Dear Readers,

The city's IT manager, Steve McInchak, who was put on paid leave way back in June even as his home was raided and his personal property seized, but who still hasn't been charged with any crime, has filed a claim against Carmel asking for compensation for what he says is the city's illegal mistreatment of him. Mary Schley reports.

You may be surprised to learn that city hall spent more than $1 million of your money in October. Mary Schley has the rundown on where all the cash went.

Monterey County sheriff's deputies say they've made a lot of progress solving break-ins and burglaries in Carmel Valley, and they even have lots of recovered loot to sort through. Mary Schley has that one, too.

Cal Am says tests at a possible desal well site in Marina are producing some very hopeful signs. Kelly Nix has that story.

There were two noteworthy deaths on the Monterey Peninsula this week: A mainstay of community activism in Carmel passed away suddenly Wednesday, and a longtime water official died after a long illness Monday. Kelly Nix and Mary Schley report on those sad milestones. We have another special section this week to help you make local choices when you do your holiday shopping. And my editorial explains why simple fairness requires that a new water project include enough H2O for lots of record.

We are very proud of our newspaper, and we sincerely thank you for supporting it. As always, I am available to respond to your questions, comments or concerns about our content, and to offer advice about how best to read it on your computer, smartphone or iPad.

To get this week's complete Pine Cone, please click here. If you have an informed opinion about one of our stories and would like to submit a letter to the editor, please click here. And please don't hesitate to contact me if you have questions, comments or concerns.

Paul Miller, Publisher
paul@carmelpinecone.com

To return to the download page for the December 13, 2013, edition, please click here.