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• CAMERON PARK 3321 Durock Rd Bldg A (530) 676-2446 • EL DORADO HILLS 4640 Post Street (916) 293-5665 • PLACERVILLE 85 Placerville Dr. (530) 622-6956
C ALI FORN IA’S OLDE ST NE W SPAPER
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– Weekend Edition – FRIDAY, DECEMBER 26, 2025
VOLUME 174 • ISSUE 104 | $1.00
mtdemocrat.com
Wet weather unwrapped
Mountain Democrat photos by Shelly Thorene
EDSO Deputy Keith Dougherty hands toys to Erica and Ella Baker while their grandmother Lindy, second from left, and Sheriff’s Technician Avonlea Oglesby look on at the Toys from the Bearcat giveaway on Pearl Place in Diamond Springs Tuesday.
A Bear-y Merry Christmas Shelly Thorene Staff writer
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Mountain Democrat photo by Shelly Thorene
Mother Nature delivered a White Christmas in the Sierra and soaked the foothills with impressive downpours over the Christmas holiday, not to mention a hefty dose of wind that whipped ornaments and tinsel off Placerville’s famous Christmas trees. Above, presents under the Main Street tree look a bit soggy and disheveled on Christmas Eve morning after a strong storm blew in the night before.
l Dorado County Sheriff Jeff Leikauf was accompanied by dozens of EDSO deputies and staff plus officers from the Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Tribal Police for the annual Toys from the Bearcat giveaway on Dec. 23. Santa rode unannounced through neighborhoods from Camino to El Dorado Hills in his SWAT vehicle sleigh (the Bearcat) and was on ■ See BEARY CHRISTMAS, page A8
Woman shot in Greenwood Noel Stack Editor
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An unidentified female suffered a non-life-threatening injury in an officer-involved shooting Tuesday night, the El Dorado County Sheriff ’s Office reported. At approximately 9:20 p.m. on Dec. 23, EDSO received a request for service, listed as a verbal disturbance on the media bulletin, in the 1200 block of Sliger Mine Road in Greenwood. At approximately 10:21 p.m., the first deputy arrived at the address and the call for service resulted
Above, Braeson Gehrke, 3, gets a hug from El Dorado County Sheriff Jeff Leikauf after receiving a miniature basketball hoop held by mom, Ashley, right, at the Bearcat giveaway in Diamond Springs on Dec. 23. At left, Sheriff Leikauf offers a toy to Andrea Manzaneris, 2, of Diamond Springs as Undersheriff Eric Palmberg, right, and Deputy Dan Freeman watch during the surprise giveaway.
in an officer involved shooting, according to an EDSO social media post. The adult female victim was transported to a local area hospital for treatment. Officials noted no EDSO deputies were injured in the incident. The Mountain Democrat reached out Wednesday morning for further details. “Currently there is no additional information available as this is an active investigation,” Sgt. Kyle Parker replied. “The Sheriff ’s Office wishes to thank the community for their support and patience as a thorough investigation is completed.”
EDHCSD considering Gilmore Senior Center building purchase Noel Stack Editor
Mountain Democrat file photo by Noel Stack
El Dorado County and the El Dorado Hills Community Services District are expected to begin negotiations for the CSD to purchase the Gilmore Senior Center building.
The former El Dorado Hills fire station turned senior center could once again change hands. EDH Community Services District leaders have initiated talks with El Dorado County representatives to purchase the Gilmore Senior Center. EDHCSD interim General Manager Stephanie McGann-Jantzen told the EDHCSD Board of Directors she hopes to launch the discussion in January. “We have extended our agreement with the county on the senior center through June, and they have said that they will continue to do this with us as long as we are negotiating,” McGann-Jantzen shared at the Dec. 11 meeting. The long-planned El Dorado Hills Senior Center opened in 2006 in the former EDH Fire Department station at the corner of El Dorado Hills Boulevard and Lassen Lane and was in 2013 dedicated to longtime senior advocate Ramona “Moni” Gilmore, who died in 2008. Gilmore, a former EDH Fire Board member, put considerable effort into the agreement in which the fire department sold the old station to the county for $701,293 when EDH Fire moved into its new Station 85 just down the road at the corner of El ■ See PURCHASE, page A7