Day 518 - Rumors confirmed...

A year plus 153 days later Gallegos makes his move... Moore case headed to grand jury?

Public officials who spoke on condition of anonymity told The Eureka Reporter last week that a criminal grand jury will be convened to look into the death of Cheri Moore, a mentally ill woman who was shot and killed by officers from the Eureka Police Department in 2006.

The officials said Humboldt County District Attorney Paul Gallegos assigned veteran prosecutor Arnie Klein to impanel the grand jury, which would determine whether charges should be filed against law enforcement personnel involved in the incident.

EPD Chief Garr Nielsen confirmed Tuesday that he had discussed with Gallegos “in general terms the possibility of a grand jury” in the Moore case, adding that he was not necessarily opposed to the idea.

Nielsen said that in Oregon, where he previously worked, all cases in which a death resulted from police use of force were reviewed by a grand jury.

“It’s common practice in my view,” he said, “but my impression is that it’s not common here. That gives me some level of trepidation about it if it’s unusual for a case to be reviewed by a grand jury.”

Were a grand jury impaneled, Nielsen said, it would be his “clear expectation” that its purpose would be to conduct “a very fair and objective review of the incident without any slant toward securing a criminal indictment against any police officers involved. ...”

“I think to bring closure we should look at the case as carefully and dispassionately as possible. If the grand jury could accomplish that in an unbiased manner, then I don’t necessarily have any objection to it.”

He said it would, however, be “extremely detrimental to this community if there was any kind of dog-and-pony show that laid out these officers who were just doing their jobs.”

A criminal grand jury typically consists of 19 community members. Its proceedings take the place of a preliminary hearing, in which a judge determines whether a case brought by the District Attorney’s Office will proceed to trial.

Gallegos would neither confirm nor deny the reports, but said by e-mail Tuesday, “This community is entitled to an impartial finding, whether it is by me or by a grand jury,” noting that “continued hype” surrounding the incident has both hindered and delayed the process.

“This incident is going to take a long time to heal,” Gallegos wrote. “I believe we will come out better for it, but it will take time. But the only way that can happen is if we work to set aside the passions and prejudices that so often dominate our discussions of things and work toward patience, compassion and understanding for all people.”

Moore, 48, was killed in her Eureka apartment on April 14, 2006, after she brandished a flare gun during an approximately two-hour standoff with the EPD.
Nielsen reiterated Tuesday that he believed his officers acted appropriately in the incident.

In conclusion, Gallegos wrote, “I believe Cheri Moore’s death was/is a symptom of other bigger issues that our community has and is faced with. What the diagnosis is will ultimately be decided by others.”

UNTIL GALLEGOS CONFIRMS THE FACT THAT HE IS CHOOSING THIS ROUTE, I'LL KEEP THE DAY COUNT GOING.

But by choosing this route, he is essentially announcing that he is choosing to file charges. I repeat - he has no business handling this case. It should have been immediately handed over to the Attorney General. Gallegos' handlers made huge political hay out of this case, and he is too vested in the anti-cop agenda to make any kind of fair decision in this case. Period.

My, my, my... (w/updates)

Glass requests formal criminal investigation into alleged confrontation with Arkley

Looks to me like Larry has succumbed to the pressure, demanding he "get Arkley." You can see the tone change and the rhetoric escalate on heraldo's anti-Arkley blog. It went from Glass filing an incident report just to get it on the record to now it's his "civic duty" to file charges

Glass pursues charges against Arkley
The Town Dandy on the incident

I guess we'll end up talking about it here since, among other things, Larry Glass said, "that he tried and failed to bypass the EPD and take his case directly to the Humboldt County District Attorney’s Office."

Interesting in and of itself, given the Salzman connection to both men.

Then there's the fact that this is yet another case of conflict of interest for Gallegos, since Rob Arkley was a big supporter at one time. $17.000. But nothing this last election, which seems to be a root cause of all the anti-Arkley venom. There were no complaints about the guy until his rift with Salzman.

