Odds are, they've done this before, and this girl is lucky to be alive

I'd be searching that property for gravesites.

◼ Lake County men face marijuana drug operation, sexual abuse charges - Julie Johnson/Press Democrat 7/26/2013

Federal prosecutors have taken over the case against two Lake County men accused of running a large marijuana farm on a rural tract of land and sexually abusing a 15-year-old runaway.

◼ 'Extremely disturbing'; two men suspected of enslaving runaway teen face federal pot chargesThadeus Greenson/The Times-Standard 7/26/2013

Two Lake County men suspected of raping a 15-year-old runaway, locking her in a 2-foot high metal box for days and forcing her to trim marijuana for weeks remained in the Humboldt County jail Thursday after a judge denied their release on drug charges.

Ryan Balletto, 30, of Lakeport and Patrick Steven Pearmain, 24, of Clearlake, appeared in the federal courthouse in Eureka on Wednesday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Nandor Vadas, who denied their release, saying he viewed both men as flight risks and dangers to the community. The two men were remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.

Vadas said during Wednesday's detention hearing that he finds the case “extremely disturbing,” echoing the sentiments of Assistant United States Attorney Matthew McCarthy.

”This is far and away the most disturbing case I've seen in my career as a prosecutor,” McCarthy told the court.

McCarthy told the court that Balletto, a former U.S. Marine, met the 15-year-old runaway in Los Angeles and drove her nearly 500 miles to a 680-acre piece of land he owns in Ogulin Canyon near Clearlake, keeping her there for weeks against her will to help manicure marijuana buds harvested from a 1,300-plant grow.

McCarthy said both Balletto and Pearmain had sex with the girl while she was kept at the property, and that equipment “consistent with sexual bondage and sadomasochism” was found there. McCarthy said authorities searching the property also found a metal box -- measuring 4 feet long, 2 feet wide and 2 feet high -- with air holes drilled in it, and that the girl later told police the two men locked her inside the box on two occasions for a total of about three days.

McCarthy said the two men referred to their marijuana operation as “their mission,” and told the girl they were locking her in the box to “teach her” and protect their “mission.”

According to a federal criminal complaint filed against the two men, the box -- located outside the trailer in which Balletto resided on the property -- had a hose attached to it, allowing the men to wash human waste off the girl and out of the box without opening it. The girl told authorities, according to the complaint, that Balletto called her a “trooper” for not screaming while she was locked in the box....

◼ Teen allegedly kept in toolbox as part of marijuana operation - News10/KXTV (image source) 7/26/2013
◼ Lake County: Three arrests, marijuana, cash and military-grade weapons seized - Daily News 7/26/2013

...Authorities allegedly found five children in the North Lakeport home they scoured.

Members of the LCSO SWAT team, narcotics task force and major crimes unit served a search warrant on Balletto's nearly 700-acre property in the area of Junction Plaza in Clearlake Oaks Wednesday, according to a department statement released Friday. Deputies also executed a search warrant at Balletto's North Lakeport home.

LCSO officials said they found 1,491 marijuana plants, more than $4,000 in cash and "the largest and most sophisticated bulk of weapons seized in recent (department) history" between the two searches.

In total, investigators reportedly discovered 22 firearms, including high-powered military-grade sniper and assault rifles, automatic assault rifles and pistols. They also recovered military-grade body armor and scopes, high-capacity magazines and ammunition, according to the LCSO statement.

The five children removed from the residence were taken into the custody of Lake County Child Protective Services, the LCSO stated....
◼ Marijuana cultivation investigation leads to human trafficking case - Lake County News

The men also are alleged at one point to have kept the girl in a large box as a punishment, according to District Attorney Don Anderson.

Pearmain’s attorney, Tom Quinn, declined comment at this stage in the case, and Balletto’s attorney, Mitch Hauptman, did not respond to messages seeking comment.

Deputy District Attorney Ed Borg, who is handling the sex crimes case against the men, said they are facing charges of human trafficking, statutory rape, oral copulation on a person under age 16, sodomy, false imprisonment, annoying or molesting a child. Balletto also is charged with lewd and lascivious acts on a child under age 14 or 15.

They could each face nearly 16 years in prison if convicted of all the charges, Borg said.

While the California Attorney General's Office has put increased focus on fighting human trafficking, which the agency said is the world's fastest growing enterprise, human trafficking cases are rare in Lake County, Borg said.

“It’s the first time I’ve ever charged it,” he said....

