Contra Costa Herald

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

Bicyclist dies from accident with car in Alamo on Wednesday

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By CHP-Contra Costa

Wednesday afternoon, June 26, 2019 around 4:30pm, we responded to a collision on Mount Diablo Scenic Blvd near Diablo Ranch Drive. Upon arrival, we located a bicyclist down on the roadway and a Chevy SUV. Emergency medical aid was given to the bicyclist, and the adult male rider was driven by ambulance to the Athenian School where he was life flighted to a local hospital. Unfortunately, he succumbed to his injuries later that night.

The driver of the Chevy remained on scene and is cooperating with our investigation. The location where this collision occurred is a narrow winding roadway and it appears the bicyclist and vehicle hit head on. The rider was wearing a helmet.

If you have any information about this collision, please call the Contra Costa CHP Office at 925-646-4980.

Contra Costa DA receives $1 million grant to initiate its first ever pre-filing youth diversion program

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By Scott Alonso, Public Information Officer, Contra Costa County District Attorney

Earlier this month, the Board of State and Community Corrections awarded the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office $1 million to establish a county-wide juvenile diversion pre-filing program. This diversion program will be the first county-wide program for Contra Costa County and comes on the announcement earlier this spring that our Office was starting a pilot program in Richmond for the fall of 2019. The BSCC grant will enable the pilot program in Richmond to be expanded and eventually taken county-wide.

The District Attorney’s Office joins the Contra Costa County Department of Probation, the RYSE Youth center, and Impact Justice to initiate a restorative justice program that will redirect youth from the juvenile and criminal justice system over a period of four years. The program will work with young people who have committed crimes and bring them together with those they have impacted in the community in order to atone for damages made and rebuild relationships.

“I am proud to have this program for the first-time ever in our county’s history. Our Office has a crucial role to play in reducing the pipeline into the juvenile justice system while at the same time reducing disparities in the entire criminal justice system. We have to invest in our youth to ensure they have other opportunities in their lives,” said District Attorney Diana Becton.

With the help of RYSE, the program hopes to lower recidivism rates, increase victim satisfaction, improve the youths’ relationships with their families, and lower incarceration and probation costs. Youth will learn about accountability and healing, as well as, how to establish trusting relationships with adults and authority figures. During the restorative justice process, RYSE will provide the victim and the youth offender with wrap-around services along with a facilitator for each person involved in the case.

By providing troubled youths with more resources and opportunities, Contra Costa hopes to divert up to 230 youths away from the juvenile justice system. A similar program in the Bay Area proved to be successful. Alameda County’s restorative justice program was remarkably successful as recidivism rates decreased; youths who participated in the program were 44 percent less likely to recidivate compared to similarly situated probation youth. The program carries a one-time cost of $4,500 per case while probation costs $23,000 per year and incarceration costs nearly $500,000 annually.

Maintenance on San Pablo Dam Road to begin July 1 run through Oct. 3

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San Pablo Dam Road Construction Vicinity Map. Courtesy CCC Public Works.

El Sobrante, CA – Contra Costa County Public Works Department plans to repair a landslide along the western embankment of San Pablo Dam Road approximately 0.5 miles south of the Tri Lane intersection. The work will begin on July 1 with anticipated completion by October 3, weather permitting.

Traffic may be affected between the hours of 9:00 am – 3:00 pm, Mondays through Thursdays. Changeable message signs and other construction signs will be placed in advance of the construction activities.

Woman in RV leads Concord Police on chase following burglary early Wednesday morning

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Suspect Jessica Tomsky and the RV she drove headed the wrong way on Hwy 242. Photos by Concord PD.

By Concord Police Department

Not on our Watch! Patrol officers from the Graves 1 team of the Concord PD responded to a silent alarm/probable burglary in-progress in the 1300 block of Galaxy Way on Wed., June 26 at 4:07 AM. Officers arrived in less than one minute and saw two vehicles fleeing. Officers tried to stop both vehicles and dual pursuits were initiated when both vehicles fled from pursuing officers onto Commerce Ave, across Concord Ave, then proceeding the wrong way up the southbound HYW 242 on-ramp. Officers stopped their pursuit(s) for safety reasons. A few moments later officers located one of the vehicles, a large RV, driving south on s/b HWY 242.

Officers pursued the RV for approximately 8-10 miles until the RV once again drove the wrong way up the southbound HWY 242 off-ramp at Solano Way, where CPD Officers terminated their pursuit. With help from citizen callers, the RV was located again, this time travelling west on the shoulder of eastbound HWY 4.

