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Judge William McKinstry, a retired judge from Alameda County assigned to the Renato Hughes Jr. trial, granted defense attorney Stuart Hanlon's change of venue motion – the fourth such motion Hanlon has made this year, according to District Attorney Jon Hopkins.
“I'm still speechless,” said Hopkins late Thursday.
Even Hanlon admitted to being surprised, but said it was necessary because of the jury's exposure to the media.
He said 50 percent of those jurors seated had been exposed to media reports about the case.
“I'm really glad it happened,” Hanlon said of the venue change motion being granted.
Hughes is being tried under the provocative act theory for the murders of his friends, Rashad Williams and Christian Foster, who were shot to death by Shannon Edmonds as they ran from his home on Dec. 7, 2005.
Edmonds was not charged for the deaths of Williams and Foster, who – along with Hughes – were allegedly in his home to rob him. Hopkins told Lake County News in a Wednesday interview that former District Attorney Gary Luck didn't believe they could prove a case against Edmonds.
But the provocative act theory holds Hughes responsible because he took part in a crime that resulted in a lethal response – in this case, Edmonds' shooting of Hughes' two friends.
Judge makes decision after jury seated
McKinstry did not cite racial composition or media coverage as the basis of his decision, said Hopkins.
Rather, McKinstry granted the venue change based on the number of jurors excused for various causes, said Hopkins.
“He added up the number of challenges without any regard for what they were based on,” said Hopkins.
In the case of one prospective white male juror dismissed on Wednesday, that included religious beliefs, according to this reporter's courtroom observations.
McKinstry said the number of challenges “gave him a doubt as to whether there could be a fair trial,” Hopkins reported.
Hanlon, however, claimed McKinstry talked about media exposure and race issues in making his decision.
The issue of Lake County's small racial minority came out in the jury selection process, said Hanlon. The court originally issued 350 jury questionnaires, with most of the people being selected as prospective jurors have little or no contact with blacks.
The selection process, said Hanlon, “convinced the judge that this was not the right place for the trial.”
Hanlon said race impacted all of the factors the court needed to explore in making the decision, including the size of the community, the nature of the community and media coverage. “Race is not a separate factor, it's part of the whole mix.”
Earlier on Thursday, a jury had been seated after a three-week selection process, Hopkins reported. The jury consisted of seven women and five men. It was, mostly white but had some Hispanic members, although Hopkins did not have a precise number.
Those jurors will now be dismissed, said Hopkins.
“I thought the jurors that came in proved that they could be fair and impartial,” said Hopkins.
Hanlon said there is “nothing wrong” with Lake County. “I think many African Americans get a fair trial here given the nature of the charges.”
It will now be up the state Administrative Office of the Courts to choose three alternate counties where the trial can be held, Hopkins said.
The choice of counties will depend upon a variety of factors, including available facilities, the amount of publicity the case has received there and whether a judge is available to hear the case, said Hopkins. It's not yet been determined if McKinstry will stay with the case.
Hopkins suggested that the Bay Area's counties are off limits because of media coverage, with reports about the trial reaching even more people than those centered in Lake County.
The prosecution and defense will return to court Dec. 14 to find out if the Administrative Office of the Courts have selected three counties, said Hopkins. He said he couldn't be certain three counties would be chosen by that time.
Once they are chosen, however, there will be a hearing and “the judge makes the call” about where the trial will be held, said Hopkins.
Hanlon didn't say which county he thought the trial should go to.
However, he stated, “If we get to a county that has a more diverse makeup and population of people, we're going to win this trial.”
Hanlon said he is going to begin work on researching where the trial should be held, a matter he said he wasn't in a position to talk about at this point.
Exploring ways to keep the trial local
The county will have to pay a higher bill to try the case in another venue, said Hopkins, but just how much it will cost isn't known at this time.
Hopkins said he needs to explore what remedies might yet be available to him in keep the trial local.
He said there is the possibility that he could file a writ for review by the appellate court, seeking to keep Lake County as the venue.
“I'm not convinced that I'm going to do that at this point,” he said.
