Yolo County

Charges Further Reduced in Davis Gun Incident As Facts Continue to Emerge

police-lineJudge Timothy Fall on Thursday further reduced the charges faced by Nicholas Benson, stemming from the January 21, 2011, incident that captured regional headlines after he was arrested for making threats to harm himself and others,  and carrying an assault rifle with over 100 rounds of ammunition in his vehicle.

Following his preliminary hearing, Mr. Benson now only faces a single felony charge for possession of an assault weapon.  Judge Fall reduced the second charge, which had been a felony obstructing an executive officer, down to a misdemeanor after officers admitted on the stand that Mr. Benson did not strike them or use force to resist their commands.

Impartiality of Yolo County DA’s Office Investigation into Gutierrez Shooting

reisig-2009By Alex Clark –

What constitutes an independent investigation appears to be a major point of contention among members of the community.  In this context, an independent investigation appears to refer to the department or agency investigating the conduct of another with whom they are not officially responsible for or in charge of.  What’s more, an independent investigation can rely on the information previously produced by law enforcement agencies when determining what action to take.

With that said, questions regarding the impartiality of the DA’s investigation into the Gutierrez shooting have been discussed in the past.  The DA’s direct involvement with the Yolo County Gang Task Force has some wondering whether or not they should have handled any part of the investigation into the conduct of the sergeant and deputies much less conducted their own independent investigation.

Does 27 Years for a 373 Dollar Robbery Serve the Interest of Justice?

Yolo-Count-Court-Room-600Last week, the Vanguard reported that Leighton Dupree was sentenced by Yolo County Superior Court Judge Janet Gaard to 27 years to life in prison for a bank robbery he committed on January 12, 2010.

Mr. Dupree was convicted back in October of second degree burglary.  He had two prior serious felonies as well, which contributed to the length of the term.

Investigative Piece Highlights Inadequacies in Prison Health Care System

prison-reformOne of the fallacies in the criminal justice system is that the system provides adequate health care for the prisoners.  This issue came up, interestingly enough, last week when we reported on Leighton Dupree receiving a 27-year prison sentence for a bank robbery in which he carried no weapons and ended up stealing three hundred eighty-seven dollars.

A commenter remarked that at least the individual would be getting good health care.  Ironically, the same week Dan Noyes, chief Investigative Reporter for San Francisco’s KGO-TV, came out with a report about problems that persist in the prison health care system.

Judge Admonishes Topete Defense Attorneys to Produce Discovery and Witnesses

topete-marcoIt was not a good day for the defense in the case of Marco Topete.  First Judge Paul Richardson reinstated count five, the stand-alone PC 186.22(A) gang charge against Mr. Topete, and then he admonished the defense counsel of Hayes Gable and Thomas Purtell to properly provide discovery to the prosecution and provide a working witness list by this Friday.

Recently, Judge Paul Richardson had thrown out the gang charges against Mr. Topete. However, the DA argued that the Judge should reconsider the gang charges because the case that apparently was the judge’s sole authority for striking them is being heard by the Supreme Court.

Death Qualification Process Leads to Jurors More Likely to Convict

san-quentin.jpgBy Natasha Minsker

Special to the Vanguard

Editor’s Note: Next week the death penalty trial opens for Marco Topete and they will begin a process known as death qualifying the jury.  The ACLU of Northern California’s Death Penalty expert Natasha Minsker discusses what that means and the implications of it.

The right to be tried by a jury of your peers is a basic right in America. It is one of the innovations enshrined in our Constitution that sets our nation apart from most of the rest of the world. While most of us dread being called for jury service, we know that if it was us who stood accused of a crime, we would want to be judged by a cross-section of our community, not a government official in a black robe.

The Shooting of Luis Gutierrez: Continued Public Concerns

By Alex Clark –

Cruz_3_with_Gutierrez

Editor’s note: Following the February 14 announcement by Sheriff Ed Prieto, the Vanguard’s Alex Clark undertook a comprehensive review of the shooting of Luis Gutierrez and this is the first of three articles based on that review.

On February 14th, Yolo County Sheriff Ed Prieto announced that the US Department of Justice (DOJ) Civil Rights Division had concluded it’s investigation into the 2009 officer-involved shooting death of 26-year-old Woodland resident Luis Gutierrez-Navarro.  The officers involved in the shooting were Yolo County Sheriff’s Department Sergeant Dale Johnson, Deputy Hernan Oviedo and Deputy Hector Bautista.  All three were working as members of the Yolo County Gang Task Force.  Only Sergeant Johnson and Deputy Oviedo fired their weapons.

Advocates Push For Alternatives to the Use of Tasers in Dealing with Mentally Ill Subjects

taserIn 2008, Ricardo Abrahams had checked into the Safe Harbor, part of the Yolo Community Care Continuum, upon the urging of his family due to a condition where he was increasingly disoriented, stressed and uncommunicative. 

At some point he left the facility.  Concerned about his well-being, the facility alerted the police.  When the police arrived, a confrontation ensued where Mr. Abrahams anxiety escalated to the point where police feared for his safety and their safety.

27 Years for Robbing $373 From a Local Bank

Yolo-Count-Court-Room-600According to a press release from Yolo County District Attorney Jeff Reisig, Leighton Dupree was sentenced on Thursday by Yolo County Superior Court Judge Janet Gaard to 27 years to life in prison for a bank robbery he committed on January 12, 2010.

Mr. Dupree was convicted back in October of second degree burglary.  He had two prior serious felonies as well which contributed to the length of the term.