The girl has since gone into protective custody outside of Lake County, Borg said.

The situation involving the girl also involves a third suspect.

Eric George Edgar, 45, was arrested on May 16 in connection with the case, Borg said.

Edgar is charged with statutory rape for having allegedly raped the teenage girl when they were alone together on the property. He's also facing charges for making criminal threats and attempting to dissuade a witness, Borg said.

The girl was being kept in a small group of trailers on the property, while Edgar was staying in a trailer more than an hour’s hike across a canyon. Edgar is alleged to have happened upon the girl and raped her, Borg said.

◼ L.A. girl kept in metal box on pot farm for sex, authorities say - LA Times 7/26/2013
◼ Lake County men transferred from (Humboldt County) jail; former Marine is one of two men accused of enslaving runaway teen - Thadeus Greenson/The Times-Standard 7/27/2013
◼ Criminal complaint: Ryan Balletto...Note: This doc­u­ment con­tains con­tent that some read­ers might find dis­turb­ing. - LA Times 7/26/2013



__________________
Lots of unanswered questions. Picking up runaways in LA, transporting them hundreds of miles to a remote location, a 'box' that indicates they solved a problem they must have had before, telling her she was a trooper for not screaming... how many screamed before her?

Just be glad this is before Federal authorities, and not Humboldt County's DA.

(U.S. Magistrate Judge Nandor Vadas and Deputy District Attorney Ed Borg were formerly with the Humboldt County DA's Office. Just some of the talent 'lost, fired, or driven away' by Paul Gallegos.)

And so it begins

◼ Former prosecutor to run for DA: Candidates file elections paperwork to begin fundraising - Thadeus Greenson/The Times-Standard

A retired prosecutor has filed paperwork with the Humboldt County Elections Office announcing his intent to run for district attorney in 2014.

Arnold Klein, who retired from the Humboldt County District Attorney's Office in January 2012 at the age of 69, filed a candidate intention statement with the elections office on Monday, Elections Manager Kelly Sanders confirmed....

Reached Tuesday, Klein said he is running under the tentative slogan, “We Deserve Better,” and said he thinks he can make a positive impact on the office.

”I'm experienced, I'm balanced and I'm not caught up in the broken process that is going on now,” he said.

Klein said he thinks the DA's Office has misallocated its resources, spending too much on its investigations bureau and too little on prosecutors, and that he's been disappointed in what he sees as a steady exodus of experienced prosecutors from the office under Gallegos' tenure.
______________
We do indeed deserve better. Good luck, Mr. Klein.

Something we agree on

◼ Gallegos weighs in on 'stand-your-ground' laws: Amid national controversy, Humboldt County DA supports California self-defense law - Thadeus Greenson/The Times-Standard

While the nation's top cop strongly condemned “stand-your-ground” laws, and protests over self-defense legal statutes raged across the nation in the wake of George Zimmerman's acquittal last week, Humboldt County District Attorney Paul Gallegos said Friday he doesn't have a problem with the statutes.

”No matter what you do, things can go bad,” Gallegos said. “But the idea behind stand your ground is that the process of retreating can also put you in danger, even graver danger in some cases. The reality is if someone comes at you, you should be able to stay there and defend yourself.”

Gallegos gets it.

University of California Hastings College of Law professor David Levine, on the other hand, does not get it.

Hislop retires. Gonna spend more time with his family.

◼ Transformation in DA Investigations Bureau; retirement, new faces bring change to investigations unit - Thadeus Greenson/The Times-Standard

...After 33 years in law enforcement, DA Chief Investigator Mike Hislop, 51, has retired and District Attorney Paul Gallegos has tapped investigator Wayne Cox to fill the post. The office is also readying to welcome a pair of new investigators into its ranks in the coming weeks, leaving a void in another local agency's criminal investigations unit....

Gallegos said he has full confidence that Cox is the right person for the job.

”Wayne is the future, and it looks like a very promising future,” he said. “I'm excited. More than excited, I feel we are very fortunate in this office, and in this community, to have him.”

Other changes are also ahead for the DA's Office Investigative Bureau, as the departure of William Hansel several months back to take a lieutenant position with the Humboldt State University Police Department and Cox's promotion left a pair of vacant investigator positions.

Hislop said the bureau has gone ahead with hiring Kyla Baxley and Marvin Kirkpatrick, both of whom currently work as detectives with the Humboldt County Sheriff's Office. Both are expected to start in the coming weeks.