Saying he wants to get the trial done as soon as he can, Hopkins explained that if the trial is held in a nearby county and it won't cost Lake an excessive amount of money to move it there, he will likely go along with McKinstry's decision.
However, if it's likely to be moved much farther away at a greater expense, he may do the writ, he said.
“There are a lot of variables I've got to consider,” Hopkins added.
With the change of venue motion granted, the trial likely won't begin until early next year, Hopkins said.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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District Attorney Jon Hopkins reported Thursday afternoon that the main jury panel was seated, but that four alternates still needed to be selected.
Hughes, 23, is being tried for murder in the deaths of Rashad Williams and Christian Foster, who he was allegedly accompanying during a residential robbery in Clearlake Park on Dec. 7, 2005.
Williams and Foster were shot by homeowner Shannon Edmonds as they allegedly ran from his home. Hughes' presence with them caused him to be prosecuted under the provocative act theory, which holds him responsible for their deaths because he was allegedly taking part in a crime that could result in a lethal response.
With the jury seated, defense attorney Stuart Hanlon made a motion to have the trial moved from Lake County, said Hopkins.
On Wednesday, state officials with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People came to Lakeport to advocate for Hughes' release and a change of venue, as Lake County News has reported.
Also on Wednesday, NAACP attorney Stratton Barbee filed with visiting Judge William McKinstry an amicus brief in support of Hanlon's change of venue request.
Hopkins was set to begin his response to the change of venue motion at 1:30 p.m.
If the trial stays in Lake County, Hopkins said it will begin Tuesday, Nov. 27.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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The California Highway Patrol reported that live power lines were down across the roadway at Highway 29 and Murphy Springs Road at just after 8 p.m.
Lake County Sheriff's deputies, CHP, Pacific Gas & Electric and local firefighters responded, according to the logs. Cal Fire also was called but later canceled, according to Cal Fire's Incident Command Center.
At 8:23 p.m. sheriff's officials reported a fire had broken out in the area, according to the CHP logs.
At the same time, traffic was being routed around the closed roadway so that cars came out at Hidden Valley, according to the CHP.
CHP reported that the roadway had reopened by 9:23 p.m.
The downed power lines were caused by a tree falling into the lines a quarter-mile south of Murphy Springs Road at 7:55 p.m., said PG&E spokesman JD Guidi.
Approximately 58 customers were affected, Guidi said. Power was restored to all customers by about 10 p.m.
Harold LaBonte contributed to this report.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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California Highway Patrol Officer Adam Garcia reported that the crash took place at 7:37 a.m. Wednesday on Highway 20.
Andrew Colsen, 38, of Lakeport was driving a 1993 Jeep Wrangler eastbound on SR-20 west of Harvey Boulevard near Clearlake Oaks when the collision occurred, Garcia reported.
According to Garcia, Colsen continued traveling straight while in a right curve, which caused the Jeep to go off the north road edge and hit a tree.
Although Colsen was wearing his seatbelt, the shoulder harness was disconnected, causing him to strike the steering wheel with his chest, according to Garcia.
Colsen sustained major non-life threatening injuries, said Garcia, and was transported to Sutter Lakeside Hospital by Northshore Fire District rescue personnel.
Passengers Bruce Blair, 48, and Bill Galloway, 30, both of Nice, also sustained moderate to major injuries in this collision and were treated at Sutter Lakeside Hospital, Garcia reported.
Garcia said neither speed nor alcohol are believed to be a factor in the collision.
Officer Brendan Bach is investigating the incident, Garcia said.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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In a noon press conference on the courthouse steps, representatives of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People's (NAACP) California conference stated that no justice can be found in Lake County for 23-year-old Renato Hughes, who is being held responsible for the deaths of Christian Foster and Rashad Williams on Dec. 7, 2005.
The man who actually shot the two men as they allegedly ran from his home, Shannon Edmonds, has not been charged in the case. But Hughes is being tried under the provocative act legal theory, which holds him responsible for his friends' deaths because they were allegedly engaged in a crime – in this case a residential robbery – that could result in a lethal response.
NAACP is asking that Renato Hughes be released from custody and that his case be moved from Lake County.
