Eureka court clerk arrested on suspicion of threatening judge
A courtroom clerk is out on bail after her arrest for allegedly making criminal threats against Humboldt County Superior Court Judge Timothy Cissna.
Posts Tagged ‘court’
Wyatt enters not guilty plea
Wyatt enters not guilty plea [Daily Triplicate]
Judge inclined to deny request to move suspect to Pelican Bay
The attorney representing Jarrod Wyatt entered a not guilty plea on behalf of his client during a brief court appearance Thursday.
Wyatt, 26, is suspected of killing 21-year-old Crescent City resident Taylor Powell in Klamath last Sunday, and in addition to murder is accused of aggravated mayhem, torture and special allegations of using a “sharp bladed instrument” as a deadly weapon.
There was some confusion over what was supposed to happen at Thursday’s proceeding as Wyatt’s attorney, James Fallman, had brought witnesses to the courtroom to argue against a “safe keeper” motion that aims to move his client from the Del Norte County Jail to Pelican Bay State Prison over security concerns.
Eureka dog killer pleads to animal cruelty charge
A Eureka man accused of killing his ex-girlfriend’s family dog pleaded guilty to a single count of animal cruelty in Humboldt County Superior Court on Friday.
Humboldt County meth dealer found guilty in trial
The former bouncer for a Eureka bar was convicted of possession of methamphetamine by a jury in Humboldt County Superior Court on Thursday. The Humboldt County District Attorney’s Office said Richard Lee Sovereign Jr.
Court Report
The following cases were heard in Ten Mile Court.
Monday, March 22
Presiding: The Honorable Judge Jonathan Lehan
Bailiff: Deputy Kent Rogers
- Jose R.
Cops Pass Up Chance To Sample Traffic-Stopping Breath
A “drunk girl” lying on the ground at 11th and F streets was approached by two guys. One of them flashed some sort of badge at someone nearby, and said they were going to take the girl home.
Old Shed Falls Down
For decades, maybe a hundred years, the sturdy, nondescript building stood straddling Janes Creek, for most of its life playing a role in the Arcata Bottom’s booming dairy industry.
Allison Jackson: ‘The community deserves something better’
Former County Prosecutor Allison Jackson says she has a wide-ranging base of support that’s united in the belief that the District Attorney’s Office needs to change for the better.
Money Speaks, Humboldt County Elections
The Reporta – With the June Primary inching its way closer, the first round of campaign contribution statements for the year has arrived. Overall, you can see how the County Money Machine is dividing itself, which candidates are being backed by whom, and how heated the county races are going to be.
Deputy testifies on Covelo shooting scene
A preliminary hearing for defendants in a November shooting east of Covelo continued in Superior Court Wednesday.
Coastal Commission wins again
The Pacific Legal Foundation (PLF) is suffering a second loss this month to the California Coastal Commission.
After a blistering defeat three weeks ago, the San Francisco First District Court of Appeal found sea birds have rights when faced with 4th-of-July yahoos. And like the PLF’s recent Balloon Track lawsuit, the argument was over jurisdiction.
From the Press Democrat:
The case pitted those supporting a July 4 pyrotechnic show in Gualala against those trying to protect sea birds on a island near the Sonoma and Mendocino county line.
The display was halted after two years following complaints that it disturbed sea birds on Gualala Point Island. A study in 2007 indicated sea birds fled their nests at about the time of the fireworks show.
The Coastal Commission said the Gualala Festivals Committee would need to apply for a coastal permit to continue the show. To obtain a permit, the group would need to demonstrate it could avoid upsetting the birds.
Sacramento-based Pacific Legal Foundation sued the commission on behalf of fireworks supporters, contending the commission does not have jurisdiction over fireworks.
Complaints followed the first fireworks show in 2006 when birds fled Gualala Point Island. The island is protected by the federal Bureau of Land Management and part of the California Coastal National Monument Program.
In Eureka, PLF sued the Coastal Commission over the Balloon Track last month, claiming the state agency doesn’t have jurisdiction over any half-baked “clean-up” plans for the contaminated property.
Man accused in Klamath murder case pleads not guilty; Del Norte DA says killing was ‘very grotesque, very gruesome’
CRESCENT CITY — The man accused of brutally murdering his 21-year-old friend in Klamath on Sunday pleaded not guilty to charges of murder, aggravated mayhem and torture in a Del Norte County courtroom on Thursday.
