Former Eureka police officer mulling plea deal; terms of DA's office not disclosed in felony case

◼ Former Eureka police officer mulling plea deal; terms of DA's office not disclosed in felony case - TS

A former Eureka police officer facing drug and theft charges is considering accepting a plea agreement, the details of which have not been made public.

Appearing in Humboldt County Superior Court Thursday, Daniel “Danny” Kalis asked that future court dates in his case be pushed back a couple of weeks so he and his attorney will have time to review a plea offer from the District Attorney's Office.

”I anticipate we do have a resolution, I just request a bit more time to review the offer,” Kalis' attorney Marek Reavis told the court. Reavis and Deputy District Attorney Nicole Bockleman were not immediately available to comment for this story Thursday.

Guilty verdict in rape case; prosecutor says victim's courage 'can't be overstated'

◼ Guilty verdict in rape case; prosecutor says victim's courage 'can't be overstated' - TS

The jury -- comprising seven women and five men -- found Walker guilty of forcible rape while acting in concert and forcible oral copulation in concert more than one year after he was arrested for raping 20-year-old Jane Doe in a wooded area near the Arcata Sports Complex.

Walker, 38, of Eureka, faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and will have to register as a sex offender for life.

Jane Doe, who testified in the case and appeared in court Thursday to hear the verdict read, hugged prosecuting Deputy District Attorney Ben McLaughlin and DA investigator Jack Bernstein after the hearing, thanking them with tears in her eyes.

”I'm elated with the verdict and really proud of Jane Doe,” McLaughlin said. “I don't say this as hyperbole, but she really showed a level of courage that can't be overstated. She came into court and faced her rapist and showed him she is not the easy target of opportunity he thought she would be.”

Attempts to contact Walker's attorney Owen Tipps were not immediately successful.

APD Chief Tom Chapman attended Thursday's hearing and commended the people who came forward at the scene to help Jane Doe, which he said allowed his officers to take Walker into custody in short order and conduct a thorough investigation. Chapman also said the DA's Office's work on the case was “outstanding.”

”The DA's Office was tireless in its effort to seek justice in this matter,” Chapman wrote in an email to the Times-Standard. “Kevin Walker is a predator. He belongs in prison.”

Walker was arrested in May 2008 after witnesses reported him and two other men fighting in a Trinidad beach parking lot. Witnesses said Walker and another man were holding the third man on the ground, hitting him in the head with a metal pipe and stepping on his face while shouting racial slurs. Walker and the other assailant, Collin Roczey, were arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, sodomy and kidnapping, and later pleaded guilty to the assault charge in a plea agreement reached when the victim in the case refused to cooperate with their prosecution.

Walker was on probation from the 2008 case when he committed the rape -- a violation that will add another year to whatever prison sentence a judge imposes.

”We all thought that Kevin Walker really eluded justice with respect to his conduct in 2008, and everybody was very committed to prosecuting this case to the best of our abilities,” McLaughlin said. “We invested ourselves quite a bit in the case. In light of his prior conduct that was sexualized violence against another party, this verdict is obviously important because he now has a conviction to reflect who he is and what he is.”

2011 Elections

◼ Special District Board Candidates Finalized - Ryan Burns, The Journal Humboldt Community Services District

Frank Scolari Dave Saunderson George Davis Kevin H. McKenny

McKinleyville Community Services District

Helen Edwards John W. Corbett David Elsebusch

Manila Community Services District

Mike Seeber Geronimo Garcia Joy Dellas Robert Rose Zachary Brian Thoma Susan Opalach Jan Bramlett

Willow Creek Community Services District

Joe O’Hara Judy M. Gower Bruce Nelson Tom O’Gorman Marc J. Rowley

Resort Improvement District 1

Susan L. Fox Roger Boedecker Mark Mitchell Dennis D Harper Nanette Corley Chet Edeline

Blue Lake Union School District

Lex Rohn Lisa Hooven Mandi Lewis Lana Manzanita

Ferndale Unified School

Rey Urbach Emil Feierabend Kristina Radelfinger

Eureka Unified School District, Ward 4

Judy Anderson Susan L. Johnson

Fieldbrook School District

Richard Grissom Linda F. Broadman Jeremy Sargent

Fortuna Union High School District

Kenneth A. Steele Anita L. Gage Charles Giannini

Klamath Trinity Joint School, Area 6

Robin Wild Darlene Magee

Magnitude 7.1 - VANUATU

◼ 18.260°S, 168.069°E Depth: 40.6 km (25.2 miles) - USGS

Just curious...

