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• Lodi Unified School District will issue 390 lay-off notices to teachers

• Lodi could reduce number of staff required at fire stations to help cut city costs

• City Council to vote on Grape Bowl's future

• Lodi company provides oil exploration solutions to Ecuadorean company

• Same crime, same place, same time, different days

• Three arrested after gas station robberies

• Lodi Police: Coffee shop robber tied to market robbery

• Regional Roundup

• In spite of rainstorm, water shortage still looms

February 9th, 2010

• Middle College High School rated one of the best — and a bargain, to boot

• Lodi decathlon boasts top team in county

• Man who sparked counterfeit case pleads guilty

• Local businessman will visit Haiti to look for family

• Man who claimed to be Yosemite Sam pleads guilty to meth charge

• David Harmer seeks Republican congressional nod

• Lack of evidence in case against suspect in 'drug deal' stabbing

• Regional Roundup

February 8th, 2010

• Public Meetings

• Locals pick best, most memorable Super Bowl commercials

• Regional Roundup

February 6th, 2010

• The Home Depot hopes to join Costco at Reynolds Ranch

• Meet Larry, Curly and Moe

• Baboon business

• Regional Roundup

• Several Lodi venues let you watch the Super Bowl in style

• Lodi Library celebrates 100 years of serving the community

• Culinary craft

February 5th, 2010

• Kids, teachers help Haiti by collecting pennies for Learning Link

• Lodi, Galt students reach out to help Haiti earthquake survivors

• Tasered suspect claims he is Yosemite Sam

• Hours of sweat and work go into putting on crab feeds

• Things looking up for state's real estate

• Correction

• Regional Roundup

• Stray bullet strikes Lodi home; police suspect gang activity may be factor

February 4th, 2010

• Managers at Geweke Toyota answer questions about recall

• Lodi City Council votes to replace play structure at Century Park

• Lodi extends ban on pot shops for another year

• Mokelumne River triathlon set for June

• Family, friends to run half-marathon in memory of Galt family

February 3rd, 2010

• Correction

• Delta College trustees again collide over stipend committee

• Bad bugs, weeds are hot topics at Grape Day

• Lodi-area senators Dave Cox, Lois Wolk admit to gifts; Tom Berryhill case pending

• Lodi Unified School District president issues warning to speakers over cuts

• Galt City Council avoids budget cuts — for now

• New Lodi Memorial Hospital emergency room opens to the public without a hitch

• Regional Roundup

February 2nd, 2010

• Local business leaders say tourism, Costco, Home Depot may play roles in city's future

• Correction

• Former Lodian Erica Davis is first paraplegic woman to summit Kilimanjaro

• Regional Roundup

• No snow leopards, otters for Micke Grove

• McNerney leads in campaign cash

• Police: Train victim was a Lodi teen

• Big rig plows 7 cars

• Jumpers across California

The following stories have received the most reader comments during the last 7 days.

• Will terrorists be given Miranda warnings? (75)
• Lodi Unified School District president issues warning to speakers over cuts (64)
• President Obama's first year (45)
• Many reject the politics of 'no' (45)
• Islamic symbol in mosaic — what is all the fuss? (44)
• Writer comments on Neely column (42)
• The Home Depot hopes to join Costco at Reynolds Ranch (41)
• Time to shed the convenient sham of 'Don't ask, don't tell' policy (34)
• We need to conduct respectful conversations (30)
• Tasered suspect claims he is Yosemite Sam (25)

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Same crime, same place, same time, different days

Twice in two days, at the same time, the same Lodi officer has arrested multiple people after responding to calls from the Lodi Avenue Rite Aid.

In each case, a man trying to buy cold medicine aroused the store manager's suspicions, lead to his arrest on a warrant, as well as new charges. Women accompanying both men were soon arrested, too.

And in both cases, police searched the cars and allegedly found a number of cold medicine pills containing pseudoephedrine, one of the key ingredients used to make methamphetamine.

The similarities did not go unnoticed by Officer Erika Urrea, who handled both cases, but she said they did not appear to be connected.

On Monday at 1:17 p.m., the manager of the store located at 520 W. Lodi Ave. called police after a man refused to show identification while buying Sudafed.

In an effort to fight methamphetamine production, California law now requires that cold medicines be placed behind store counters. Customers are limited in how much they may buy, and they have to show identification.

Urrea arrived as the man was leaving the store, and she soon learned that the man, 18-year-old Maurice Reed, had a warrant. Officers searched his white rental car and found cold medicine pills in the front of the car and under the trunk's carpet, Urrea said.

Police also arrested a 15-year-old girl, as well as 18-year-old Cassandra Williams and 22-year-old Kenneth Owens. Williams is from San Jose and the other three live in Palo Alto.

On Tuesday, Urrea was again working patrol when the Rite Aid store manager called police at 1:15 p.m. to report a suspicious man trying to buy cold medicine.

Urrea arrived, contacted the man and learned that, just as in the previous case, he had a warrant. She arrested Curtis Lewis, 28.

Officers searched his car and found four boxes of cold medicine in the trunk, as well as boxes in the car, Urrea said.

Also arrested were 45-year-old Michelle Gray and her mother, 63-year-old Charsey Gray. The younger Gray is on parole and her mother is on probation, Urrea said.

All three arrested Tuesday were from Stockton.

They will all ultimately wind up in court this week.

Contact reporter Layla Bohm at layla@lodinews.com.