Yolo County To Open Family Justice Center Amid Confounding and Appalling Cases

reisig-2009Last week, Yolo County Supervisor Jim Provenza, DA Jeff Reisig, and Sheriff Ed Prieto announced the beginning of a Family Justice Center.

According to the county’s press release, “The Center would house core services so that family violence victims can go to one place — instead of the multiple locations they must navigate now — to seek assistance.”

Yolo Moves Towards Death Penalty Case As More and More Places Consider Scrapping Theirs Amid an Array of Problems

san-quentinIt is not a huge shock that Yolo County is moving in the opposite direction of the rest of the nation.  More and more jurisdictions and states are moving away from the death penalty, for a variety of reasons including costs. They are also taking into consideration problems with the judicial system that result in the inequitable application of the death penalty, and also calling into question certainty about guilt and innocence.

Defense Attorneys, in what will likely be our first death penalty case that we will cover, the Topete case, have argued that “The excessive delays in California’s death penalty system constitute cruel and unusual punishment in violation of the Eighth Amendment and results in a denial of due process. Based on this violation, the Defense respectfully requests that this Court preclude the People from seeking the death penalty in this case.”

Judge Hears Motions on Gangs and Death Penalty Application in Topete Murder Trial

Yolo-Count-Court-Room-600Prosecution Attempts to Reinstate Gang Charges while Defense Attempts to Get the Death Penalty Precluded –

After more than two and a half years since the arrest of Marco Topete, accused of killing Sheriff’s Deputy Tony Diaz, the trial is about to go forward in the next couple of weeks.  This week marked the first of several hearings on motions in limine that will help to define the trial.

Recently Judge Paul Richardson threw out the gang charges against Mr. Topete, however, the DA is arguing that the Judge should reconsider the gang charges because the case that apparently was the judge’s sole authority for striking them is being heard by the Supreme Court.

Commentary: Sheriff Prieto Continues To Polarize, As Federal Investigation Answers Little

Sheriff-PrietoAs I told KCRA yesterday afternoon, the announcement  by the Department of Justice that they are not filing federal civil rights charges against the three Sheriff’s Deputies involved in the 2009 shooting of Luis Gutierrez changes nothing.

We do not know more today than we did last month about the shooting.  A day after the Sheriff’s Department released a press release on the matter, we learned little more than we knew at the onset.

Feds Close Investigation of Gutierrez Shooting But Too Many Questions Remain For Skeptics in the Community

img_3299.jpgOn Monday, the Yolo County Sheriff’s Department announced that they had received a letter from that the United States Department of Justice stating that the U.S. Department of Justice has concluded their investigation into the fatal shooting of Luis Gutierrez-Navarro. 

In a letter dated February 4, 2011, the U.S. Department of Justice stated “After careful consideration, we concluded that the evidence does not establish a prosecutable violation of the federal criminal civil rights statutes. Accordingly, we have closed our investigation.”

Greed and Sloppy Police Work Costs Both DA and Yolo Taxpayers

Yolo-Count-Court-Room-600In December, a Yolo County jury found Jose Valdivia guilty of two counts of drunk driving, plus they found him guilty of evading a peace officer and resisting arrest.  This was not the only set of charges that Mr. Valdivia faced. 

In a separate case, he also faced felony charges for transportation and possession of a controlled substance per Yolo County’s practice of double-charging possession of drugs as both possession and transportation.

Lawsuit by Former UCD Officer Alleging Race and Sexual Orientation Discrimination Moves Forward After Two Years

police-lineIt has taken two years and untold amounts of money, but the lawsuit filed by former UC Davis Police Officer Calvin Chang is going forward with the key provisions intact.

In 2009, former UC Davis Police Officer Calvin Chang filed a lawsuit against the UC Regents and UC Davis Police Chief Annette Spicuzza, alleging complaints of racial and sexual orientation discrimination, housing discrimination, and retaliation.

Commentary: Justifying the County Conaway Vote

Conaway-Ranch.pngIt was an interesting week at the county level, as watching the Conaway Ranch water agreement vote was so instructive.  The problems that this agreement presents for the Yolo Basin are troubling, as laid out by both Supervisors Jim Provenza and Duane Chamberlain.  This agreement threatens wildlife and agriculture and also threatens to compromise the spillway’s flood control capacity.

It was a week in which we saw Senator Lois Wolk come forward to the Board of Supervisors with a modest proposal, and the Board basically did not give the Senator the time of day.  It is not that they rejected her proposal, it is that they failed to even discuss it.

 

Attack in Sacramento Jail Exposes Huge Flaws in Handling of Mentally Ill Prisoners

main_jail.jpgLast week, we reported on the death of Evaristo Ramirez, an immigrant who had been arrested for a DUI and held in the Sacramento County Jail.  He became the victim of Richard Harden, who somehow ended up in the same jail cell as Mr. Ramirez despite evidence that his hammer attack on a Latina female was motivated by hatred towards immigrants.

According to court testimony, when the Home Deport store security subdued Mr. Harden by taking him to the ground, the perpetrator indicated that race was the motivation behind his attack on the Latina female whom he had attacked with a hammer.

Analysis: Yolo County with a Higher Rate of Reversals by Third DCA Than Other Counties

Yolo-Count-Court-Room-600We have noted in recent weeks the seemingly larger than usual number of cases that have been overturned from Yolo County.  During the course of our reporting of these cases the question has arisen – “out of how many.”

The “out of how many” standard is a difficult number to assess for reversals, just as it is for problematic cases, prosecutorial misconduct and wrongful convictions.  After all, one person in prison unnecessarily is too many.