How many Non-Profits have received a bill from the County (Assessor's Office) for 'property taxes' because they have rented a County facility - (Note that they have paid the required rental fees all along) Ever hear of this? Developing

Jim Jones Plotted 9/11-Like Attack

◼ Cult leader wanted to crash a plane into San Francisco - Scott James/baycitizen.org

Twenty-five years before the Sept. 11 attacks in 2001, a religious extremist plotted to hijack a commercial airliner — filled with 200 or so unsuspecting passengers — and deliberately crash it. The target was San Francisco. And the would-be perpetrator was not a jihadist, but the man who would become one of history’s more infamous villains: the cult leader Jim Jones of the Peoples Temple, whose headquarters was then on Geary Boulevard in San Francisco. With the hijacking plot, described in a coming book and recently confirmed by a former Peoples Temple leader, Jones is said to have wanted to cause death on a scale that the world would not soon forget.... The San Francisco hijacking plot progressed to the point where beginning in 1975, Maria Katsaris, 21, a close associate and lover of Jones, attended the Sierra Academy of Aeronautics in Oakland. Academy records confirm that a church paid her tuition. Katsaris earned a private pilot’s license and began commercial jet training, but church officials instructed her to attend school only long enough to learn how to take the plane’s controls after storming the cockpit and killing the pilots

__________________ Coincidentally, Jim Jones second-in-command-right-hand-man is in the news these days, too: ◼ Woman won't be jailed for feeding bears at her home - Glenda Anderson/Press Democrat via mercury news ◼ Sentencing deferred in bear case - Ukiah Daily Journal

Gallegos takes another slam dunk

◼ Man (Leon Alyious Bigleggins) held to answer in child murder case; witnesses describe multiple incidents of 'discipline' inflicted on 4-year-old (Dylan Blount-Chambers) - Times Standard ”We, the people, believe Dylan was unlawfully killed,” Gallegos said, describing the kicking and striking of the 4-year-old as inflicting unnecessary pain and suffering. “The squats, spanking with the hanger and kicking all indicates Bigleggins' desire to injure this child enough to send a message.” ....During the weeks prior to his death, Blount said she never noticed the injuries documented by forensic pathologist Mark Super in his testimony Monday. Super, who performed the autopsy on Dylan, said the official cause of Dylan's death was blunt force trauma to the abdomen or head that occurred on or around July 24, 2010, but in photo after photo taken during the autopsy, he also pointed out extensive bruising covering the boy's body. ”These would be significant bruises that would catch your attention,” Super said, referencing the bruises and abrasions covering the boy's groin, buttocks, abdomen, the palms of his hands and the tops of his feet.....

Pick up The Arcata Eye and McKinleyville Press

Gallegos, in an interview with Daniel Mintz, says that he's withdrawing his Grand Jury response regarding grants. Developing. Some things in this article are not clear. Not adding up. Not making sense.

The D.A., (no, not ours) the lost revolver and the lieutenant, Part I

His pal, Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas... in the news again.

◼ The Watchdog readily admits this is a meandering, tortuous tale involving an elected county official, a missing revolver and an Anaheim police lieutenant who dared to step into the fray. - ocregister.com

But, dear readers, we’re crossing our fingers you will stick with us to the bitter end of this two-part series to find out just how it came to be that the only person punished was the lieutenant who tried to do the right thing.

The official in this tale is Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas, who may, or may not, have needed the gun for personal protection....

◼ The DA, the lost revolver and the lieutenant, Part II - ocregister.com

...The sergeant interviewed Major as he was told, but things apparently didn’t quite add up. He went to his supervisor, Lt. Dave Vangsness. The sergeant said he figured Rackauckas didn’t want the publicity, given Welter’s recent issues with missing guns, internal police documents show.
Things didn’t add up to Vangsness either. There were more questions than answers, starting with why Hunter went directly to the sergeant, why Rackauckas had someone else’s gun for so many years and how it suddenly disappeared....

Rackauckas would eventually fax in a statement of how he came to have Blankenship’s gun, and the burglary sergeant would eventually interview Blankenship. Their stories didn’t match up – and Vangsness pressed forward with the investigation. Vangsness wrote that he told his superiors on at least four separate occasions he intended to forward the case to state prosecutors.

Vangsness called Senior Assistant Attorney General Gary Schons on Dec. 15, 2009 to brief him on the case.

