Council will discuss city attorney today...

Council will discuss city attorney today

The Costa Mesa City Council will hold a special meeting in closed

session at 8 a.m. today to make a decision regarding City Atty. Jerry

Scheer.

On Sept. 9, the council voted unanimously to place Scheer and

Assistant City Atty. Tom Woods on paid administrative leave after a

general employee performance evaluation.

During that same session, council members also voted to halt all

business with an outside legal firm, audit the city attorney’s office

and set up a subcommittee to further review the performance of the

city’s top two attorneys. A week later, a unanimous council vote

reinstated Wood.

On Oct. 4, the council voted 3 to 2 to reinstate Scheer, who

returned to work Oct. 7.

Last week, though, the City Council sent a letter with an

ultimatum to Scheer -- return to his post full time or resign. In the

Oct. 17 letter, the city’s outside legal counsel outlined a series of

requirements of Scheer as the city attorney and offered him a chance

to quit if he wishes.

The letter advised that if Scheer wants to continue working as the

city attorney, the “council will be proceeding with his evaluation at

an upcoming meeting in the near future.”

Scheer has been with the city attorney’s office for almost 16

years, providing legal services to the City Council, the Planning

Commission, the Costa Mesa Redevelopment Agency and city departments.

Student enrollment hits all-time high at UCI

UC Irvine’s fall student enrollments have hit an all-time high,

university officials said Tuesday.

The number of undergraduates went up 8.6%, graduates 11.7% and

graduate health science students 1.5%. The total number of students

went up 8.7%.

UCI study: ADHD can lead to bedwetting

Children with attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder may also

tend to struggle with bedwetting and other bowel and urinary tract

problems, a UC Irvine College of Medicine study has found.

The study, that university officials say is the first to

investigate this issue, will be presented at the annual meeting of

the American Academy of Pediatrics in Boston. The study was

spearheaded by Dr. Barry Duel, assistant professor of urology and a

specialist in childhood urological diseases at the UCI Medical

Center’s University Children’s Hospital.

The researchers found that children with attention

deficit-hyperactivity disorder scored three times higher than

children without the disorder on a questionnaire that surveyed issues

such as preadolescent bedwetting and improper bowel control.

Between 3% and 5% of all children in the United States have some

degree of attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder. Previous studies

have suggested that about 30% of such children suffer from

bedwetting.

Change smoke alarm batteries, officials urge

The Newport Beach Fire Department urges residents to change smoke

alarm batteries when clocks are set back an hour as a result of

daylight savings time each fall. Daylight savings time ends at 2 a.m.

Sunday, when clocks will be turned back one hour.

Fire officials also suggest the same be done in the spring when

the clock is set forward by an hour.

Also, once the batteries are changed, be sure to test the alarms.

This simple act, officials say, will help protect residents in case a

fire occurs.