The driver, 34-year-old Jessica Tomsky (born 3/26/1985), was arrested for several counts of fleeing police officers, commercial burglary and possession of stolen property. There was stolen property from the commercial burglary she just fled from and stolen property from other commercial burglaries from Concord and other jurisdictions.

The Graves 1 team would like to thank the caller(s) who took the time to call 9-1-1 and update us on the location of the RV. Without help from our citizen’s our job would be much more difficult.

Ken Behring, developer of Blackhawk, former Seahawks owner, passes at 91

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Ken Behring. Photo courtesy of BlackhawkMuseum.org

Also founder of the Wheelchair Foundation and Blackhawk Museum

By Allen Payton

Ken Behring, best known locally as the billionaire developer of Blackhawk and founder of the Blackhawk Museum in Contra Costa County, the former owner of the Seattle Seahawks, and the founder of the Wheelchair Foundation, died at the age of 91 on Tuesday night.

In a message posted on Facebook on Wednesday evening, June 26, 2019, his son, David Behring, wrote, “My father passed away peacefully last night at the age of 91. He was both a Lion and a Dragon and could not have lived a fuller life. He loved business, sports, travel, automobiles, family, adventure, life and helping others. His family and friends will deeply miss him and pledge to carry on his legacy. Our family is so appreciative of the hundreds of phone, text and email messages that have poured in today. I will write more reflections of him this weekend.”

Kenneth Eugene Behring was born in Freeport, Illinois on June 13, 1928. He grew up poor during the Depression era in Wisconsin and began working odd jobs at age seven. Yet, he ended up making the Forbes 400 list of richest Americans several times, and owning a jet plane, plus the NFL team.

A high-school football player, he received a partial football scholarship to the University of Wisconsin–Madison but, dropped out of college due to an injury that ended his football career, and making him ineligible for his scholarship.

Behring then worked as a salesman at a Chevrolet and Chrysler dealership and at 21, he started a used car business called Behring Motors in Monroe, Wisconsin. The young businessman was earning $50,000 a year and by age 27 had $1 million in assets.

His career as a real estate developer spanned four decades. Behring planned and developed communities in Florida, California, and Seattle. His company conceived and developed the entire city of Tamarac, Florida in the 1950’s which now has a population of over 60,000.

In 1972 he moved to California, where he is best known for planning and developing the renowned Blackhawk community near Danville, as well as the Canyon Lakes Development in San Ramon. In East County, his company Blackhawk Development built the Apple Hill Estates and Summerset communities in Brentwood.

In Seattle his company created Blakely Ridge, a planned community of 2,200-homes and Grande Ridge, a 2,500-acre commercial and residential development.

Behring was the author of two books, his autobiography in 2004, “The Road to Purpose” and in 2013, “The Road to Leadership”, in which he shares his own life experiences and the need for purpose in an individual’s life.

“I am a simple man who has lived a simple life and, in the process, learned a simple lesson,” he wrote in The Road to Leadership. “I was born poor. But I will die rich – with more money, in fact, than I ever imagined existed when I was a boy. By the world’s standards, I climbed aboard the American dream and rode it to the top, becoming a leader in business.”

“Yet as I look back on all my success, I realize that doing well financially is easy compared with achieving true success: finding a purpose in life beyond just making money. Purpose is something you achieve by giving your heart, time, love and money to providing a better life for mankind.”

And give back, he did.

After purchasing the Seattle Seahawks football team in 1988, Behring established the Seattle Seahawks Charitable Foundation in 1995, which benefited numerous children’s charities. The foundation was the most substantial donor to the Western Washington Muscular Dystrophy Association for many years.

On his birthday in 2000, Behring established the Wheelchair Foundation at a ceremony on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. To date, the organization has raised funds to pay for and distribute over one million wheelchairs to those with physical disabilities throughout the world.

Behring served on the boards of U.C. Berkeley, St. Mary’s College of California and Holy Names College. He also served as the president of the American Academy of Achievement. He has been honored as Man of the Year by Boys’ Town of Italy and the Mt. Diablo Foundation.

Behring actively contributed to the cultural community in California and the nation. He gained recognition through one of the largest and finest classic automobile collections in the world, housed in the Blackhawk Museum, in which some of the wings bear his name.

His contributions to the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. resulted in improvements to two of the museums. According to MuseumNetwork.com, in 1997 Behring donated $20 million for the National Museum of Natural History to update the mammal wing, which bears his name and which opened in the fall of 2003. Then, in 2000 Behring donated another $80 million which was purportedly the largest cash donation ever given to a U.S. museum by a living person. The gift enabled what is now known as the National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center to restore and update its permanent and temporary exhibits.

