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Heather Valdez, 17, died Thursday afternoon after she was stabbed near her home in the area of Austin Drive near Mullen Avenue in Clearlake.
A short time later, Clearlake Police arrested 18-year-old Gabrielle Rachel Varney, who is being held in the Lake County Jail on a murder charge.
Both girls were juniors, completing their first year at Carlé High School in Lower Lake, a model continuation school which Principal Bill MacDougall called “a place of absolute peace.”
But that peace was shattered by Valdez's death Thursday.
“There's apparently been some type of feud between them for a couple of months,” said Lt. Mike Hermann of the Clearlake Police Department said of Valdez and Varney.
Both of the teens lived in the area where the incident is alleged to have taken place, said Hermann.
Hermann said Valdez and Varney got into an altercation. Varney allegedly had a knife on her and she pulled it out during the fight. She allegedly admitted to police that she stabbed Valdez.
People in the area saw bits and pieces of the incident, said Hermann. He said no one so far has claimed to have seen Valdez being stabbed, but they saw the fight and then saw her bleeding.
More students were interviewed Friday, and Hermann estimated the investigation shouldn't take long to complete.
Konocti Unified School District Superintendent Dr. Louise Nan said a four-member district grief crisis response team was deployed on Friday morning to work with students.
“We're working through the day,” said Nan, who added that it will be “quite a process” ahead for students and staff.
MacDougall, who next month will succeed Nan as the district's superintendent, said, “This is a tragedy not only for Carlé, our school district and our community, but it's absolutely devastated two families.”
Valdez and Varney had been friends, he said. “They were girlfriends, so there was that young girl tension that came on and off, but there was nothing that was way out of the ordinary that we could see.”
He added, “If there was anything physical, I never saw it.”
Students, however, have been bringing up incidents that they say took place between the girls as they open up to teachers and peers, he said.
MacDougall said many of his 10 staffers were on their way home when they got the news Thursday afternoon. The stabbing, according to police, took place just after 2 p.m.
All of the teachers came back to the school, where they assembled in MacDougall's office. He said at 6 p.m. he put out an automated call to notify students and their families of the tragedy. The staff remained together until about 7 p.m.
He said the first focus was to stop the rumors and get out the truth to students; the next step was to facilitate healing.
The school's annual field day had been planned for Friday, but that was canceled, MacDougall said.
Instead, when students arrived for school, they filled the school's central quad area with rose petals from the school rose bushes, and the 80 students, 10 staffers and the school's custodian came together – as a family – in a big circle, instinctively holding hands, to begin the healing process, MacDougall.
They shared stories of Valdez, who was a talented artist, said MacDougall.
Varney also is a good artist, and a member of the school's cadre of designers, said MacDougall.
They then shared a prayer by St. Francis of Assisi – which includes the words, “Make me an instrument of your peace; where there is hatred, let me sow love, where there is injury, pardon ...”
The school then moved into the rest of its day, said MacDougall, with the school psychologist taking some of the teens to the county park, and other students doing “the usual Carlé thing” – playing music and moving about their activities, but the air was much more somber.
MacDougall had to go to district negotiations, and when he came back after lunch, he could see the students had begun the process of healing and working through their understanding of what happened. But they still must move through the long grieving process.
The tragedy comes less than a week before Carlé High's graduation is scheduled to take place. MacDougall said commencement ceremonies will be held as scheduled beginning at 6 p.m. Wednesday, June 11.
As a community, the imperative is to bring happiness into the lives of its children, he explained.
The sense from the Carlé community, he added, is that “we have to make sure this never happens again.”
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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LAKEPORT – Cutting an imposing figure in his World War II-era Army uniform, Lakeport resident Bob Bartley was more than 5,000 miles and 64 years away from the beaches at Normandy, but looking at him gave a sense of what it might have been like on that frightening morning decades ago.
Bartley was at the Pearl Harbor Survivors Association's memorial mast in Library Park on Friday morning to pay respect to the soldiers who took part in the D-Day invasion.
Beginning on June 6, 1944, the invasion saw an estimated 160,000 Allied soldiers fight to gain a foothold in a Europe overwhelmed by Hitler's forces.
