - 9:39am

FRESNO, Calif. -- A jury took only two hours Wednesday to find a Fresno woman not guilty of urging her daughter to fight a 13-year-old girl -- even though her actions were captured on a YouTube video.

On the video, Carla Jimenez is seen circling the two combatants and telling her 12-year-old daughter, "Swing, baby, swing!" She then shouts out the F-word when someone tries to stop the fight.

When the verdict was announced in Fresno County Superior Court, Jimenez appeared stunned, holding onto the defense table for support.

The mother of the 13-year-old -- Cecelia Cerda -- bolted from the courtroom before Judge Gary Orozco thanked the jury for its public service.

"I'm upset," Cerda said afterward. "I just can't believe it, because she admitted to everything."

Courts, Fight, YouTube, National Read more Comments

Student body president who is illegal immigrant says he may have to quit

Paula Lloyd, The Fresno Bee

Last updated Thursday, January 27, 2011 - 11:36am

FRESNO, Calif. -- Fresno State student body president Pedro Ramirez, the subject of criticism for admitting he is an illegal immigrant, told student leaders Wednesday he may have to resign if he needs surgery for injuries received in a recent traffic accident.

Meanwhile, the student senate postponed indefinitely a decision to formally review Ramirez after the American Civil Liberties Union called the move an improper attempt to force him out of office.

Features, Immigration law, College Read more Comments

Tragedy strikes again for elementary school saddened by students' deaths

Jim Guy, Paula Lloyd, The Fresno Bee

Last updated Wednesday, January 26, 2011 - 10:32am

FRESNO, Calif. -- The murder of a California kindergartner Tuesday stunned residents still heartbroken by the carbon-monoxide poisoning deaths of two of her Oakhurst Elementary schoolmates last week.

The Madera County Sheriff's Office said the body of Marijane Lyn Lewis, 5, was discovered about 4:30 a.m. PST Tuesday by her grandfather in the Nipinnawasee home near Ahwahnee, Calif., that he and his wife shared with the girl and her mother, Crystal Lynn Lewis.

Schools, Suicide, National Read more Comments