Contra Costa Herald

News Of By and For The People of Contra Costa County, California

Brentwood man arrested for vandalizing same Pleasant Hill store twice

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Damage to front door of the Pleasant Hill Ace store. Photo: PHPD

Upset about return policy; has history of arrests since 2018 including 3 times in 2023

By Pleasant Hill Police Department

Ace isn’t the place for this crook.

On Thursday, Dec. 21, 2023, and Wednesday, Jan, 3, 2024, our officers discovered the front door glass of Ace Hardware (on Contra Costa Blvd.) shattered, causing thousands of dollars of damage to the business. On both occasions, further examination showed that it was due to a BB gun being shot at the business.

After an investigation, we identified and arrested Joseph Alan Gardemeyer, age 40 of Brentwood, on Jan. 3, 2024, who was apparently upset about Ace’s return policy. Gardemeyer was booked into county jail on felony vandalism charges.

Joe Gardemeyer from his Facebook page posted on July 31, 2022, and from his LinkedIn profile.

According to the Contra Costa Sheriff’s Office, the 6’2”, 175-lb. Hispanic man (born Feb. 18, 2023) is being held in the West County Detention Facility on no bail and his next Superior Court appearance is scheduled for January 8, 2024 at 1:30 p.m.

According to localcrimenews.com, Gardemeyer has a history of arrests dating back to 2018 by San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Department, El Dorado County Sheriff’s Department in Sept. 2023 for theft of an $8,000 electric mountain bike, Antioch PD and Pleasant Hill PD, including two more times last year, for crimes including possession of a controlled substance, possession of burglar’s tools, petty theft, receiving or concealing stolen property, resisting, obstructing or delaying a peace officer, attempted robbery, burglary, grand theft and revocation of probation.

Allen D. Payton contributed to this report.

One driver dies in 3-car crash on I-680 near Concord Avenue Friday night

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CHP seeks help from any witnesses

By CHP – Contra Costa

Last night (Friday, Jan. 5, 2024) at 9:52pm, CHP Contra Costa was advised of a crash on southbound I-680 near Concord Avenue. Our preliminary investigation indicates a black Honda Pilot was traveling southbound on I-680 when it collided with the concrete center divide and became disabled in the lanes of traffic. A white Chevrolet 2500 was traveling southbound and was unable to avoid the disabled Honda and collided with the vehicle. A third vehicle, a Tesla, was also involved in the crash.

The driver of the Honda sustained fatal injuries and was pronounced deceased at the scene. The passenger was not injured. The drivers of the Chevrolet and the Tesla were not injured. This crash is still under investigation.

If anyone witnessed this or the events leading up to it, please contact CHP Contra Costa in Martinez, (925) 646-4980 or email your contact information to 320Investigations@chp.ca.gov to be contacted by the investigating officer.

 

Clayton woman arrested for domestic violence New Year’s Eve

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Mozelle Cherwin in a photo posted on her Facebook page on Aug. 2, 2023.

Second time since Oct. 2022

By Allen D. Payton

According to the Clayton Police Department’s weekly report, on Sunday, Dec. 31, 2023, at 7:48 p.m., officers responded to a call for service on Frank Place and arrested 50-year-old Mozelle Hasselfeld Cherwin, born 06/01/73, for battery of a spouse, ex-spouse, cohabitant or date (243(E)(1) PC).

She was transported to the Martinez Detention Facility for booking. According to the Contra Costa Sheriff’s Office, Cherwin bonded out of custody on Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2024.

According to information on Cherwin’s Facebook page, she is married and according to localcrimenews.com, Cherwin was also arrested by Clayton Police on Oct. 16, 2022, for inflicting corporal injury on a spouse or cohabitant (273.5 PC).