Bartley's green wool uniform included an ammunition belt and haversack which was many pounds short of the supply-laden, 90-pound packs US soldiers carried on their backs as they scrambled onto Omaha Beach.
The military's amphibious vehicles landed too far out in some cases, so men jumping into the sea found themselves up to their necks – or over their heads – with the packs on their backs and bullets whizzing by.
Many men drowned struggling under their packs. Accounts by survivors recount soldiers having to swim through corpses to get to land.
Bartley was a poignant figure in the short morning ceremony, meant to honor that day and what would turn out to be a masterstroke in the war – against overwhelming odds, mercurial weather and two months after hundreds of men died in Exercise Tiger, a practice run for the invasion carried out off the south coast of England near Slapton Sands.
“We're not here to celebrate it, we're here to commemorate it,” Ronnie Bogner, the master of ceremonies, explained of the D-Day anniversary event, held each year overlooking Clear Lake.
Pastor Mike Suski of Lakeport Christian Center led a prayer to bless the gathering. A native of Poland, the day had special meaning for Suski, who told the crowd that he was born in “Old Europe.”
During the ceremony, Bogner said that US casualties were highest among the US troops who landed at Normandy, because of Omaha and Utah beaches' treacherous conditions.
The American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars and Vietnam Veterans of America were on hand, and the colors of the US military branches were on display, as was the POW/MIA flag. On the memorial mast flew the “First Jack” (often called the “snake flag,” said Bogner, for its portrait of a snake and the words, “Don't tread on me”), the US flag and the Pearl Harbor Survivors Association flag.
Special guests seated in the audience's front row included Jim Harris of Lucerne, who was at Pearl Harbor and then D-Day three years later, aboard the destroyer USS McCook (DD 496), which helped destroy German positions used for firing on the soldiers landing on the beach. He was joined by fellow Pearl Harbor Survivor Walt Urmann, who served aboard the USS Blue; and Alice Darrow, widow of Dean Darrow, who was at Pearl Harbor aboard the USS West Virginia.
California Highway Patrol Commander Dane Hayward once again attended the ceremony, bringing with him several CHP officers, and Lakeport Police Chief Kevin Burke attended in full uniform.
Newly re-elected District 5 Supervisor Rob Brown was the guest speaker. Brown said he was born 16 years after the invasion, but was fortunate to be raised in Lake County, where veterans are valued.
He said he hopes future generations will learn to value their veterans.
Brown pointed to differences in the media coverage of World War II and the current war in Iraq. He quoted a World War II-era headline that asked, “Why doesn't Hitler quit?” Brown contrasted that with sentiment in today's media, which he said asks instead why the US doesn't quit.
“It's dependent on us to continue to support our troops,” Brown said.
He recognized efforts like Operation Tango Mike, founded by Ginny Craven – who was in attendance – for working to keep up soldiers' morale.
A bugler from the United Veterans Council's Military Funeral Honors Team played “Taps” as the US flag was lowered to half-staff for the remainder of the day in remembrance of the invasion.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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Renato Hughes, 23, will go on trial beginning Wednesday, June 11, in Martinez, District Attorney Jon Hopkins reported.
Jury selection wrapped up Friday, said Hopkins.
The minute the jury was selected, a young woman raised her hand and asked to be excused because a medical condition she has was being exacerbated by the proceedings, said Hopkins.
The judge granted the request, said Hopkins, which required he and defense attorney Stuart Hanlon to choose a new juror from among four alternates.
Opening statements are scheduled to begin Wednesday morning, said Hopkins.
He anticipates the trial wrapping up in the latter part of July.
Hughes is being tried for the murders of his two friends, Christian Foster and Rashad Williams, who were shot to death after allegedly breaking into Shannon Edmonds' Clearlake Park home on the morning of Dec. 7, 2005.
The case against Hughes alleges he and his two companions beat Edmonds, his girlfriend and her son severely as they tried to steal marijuana Edmonds claimed to have a medical prescription to use.
Edmonds reportedly shot Foster and Williams as they ran from the home, but Hughes is being tried for their deaths under the provocative act legal theory because he allegedly took part in a crime that could result in a lethal response – the shooting of his two companions.
The jury seated Friday actually is the second jury to be selected in the Hughes case.