Judy Hughes, Renato Hughes' mother, was also there to speak on behalf of her son. She also sat in on the lengthy jury selection process that continued throughout the day Wednesday.
Ken Nelson, president of the NAACP Richmond Branch, said the California State Conference of the NAACP unanimously voted Oct. 29 to advocate in the case.
“There is absolutely nowhere in America that this kind of situation should go on and not be addressed,” Nelson said. “Nowhere should someone be allowed to shoot and take the life of another human being and not be held accountable.”
The NAACP has dubbed Hughes, Foster and Williams the “Clearlake 3,” and compared them to the “Jena 6” of Jena, Louisiana. The Jena 6 are six black students charged with second-degree attempted murder in the wake of rising racial tensions at their high school.
“We believe this is worse than Jena 6, right here in Lake County, California,” said Nelson.
Nelson added, “We know that there is no way that Renato Hughes Jr. will receive a fair trial in Lake County.”
The NAACP filed an amicus brief in the Hughes case Wednesday in support of Hughes' case being moved out of the county.
District Attorney Jon Hopkins said in a late Wednesday interview that the brief is meant to support a motion to move the trial that Hanlon is expected to make – but hasn't yet done.
In addition, Nelson said the NAACP plans to file paperwork with the California Attorney General and the US Attorney General by week's end seeing charges be filed against Shannon Edmonds “for the violence we know he has committed.”
Nelson said they also are seeking an investigation by the California State Bar into possible prosecutorial misconduct on the part of Hopkins.
Ida Johnson, an officer of the state NAACP conference, said the pool of jurors did not represent Hughes' peers.
“There's nobody his color, there's nobody his age, there's nobody of his standing,” said Johnson. “Everybody that I saw in the pool was over 35.”
By the time the morning recess was called, the jurors seated in the jury box so far consisted of seven women and five men, all white, based on this reporter's observation of the proceedings.
Aqeela El-Amin Bakheit, president of the Lake County NAACP branch, said she had a “slightly different” view of the case, which she has followed since its beginning. El-Amin Bakheit has bee a fixture at court dates and also has visited Hughes in jail.
She said she wasn't going to talk about the local chapter's difference with the state. “We stand with the state conference. Our slight differences are not a big deal.”
The bigger issue, said El-Amin Bakheit, is justice.
“Wherever the trial is held, I just want to make sure the young man has a fair trial,” she said.
Just where the state NAACP wants the trial moved is unclear.
“We're looking for an area where we believe he will get a fair trial. Where that is, we'll leave that up to the attorneys,” said Nelson.
Hopkins: Come and see the evidence
Following Wednesday's jury selection session, Hopkins said that if the NAACP goes through with seeking to have the case moved, it won't be the first time.
The state NAACP has gone to the state attorney general twice with this case, once with former Attorney General Bill Lockyer and, after he left office, to his successor, Jerry Brown, Hopkins said.
After completely reviewing the case, including reading transcripts of the preliminary hearing, both Lockyer and Brown responded with letters declining to remove the case from Hopkins' office, he said.
The attorney general got involved again when defense attorney Stuart Hanlon made a recent motion to have Hopkins removed from the case, and the Attorney General's Office argued against that, too, said Hopkins.
“They've really had three times to have the Attorney General's Office say they see something wrong here and step in, and they haven't,” said Hopkins.
Responding to the allegations about his office's failure to prosecute Edmonds, Hopkins explained that the decision was made by Gary Luck, who Hopkins succeeded as district attorney late last year.
“Gary's view was that it was not something that could be proven,” said Hopkins.
To make the case stick, the District Attorney's Office would have had to prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, that Edmonds had not acted in defense of himself, his home or his family, said Hopkins. Luck considered all the evidence and concluded the case couldn't be made.
Hopkins invited anyone who has questions to come to the trial and listen to the evidence, which includes audio from a surveillance camera that picked up the alleged attack by Hughes, Foster and Williams in the Edmonds home.
During that attack, Dale Lafferty, the son of Edmonds' girlfriend, Lori Tyler, was bludgeoned with a baseball bat, which reportedly caused long-term disabilities, including brain injuries, according to previous statements by Hopkins.