Also, in 2000, Behring donated $7.5 million to U.C. Berkeley, to expand the Principal Leadership Institute. The newly established Kenneth E. Behring Center for Educational Improvement focused on training programs for public-school principals, providing scholarships for fifty aspiring principals every year.

He established the Behring Global Education Foundation, which encompasses and coordinates all of his philanthropic efforts, including the Wheelchair Foundation, Operation Global Vision and the Safe Drinking Water Project and museum donations.

Behring is survived by his wife, Pat, whom he married at age 21, five sons, and as of 2018, ten grandchildren and two great grandchildren.

Operation Broken Heart results in child exploitation arrests in county

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By Scott Alonso, Public Information Officer, Contra Costa County District Attorney

Investigators with the Contra Costa County Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force recently participated in Operation Broken Heart, a nationwide effort to investigate technology facilitated crimes against children, including those who receive and distribute child pornography. Throughout April and May, the team conducted investigations of subjects who distributed child pornography over the internet and focused on individuals traveling to Contra Costa County to meet minors to engage in sexual activity.

In addition to the proactive investigations the ICAC team participated in, a significant school outreach program was also undertaken to teach parents and student about the risks associated with smartphones and social media. During the last year, investigators and prosecutors delivered presentations at multiple schools and community organizations, reaching thousands of parents, students and educators.

Some notable arrests and investigations conducted during Operation Broken Heart include:

-On April 11, 2019, Investigators arrested Gerald Jue of Danville, California. During the investigation, investigators learned Jue was accessing the internet and searching for child pornography. Jue is a third and fourth grade teacher in the Fremont School District. When a search warrant was served at Jue’s residence, a computer was seized that contained evidence of Jue’s internet searches as well as web pages containing child pornography. Jue was indicted by a federal Grand Jury in Oakland, Ca on June 6, 2019 and arrested on June 7, 2019. He was subsequently released on bond and is awaiting trial. This case was investigated by the ICAC Task Force and the United States Secret Service.

-On May 2, 2019, investigators arrested Sonny Mitchell, a registered sex offender from Antioch, California. During the course of the two-month investigation, it was discovered that Mitchell was distributing child pornography via the Facebook Messenger platform. When a search warrant was executed at Mitchell’s residence, investigators seized a device that contained additional images of child pornography. Mitchell was indicted by a federal Grand Jury in Oakland, California on May 9, 2019 and remains in custody. This case was investigated by the ICAC Task Force and the United States Secret Service.

-On May 3, 2019, investigators arrested William Cashell of Walnut Creek, California. In April 2019, Yahoo sent tips to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children when child pornography was found in Cashell’s e-mail account. During a warrant at Cashell’s apartment, investigators located an iPhone which was later determined to contain images of child pornography. Cashell’s is charged with one count of possession of child pornography by the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office and a warrant has been issued for his arrest. This case was investigated by the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office and the ICAC Task Force.

-On May 16, 2019, investigators executed a search warrant in the 2400 block of L Street in Antioch related to a child pornography possession investigation. ICAC Investigators found evidence the suspect, Henry Cordon, a 34-year-old resident of Antioch, California and formally of Orange Park, Florida, kept images of child pornography stored in his various e-mail accounts. Additionally, during the search warrant Cordon confessed to sexually assaulting a child under the age of ten in 2009 while living in Orange Park, Florida. Cordon produced at least one image of the sexual assault of that child. Cordon was indicted by a federal Grand Jury in Oakland, California on May 30, 2019 for Receipt and Possession of Child Pornography. Cordon remains in custody and is currently under investigation in both California and Florida for other offenses related to crimes against children. This case was investigated by the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office, the ICAC Task Force and Homeland Security Investigations.

The Silicon Valley Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force is managed by the San Jose Police Department. In Contra Costa County, detectives and investigators from the Walnut Creek, Concord and Moraga Police Departments, the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office, Contra Costa County Probation Department and Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office participate in the task force along with Special Agents from the United States Department of Homeland Security and the United States Secret Service.

Parents are encouraged to discuss online safety with their children and can visit the website www.kidsmartz.org for further information. If you believe your school or community organization would benefit from a smartphone and social media awareness presentation, please contact Senior Inspector Darryl Holcombe at dholcombe@contracostada.org.

 

Modesto gang member sentenced to over 16 years in prison for human trafficking in Contra Costa, other locations

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By Scott Alonso, Public Information Officer, Contra Costa District Attorney

On June 20, 2019, Timothy Townsel of Modesto, California was sentenced to 16 years 8 months in state prison for two felonies related to human trafficking of an adult and minor while a gang member. He was sentenced today by the Honorable Judge David Goldstein in Department 6. Townsel is a member of a gang based in Modesto – Family Over Everything (F.O.E.). Townsel will have to register as a sex offender for the rest of his adult life.