Arrests for drug possession, DUI, warrant in Clayton

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Transient man arrested 21 times since 2017 for multiple crimes; Concord man arrested 8 times since 2021 including 4 times this year

By Sandy Johnson, Police Office Coordinator, Clayton Police Department

Clayton Police Department Activity Report Dec. 22-28, 2023

The dates and times shown indicate when the incident was reported to the Police Department.

ARRESTS:

5400 Clayton Roard.  Trespass: Obstruct Business Operation; Possess Unlawful Drug Paraphernalia.  A 38-year-old transient male was arrested after officers responded to a call for service.  He was transported to Concord Police Department for booking.  (12/24/23 – 9:49 AM) (Kelly, Jason; 12/12/85; 602.1 PC; 11364 H&S)

According to localcrimenews.com, Kelly has been arrested 21 times since Nov. 2017 by Clayton PD, Concord PD and Contra Costa Sheriff’s Department for multiple drug crimes, grand theft, burglary, vandalism, receiving or concealing stolen property and resisting arrest.

Jacob Hupe in a photo posted on his Facebook page on April 29, 2023.

Oakhurst Drive/Yolanda Circle.  Driving Under the Influence – Alcohol.  A 37-year-old Concord male was arrested after officers responded to a call for service.  He was transported to Concord Police Department for booking.  (12/26/23 – 2:27 AM) (Penero, Joenar; 03/03/86; 23152(A) VC)

5400 Clayton Road.  Warrant.  A 33-year-old Concord male was arrested after being contacted by officers.  He was transported to Martinez Detention Facility for booking.  (12/27/23 – 3:32 AM) (Hupe, Jacob Dylan; 10/14/90; Warrant)

According to localcrimenews.com, Hupe has been arrested eight times since Sept. 2021, including four times this year, by Concord PD, Citrus Heights PD, Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department and Placer County Sheriff’s Department on drug charges, auto theft, possession of burglar’s tools, illegal possession of ammunition and carrying a concealed dirk or dagger. According to the Contra Costa Sheriff’s Dep’t. he was cite released and out of custody.

VANDALISM:

Golden Eagle Place.  (12/26/23 – 6:44 PM)

Allen D. Payton contributed to this report.

Vallejo man arrested for shoplifting in Pleasant Hill

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Jared Michael Theobald arrested and the gun tossed in the bushes on Dec. 18, 2023. Photos: Pleasant Hill PD

Driving stolen car, had felony warrant, meth and heroin, loaded gun with hollow point rounds

By Pleasant Hill Police Department

Nice catch by our graveyard officers!

Last night, Dec. 18, 2023, our officers responded to Kohl’s to assist loss prevention employees in deterring a couple of shoplifters. It was also determined that the suspects drove up in a stolen car. As our officers went to contact the male suspect, he took off running and tried to hide and disguise his appearance. Unfortunately for him, he was quickly located in a business pretending to order a pizza.

He was identified as Jared Michael Theobald of Vallejo, age 41. Theobald was discovered to have a felony warrant as well and was in possession of a substantial amount of methamphetamine and heroin. Officers scoured the area for a Nike bag Theobald was seen carrying earlier. It was eventually located dumped in a planter and contained a 9mm pistol loaded with hollow point rounds. Theobald was booked into county jail on multiple felonies. His female companion cooperated with officers and was eventually release from the scene.

We work closely with retail loss prevention, many times resulting in arrests for crimes that go beyond shoplifting. Good work by all involved!

According to the Contra Costa Sheriff’s Office, Theobald was transferred to another facility and according to the Solano County Sheriff’s Office, he is out of custody on general release as of Dec. 22.

Allen D. Payton contributed to this report.

 

Pittsburg man arrested for Walnut Creek burglaries

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Source: Walnut Creek PD

Suspect has history of arrests dating to 2017

By Walnut Creek Police Department

Darrell Lipston in a photo posted on his Facebook page on Feb. 28, 2023.

On December 14th, 2023, Walnut Creek Police arrested 41-year-old Darrell Demone Lipston (born Dec. 2, 1982) for residential burglary, conspiracy, possession of stolen property and violation of probation after committing several burglaries in the 100 block of Pringle Avenue.