Last Nov. 15, after a three-week jury selection in Lake County was completed and the jury seated, Judge William McKinstry, a retired Alameda County judge assigned to the case, granted Hanlon's change of venue motion. In his decision McKinstry cited the number of jurors excused for various reasons.
In January, Lake County Superior Court Judge Arthur Mann ruled the trial would move to Contra Costa after Hanlon and Hopkins mutually agreed to the venue.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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Christopher Griego, 31, of Tracy filed a lawsuit in Sonoma County Superior Court on Jan. 2 in which he alleged he was sexually abused as a child. However, in that initial filing he did not specifically name anyone, referring only to a “John Doe,” according to court documents.
On May 5, his attorney – Richard Simons of Hayward – filed an amended complaint naming the diocese and Lakeport priest Father Ted Oswald.
The diocese's attorney, Dan Galvin of Santa Rosa, said Griego is seeking just over $2.5 million in total damages – from psychological and emotional damages, to current and future medical expenses and earnings losses.
Galvin said the complaint was just recently served on the diocese, which plans to file a response.
Griego's suit alleges he was the victim of sexual abuse from 1988 to 1995 – during which time he was a Lakeport parishioner and an altar boy – and that the diocese failed to protect him.
The amended complaint states that in 2006 Griego discovered that his “psychological injuries and illnesses” resulted from childhood sexual abuse, but his allegations do not include specific incidents.
A number listed in the phone book for Griego was not in service. Simons didn't return a call seeking comment on Thursday.
Court records show the case is set to have a hearing on Aug. 14.
On Sunday, at the end of morning mass at Saint Mary Immaculate Church in Lakeport, Oswald told his parish about the accusations and said he would be taking a leave of absence, as Lake County News has reported.
Dierdre Frontczak, the diocese's spokesperson, said Oswald was placed on administrative leave as of Monday, which is standard procedure when such an allegation is made.
Oswald requested, and was granted, administrative leaves of absence from his chaplain posts at the Lakeport Police Department and the Lake County Sheriff's Office, officials in those agencies confirmed.
Saint Mary Immaculate's priest since 1988, Oswald told Lake County News this week that he is innocent and that he wants his day in civil court to resolve the matter. He said he hopes to return to his parish and go back to work.
Oswald also has reported that parishioners and friends continue to offer their support and encouragement.
Galvin said cases such as this typically come down to the alleged victim's word versus that of the alleged perpetrator.
“In this situation, the plaintiff claims he was sexually abused,” said Galvin. “The priest denies vehemently it ever happened.”
He added, “Credibility is, typically, the key in these cases.”
How long the case could take to resolve is hard to say, said Galvin. Civil discovery will look into the background of the individuals involved, and depositions could take months to complete.
Many such cases end up in mediation before they get to trial, Galvin said.
It's also not guaranteed that the case will make it through. “We have had several of these cases thrown out by the trial court based on statute of limitations defenses,” Galvin said.
However, Galvin will be up against a tough opponent in Simons.
The biography listed for him on the Web site for his firm – Furtado, Jaspovice and Simons – reports he has extensive experience representing clients who bring sexual abuse cases. He was co-counsel for more than 125 victims in Northern California cases where child sex abuse was alleged against priests or other clergy, and assisted in bringing in more than $150 million in settlements and awards.
Griego never reported his abuse allegations to the Lakeport Police Department, officials there confirmed this week. Lakeport Police has asked the District Attorney's Office to conduct an independent investigation into the allegations, which is in progress.
David Clohessy, national director of Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, based in St. Louis, said he didn't consider it unusual for Griego's case to have begun in the civil courts and not the criminal system.
People alleged to have been abused by an authority figure are likely to distrust other authority figures – such as police and other law enforcement, according to Clohessy, who said he is an abuse victim.
When cases such as this go through the civil process, Galvin asserted that the plaintiffs are looking for money.
Clohessy acknowledged that there have been some false accusations made against clergy members – with money a motivation for some – but said if a person's goal is to scam the court system, sexual abuse is the wrong claim to make, because church officials hire defense attorneys who “fight brutally and ruthlessly” to beat the cases in court.
Frontczak said Oswald went before the diocese's review board, where he maintained his innocence and denied Griego's allegations.
The review board assists in investigating initial reports and accusations against clergy, said Frontczak.