It's that kind of evidence that Hopkins said he is using as the basis of his decision to push forward with the case.
Trials are the place for the kind of debate about motive and evidence that the NAACP is trying to carry on in the public arena, said Hopkins.
“It's kind of interesting to me that they don't believe in the jury trial system and they want to go on a personal attack because they can't get anywhere with the arguments they've been making,” he said.
Hopkins said the NAACP's statements show that they misunderstand Lake County and its makeup. And for Hopkins, who had thousands of black clients while a public defender in Los Angeles, their allegations about his unfairness to blacks is particularly troubling.
“It's a pretty sad commentary,” he said.
Just when the trial will get started is still up in the air, said Hopkins.
On Thursday jury questioning continues, he said. Although the jury could finally be seated on Thursday, he expects Hanlon could file a change of venue motion which will cause a pause in the proceedings.
Next week, the court is adjourned for Thanksgiving, said Hopkins, which means the trial's beginning – if it isn't subject to a venue change – could be another week out.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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BLM will host the meeting on the proposed cleanup plans for the Oat Hill Extension Mercury Mine near the Napa-Lake county line.
The public meeting will take place at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 14, at the Jesus Christ Fellowship Building, 21443 Pine St.
The Oat Hill Extension Mercury Mine, in the James Creek Watershed between Middletown and Calistoga, produced mercury from the 1870s until 1944, according to BLM.
According to a BLM report on the mine, the land to be cleaned consists of 25 acres of public lands administered by BLM. The site contains a mercury mine processing mill, a historic miner's cabin and approximately 500,000 tons of mercury mine wastes.
Because the tailings at the mine site have high levels of mercury, which can be dangerous to human, BLM reported that it closed the area to protect the public exposure to mercury and dangers, including mine shafts and unstable buildings.
David Lawler, abandoned mine lands coordinator in the California state BLM's Division of Energy and Minerals, said the mercury tailings at the site are eroding into James Creek.
James Creek, in turn, flows into Pope Creek and then into Putah Creek. From there, the water moves to Lake Berryessa and, ultimately, the Bay-Delta. He said BLM is trying to prevent the mercury from reaching those major state water sources downstream.
Lawler said the Oat Hill Extension Mine itself was a relatively small mine, producing about 1,000 flasks of mercury – or 76,000 pounds – during its operation.
Gary Sharpe, assistant field manager for the BLM’s Ukiah Field Office, said the Oat Hill Extension property is the site of the original mercury strike. The larger Oak Hill mine developed around it.
The main Oak Hill Mine, said Lawler, was the fifth largest mine in terms of production in California, and one of the largest in North American, producing 165,000 flasks of mercury.
The land BLM is proposing to clean up is surrounded by privately owned land, where the owners are doing some cleanup, said Lawler.
Another old mercury mine, the Corona mine, also is located nearby, Lawler said.
At Wednesday's meeting, Sharpe said BLM officials will explain the mercury contamination issues at the mine, describe removal alternatives, discuss engineering evaluations and present cost analysis information.
The BLM is seeking the community's input to help determine the best ways to contain and stabilize hazardous substances at the historic mine, Sharpe said. That input, along with the agency's technical expertise, with be used in the decision-making process.
Other agencies, including the Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Geologic Survey, the Department of Fish and Game, U.S. Fish and Wildlife and the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board will be involved in the decision making related to the cleanup effort, said Sharpe.
BLM has been evaluating the mine cleanup for about two years, said Sharpe, with a characterization and engineering report starting about a year ago.
A firm estimate on how much the cleanup will cost wasn't available, but Sharpe said some other mercury mine cleanups have ranged between $500,000 and $5 million.
Just how the cleanup will be conducted will be made at the state level, said Sharpe. “The decision ultimately will be made by BLM.”
That decision, he added, should be made within the next six months to a year.
“Mercury is a concern for a lot of people and a very difficult thing to control,” Sharpe said.
For the final engineering evaluation and cost analysis on the Oat Hill Extension mine, visit www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/fo/ukiah/Oat_Hill_EECA.html.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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