Patrol Officers (Patrol Team 5) immediately obtained leads and, with the assistance of the Investigations Bureau, conducted a probation search of Lipston’s residence in Pittsburg. The search revealed that Lipston was in possession of all the stolen property connected to these burglaries. WCPD arrested Lipston, transported him, and booked him at the Martinez Detention Facility. WCPD Patrol officers returned the stolen property to the grateful victims.

On December 18th, 2023, the Contra Costa District Attorney’s Office filed the following charges against Lipston for the burglaries:

PC 459: Residential Burglary (six counts), PC 487(a): Grand Theft (three counts) and PC 594(a): Vandalism (four counts).

The employees of the Walnut Creek Police Department are committed to ensuring the safety of our community through proactive enforcement of the law, the use of technology, and relentless investigation of crimes.

According to the Contra Costa Sheriff’s Office, Lipston is being held on no bail and his next court hearing is scheduled for Jan. 4, 2024, at 8:30 a.m.

According to localcrimenews.com, he has a history of arrests dating back to January 2, 2017, by multiple agencies including Antioch PD, Concord PD, Walnut Creek PD and Contra Costa Sheriff’s Department for receiving or concealing stolen property, burglary, possession of ammunition, possession of narcotic controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia, and receiving stolen property – motor vehicle.

Allen D. Payton contributed to this report.

Richmond woman’s fatal DUI crash on Hwy 4 near Martinez takes life of her 5-year-old

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Shakela Janey Dominick and her daughter in photos posted to her Facebook page on (left) Jan. 16, 2022, and (right) Nov. 1, 2018.

Also injured another passenger, an 11-year-old boy; driver also arrested for manslaughter, charged with 5 felonies

By Allen D. Payton

According to CHP – Contra Costa, early Sunday morning, Dec. 17 ,2023, at 12:06 am, CHP Contra Costa was advised of a solo vehicle traffic crash on westbound Hwy 4 near Morello Avenue. Our preliminary investigation indicates a grey Honda CR-V was occupied by one adult driver and two children and traveling westbound on Hwy 4. The driver lost control of the vehicle and the Honda left the roadway and collided with a tree.

The driver, identified in court records as Shakela Janey Dominick, 32, of Richmond, sustained moderate injuries and was transported to the hospital. An 11-year-old passenger sustained major, life-threatening injuries and was transported to the hospital. A 5-year-old passenger, Dearri Shula of Richmond, sustained fatal injuries and was pronounced deceased at the scene.

During the on-scene investigation, it was determined Dearri was not properly restrained in a child seat. Furthermore, Officers arrived at the hospital to conduct a DUI investigation and Dominick, who earlier was reported to be the mother of both children, was arrested for suspicion of driving under the influence and manslaughter. But it was later learned the 11-year-old is a boy and not her son.

According to the Contra Costa Sheriff’s Office, she is being held in the West County Detention Facility on $400,000 bail.

According to Contra Costa DA spokesman Ted Asregadoo, Dominick was arraigned Thursday afternoon, Dec. 21 and during the court hearing, a bail reduction request by the defense from $400,000 to $100,000 was denied by the judge and that her blood alcohol level was 0.16 to 0.17 percent.

She was charged with five felonies for gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated with one enhancement for bodily injury to more than one victim; driving under the influence of an alcoholic beverage causing injury with three enhancements, two for great bodily injury and one for bodily injury to more than one victim; driving with a .08% Blood Alcohol Content causing injury with the same three enhancements; and two counts of child abuse. Dominick faces up to three years in state prison for each charge. 01-23-03987 – Shakela Janey Dominick Charging Document

A preliminary hearing was set for Dec. 29 at 8:30 am with Judge Jennifer Lee in Department 25 in Martinez.

According to localcrimenews.com, Dominick was arrested by Vacaville Police in October 2020 for shoplifting.