Court Report
The following cases were heard in Ten Mile Court.
Monday, March 22
Presiding: The Honorable Judge Jonathan Lehan
Bailiff: Deputy Kent Rogers
- Jose R.
Murder suspect is charged with mayhem, torture
Murder suspect is charged with mayhem, torture [Daily Triplicate]
Jarrod Wyatt, 26, may be held at Pelican Bay
The man accused of killing 21-year-old Crescent City resident Taylor Powell in Klamath on Sunday was arraigned in Del Norte Superior Court on Tuesday.
During the proceeding, Jarrod Wyatt, 26, kept his eyes trained on the ground as Judge William Follett recited the list of charges the local mixed martial arts fighter will face in connection with Powell’s death.
Martial arts champion Clawson guilty of Chico hate crime
Eric Clawson knocked out a bar patron, and witnesses say a racial epithet preceded the Chico attack.
A San Francisco man is facing prison after being found guilty Wednesday of punching an African American man because of his race and the fact he was enjoying himself at a Chico bar.
A jury of six women and six men deliberated 2½ hours at the conclusion of a three-day trial in Sacramento federal court before finding Eric Loren Clawson guilty of a hate-based violation of Carl Whitfield’s civil rights.
Clawson, 28, was taken into custody following the verdict. He was handcuffed and escorted out of the courtroom by deputy U.S. marshals as distraught family members, including his parents and sister, looked on.
Once an amateur mixed martial arts champion in the light heavyweight division, Clawson knocked the 6-foot-4, 240-pound Whitfield down and out with one punch. Witnesses said he was out for 20 to 30 seconds, and in a daze for a while.
Clawson testified he approached a group that included Whitfield and inquired why they were looking across the room at him and “seemed disturbed.” When he asked, “What’s the problem?” Whitfield stood up and faced Clawson, looking angry and “ready to fight,” so Clawson went on the offensive, he said.
The element of surprise is a bar fighter’s best friend, and Clawson testified he’s been in dozens of them.
He acknowledged that earlier, in ordering and paying for drinks, he made two remarks to the bartender that included a racial epithet generally applied to African Americans.
But, Clawson testified, he was not describing Whitfield but meant it as a euphemism for “cheap.” He said he saw Whitfield only later when he and others around him began staring and acting as if they were unhappy with Clawson.
Whitfield, his girlfriend and bartender James Kellon Thompson testified that as Clawson and friend Joe Grivette entered Riley’s Bar & Grill on the night of July 6, 2008, somebody said, “I’m not sitting here with that n—–,” and it came from their direction.
The three prosecution witnesses said Clawson, without provocation, wordlessly walked up behind Whitfield, tapped him on the shoulder and, when Whitfield turned, hit him.
Clawson denied using the epithet in reference to Whitfield, insisting he didn’t even see Whitfield when he came into Riley’s that Sunday night.
“That’s nonsense,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Russell Carlberg told the jury in a rebuttal argument.
“He saw Carl Whitfield. Everybody knows it. He picked him out and attacked him.”
Defense lawyer Emily Doringer told the jury in her closing argument that, while her client is a brawler, he bears no racial animus and only one other of his many altercations involved an African American man.
“He has no problems interacting, socializing and otherwise dealing with African Americans,” she said. “There’s just no history here.”
She noted that Whitfield and girlfriend Noelle Keese testified they heard a racially derogatory comment when Clawson and Grivette came in, but did not tell that to Chico police officers who took their statements shortly after the incident.
“That means there is doubt,” Doringer argued.
She also said that, if Clawson were going to direct an epithet at Whitfield, he would have done it when he approached him, but he said nothing.
“That is serious doubt about what was going through Mr. Clawson’s mind,” she told the jury.
“He let his fist do the talking,” was Carlsberg’s rejoinder.
Clawson and Grivette were both charged with the hate crime.
Grivette, 29, pleaded guilty to a lesser charge a week ago and validated the prosecution’s version of the incident.
Grivette was outside when Clawson felled Whitfield. But minutes before the punch, as he left Riley’s, he assured his friend, “Whatever you do, I’ve got your back.”
Under the terms of a plea bargain, Grivette’s lawyer is free to argue for as little as two months behind bars.
Clawson’s sentencing is set for June 10. His crime carries a maximum 10 years in prison.