On Aug. 7 at 5:30 a.m., a 55-year-old woman was walking alone on Hollenbeck Road behind the shopping center at El Camino Real collecting aluminum cans when she was attacked from behind, according to Capt. Byron Pipkin, special operations officer for the Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety. At first the woman broke away and ran, but she was attacked again, Pipkin said. The suspect then dragged the woman to a secluded area and sexually assaulted her.

Public Safety describes the suspect as a white male in his early 20s, 5 feet 6 inches to 5 feet 9 inches tall with a medium build. At the time of the attack, he was unshaven and wearing a baseball cap, blue jeans and a white T-shirt. Anyone with information that might help in identifying the suspect is encouraged to call Public Safety at 408.730.7110.


City looks into more efforts for clean-up

After receiving complaints from residents about cigarette butts and debris in planters,

on sidewalks, along curbs, in alleyways and parking lots and in front of stores, the Sunnyvale City Council approved a daily cleanup of the downtown seven days a week, with sidewalk steam cleaning every week or as often as needed. But that hasn't stopped the mess from building up.

"The responsibility needs to extend far beyond the city," said City Manager Robert LaSala. Downtown businesses and patrons of those businesses need to cooperate with the city to maintain the cleanliness and beauty of the whole area, he added.

Councilman Tim Risch showed slides at the Aug. 13 council meeting to demonstrate the amount of debris and litter that remained in the area for more than 24 hours.

Council members agreed the city should explore landscaping options for the area and directed city staff to continue increased maintenance efforts in the area but research the problem and return with more options for cleanup.


Changes are made for back-to-school immunizations

The Santa Clara County Public Health Department is reminding parents about new immunization regulations as children prepare to go back to school.

One change in vaccination requirements since July 2001 is that one dose of varicella (chicken pox) vaccine, or a physician-documented disease or immunity certificate, is required for a child to enter any child care or kindergarten. The same is true for all out-of-state students entering grades 1­12 if they were not enrolled in a California school prior to July 1, 2001. For 13-year-olds, two doses of varicella are required.

Each child entering childcare or kindergarten needs to have four or more doses of DPT (diptheria, pertussis, tetanus), three doses or more of polio, one dose of MMR (measles, mumps, rubella), one dose of Hib and three doses of hepatitis B. Seventh-grade students need three doses of hep B and two of MMR.

For information about free or low-cost immunizations, call 800.310.2332.