This crash is still under investigation. If anyone witnessed it or the events leading up to it, please contact CHP Contra Costa in Martinez, (925) 646-4980 or email your contact information to mailto:320Investigations@chp.ca.gov to be contacted by the investigating officer.

 

Air District issues four Notices of Violation to Martinez Refining Company following Sunday flaring, grass fire

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Smoke from the grassfire caused by the flaring at the Martinez Refining Company refinery on Sunday, Dec. 17, 2023. Photo: BAAQMD

One for public nuisance, two for visible emissions, another for illegal fire on a no burn day

By Bay Area Air Quality Management District

The Bay Area Air Quality Management District (Air District) inspectors responded to five air quality complaints related to a grass fire reported by Martinez Refining Company refinery in Martinez on Sunday, Dec. 17, 2023. On Monday, the Air District issued a Notice of Violation for public nuisance for this event. The Air District’s investigation is ongoing.

Three additional Notices of Violation have been issued for this event: two for visible emissions and one for illegal fire on a no burn day. This investigation is ongoing.

The updated incident report is as follows:

December 17

At 4:26 PM Sunday, the Air District received a Contra Costa County Community Warning System (CWS) Level 1 alert filed by Martinez Refining Company (MRC) regarding a grass fire. The alert specifically stated that the smoke was from a grassfire. The alert did not mention flaring directly, but when Air District staff contacted MRC to discuss the CWS Level 1 alert, they said the grass fire was caused by “the heat of the flare.”

Air District Incident Response staff contacted MRC at 5:21 PM and were told that the grass fire had started at about 4:20 PM and was extinguished at approximately 5:10 PM. Two Air District staff were called out to the Martinez area to investigate. Five complaints alleging smoke and/or odor were filed between 4:30 PM and 5:07 PM. The adjacent photo of the grass fire was provided to the Air District by a complainant. The wind during the event was Northeast at 8-15 miles per hour. Based on the smoke plume observed, the Air District staff questioned MRC staff on a grass fire being the sole cause. At that time, an MRC representative told Air District staff that it was a grass fire.

December 18

On Monday, Air District staff, with Contra Costa County HazMat and Contra Costa County Fire personnel returned to MRC Refinery in the morning to jointly investigate the previous day’s event. The Air District investigation is ongoing and we will update this report as new information becomes available.

At this time, the Air District has issued the following Notice of Violations (NOV) to MRC for this event:

  • Regulation 1, Section 301 – Public Nuisance
  • Regulation 6, Rule 1, Section 301 – Visible emission standard exceeded
  • Regulation 40 CFR 63.670(c) – Federal visible emissions standard exceeded
  • Regulation 5, Section 301 – Illegal fire on a no burn day

For more information on the NOVs, click the link to the NOV web tool.

Martinez Refining Company Issues Statement:

On their website, MRC posted the following statement regarding the flaring and fire:

Intermittent flaring has continued at the Martinez Refining Company this weekend while we re-start equipment that was shut down during the operational incident that occurred on Friday, December 15.

At approximately 4:30 p.m. on December 17, a ground flare was in operation as part of the re-start process that caused visible black smoke and a brush fire. The brush fire was promptly contained, and subsequently extinguished at approximately 5:00 p.m.

All appropriate agencies were notified, and we thank our responders for their safe, effective response. We apologize for the concerns we caused the community and will be conducting a root cause analysis of the incident. Looking forward, we expect the potential for intermittent flaring to last through most of this week; however, we are working hard to minimize flaring and to maintain clean combustion for any flaring that may occur.

You are welcome to view real-time air monitoring measurements at our fence line air monitoring website: https://www.fenceline.org/martinez/. Additionally, you can learn more about flaring on our website: https://martinezrefiningcompany.com/about-flaring/.

As always, we have a community inquiry phone number you can call 925-313-3777 or 925-313-3601 during off work hours. Thank you.”

