Category Archives: Crime

Articles, Crime, Local Government

Hooper Pleads No Contest to DUI With Injury; Plea Bargain Would Reduce Charge To Misdemeanor

2 Comments
Hooper | LinkedIn

Thumbnail photo: Randy Hooper’s hit and run and DUI charges stem from a collision that took place near Sand Mine Road and U.S. 101 on April 19. | Photo by Heather Polen.

Randy Hooper pleaded no contest to felony DUI causing injury as part of a plea bargain that would reduce the charge to a misdemeanor if he follows its terms, attorney Keith Morris told Redwood Voice Community News on Tuesday.

Del Norte County’s assistant county administrative officer changed his plea on Oct. 9 and will be formally sentenced in November, said Morris, who prosecuted the case on behalf of the California Attorney General’s Office.

If the judge approves the plea deal, Hooper will be required to finish the Humboldt Addictions Services Program (HASP) for DUI offenders, attend two Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, showing proof of attendance, and “obey all laws,” Morris said. Hooper will have six months from Oct. 9 to meet the terms of the plea bargain.

Continue reading Hooper Pleads No Contest to DUI With Injury; Plea Bargain Would Reduce Charge To Misdemeanor →
Articles, Crime, Local Government

Hooper Pleads Not Guilty to Felony Hit & Run, DUI; Trial Set For October

Leave a comment
Hooper |LinkedIn

Thumbnail photo: Randy Hooper’s hit and run and DUI charges stem from a collision that took place near Sand Mine Road and U.S. 101 on April 19. | Photo by Heather Polen.

Assistant County Administrative Officer Randy Hooper pleaded not guilty to felony DUI and hit and run charges on Tuesday.

Hooper was arraigned before Del Norte County Superior Court Judge William Follett, according to Keith Morris, who is prosecuting the case for the California Attorney General’s office. Follett set a jury trial for Oct. 27 through 30, Morris told Redwood Voice Community News on Wednesday.

Hooper entered his not guilty plea via his attorney, George Mavris, according to Morris. About two weeks prior, Mavris unsuccessfully petitioned Judge Karen Olson to reduce Hooper’s charges from felonies to misdemeanors. 

Continue reading Hooper Pleads Not Guilty to Felony Hit & Run, DUI; Trial Set For October →
Articles, Crime, Law

Del Norte County Sheriff Speaks Out On Randy Hooper Character Reference, Says He Disagrees With How It Was Used

1 Comment

Thumbnail photo: Randy Hooper’s felony hit-and-run and DUI charges stem from a collision that occurred at Sand Mine Road and U.S. 101 on April 19. | Photo by Heather Polen

Though he provided a character reference for Randy Hooper, who faces felony hit-and-run and DUI charges, Del Norte County Sheriff Garrett Scott said he disagrees with how it was used during an Aug. 26 preliminary hearing.

In an email to Redwood Voice Community News on Aug. 27, Scott said he did not support efforts by George Mavris, Hooper’s attorney, to reduce his client’s charges from felonies to misdemeanors. Scott said he also refrained from using his title when signing the character reference, though he acknowledges that he “inherits the title.”

He said he also took issue with a comment prosecuting attorney Keith Morris made during the hearing, that he was “disappointed that a sitting sheriff submitted a letter.”

Continue reading Del Norte County Sheriff Speaks Out On Randy Hooper Character Reference, Says He Disagrees With How It Was Used →
Articles, Crime, Local Government

Judge Denies Motion To Reduce Del Norte ACAO’s Hit & Run, DUI Charges; Hooper Allegedly Had 0.198 BAC, CHP Officer Testifies

1 Comment

Thumbnail photo by Heather Polen

Hooper | Courtesy LinkedIn

After viewing video footage from Elk Valley Casino and hearing from the alleged victim in the case, a Del Norte County Judge denied a motion to reduce hit and run and driving under the influence charges against County Administrative Officer Randy Hooper from felonies to misdemeanors.

During a preliminary hearing on Tuesday, Judge Karen Olson said it would be up to the people to decide whether the charges against Hooper should be reduced. 

“[It’s] not in the interest of justice,” Olson said. “Accountability and justice go hand-in-hand regardless of how many Board of Supervisor members or sheriffs you know. This is not a core issue of the case. Reducing charges may occur in the future, but that is on the people.”

Continue reading Judge Denies Motion To Reduce Del Norte ACAO’s Hit & Run, DUI Charges; Hooper Allegedly Had 0.198 BAC, CHP Officer Testifies →
Articles, Crescent City, Crime, Emergencies, Law

Three Children Are Safe After Law Enforcement Arrest Male Suspect Following Hours-Long Standoff

Leave a comment

Thumbnail photo: Law enforcement with the Crescent City Police Department, Del Norte County Sheriff’s Office, Pelican Bay State Prison’s CERT Team and others secure the scene after an hours-long standoff ended with four children being taken into protective custody and a male and female suspect arrested. | Photo by Heather Polen

Four children are in protective custody Monday evening after officers from multiple agencies engaged in a standoff with a 50-year-old man that lasted more than seven hours.

Three of the youngsters, ages 1, 2 and 4, were in the Crescent City apartment with Robert William Thraen when officers responded to the area to conduct a welfare check at about 10:30 a.m., Police Chief Richard Griffin told Redwood Voice Community News. 

