Lola Barta contributed to this article.
It was just another summer day for Sky Rondenet’s teenage daughter, heading to the Donner Lake piers with two of her friends on a Friday in June. The girls came upon pier 20 — one of 37 public piers that are more commonly referred to as docks by residents and visitors, which run along the North Shore. They found the dock barricaded with rafts and towels, so they moved some of the stuff out of the way and put their belongings near the entrance to the dock.
About 45 minutes later, according to Rondenet, a group of women arrived in a pontoon boat that pulled up alongside the dock and started screaming at the girls that the space was theirs since they were staying in a second home across the street that belonged to one of the women, Barbara Larscheid. The women are from the Sacramento area.
Missy Hedrick, whose 14-year-old daughter was one of the two other girls on the dock, said that her daughter told her that the women began yelling, “’Get off our dock! This is our private dock! You are trespassing!’” and then proceeded to call the girls white trash.
Larscheid then got off the boat and, without saying a word, kicked all the girls’ stuff into the lake, according to Hedrick. Into the water went the teens’ backpacks filled with speakers, cords, battery packs, clothes, and even an iPhone.
Hedrick said that all three girls told her there was alcohol in the boat and that the women smelled like liquor.
At this point, one of the women started filming the altercation, the video of which was later posted on Nextdoor and Dropbox. The adults also called the police.
The dispute escalated to name calling and Hedrick’s daughter lunged at one of the women in the boat, then one of the other adults pushed the teen backwards into a shallow part of the lake, according to Hedrick.
“She could have fell in and hit her head on the rocks,” Hedrick said. “It was unbelievable.”
When one of the women proceeded to go after the third teen, the girl ended up pushing the woman into the lake.
After the police and Hedrick arrived, the girls told Hedrick the women had poured out all the alcohol into the water. Hedrick witnessed the women walking across the street with bags filled with what she assumed were empty alcohol bottles.
The women pressed charges against the teens, and two girls received juvenile citations. But Hedrick said the charges were eventually dropped against the girls since they were acting in self-defense.
Hedrick pressed charges against the women. Larscheid was charged with vandalism, a misdemeanor, for the damaged items; Kristen Drager, who hit Hedrick’s daughter in the face after the girl retrieved her cell phone from their boat, with disturbing the peace by fighting, also a misdemeanor; and Laura Macaulay with disturbing the peace by fighting for pushing Hedrick’s daughter into the lake.
Two of the three women are being arraigned on Aug. 19 after the case was referred to the district attorney’s office. Hedrick said she and her daughter plan on attending.
“Just the fact that they were charged is enough for me,” said Hedrick, who notes that in 30 years of going to the Donner Lake docks she has never had a problem with other people sharing the piers. “I would like to see them get community service, picking up trash, but I would love an apology or some remorse.”
After Hedrick posted about the incident the following day on Nextdoor, she said she started getting bullied online by a man she assumes is Larscheid’s husband, Kevin Larscheid.
He wrote: “Missy, get your kids under control. Quit blaming others before you go viral. Were you there?… Missy, why are your teenagers defiantly sitting where the old lady had her stuff? Are your daughters not a part of the problem? Or do you like chaos?”
Two days later, Hedrick closed comments on the post.
Moonshine Ink’s attempts to contact Drager, Macaulay, and Kevin Larscheid were unsuccessful.
Share the Docks
Sven Leff, general manager of the Truckee-Donner Recreation and Park District, was disappointed by the fight. He and the TDRPD maintain the piers year-round, whether they are picking up trash or abandoned items. He explained his hope for the docks in an email to Moonshine Ink.
“The Donner Lake piers are a public park,” he wrote. “They’re there to provide leisurely access to a local treasure where people can find peace, marvel at the beauty, and make memories with friends and family —just like they would at a park away from the water like Truckee River Regional Park.”
Leff, who has been with the TDRPD since 2017, had never heard of a violent encounter at the docks before the one in June.
“I see no legitimate reason why someone could refuse to share a space,” he wrote in an email to Moonshine. “Certainly, when a space is too full to fit another person there is then a limit to how the space functions, but that’s different than refusing to share.”
Except for the early morning hours of midnight to 5 a.m., the docks are always open to the public. The Donner Lake docks have always been popular with Truckee teens. Logan Arata is a rising senior at Truckee High, who is on the varsity baseball and football teams.
“I like to do gainers off the piers,” Arata said. “I like when people share with me when it’s a super crowded day and I can’t win a dock.”
The idea of finding a dock being a “win” is true for most. It’s often a rush out the door early summer mornings to score first dibs on a desired spot. There are 37 piers open to the public and a few of the lower ones are wheelchair accessible, but with the vast number of people, it’s frequently a challenge to find parking, let alone a spot to jump in.
Minou Fazeli, an upcoming junior at Truckee High, has been frustrated with the difficulties of finding a dock.
“We need locals-only docks,” she said.
While that is not a realistic option, the TDRPD wants to ensure that the public knows the docks are intended for use by everyone. A few days after the incident between the women and teens, the TDRPD posted a video on Instagram reminding locals and visitors to share the docks and that reserving them is not allowed. The video was scheduled to post the week before Fourth of July, but because of the altercation, the TDPRD accelerated its production and release.
“No one individual owns or is entitled to a public dock or space within a park,” wrote Leff. “They are public property that exist for the benefit of all people. It’s reasonable to expect people to be civil, kind, and to share public spaces, and we try to remind people to share with the signage at the docks.”
My fellow residents of Donner Lake as well as tourists renting STR’s at the lake frequently fill docks with chairs, paddleboards, and other possessions but don’t come back to use the dock for hours. It’s not a good look. We’re lucky to live in paradise and should be happy to share whether with locals or visitors.
While we’re at it–the shoulders on the north side of Donner Pass Rd at the lake are part of the public right of way, available for public parking if they are wide enough. as long as driveways aren’t blocked. Some of my neighbors place “no parking” signs or cones to keep the public from using these spaces. Another bad look.
Share the pier!