The case was investigated by the Concord Police Department with major participation from the Modesto Police Department, the Alameda Police Department, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, and the Contra Costa District Attorney’s Office. During the investigation at least four victims were identified as being exploited for sex trafficking by the defendant. One of the Jane Doe victims was under the age of 16.

“This case highlights the multi-agency anti-human trafficking initiative that our justice partners are employing to fight these heinous crimes in our County. Detective Gilfry’s tenacity in investigating what would have once been viewed as a routine prostitution bust is the reason this multi-jurisdictional human trafficker will no longer harm his victims,” stated Deputy District Attorney Jay Melaas. DDA Melaas is assigned to our Office’s Sexual Assault Unit and prosecuted the case on behalf of the People.

Townsel trafficked his victims in Las Vegas, Utah, Arizona and other parts of California. He took these victims to these areas to commit sex trafficking. Townsel was recruiting these victims from local high schools and middle schools in the Modesto area. A major break in the case came during a routine security check at the Best Western Motel in Concord, California when Concord Police Officers detained the trafficking victims for suspected prostitution activity.

Eventually Townsel was arrested in Santa Cruz, California last year after a five-month investigation led by Detective Joshua Gilfry of the Concord Police Department that established Townsel was profiting off his victims through manipulation, threats, and physical abuse. Our Office charged him with six felonies in September 2018. Once Townsel was arrested our Office’s Victim Witness Assistance Program provided victim services for those Jane Does involved.

If you or someone you know is being pressured to engage in prostitution to benefit or help support another person, help is only a phone call away. Contact Community Violence Solutions at 800-670-7273 to speak to a confidential counselor. Or visit the Contra Costa Family Justice Centers in Richmond or Concord to talk to a Navigator about a variety of services and support available right here in Contra Costa County. The Family Justice Centers are a family-friendly one-stop center serving victims of human trafficking, domestic violence and other types of interpersonal violence. No appointment is needed, and the centers are located at 256 24th Street in Richmond or 2151 Salvio St., Suite 201 in Concord.

To learn more about human trafficking in Contra Costa County, visit the Contra Costa Human Trafficking Coalition’s webpage at www.contracostacoalition.org

Case information: People v. Timothy Allen Townsel, Docket 01-187211-8

Coroner’s Jury finds death of Concord man in county jail was of natural causes

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By Jimmy Lee, Director of Public Affairs, Contra Costa County Office of the Sheriff

Sheriff-Coroner David O. Livingston announces that a Coroner’s Jury has reached a finding in the September 15, 2018 death of 61-year-old Dwight Dwayne Dunn of Concord while in custody at the county’s Martinez Detention Facility. The finding of the jury is that the death was the result of natural causes.

The Coroner’s Jury reached the verdict after hearing the testimony of witnesses called by the hearing officer Matthew Guichard.

A transient, Dunn was found unresponsive by a sheriff’s deputy conducting a room check at the jail. Fire crews and an ambulance responded, but he was later pronounced dead. An autopsy and toxicology tests were conducted. Dunn had been booked into jail on September 5 for a parole violation.

A Coroner’s Inquest, which Sheriff-Coroner Livingston convenes in fatal incidents involving peace officers, is a public hearing, during which a jury rules on the manner of a person’s death. Jury members can choose from the following four options when making their finding:

accident, suicide, natural causes, or at the hands of another person, other than by accident.

Northern Waterfront Economic Plan draws Supervisors MOU nod while study’s budget dwindles

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The Contra Costa County Northern Waterfront Initiative area and participating agencies.

Concerns, complaints about animal services

By Daniel Borsuk

The $500,000 planning study to ignite an economic renaissance designed to create 18,000 low-tech manufacturing jobs by 2035 along the county’s northern waterfront gained momentum Tuesday when the Board of Supervisors joined the city councils of Hercules and Pittsburg in approving a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on the major waterfront planning project. (See the Northern Waterfront Report)

Officials expect the city councils of Antioch, Brentwood, Martinez, and Oakley to soon adopt similar MOUs that have been prepared to permit jurisdictions to participate or not participate in joint projects that will generate jobs in the industries of food processing, clean tech, bio-tech/bio-medical, and advanced transportation fuels.