Kirkpatrick, who's worked for the sheriff's office for 27 years, will do general investigations. Baxley, who's worked for the sheriff's office for about five years, will investigate child sex crimes, Hislop said, adding that both are “rock solid” and will work well with the bureau's team.

Remember when Paul Gallegos didn't have a child abuse prosecutor, so he said he was going to have EVERYONE do every job, so they'd all be better at what they do? Well...

Now, you too can be an Assistant DA.

Fresh out of law school and don't have a clue? Already carrying the load of five people who've been 'lost,' fired or driven off?

If rumors are true of course. And, there's always the proverbial tip of the iceberg aspect to this. There's a lot going on, but the public never gets to hear about it. Paul's such a fine D.A. and all. (yes, I know, Eric, he won.)

◼ Musical chairs at the DA's? - John Chiv Words Worth

Who voted for this?

Who will cop to sneaking this shit into the budget bill?

◼ Transparency in California Should Not Be Optional - eff

AB 76 was passed by the legislature Friday evening, unbeknownst to many journalists and open-government advocates attempting to follow the vote....

Senate Bill 71 and AB 76, which could be passed and sent to the governor's offiice on Saturday, would allow government bodies on the local level—such as cities, counties, sheriff’s departments and education systems—to choose whether or not to follow certain requirements under the California Public Records Act. These provisions would be downgraded from law to mere “best practices.” Gone would be the deadlines for determining whether records are disclosable and notifying the member of the public who requested the records. Gone would be the requirement that agencies assist members of the public in identifying which records would answer their questions. Gone would be the mandate that agencies turn over documents in an electronic format if the records have already been digitized.

A local government wouldn’t even have to publicly disclose its records-disclosure policy in writing. The bills only say an agency must “announce orally” once a year if it decides not to follow the new “best practices.”

The impact on government watchdogs, journalists and the public—including EFF—would be profound. The legislation would create long waits for access to records, allow agencies to interpret requests narrowly (say, rejecting requests unless the citizen asks for a specific document), and leave the requesters waiting in limbo indefinitely as government agencies will have no incentive to be helpful.

◼ California Legislature Guts State Records Law - courthousenews.com

"It's not about saving money - it's all about curtailing an open, transparent government that can be held accountable," Yee told the San Jose Mercury News. "The only way we're held accountable is when the public has the information to understand what were doing."

One more down. Looks like Hislop is leaving

◼ http://www.cdaa.org/about-us/employment

Chief Investigator (District Attorney)
Humboldt County
Deadline: June 12, 2013
Ad Posted on: May 30, 2013

◼ http://www.cdaa.org/wp-content/uploads/CHIEFINV.pdf

Officials: Bodhi Tree is 'person of interest' in last week's Eureka shooting

◼ Officials: Bodhi Tree is 'person of interest' in last week's Eureka shooting - Times-Standard

The Eureka Police Department has named double murder suspect Bodhi Tree, who was released from prison in April, as a “person of interest” in a shooting near Eureka High School last week.

EPD Detective Ron Harpham said the department has some evidence pointing to Tree as a suspect but officials are still trying to determine probable cause. “We are still chasing down some leads,” Harpham said.

Harpham declined to say what evidence was found, citing an open investigation. The 28-year-old suspect in Saturday's double homicide in Arcata pleaded not guilty on Wednesday to two counts of murder and the special circumstance enhancement of multiple deaths, which qualifies the case for the death penalty.

Eureka High school student Christina Schwarz, 18, and 27-year-old Alan “Sunshine” Marcet were fatally shot.

According to officials, Eureka native Rhett August, 24, was shot once in the upper abdomen after he stepped out into an alley near the 1900 block of J street in Eureka to answer a knock at the door.

Harpham said the person the department originally suspected in the shooting has now been cleared.
Humboldt County Chief Probation Officer Bill Damiano confirmed Tree was released from state prison at the beginning of April under post-release community supervision, a program enacted under California prison realignment.

”He would have been released either way, either on parole or through realignment,” Damiano said.

◼ Police Looking at Bodhi Tree as a ‘Person of Interest’ in Eureka Shooting Last Week - Hank Sims/Lost Coast Outpost

Manhunt for Shane Miller: Day 15

◼ Manhunt for Shane Miller: Day 15 - Times-Standard

Miller has a criminal record and served time in prison. Authorities consider Miller armed and dangerous.