“I asked Lt. Vangsness how it would look if someone outside law enforcement, like the press (as often seems to happen in these types of circumstances), found out that this matter had been reported to your department, investigated, a possible crime identified under these circumstances involving two of the highest ranking law enforcement officials in the county, and not reported to the Attorney General for review,” Schons later wrote to Anaheim PD....

“What is troubling about the reprimand is that Lt. Vangsness attempted to and did do the right thing – he tried to convince his superiors to allow him to pursue the proper course of action in investigating and reporting the case, which they rejected or slyly refused to support, and then he did the right thing in reporting the case to the Attorney General,” Schons wrote.

“For his effort, he got reprimanded and had other duties stripped from him.”

The revolver remains missing.

A win

◼ Arcata man gets maximum sentence in child sex abuse case

A Humboldt County judge sentenced an Arcata man on Wednesday for the continual sexual abuse of a minor, dissuading the minor from testifying against him and committing a felony while out on bond.

W. Bruce Watson sentenced Wayne Thomas Bukowski, 37, of Arcata, to 20 years, eight months in prison -- the maximum sentence allowed by law. Bukowski is also required to register as a sex offender for life.

This case was prosecuted by Deputy District Attorney Kelly Neel.

Another revolving door superstar

◼ Driver arrested following Broadway roll-over - TS

Vandenplas was booked at the Humboldt County jail on the following charges: possession of a controlled substance, transportation of a controlled substance, driving while under the influence (drugs/medications), felony enhancement for multiple DUIs, possession of medications without a prescription, possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of less than an ounce of marijuana, false information to a peace officer, no insurance at a collision scene and parole violation.

Out in 3 - 2 - 1....

So – if they declare a moratorium

Then it is time to furlough or close the Building/Planning Department.

◼ Rezoning decision awaits Supes today; after marathon meeting, board continues discussion - Thadeus Greenson/The Times-Standard

After a marathon session Tuesday high on acrimony and disagreement but short on decisions, the Humboldt County Board of Supervisors will continue meeting today to determine the fate of a massive effort to rezone properties throughout the county for multifamily housing developments.

In a meeting that featured multiple twists, as well as some changing facts, the board took public comment from more than two dozen people -- with much of it sharply critical of county staff and the rezoning plan. It ultimately directed staff to do some more homework -- and come up with some answers -- before the meeting at 11 a.m. today.

The plan -- which is being driven forward on a tight timeline -- seeks to rezone 55 parcels throughout the county to allow for the development of more than 1,000 multifamily units, a little more than half of which would be designated for low-income families.

The project is being fast-tracked under the terms of a settlement reached last month between the county and the advocacy group Housing for All in the court case brought against the county in 2007 by Humboldt Sunshine, which alleged the county's housing element was out of compliance with state law. Under the terms of the settlement, the board has to approve the plan by Saturday, and the state has to OK it by Aug. 15.

If the county fails to meet the deadline, a Humboldt County Superior Court judge could issue a moratorium on the issuance of building and development permits within the county....

What do YOU buy at WalMart (KMart, Target?)

What do you buy at Costco? Is it the same? What do you buy in Old Town? Do you shop there for basic necessities? You don't have to sign your name...

New life for Salzman's mobs?

There's no election in play, the Garr Nielsen thing is fizzling, Richardson Grove has only revealed how idiotic they can be, but maybe there's hope - rumors of WalMart, the evil boogeyman, coming to town? Will the intrepid "progressives" be able to gin up the rage? Stay tuned.

◼ Mystery retailer prepares to move into Gottschalks building; company to finance $4.6 million in facility improvements - TS
◼ Architect in Mystery Bayshore Mall Project is Wal-Mart’s Go-To Dude - Hank/LoCo

Looks like they're trying: ◼ Heraldo starts it off: Wal-Mart to dig its ugly claws into Eureka

Championing for causes -- and people you represent -- can be done in a civil manner

◼ Championing for causes -- and people you represent -- can be done in a civil manner - John Chiv's My Word in the Times-Standard

It's time for a few to stop the conservative versus progressive game. Most of us, regardless of our beliefs, want the best for this community. Think how much we could accomplish if we worked together and moved our city forward.

Once again, there is an attempt to rip the community apart by fomenting anger towards the EPD. John calls it out.

And you have to ask why, when a few days before his firing, the Times Standard ran a piece touting Garr Nielsen's being a finalist in applying for two positions in other areas, when it was clear he was leaving, there is all this angst about his firing.

Where is it really coming from?