Griego also has been invited to the board, but Frontczak said she doesn't know if he will appear. Very often individuals bringing abuse allegations don't want to meet with the board, she added.
Clohessy said his group urges people making abuse allegations to think “long and hard” before going to church authorities, because the group believes the church will not act in the victims' best interest.
He said he finds it troubling that, in cases like Oswald's, people rally to a clergy member's cause rather than waiting to see what will be determined in court.
That reaction by church and community members, he maintained, will discourage other alleged abuse victims from coming forward.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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Richard Dowdle, 53, was once again denied parole by the Board of Prison Terms, according to Chief Deputy District Attorney Richard Hinchcliff, who attended the parole hearing to argue against Dowdle’s release.
The parole hearing was held on June 2 at Corcoran State Prison, located 240 miles southeast of Sacramento.
In August 1990 Judge Robert C. Crone sentenced Dowdle to life plus five years for the attempted murder of his girlfriend, Hinchcliff said. Current Superior Court Judge Richard Martin was the deputy district attorney who prosecuted Dowdle.
In January 1990, Dowdle was released from the Hill Road Jail in Lakeport after serving time on a domestic violence offense against his girlfriend, according to Hinchcliff.
When he returned to their residence on Emerald Drive in Kelseyville that day, Hinchcliff said Dowdle discovered that his girlfriend had moved her 17-year-old son and a friend of his into the residence to help pay rent.
Hinchcliff said Dowdle, who worked in The Geysers steam field as a driller and was a cross-dresser, was upset that there were “intruders” in the house. He stated that being a “roughneck” he would be too embarrassed to wear female clothing in front of the “intruders.”
Dowdle became angry and confronted the victim while she was in the bedroom with their baby daughter, and punched her, Hinchcliff explained. Dowdle then went into the kitchen, retrieved a butcher knife, and stabbed his girlfriend several times in the shoulder and abdomen. Her son helped her escape from the house.
When deputy sheriff’s arrived and entered the residence, they found that Dowdle had used the knife to cut his own throat and disembowel himself, according to Hinchcliff.
Hinchcliff said Dowdle initially became eligible for parole in May of 2000.
This was Dowdle’s fifth parole hearing since 1998, said Hinchcliff, who also attended the previous hearings to argue against parole.
Although Dowdle has obtained his GED and remained disciplinary free in prison, and may some day be granted parole, the parole commissioners agreed with Hinchcliff that Dowdle had not done enough in prison to address his alcohol abuse problem, his anger control problems or his psychiatric problems. They also found he had no concrete parole plans if he were released, and he still presents a substantial risk of danger to women if released from prison.
Hinchcliff said Dowdle's next parole hearing will take place in two years.
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Chief Deputy James Bauman of the Lake County Sheriff's reported that over the past Memorial Day weekend, the Lake County “Avoid the Three” DUI Task Force conducted a driving under the influence/driver's license checkpoint in the city of Clearlake and special saturation patrols in and around the cities of Clearlake and Lakeport.
The task force's objective, Bauman reported, is to detect and remove intoxicated or impaired drivers from Lake County streets and highways.
The checkpoint and saturation patrols were conducted by members of the Lake County Sheriff’s Office, the Lakeport and Clearlake Police Departments, and the California Highway Patrol, said Bauman.
Eleven officers operated the DUI checkpoint on May 23 from 8 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. in the city of Clearlake, Bauman reported.
Of the 391 vehicles screened during the checkpoint, he said two arrests were made for DUI, 10 arrests were made for other misdemeanor violations, 15 citations were issued and nine vehicles were impounded.
The DUI task force conducted five saturation patrols in and around the cities of Lakeport and Clearlake from May 24 through May 26, according to Bauman. The increased patrols resulted in a total of 149 vehicle stops in which 25 field sobriety tests were conducted, nine DUI arrests were made, 17 other misdemeanor or felony arrests were made and seven vehicles were impounded.
The DUI Task Force is planning additional checkpoints and saturation patrols for the upcoming Independence Day weekend in July, and the Labor Day weekend in August, Bauman reported.
Funding for the “Avoid” program is provided through a grant managed by the Lake County Sheriff’s Office and provided by the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Safety Administration.
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