The county’s MOU also authorizes Department of Conservation and Development Director John Kopchik to file and obtain trademarks for “Northern Waterfront Economic Development Initiative” and “Capital of the Northern California Mega-Region” or similar phrases on behalf of the county.

District 4 Supervisor Karen Mitchoff cautioned colleagues over the planning project’s rising costs. The county awarded a $500,000 grant a year ago, but that amount has now dwindled to $94,500.

“I’d like to know how those funds are to be spent in the future,” she said.

Mitchoff forecast there will be competition from the Association of Bay Area Governments to pay for future regional planning studies that could potentially jeopardize funding for the waterfront project. “ABAG will give some push back,” warned Mitchoff, who represents the county on the ABAG board.

“There is going to be shared funding,” District 5 Supervisor Federal Glover of Pittsburg forecast about any potential planning funding tug-of-war with ABAG. Glover, who has been instrumental in launching the NWEP continued “I’m excited about what is happening.”

Glover mentioned Bombardier Transportation’s announcement last week to use an empty Pittsburg manufacturing site on Loveridge Road to assemble 775 new BART cars that will initially create 50 jobs.

“Right now, the economy is good so we need to invest in the Northern Waterfront Economic Development Initiative and create jobs,” said District 3 Supervisor Diane Burgis.

“This is something so critical to prepare a workforce that is ready to go,” said Vice Chair Candace Andersen of Danville.

Complaints Over Animal Services Staffing

When supervisors unanimously flashed the green light for Animal Services Director Beth Ward to award a $200,000 contract to Unconditional Dog to provide animal enrichment services at the county’s two shelters, supervisors got an earful of complaints from speakers about how the shelters are inadequately staffed by fulltime employees and volunteers.

Although the speakers did not specifically criticize the Unconditional Dog contract, they talked about the inadequate staffing levels at the Richmond and Pacheco shelters that can jeopardize the training and prospects of placing dogs in permanent and appropriate new homes.

“I’m not objecting about the contract,” said Wendy Wolf of Moraga. “The shelters have primarily a volunteer staff but, are now at a very low fulltime staffing level. This raises concerns about having a wellness training program for dogs.”

Supervisor Mitchoff said she recently met Animal Services Director Ward and criticized the department’s handling of the animal enrichment services contract transaction. “I believe this is a good contract,” she said.

Mitchoff said that the Finance Committee in September will review funding to increase staffing at the shelters. “I look forward to the Finance Committee meeting in September,” responded Animal Services Director Ward.

Finance Committee to Review City Contract for Animal Services

Under consent items, supervisors also referred to the Finance Committee a review of city contract fees for Animal Services that, over the past 14 years, the cities contract fees have increased by $3.92 per capita from $2.46 in fiscal year 2005-2006 to $6.38 for fiscal year 2019/2020. The actual cost to provide animal services should be $12.02 per capita for fiscal year 2019/2020. The only city it doesn’t affect is Antioch, which provides its own animal services.

Supervisors approve pay raises for Sheriff-Coroner, top commanders, new labor pact for Deputy Sheriffs

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Sheriff David O. Livingston

7.5% for Sheriff and 5% for top brass, then 5% annually for three more years

By Daniel Borsuk

Without asking one question, supervisors unanimously approved a salary boost for Sheriff-Coroner David Livingston and his top brass during their meeting on Tuesday, June 18, 2019. The proposed labor contract for rank and file deputies also received the supervisors’ approval

Except for a 7.5 percent wage increase for Sheriff-Coroner Livingston set to go into effect July, 1, 2019, he and his top commanders, including assistant sheriff-exempt, chief police-contract agency exempt, commander exempt and undersheriff exempt will receive 5 percent wage increases every July 1 in 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022, a memo from County Administrator David Twa states.

Twa said the salary increases will cost the county $177,000 in fiscal year 2019/2020, including $81,000 in benefit costs. The fiscal year 2020/2021 cost is $173,000, including $79,000 in benefit expenses. The fiscal year 2021/2022 cost is $181,000, including $85,000 in benefit costs, and the fiscal year 2022/2023 costs are $191,000, including $88,000 in benefit costs.

In a related matter, supervisors approved memorandums of understanding for new labor contracts between the Contra Costa County and Deputy Sheriffs Association Management Unit and Deputy Sheriffs Association Rank and File Unit. Collectively the two contracts will cost the county $6.57 million including $1.68 million in benefit costs for fiscal year 2019/2020, $13.14 million including $3.37 million in benefit costs for fiscal year 2020/2021; $19.71 million including $5.05 million in benefit costs for fiscal year 2021/2022; and $26.28 million including $6.64 million in benefit costs for fiscal year 2022/2023.