Category Archives: Benicia CA

Sacramento judge: Benicia Suspect in NorCal Rapist case to go to trial

By Vicki Gonzalez, KCRA TV3, 6:30 PM PST Jan 29, 2020
Former Benicia resident Roy Charles Waller, suspected NorCal Rapist

SACRAMENTO, Calif. —A man accused of being the so-called NorCal Rapist was ordered Wednesday to face trial on charges that he assaulted at least nine women in their homes, sometimes for hours.

Roy Charles Waller is facing dozens of felony charges — including rape and kidnapping — over a 15-year period between 1991 and 2006.

The judge ruled there was enough evidence presented during the preliminary hearings to try Waller. If convicted, Waller faces up to life in prison.

The 60-year-old, a former UC Berkeley employee living in Benicia, is facing 46 charges. The charges involve at least nine women across six counties — Sonoma, Contra Costa, Solano, Butte, Yolo and Sacramento.

Waller was arrested in September 2018, more than a decade after the NorCal Rapist’s most recent crime because of advancements in DNA technology. Those advancements also led to the arrest of Joseph DeAngelo in the East Area Rapist case.

Prosecutors said DNA from a drinking straw connected Waller to eight of the women — and a connection to the ninth came from a surveillance photo allegedly showing Waller using the woman’s ATM card.

Prosecutors argue the assaults had a similar M.O. The women were mostly of Asian descent, tied to the bed with their eyes taped shut. The assaults would take place over the course of hours, and the rapist often would caress, kiss and cuddle the bound women.

He would also steal valuables, like jewelry or an ATM card, before leaving, prosecutors said.

The focus in court Wednesday was granular. The defense and prosecutors argued over nuances of lesser charges or special circumstances, such as kidnapping and extortion, because laws surrounding the charges were amended over the time period of these crimes.

“He is innocent unless the DA can prove to 12 citizens of our community that in fact he committed his crimes,” Waller’s attorney Joseph Farina said. “There’s still lots to do in this case. We’re really at the beginning. There is so much discovery, so many police reports, so much evidence.”

“There is still a lot of work to do,” Farina added. “We’re not prepared to go to trial at this point.”

Waller pleaded not guilty and is being held on no bail.

Benicia and Vallejo – Solano County Supervisor Candidates’ Forums and Links

Find out about Solano County Supervisor candidates – Vote on March 3!

” All Vallejo Candidates” Forum
Wednesday, Feb. 5, 7pm
Anchor Center

355 Georgia Street, Vallejo

Solano County Board of Supervisor Candidates’ Forum for candidates from Districts 1 AND District 2.  Candidates attending:

Co-sponsored by League of Women Voters of Solano County and the Vallejo Alumnae Chapter of the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority.


[…previously…] Candidates’ Forum
Wednesday January 29, 7pm
The Benicia Library
250 East L Street, Benicia

Come hear from District 2 County Supervisor candidates:

…,at the 7pm forum Wednesday night at the Benicia Library. Co-sponsored by the League of Women Voters Solano County and the Vallejo-Benicia AAUW.



 


Times-Herald: Benicia City Council votes against district elections

Vallejo Times-Herald, by John Glidden, January 22, 2020

BENICIA — District elections won’t be coming to Benicia anytime soon.

The Benicia City Council voted 4-1 Tuesday night to keep its current election format in which the mayor and four councilmembers are elected by voters across the city.

City Attorney Benjamin Stock sought direction to see if the council desired to change its election format to district-based meaning each councilmember would represent a portion of the city and be elected by residents in that particular area.

“I think this is a very bad idea for the city,” councilman Steve Young said during the discussion about district-based elections. “I think there is no rational reason to move toward district elections. I would like to certainly wait until somebody make a persuasive argument that we’re in violation of the voter’s right act before we take some radical change that completely changes how we elect city councilmembers.”

In recent years, municipalities across the state, including Solano County, have received demand letters stating that the the at-large election method they use violates the California Voting Rights Act (CVRA) because it “impairs the ability of a protected class to elect candidates of its choice or its ability to influence the outcome of an election.”

Stock said Benicia has yet to receive such a letter, but with the school district transitioning to district elections, he thought it was a good time to explore if the council wished to follow suit.

“The fact that we’re raising the issue now has more to do with the environment we find ourselves in with our neighboring jurisdictions having transitioned and our school district recently transitioned,” Stock told the council. “No one here is somehow endorsing the value of transitioning to a district-based election as somehow being a better form of an election system.”

He presented three options for the five-person council to consider: Immediately switch to district-based elections for the November 2020 elections, change to district-based elections following the 2020 Census, or not switch to district elections.

The city of Vallejo received such a demand letter in September 2018 from Southern California-based lawyer Kevin Shenkman, who argued the city’s at-large council election format violated the California Voting Rights Act (CVRA) because there were no African American or Latino/a councilmembers.

The council eventually selected a new district map, which divides the city into six districts – with a councilmember in each district. The mayor will continue to be elected by the entire city.

Much of the discussion centered around costs to challenging a demand letter. By switching to district-based elections, Vallejo paid Shenkman $30,000. Other municipalities that have challenged Shenkman have all lost and have been forced to pay attorney’s fees in the millions.

Councilman Lionel Largaespada asked if the city council defend itself if it decided to fight a demand letter.

City Manager Lorie Tinfow said with a $44 million general fund, spending $1 million would be “a relatively large percentage of our total general fund budget.”

Vice Mayor Christina Strawbridge, the lone ‘no’ vote, said she had some concerns about the city being exposed to a challenge letter without knowing the total costs.

She also said that she doesn’t support district elections, but Strawbridge noted that as an elected official she is required to uphold the law.

“If we’re disenfranchising anybody out there – I have a real concern about that,” she said.

Largaespada said he was “torn” about transitioning to district elections, while Mayor Elizabeth Patterson said the best defense Benicia could use is getting more information and not rush into anything for the 2020 election. Patterson further said she wasn’t convinced districts would solve any disenfranchisement issues.

The maker of the motion, longtime councilman Tom Campbell, said he wanted Benicia to connect with other cities, in size and demographics, to lobby the legislature about fighting the CVRA.

He admitted that Tuesday’s vote makes Benicia a target for a demand letter.

“For a city like Benicia is diverse but at the same time, it also doesn’t have these little sort of ghettos or barrios or whatever you want to say that would constitute something where we are  disenfranchising some group,” Campbell added.

BREAKING: Benicia City Council votes to continue At-Large elections

By Roger Straw, January 22, 2020

4-1 vote: Young, Campbell, Largaespada and Patterson YES, Strawbridge NO

Late last night, Benicia resident Judi Sullivan reported:

“…For those who weren’t there or didn’t watch the vote, it was four to one to keep the ‘at large’ elections instead of switching to district ones mandated by the state for reasons not seen to apply to our population.
An additional caveat was added to this vote, which was to connect with other common cause cities in the state who have similar smaller populations and demographics which don’t fit the state’s mandated purpose for switching to district elections.
Public Comments were strongly in support of continuing with ‘at large’ elections.
City Council members Tom Campbell, Steve Young,  Lionel Largaespada and Mayor Elizabeth Patterson voted to uphold “at large” elections with Vice Mayor Christina Strawbridge voting against this choice.”

The video of January 21 Council meeting, including citizen comments, Council discussion and vote can be viewed on video at the City of Benicia website.  [This item begins at minute 24:30 of the video.]