I guess I'll add it to the "cases to watch" label.

Interesting post on the subhect at Capdiamont's Weblog.
And another at 299 Opine

It gets weirder - heraldo has it, and Eric has it, Greg and Carol have it, of course - The ludicrous HCDCC has sent a letter to the Attorney General demanding that the AG look into the Arkley/Glass affair. Funny they have no such scruples about CAST, the loss of our experienced prosecutors, Derek Bowman, Cheri Moore - Gallegos is their baby. Disgusting.

Addtl: Letters to the editor
Arkley and Glass: Grow up
09/17/2007 04:15:20 AM PDT

I have just two words to say to Larry Glass: Cry Baby!

This is just the silliest thing I have heard since my boys were 8 and 6 years old. “He pushed me and I almost fell.” “He called me a doo-doo head.” “He said it first.” “Well, he said that he would break my bike.” “I'm gonna tell on you.”

To Larry Glass and Rob Arkley: Grow up the both of you, or you will lose your allowance for a month.

Val Saunders
Eureka

Wonder what will happen this time...

Humboldt Democratic Central Committee invites candidates to request endorsements

True, now they have a new head - Milt Boyd instead of the vociferous Patrick Riggs. Salzman's puppet group "Local Solutions" is no longer operating out of their office, far as I can tell - they served their purpose and are no longer needed. Salzman and Twombly are not longer pulling the strings...

In remembrance

Good thing? Or Bad thing?

Would this have helped with handling Cotton or Peters? Would it even apply?

Bill calls for allowing jails to medicate mentally ill inmates

The state Senate voted 36-0 Friday to approve Senate Bill 568, which would allow county jail facilities to provide medications to defendants with mental illnesses so the defendants could stand trial...

...Existing law provides that if a defendant is found to be mentally incompetent to stand trial, the trial or judgment is suspended until the defendant is restored to mental competency, according to a news release from Wiggins. Current laws also require county law enforcement to take the “incompetent to stand trial” defendant to a state hospital or treatment facility in order to restore the defendant to competency.

...If this defendant has been accused of committing a felony offense, involving great bodily harm or another serious crime, the law allows the defendant to be involuntarily medicated in a mental hospital or facility, according to the news release.

Planning Commission tables controversial Manila subdivision decision

Amazing.

Thursday night’s Humboldt County Planning Commission meeting was dominated by testimony regarding the proposed subdivision in Manila.

The project has attracted considerable opposition from nearby residents.

Developer Robert Riley touted his 17-unit subdivision project on the 3.8-acre site as the first sustainable green subdivision in the county.

But numerous Manila residents weren’t impressed and testified to the Planning Commission that the subdivision’s densely packed homes would ruin the character of the sparsely populated dune neighborhood.

The meeting was punctuated by several emotionally charged outbursts from residents who claimed Riley had previously illegally removed native dune trees from the property.

As Riley testified that four agencies investigated the tree removal and found no violations, several residents stormed out in protest of the hearing, calling it a “lie.”

Although public comments were wrapping up, commissioners ran out of time to make a decision and the hearing was continued until Oct. 4. Full story

She has a point

I don't know about her statistics, but the fact that the weapons the DA investigators already carry working perfectly well when needed is a good one.

Dear Editor,

Regarding your article in the Sept. 1 paper titled “DA Gallegos can get his guns,” I think the “kill rate” (55 percent) by Eureka police shows the armament they have works just fine. Don’t you?

I, for one, would rather see the money spent on “nonlethal” weapons, which appear to be basically nonexistent to the Eureka Police Department.

Janet Busch
Fortuna

You just have to wonder - why does Paul want those weapons? Is it because Hislop wants them, and Paul can't say no? Is that the same reason he keeps jumping his new hires up the salary ladder? He's just a guy who can't say "No!"

Or is it the opposite - he wants them so bad because he was told "No."?

