By Danielle Eden Silva
In Department 14 continued officer testimonies from the morning session. The case concerns the two co-defendants Christopher Moore, represented by Attorney Lisa Lance, and James Kenny, represented by Attorney Jeff Raven. The co-defendants are charged with three counts concerning narcotics and one count concerning possession of ammunition.
Officer Shad Begley, having been sworn in during the morning session, continued his testimony. The People, represented by Deputy District Attorney Shelby Davitt, presented evidence for Officer Begley to identify. These items had been found at locations that Mr. Moore and Mr. Kenny had visited. The officer identified a player’s card for Stone’s Gambling Hall with the initials JK, three digital scales, and loose ammunition that were discovered from on top of a wardrobe. On the top left drawer of the wardrobe, the officers had found two boxes of ammunition of different gun calibers. Even more ammunition could be found inside of a closet.
In addition to ammunition, the prosecution presented bags of heroin, methamphetamine, and cocaine. 30.9 grams ofheroin in one bag, 1.9 grams of heroin in another bag, 2 grams of methamphetamine, and 17.9 grams of cocaine had been found on the scene. Officer Begley stated the substances had been NIK Kit tested – a narcotics test that identifies controlled substances.
The officer stated that these were high quantities of narcotics to have simply for personal use. He stated that an average dose of heroin is only 0.1 – 0.2 grams at a time, each dose going for around $20. Additionally, the cocaine had been present as a block which could likely be broken down and sold in smaller quantities. Cocaine has a recommended dosage of 0.01 grams to 0.12 grams.
Attorney Davitt presented photo evidence of these locations these items were found – namely, near a bathroom window and the wardrobe. These photos captured the room when the police entered and a police-organized set of materials in the location the items were found in. In further investigating the two locations Mr. Kenny and Mr. Moore had been near, the officer shared he had also found a backpack and two scales with methamphetamine and heroin residue on each one.
Officer Bigley also shared that Mr. Kenny had contacted them the same day they had done a search warrant on the location. Mr. Kenny shared he had gone to that location occasionally. When he had been arrested in April, he no longer lived there.
Mr. Bigley’s testimony was placed on pause for Deputy Gary Richter of the Yolo County Sheriff’s Department. Deputy Richter stated on September 4th, he had attempted to locate Mr. Kenny’s residence as a result of an investigation. In an unmarked police vehicle, the officer had waited outside of the courthouse to follow Mr. Moore and Mr. Kenny. A white SUV came to pick them up with an unidentified female driver. Later, this female driver would be identified as TJ.
Deputy Richter, along with four or five other cars, followed the vehicle. The white SUV stopped at an insurance building in Elk Grove, a residence in Evans Court, and a residence in West Sacramento. At the Evans Court residence, the officer parked near a liquor store and saw the driver and Mr. Kenny leave the vehicle and go inside a residence. Mr. Moore remained in the car. After Mr. Kenny and the driver went inside, a different woman came out to meet an unidentified man. Deputy Richter identified this as a hand-to-hand transaction of narcotics. When Mr. Kenny and the 
driver returned, they drove to the West Sacramento residence.
The police would receive a search warrant at these locations on September 21, 2018. In the Evans Court location, Mr. Kenny would be apprehended at the liquor store as the officer searched inside. Deputy Richter remembered seeing a digital scale with heroin residue and methamphetamine under the bed. At the West Sacramento location, Deputy Richter apprehended Mr. Moore on the stairwell and found no narcotics in the pat down. He would join the other officers in the West Sacramento residence where he would locate a backpack that had a blue or black replica handgun and a minute order from the courthouse.
While inside the residence, Deputy Richter saw a cellphone ringing and picked it up. He pretended to be a drug dealer and organized a narcotics transaction for later. Deputy Richter did not know whose phone it was nor the contents of the device. All the evidence in the two locations was handled by the case agent who Deputy Richter believed to be Officer Bigley.
Deputy Richter believed one residence to be used for the possession and use of narcotics rather than a permanent home. There had been lag bolts and pipes on the door frame to secure it against anyone attempting to knock down the door. The living room had a large mattress and fast food containers. Narcotics could be found on the bathroom floor and no groceries were in the refrigerator. Multiple backpacks could also be found at the location.
Deputy Richter was excused from testimony and Officer Bigley returned to the stand. He noted what he believed to be a transaction. During his April 16th surveillance, he saw one of the defendants open the front door to an individual with a briefcase. The individual came inside before returning to his vehicle. He placed the briefcase in the trunk and opened it. At this point, another individual approached and spoke with him. Officer Bigely couldn’t see what they were talking about but he believed this was a narcotics sale. He reasoned that second individual likely saw the briefcase and bought a small amount of a narcotic from the first individual who had gone inside.
The case will continue Thursday morning at 9 am in Department 14.