Community members are encouraged to call the sheriff's office at 445-7251 or the tip line at 268-2539 if they see anything suspicious or 911, in the event of an emergency.

Latest update: Humboldt County Sheriff's Office Lt. Wayne Hanson said Wednesday there is nothing new to report and the office is still following any leads it receives.

”We have two officers in the area 24 hours a day,” Hanson said. He said tracking dogs and dogs used to find cadavers are no longer being used.

Humboldt County Sheriff Mike Downey has said the most likely scenarios are Miller has killed himself or left the area.

Arcata double homicide suspect Bodhi Tree pleads not guilty: Case eligible for the death penalty

◼ Arcata double homicide suspect pleads not guilty: Case eligible for the death penalty - Lorna Rodriguez/The Times-Standard

Bodhi Tree, 28, is accused of killing Christina Schwarz, 18, and Alan “Sunshine” Marcet, 27, with a handgun, Humboldt County Superior Court Judge Christopher Wilson said. A special circumstance enhancement was added because there is more than one victim, which makes the case eligible for the death penalty, Wilson said.

Humboldt County Assistant District Attorney Kelly Neel said the district attorney's office hasn't decided whether to seek the death penalty.

”It's too early to make that determination,” Neel said.

Public defender Kevin Robinson said he will represent Tree once any conflict of interest determination is made.

Tree audibly said, “I didn't commit no murders,” as he conferred with his attorney, who tried to quiet him in court. Tree, originally from Garberville, has a Humboldt County criminal history that stretches back to at least 2007 and includes a guilty plea to resisting arrest after a 2011 high speed chase, according to court documents.

UC Berkeley School of Law Professor Franklin Zimring said multiple deaths are one of several factors that can qualify a case for the death penalty.
__________________
◼ FOURTH UPDATE: No bail for double homicide suspect - The Times-Standard 5/18

◼ Officials: Looking for gun used in weekend's double homicide - The Times-Standard 5/21

----- Presumably, they tested his hands for gunpowder residue that night, right? ------

Well said.

◼ Those who can do, do; those who cannot sue - John Chiv/Words Worth

Eureka attorney Peter Martin finally revealed the true agenda behind the lawsuit filed against the City of Eureka and invocations by saying he hopes that his motion to dismiss Superior Court Judge Dale Reinholtsen will better his odds for a favorable ruling.

In a May 17 Times-Standard article, Martin was quoted as saying that he decided to request the dismissal of Reinholtsen because he feels that the judge is “on the right flank of the political bent.”

Kim Starr must be kicking herself for not thinking of this brilliant and objective strategy in Occupy Eureka’s lawsuit against the City. In the last 2 years, the mantra of those who only know how to blame and create drama has been: “If I don’t get my way and if my mud slinging does not work, I will just sue” has backfired both at the ballot and with the public. Nevertheless, they continue to employ the same tired tactics. It has hurt any legitimate cause and sincere people Martin and Starr claim to represent.... read the rest, at the link.

Double homicide in Arcata: Suspect in custody

◼ DOUBLE HOMICIDE ON EYE STREET (Update 2) - Kevin Hoover/Arcata Eye

Two people, a male and a female, were killed in a house on Eye Street early this morning.

People staying at the house said that a suspect, another houseguest, shot the two with a revolver. Police have no one in custody, but are pursuing a “person of interest,” according to APD Lt. Ryan Peterson.

Victims have not been identified. The houseguests said the female was an 18-year-old high school student.

Peterson said the female was pronounced dead at the scene. The male died shortly thereafter at Mad River Community Hospital. names have not yet been released.

◼ Update: Police searching for Arcata double homicide suspect - Times Standard
◼ Suspected Double Homicide in Arcata This Morning (UPDATING) - Hank Sims/Lost Coast Outpost (image source)

The suspect has been taken into custody on Shirley Avenue. Photos by Andrew Goff. (Click to enlarge.)

◼ Bodhi Tree, 28, arrested in connection with this morning's double homicide. - Kevin Hoover/Arcata Eye

◼ SECOND UPDATE: Police ID suspect arrested in double homicide - Times Standard

In October 2011, a 26-year-old Eureka man named Bodhi Tree was arrested following a high-speed pursuit by Humboldt County sheriff's deputies that began at the Bear River Casino parking lot and ended with the suspect arrested on suspicion of vandalism to a patrol car, resisting arrest, assault with a deadly weapon and public drunkenness.