Does he really want in on the asset forfeiture raids because his department gets a higher payout if they conduct the raid than if they just tag along? It would seem like political suicide because in asset forfeiture raids he is targeting the very people who gave him barrels of cash in his elections. But he's shown a willingness to corrupt the system to gather cash to pay Cotchett to go after Palco - is that in the twisted plan?

Does it make sense to anybody? Why the DA wants to set up an assault team?

This Week's Town Dandy

Hey, remember "term limits"? That was the quaint little theory proposed and approved by California voters back in 1990. The idea was that the business of government would be wrested from sharpies and placed in the hands of a new breed of "citizen-legislator." These wholesome, Jimmy Stewart-esque superhumans would rise from the tilled soil to reclaim Sacramento on behalf of good, honest, hard-working people. And after six or eight years of service, just as his replacement became ready for harvest, the "citizen-legislator" would gracefully dissolve into thin air.

That was the theory, anyway. Things turned out a bit differently in practice. Last year, Tamara Keith of National Public Radio documented six separate cases in which a termed-out legislator sought to hand over his or her chair in the legislature to an immediate family member. And that was just in one election.

As anthropologists have long noted, here on the North Coast the Democratic Party apparatus serves as a ready substitute for flesh-and-blood kinship ties. The guillotine falls on Eureka's Assemblymember Patty Berg next year, but arrangements have already been made to pass her crown to former State Senator Wes Chesbro, who was termie-termed out of his seat in 2006. And Chesbro's seat, you'll recall, was given to Santa Rosa's Pat Wiggins, who was herself termie-termed from the Assembly in 2004.

You'll notice there's a wallflower at this waltz --Wiggins has the Senate seat locked up until 2014, denying Berg her patrimony. What's she to do? Well, it looks like homegirl is going for the big brass ring. That's right: She's going statewide. California Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi terms out in 2010, and the hard-smoking Berg believes she has her opening. To that end, she's put together a little somethin'-somethin' called "Patty Berg for Insurance Commissioner," coming soon to a fundraiser near you.

The election may be three years away, but you've gotta start early if you want to muscle aside potential competitors. They may not be from the North Coast, and would therefore have limited understanding of the way public offices are traditionally inherited. Berg's war chest is looking pretty good right now, all things considered. In the first half of 2007, she's collected over $42,000, most of it in $500-$1,000 chunks from various medical groups and associations. (No dollars from any insurance companies yet.) Once she becomes the presumptive nominee, that small trickle of cash will come to dwarf the mighty Eel.

But Berg is out in 2008, unless a term-limit-busting measure making the rounds actually qualifies for the February ballot and passes. What's Berg going to do between 2008 and 2010? Here's a suggestion: How about the California Integrated Waste Management Board, a meat locker used by the powers-that-be in Sacramento to store politicos in transition. A seat on the board pays about $120,000 a year. Chesbro's not going to need his much longer.
_____

Closer to the horizon: The campaigns that are seeking to shift or maintain the balance of power on the Humboldt Bay Harbor, Recreation and Conservation District have all come sputtering to life, only two months before the Nov. 6 election date. The issue is port development, and the idea that Humboldt Bay could be rebuilt as a container shipping facility and a waypoint on U.S. trade with Asia. The project faces massive, monstrously expensive hurdles, but the pro-port people (in this race, the two incumbents) have every faith those hurdles can be overcome. The anti-port faction -- or the "pro-reality" faction, as some of them like to say -- think that there's better things to do with our money and time.

Second District (Fortuna to SoHum) challenger Carlos Quilez was first out of the gate, with a press conference on the Eureka Boardwalk last Wednesday. Quilez pumped his credentials -- sport fisherman, Army veteran, retired California State University administrator. He played up his endorsements -- Humboldt-Del Norte Central Labor Council, Operating Engineers Local No. 3. He spoke of his vision -- "good stewardship for our resources and fiscal responsibility."