Griffin said they were able to get the children to safety and arrest the suspect after he decided to have his officers break the window to open the front door — a technique he called a breach and hold. 

Continue reading Three Children Are Safe After Law Enforcement Arrest Male Suspect Following Hours-Long Standoff →
Articles, Crescent City, Crime, Curry

CCPD Helps Curry County Sheriff Apprehend Man Suspected Of Abusing Children

Leave a comment

Thumbnail photo by Ken Lund via Wikimedia Commons. Creative Commons License

Crescent City Police Chief Richard Griffin credited the purchase of a Cellebrite Forensic Analyzer for being able to help the Curry County Sheriff’s Office track down a Texas man suspected of abusing children.

Appearing before the Crescent City Council on Monday, Griffin said that Curry County Sheriff John Ward had posted a press release to his agency’s Facebook page, thanking Crescent City for helping with the forensics in a recent Internet Crimes Against Children Taskforce case.

According to Ward’s press release, he and Sgt. Zane Van Zelf arrested 32-year-old Matthew Arthur Anderson at his home in the central part of Curry County on Aug. 7. Gold Beach Police Sgt. David Vershall assisted them.

Continue reading CCPD Helps Curry County Sheriff Apprehend Man Suspected Of Abusing Children →
Articles, Crime, Law

Elder Suspect In May 28 Shooting Near Safeway Is Sentenced; Son’s Case Continues Through Juvenile Court, DA Says

Leave a comment

Thumbnail: Russell Walters Jr. and Russell Walters Sr. | Photo courtesy Crescent City Police Department

While his son continues to go through the legal system, Russell Walters Sr. will be out on probation soon, Del Norte County District Attorney Katherine Micks confirmed.

Walters pleaded guilty to accessory after the fact for helping his son, 17-year-old Russell Walters Jr., evade arrest following a shooting at the Jedediah Smith Shopping Center on May 28, Micks told Redwood Voice Community News on Tuesday.

There was no viable evidence to support additional charges against Walters Sr., the district attorney said. 

Continue reading Elder Suspect In May 28 Shooting Near Safeway Is Sentenced; Son’s Case Continues Through Juvenile Court, DA Says →
Articles, Crime, Prison

Pelican Bay Inmate Who Escaped Minimum-Security Facility Is Back In Custody

Leave a comment

Thumbnail photo: Jamie R. Watson | Courtesy of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation

A 40-year-old Pelican Bay State Prison inmate is back in custody after he was reported missing from the minimum security facility at about 11:50 p.m. Friday.

Sheriff’s deputies arrested 40-year-old Jamie R. Watson at about 7:12 a.m. Saturday, Del Norte County Sheriff Garrett Scott told Redwood Voice Community News. According to the sheriff, Watson was spotted on Mud Hen Road near Lower Lake Road. The sheriff’s office arrested Watson and took him to the Del Norte County Jail before turning him back over to Pelican Bay authorities, Scott said.

“It sounded like the guy had an injured ankle so he couldn’t get away easily,” the sheriff said. “He was apprehended and the sheriff’s office took him back to Pelican Bay.”

Continue reading Pelican Bay Inmate Who Escaped Minimum-Security Facility Is Back In Custody →
Articles, Crime, Curry

Curry County Woman Sues Gold Beach, Says Officer Used Excessive Force After Shooting Her Twice During A Traffic Stop

Leave a comment

Thumbnail image courtesy of the Gold Beach Police Department

A Curry County woman is suing the City of Gold Beach and one of its police officers, alleging that the officer, Kenneth Moore, exercised excessive force when he shot her twice during a traffic stop on Jan. 23, 2024.

Sharon Johnston-Corson sustained two bullet wounds in her shoulder, according to the complaint filed on her behalf in the United States District Court in Medford on Wednesday. One of those shots caused a pulmonary contusion and resulted in bullet fragments being lodged inside her left lung. 

The complaint also states that after shooting her, Moore pulled Johnston-Corson out of her Subaru and forced her face-down on the ground to handcuff her in violation of Gold Beach Police Department policy stating that “individuals subject to force ‘should not be placed on their stomachs for an extended period of time as this could impair their ability to breathe.’” 

Continue reading Curry County Woman Sues Gold Beach, Says Officer Used Excessive Force After Shooting Her Twice During A Traffic Stop →
Alerts, Crime, Law

DNSO Releases Name Of Subject Killed In Friday’s Officer-Involved Shooting

Leave a comment

Thumbnail photo by Heather Polen

The Del Norte County Sheriff’s Office has released the name of the male subject who was shot by a California Highway Patrol officer near the Crescent City Harbor and pronounced dead at Sutter Coast Hospital on Friday.

The deceased is 44-year-old Patrick George Selvage, Del Norte County Sheriff Garrett Scott told Redwood Voice Community News on Tuesday.

A Del Norte County Sheriff’s deputy and two California Highway Patrol officers were dispatched to Anchor Way west of U.S. 101 for a report of a male subject covered in blood at about 10:55 a.m.

Continue reading DNSO Releases Name Of Subject Killed In Friday’s Officer-Involved Shooting →