When asked, an MRC spokesperson said the company didn’t have a comment on the NOV’s at this time as they had just received them.

Please check back later for any updates to this report.

Allen D. Payton contributed to this report.

Celebrate the New Year with Main Street Arts in Martinez Jan. 5 – Feb. 25

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Fire Break by Rebeccah DeJesus, Daisies by Barbara Lind and Goodnight Mt. Tam by Rebecca Alarcon. Source. Main Street Arts

Main Street Arts Gallery in Martinez will be bringing in the New Year with beautiful watercolor paintings! The California Watercolor Association will display their pieces from January 5th – February 25th. A reception will be held on January 13th from 4-7.  Please join us as we celebrate the following artists:

Rebecca Alarcon    Goodnight Mt. Tam

Alexandra Connor    Blake Gardens Kensington

Judith Cunningham    January chill

Andrew J Dodd    Altar Rock at Blind Beach Sonoma Coast

Andrew J Dodd    Bodega Dunes Reverie

TIffany Ferreri    Succulents

John Giannotti    Dreamscape 1

Dmitry Grudsky    Old Niles Vintage

Juanita Hagberg    Synergy IV

Sharon Hind-Smith    Where the Otters Play

Glen Jarvis    Palms

Jessica De Jesus    Fire Break

Jessica De Jesus    Happy Cactus

Marion Leggett    Columbine

Barbara Lind    Daisies

Jana Lowe    Pebble Beach

Craig Moline    St George Statue

Craig Moline    Sonoma Fields

Jaladhi Pujara    Misty Morning Catch

Jaladhi Pujara    Moored Memories

Susan Routledge    Coastal Cypress 2

Judy Rowe    Home Grown

Heidi Schmidt    Secret Oak

Jane Sneed.   Lake Anza Youth

Bernie Stein    Up Little Lake Street

Kathleen Stumpfel    Cottage

Kathleen Stumpfel    Night Mist

Sujit Sudhi    Heritage

Joseph Tringali    Pohono Bridge

Rae Ann Williams    The Last of the Berries

Georganne Zaro    Break of Dawn

Georganne Zaro    Abstract

Georganne Zaro    Day at the Beach 

Main Street Arts is a co-op, with eleven members. Each member is responsible for hanging new artwork every two months. Our new January/February show will be open for you to enjoy beginning January 3rd. Sadly, we have to say goodbye to Lynne McManus, one of our founding members.  A talented watercolorist, Lynne is retiring from the gallery. She will be missed! In February we expect to have a new Main Street Arts gallery member. Who will it be? We don’t know yet!  

We will resume our First Friday celebrations on February 2nd. Main Street Arts and many other shops on Main Street stay open and offer refreshments between 6 pm and 9 pm every first Friday of the month. Our free raffle continues into 2024 and in January you can have a chance to win art by Eric Carlstrom. In February Bonnie Fry’s artwork will be the free raffle prize. All you have to do is come in and fill out a raffle ticket, for free!

The gallery is located at 613 Main Street in Martinez. For more information visit www.mainstreetarts.net

All of us at Main Street Arts wish everyone a Happy New Year and we look forward to making lots of new art for the gallery.

 

Walnut Creek suspicious death in November now investigated as homicide

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By Lt. Bruce Jower, Walnut Creek Police Department

On November 27th, 2023, at approximately 3:09 PM, Walnut Creek Police patrol officers were dispatched to a suspicious death in the 1900 block of Camino Verde Circle. Walnut Creek Police Detectives responded to the scene and investigated the case as a suspicious death. Detectives have officially classified this case as a homicide and are investigating it as such.

At this time, we are not revealing the identity of the victim. However, the next of kin has been notified. WCPD Detectives are following up on all leads at this time.

If anyone has any information about this case, please contact Detective Nick Olson at olson@walnutcreekpd.com or call the anonymous tip line (925) 943-5865. Case #: 23-37597