Meanwhile, across the aisle and on the other side of the county, the campaign apparatus of McKinleyville incumbent Charles Ollivier exited the gate strong, with a press release touting his endorsements -- Congressman Mike Thompson, three of the five county supervisors, three of the sitting Harbor District members, businessmen, union members, a tribal member, various McKinleyville-area elected officials. The press release didn't shrink from Ollivier's raison d'être as a district commissioner: the development of Humboldt Bay's shipping facilities, and the return of the long-dormant railroad line (see "The Squeeze," July 5).

Not much yet from Ollivier's challenger, fisheries biologist Pat Higgins, or from the incumbent Quilez is challenging, Fortuna's Roy Curless. Unless they pick up the pace soon, it could be a one-sided race in each of the districts. If the challengers gain only one seat, they'd still be left with the butt end of a 3-2 majority... Read the rest

The man who hanged himself in his cell at the Humboldt County jail has died.

Hanged inmate dies

The man who hanged himself in his cell at the Humboldt County jail has died.

James Peters, 25, of Hoopa, was pronounced dead Thursday morning at St. Joseph Hospital in Eureka.

Peters was found hanging from a bed sheet in his cell on August 29 in an apparent suicide attempt and was on life support since that time.

Public Information Officer Brenda Godsey from the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office, which manages the jail, said Peters’ death marks the first suicide at the jail in four years. ER Hanged inmate dies

ER Inmate hangs himself in jail
ER Inmate who hanged himself had history of assault
TS Mother denied access, information while son on life support
TS Family of Peters fighting to see him
TS Family: Peters not expected to live
TS Peters had been battling demons for some time
TS Peters dies after hanging
ER Autopsy of hanged inmate done; other studies pending
Some members of Peters’ extended family have said they did not believe Peters killed himself.

Day 500 501 502 503 504 505 506 507 508 509 510 511 512 513

APD concerned about Harris sentence

ARCATA – Police Chief Randy Mendosa is reviewing the court transcript in the recent concluded trial of Clinton Lee Harris III.

Harris was originally accused of felony rape and burglary over an incident which occurred in the early morning hours of April 2, in which a 21-year-old Humboldt State University student testified that he had entered her home and sexually assaulted her. Harris wound up being sentenced Aug. 20 to 19 days in jail on a misdemeanor burglary plea.

“I have some concerns,” Mendosa said. “I have been in touch with Mr. Gallegos,” he said, referring to District Attorney Paul Gallegos.

Mendosa said he was loathe to publicly articulate his concerns, knowing the highly politicized atmosphere surrounding the controversial DA. He said offering fodder for public debate would only keep the issue alive in the media and perpetuate the alleged sexual assault survivor’s ordeal.

“As I do in my own investigations, I’ll be conveying my concerns privately,” Mendosa said.

According to court documents, three different prosecutors handled the case – Jeffrey Schwartz, Kelly Neel and Ben McLaughlin.

The plea arrangement was handled by McLaughlin, who wasn’t available before press time. However, in press accounts, McLaughlin suggested that the rape charge was weak due to the alleged victim’s prior romantic relationship with Harris, the lack of an immediate medical examination and a roommate’s not having heard anything unusual that night.

Testimony by the alleged victim indicated that she awoke to find Harris in her doorway. She said he then got in bed with her and assaulted her. During the alleged rape, the victim did not resist, but thought to herself, “Let it be over.”

Harris’ 19-day sentence was less 13 days already served, plus a $20 charge for court costs and three years probation. A $100 fine was suspended.

APD concerned about Harris sentence

Mark Your Calendar

This is a good thing.
This year's Storytelling Festival by the Sea -- a program of the Ink People Center for the Arts -- will be held at Patrick's Point State Park beginning at 7:30 p.m. next Friday with “Stories Under the Stars” at the Campfire Center. “Mostly Ghostly Tales” (not for children) will follow at 9:15 p.m. after a short break. The festival continues throughout the day on Saturday.
For more information, or to get a ticket order form, call 677-3840. Admission can also be paid at the gate. Fees vary.
Storytellers visit state park

Reading the blogs.

