by Maryjo Nuñez
The early hours of the morning are often reserved for sleeping; however, a Yolo County man, instead, had allegedly committed theft and burglary during these hours this past May. This Yolo County man currently faces two counts of robbery and two of burglary due to alleged break-ins on May 4, 2018, between the hours of 4:00-5:00 AM. On that morning in question, Matthew Allen Kalac was said to have first entered the premises of one West Sacramento home, later departing from this original location to invade another residence. Here, Mr. Kalac had instead broken into the car outside as opposed to the home itself.
Mr. Kalac is currently charged with two counts of robbery in violation of Penal Code section 211, which indicates that in the act of robbery, one must have used force or fear, taken property which did not belong to them with an intent to not return the goods, and that the goods were taken unwillingly from the victim; and two counts of Penal Code section 459, which describes burglary as entering a locked vehicle or structure with the intention to engage in a felony.
The trial of Mr. Kalac began today in Department 8 in the presence of Judge David Reed, with the People presenting their opening statement. However, the defense opted to waive delivering an opening statement. After the People’s statement, witness testimony followed.
Among the witnesses who appeared this morning was “SG,” the West Sacramento man whose home had been burgled by Mr. Kalac.
In his testimony, SG described the actions that he observed Kalac commit, and the sequence of his encounter with Kalac. SG recalled his dogs waking him, at about 4:30 AM, with 
incessant barking – which ultimately convinced SG to retrieve a flashlight and investigate. With flashlight in hand, SG walked to his detached garage, heard shuffling, and shone the light – to which he claimed another light flashed in response.
Upon realizing the presence of another figure in the garage, SG went back into his house and brought his gun back with him, as he “did not want to take any chances,” and returned to the garage to confront this person.
Back in his garage, SG noticed that some items—such as tools—had been misplaced, leading him to believe that Mr. Kalac had moved them with the intention of taking them. Apparently, Mr. Kalac had put SG’s tools in plastic boxes and, when questioned whether he himself had somehow placed these tools there earlier, SG relied, “Absolutely not!”
SG then proceeded to bang his gun against the wall to attract Mr. Kalac’s attention. When the two came within arm’s reach of one another, they then proceeded to wrestle for the flashlight in Mr. Kalac’s hands. Exasperated, SG demanded that Kalac leave the premises.
In spite of their proximity, the jury wondered how well SG could in fact see Mr. Kalac, as SG wears glasses. However, SG denied any problems with his vision. Also, Mr. Kalac was described to have been “out of it” when on the property, but SG did not recall the smell of alcohol or anything else that could have impaired Mr. Kalac’s ability to rationally judge his actions.
After leaving SG’s home, Mr. Kalac allegedly continued in this West Sacramento neighborhood and eventually broke into the vehicle of another resident at around 5:00 AM. When Mr. Kalac was said to have broken into this vehicle, the car’s alarm went off, signaling the owner of a potential theft. Because of this, the owner called the police, where they later found Mr. Kalac resting in the driver’s seat with what appeared to be SG’s tools.
At this second location, the West Sacramento Police apprehended Mr. Kalac.
Mr. Kalac’s trial remains ongoing.
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