◼ Bodhi Tree Booked On Two Counts Of Murder - Kevin Hoover/Arcata Eye

◼ A footnote to history: Bodhi Tree is used to being arrested, sometimes with the aid of APD K-9 officers. He has a history of petty crime in Arcata and elsewhere.... - Arcata Eye Facebook

◼ High Speed Chase Ends with Officers uh…Treeing Suspect (click here for previous arrest information) - Kym Kemp/Lost Coast Outpost

◼ THIRD UPDATE: APD details search, arrest of double homicide suspect - Times Standard

Stay updated at ◼ The Eye, ◼ Lost Coast Outpost, and ◼ The Times Standard. (Also, ◼ The Eye on Facebook)

But the amazingly greedy nature of this shakedown was clearly a bridge too far. And not only is the Amazon Defense Front coming up on the short end of the stick, but one of the American law firms engaging in this practice may wind up paying a hefty sum for their involvement.

◼ DC firm shaking down Chevron learns lesson about poking the bear - HotAir

There’s been a new, and some might say long overdue twist in the ongoing saga of Ecuador’s Chevron shakedown. We’ve been covering this story here since January of 2011 and it’s been a wild roller coaster ride. From the time the environmental groups involved were initially awarded a huge payday in a kangaroo court, we’ve seen blatant fraud uncovered on the part of the plaintiffs, “investors” in the lawsuit claiming they were defrauded, and the judge in the case admitting that he was bribed.

◼ Chevron seeks to sue Patton Boggs for fraud and deceit - Fortune

Since late 2010, Washington, D.C. law firm Patton Boggs has been poking a sleeping tiger. It has filed three peculiar federal lawsuits -- in its own name, not on behalf of any client -- against Chevron, the third-largest corporation in the United States. These cases have fared poorly; two were quickly dismissed, and a federal magistrate judge recommended tossing the third in March.

On Friday, the tiger awoke. Chevron (CVX) sought a federal judge's permission to bring counterclaims against the 455-lawyer firm for alleged fraud and deceit for its conduct in representing the Amazon Defense Front, which obtained a $19 billion environmental judgment against the oil giant in Lago Agrio, Ecuador, in February 2011. Chevron also seeks to charge the firm with "malicious prosecution" for having pursued its three lawsuits in bad faith. Chevron seeks to hold the law firm liable for any damages Chevron suffers from the Front's allegedly fraud-infested litigation, plus punitive and treble damages.

Interesting searches

◼ limmie greg curry, showing up in google searches...

Lots on the manhunt, too. Such as: redding petrolia manhunt cogswell

Search for Miller escalates in Mattole Valley manhunt; Tour of the Unknown Coast sees loss in participation

◼ Search for Miller escalates in Mattole Valley manhunt; Tour of the Unknown Coast sees loss in participation - Catherine Wong/The Times-Standard

As the Mattole Valley manhunt for triple homicide suspect Shane Miller entered its fourth day, more law enforcement officials joined the search even as authorities lifted checkpoints for hundreds of bicyclists in Saturday's 35th Annual Tour of the Unknown Coast.

As of Saturday, more than 70 deputies and officers from the Humboldt and Shasta county sheriff's offices; the Fortuna, Arcata, Eureka and Rio Dell police departments; the California Highway Patrol; the Humboldt County, Shasta County, Sonoma County and California Department of Corrections SWAT teams; the U.S. Marshals Service; the Bureau of Land Management; CalFire and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife are involved in the search, according to a press release.

Search teams are using a specialized communications truck -- brought by the U.S. Marshals Service-- and helicopters from CHP's Redding airbase and the Kern County sheriff's office. Humboldt County Sheriff's Office Lt. Steve Knight said they are also using tracking dogs and a plane.

Miller, 45, is the lone suspect in the killing of his wife and two daughters Tuesday night at their Shingletown home in Shasta County before fleeing roughly 200 miles west to the Mattole Valley area. Officials say he is considered armed and “extremely dangerous.”

◼ Shelter in Place Request Lifted—Caution Still Advised as Authorities Search for Homicide Suspect, Shane Miller - Kym Kemp/Lost Coast Outpost

SHANE FRANKLIN MILLER, White male adult, 45 years old, 5-10, 200 lbs blue eyes, red hair.

Believed to be armed and dangerous. If sighted call 911

Anyone with information for the Sheriffs Office regarding this case or related criminal activity is encouraged to call the Sheriffs Office at 707-445-7251 or the Sheriffs Office Crime Tip line at 707-268-2539.