So much information! "Is the blog getting blogged down?" A friend asks, "How do I find this or that?"
Several answers:
1, Use the "Labels" in the sidebar. Posts are divided by topic there. Some posts have multiple labels.
2. Use the "Search" feature above. That works pretty well. (Google searches also sometimes pulls up interesting results.)
3. Sometimes it's fun to go into the archives, just click on any month.
4. Go back to the beginning - With this blog - and with most any blog - check out the earliest posts to see what it was all about. This is where the person introduces themselves, and you're apt to get more info there. Blogs take on a life of their own and evolve over time, but it is often very interesting to see why they started in the first place. That's true within the labels also. Usually helps to go to the earliest post in the label lineup - that'll usually show you why the label was initiated.

Day 500 501 502 503 504 505 506 507 508 509 and still no decision in the Cheri Moore case.

Too bad Gallegos doesn't have Tim Stoen around to help him find a way to charge those cops. Surely he could come up with something. Or maybe he has Ken Miller working on it. And when he attempts to file charges, Ken can profess to be "stunned."

Paul Gallegos' Asset Forfeiture Team will be armed with AR-15s and hollow point bullets

.
He's an elected official. He's untouchable. No one can stop him.

DA Gallegos can get his guns

Humboldt County Administrative Officer Loretta Nickolaus confirmed Friday that District Attorney Paul Gallegos had satisfied her office’s requirements in his bid to arm his investigators with semiautomatic rifles.

“Technically, I guess he’s OK with the use-of-force policy,” Nickolaus said by phone late Friday. “Financially, he has the money from the asset forfeiture account. So it’s really a judgment call for him whether or not he wants to do this.”

But Nickolaus stopped short of endorsing the plan.

“I still have my concerns over the potential for conflict of interest and liability exposure for the county, and I’m still not convinced that with this direction (investigators) will be able to maintain their independent perspective if one of their own is involved in a critical incident,” she said.

“But he can do what he wants. He knows how I feel about it, and he has completed the things I’ve asked him to complete.”

The controversy over the guns request began mid-May, after The Eureka Reporter learned that Gallegos’ seemingly routine allocation request for $58,462 in asset forfeiture funds was intended to outfit his eight investigators with AR-15 assault rifles, body armor, tactical vests, 5,000 rounds of hollow-point ammunition and matching parkas, polo shirts and pants.

The Humboldt County Board of Supervisors approved the request March 6, but purchases were stopped midstream by Nickolaus in May over liability, scope of work and conflict-of-interest concerns.

Nickolaus said Friday she asked the DA to add a rifles section to his revised use-of-force policy and to provide assurances that investigators would receive appropriate training and would qualify before using the rifles.

She was still troubled, though, by the possibility of a conflict of interest, particularly when the District Attorney’s Office is called on to investigate incidents in which it has been involved.

“Having DA investigators on the front line would seem to present a serious conflict for the DA in conducting an unbiased and independent investigation of the facts,” Nickolaus said.

“It is still my opinion, and maybe it’s his opinion, too, that the DA’s investigative and prosecutorial authority is at its best when it is independent of other law enforcement agencies.”

Attempts to contact Gallegos after normal business hours Friday were unsuccessful.

In his initial request for funds, Gallegos said the expenses represented permissible uses of asset forfeiture trust funds, and if the request was not approved, his investigators would “continue to face compromising health and safety risks when responding to criminal matters due to lack of proper equipment and communication mediums.”
***
TS - DA force policy cleared by county administrator

You know. It really isn't funny.

More discussion on Eric's blog
but the defenders are on the Times Standard's comments trying to justify this. "oh it is so inportant for the DA's investigators to have guns so that they will be s-a-a-a-f-e.." Insanity.