Adam Ortega with machete on Brentwood residents’ porch, Sat. morning April 11, 2020. Sheriff Livingston’s badge. Herald file photos.
By Jimmy Lee, Director of Public Affairs, Contra Costa County Office of the Sheriff
35-year-old Adam Ortega, a transient in Brentwood, was booked into the Martinez Detention Facility at about 10 AM on Friday, April 17, 2020. He was booked for the offenses requested by the Brentwood police, possession of a dangerous weapon and probation violation. (See related articles, here, here and here)
Because of the Judicial Council of California’s mandatory emergency rule of zero bail for misdemeanors and non-violent/non-serious felonies, both of the alleged offenses committed by Ortega were zero bail. He was later cite released. (See related article)
“I like most California Sheriffs believe the Judicial Council’s decision to implement $0 bail for a wide range of criminal offenses was irresponsible, unnecessary and an overreaction,” said Contra Costa County Sheriff David Livingston. “A state-wide solution to local issues is almost never good policy – that is certainly the case here. People who commit offenses against others should be held accountable, COVID-19 or not.”
There are numerous subjects incarcerated in Contra Costa County that were recently released back into society due to zero bail. Some of theses charges include kidnapping, robbery, domestic violence,,evading, battery and a variety of weapons charges. The list of charges are all serious felonies.Punishment and or the threat of jail time for committing crime in Contra Costa and In California is not a deterrent to criminal s
I agree. Contra Costa County needs a new Sheriff. Livingston and his deputies have been fairly lax on crime for years. . .
That they are “ familiar with this individual” and didn’t bother even booking him makes me extremely uncomfortable. They are paid by our taxes to uphold the law. If a man with a machete at 3:00 in the morning terrorizing a family isn’t against the law , what is? “ not a serious crime”? No wonder crime is on the rise.
Possibly this lays in the hands of our Governor who did a fine job of cleaning up the homeless problem in San Francisco.
Why people vote for politicians that are lax on our safety is beyond me. Could it be there are more criminals voting than law abiding citizens?
Just to clarify, it was the Brentwood Police Chief who said they were familiar with the suspect.
Plus, he was only charged with non-violent misdemeanors so the $0 bail automatically applied. Also, the case had not been brought to the District Attorney’s office, yet with a special request by the arresting officer requesting the court to add bail to that he could be placed in jail.
The Sheriff’s hands are tied by the decision of the state Judicial Council.
Please see our subsequent article about what the Sheriff had to say about this case and the $0 bail.
Thank you for reading the Herald!
Allen Payton
Publisher
The cause I’d pretty clear: https://www.cadem.org/