Category Archives: Benicia

Benicia, NorCal Rapist, Sexual assault

Latest on Sacramento trial of Benicia man accused of being NorCal Rapist

‘NorCal Rapist’ Roy Charles Waller – trial continues with Sacramento victims testifying

KCRA3 Sacramento, By Vicki Gonzalez, November 2, 2020

SACRAMENTO, Calif. —The third week of the “NorCal Rapist” trial began with Sacramento victims testifying on Monday.

Roy Charles Waller, 60, faces 46 counts — including rape and kidnapping — for crimes committed between 1991 and 2006.

The charges involve nine women across six counties — Sonoma, Contra Costa, Solano, Butte, Yolo and Sacramento.

[Warning: The testimony may be too graphic for some.]

Monday included testimony from a former UC Davis Medical Center nurse practitioner who conducted a sexual assault exam on the Davis survivor in 2000. The then 21-year-old referred to as “C. Doe” was admitted to the emergency room with pieces of duct tape on her ankles and duct tape residue on her mouth.

However, the majority of trial Monday focused on two roommates raped in Natomas in 2006 — referred to as “Y. Doe” and “K. Doe.”

“Y. Doe” began her testimony by recalling that she came home late at night and saw an unknown SUV parked in the garage next her roommate’s vehicle. When she entered the home, the suspect jumped at her and pushed her to the bedroom at gunpoint.

“’Don’t do anything stupid. I just want some money,’” Y. Doe testified. “I was really, really scared for my life.”

When she entered the bedroom, K. Doe was lying face down on the bed covered with a towel. She was duct-tapped on her eyes, mouth, wrist and ankles.

“Really afraid of him, yes,” Y. Doe testified. “I don’t want to piss him off. I just want him to take the money and go.”

Y. Doe was bound as well and carried to the closet in the bathroom, where she testified the suspect began sexually assaulting her.

“He told me he had a gun and his car was stolen. He had nothing to lose,” she testified. “I feel so violated and so scared for my life.”

Y. Doe said both she and her roommate eventually laid side-by-side on the bed and the suspect raped both of them repeatedly, going back and forth between them and the living room where he looked for items to potentially steal.

“I didn’t even want to cry because I didn’t want him to know I was suffering and get him excited,” Y. Doe testified. “At one point, he kissed my mouth over the duct tape.”

He washed both women off in separate bathtubs before putting them back on the bed and leaving.

“At one point, he mentioned, ‘Don’t call the police,’” Y. Doe testified. “He said he has been watching me for a while.”

When she broke free, she found $200, her driver’s license and ATM card stolen, as well as a picture of herself in her wallet missing. Y. Doe also believes the suspect stole her camera and took photos of her naked before leaving.

Waller, a former UC Berkeley employee living in Benicia, was arrested in September 2018. Investigators credit advancements in DNA genealogy that also led to the arrest and conviction of Joseph DeAngelo, known as the “Golden State Killer.”

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

Prosecutors argue the assaults had a similar modus operandi. The women were tied to the bed with their eyes taped shut. The assaults would take place over the course of hours, and the suspect would caress, kiss and cuddle the bound women. He would also steal valuables, like jewelry or an ATM card, before leaving.

Waller pleaded not guilty to the charges and faces life in prison. The trial began Oct. 19 and is scheduled to last through December.

*** If you or someone you know needs help, you can call the national sexual assault hotline at 1-800-656-4673 or you can chat online here. ***

#VOTE, 2020 elections, 2020 Presidential campaigns, Benicia, Benicia elections, Solano County CA, Solano County Registrar of Voters

In Benicia and Solano County new voters can REGISTER TO VOTE now or anytime, even at your polling place on Nov. 3

From “City of Benicia This Week” newsletter, October 26, 2020

Latest info from Solano County Registrar of Voters

The Solano County Registrar of Voters (ROV) is reminding residents that Tuesday, October 27 is the last day the ROV can mail ballots to voters for the November 3 General Election. Voters who have not yet received a ballot for this election should contact the ROV by or before Tuesday.

“Starting back on Monday, October 5, we’ve been busy mailing out ballots to the more than 258,000 registered voters here in Solano County,” said Tim Flanagan, Solano County Chief Information Officer and Registrar of Voters. “I want to remind everyone that after next Tuesday, October 27, all ballots must be picked up in-person at the Registrar of Voters Office or at a polling place on Election Day.”

The ROV has extended its office hours on Saturday, October 24 and Saturday, October 31 from 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. to give voters additional time to register to vote. Voters who are still not registered by Election Day can visit any polling location for same-day registration, giving them the option to participate in the General Election.

The ROV encourages voters to take advantage of NO-CONTACT VOTING OPTIONS by using one of 16 secure ballot boxes located throughout the County. Starting on Thursday, October 29, an additional 10 curbside ballot drop-off locations will open, allowing voters a convenient and safe way to drop off their ballots. For more information, including ballot box and curbside drop-off locations, visit the ROV website at www.SolanoCounty.com/Elections and click the “Ballot Drop-Off Sites” and Curbside Drop-Off Sites links.

Early Voting is available at the Registrar of Voter’s Office, located at the Solano County Administration Center, 675 Texas St, Suite 2600, in Fairfield.

Details on voting options, polling locations and key election dates are all available on the Registrar of Voter’s website, www.SolanoCounty.com/Elections, by email at Elections@SolanoCounty.com and by phone at 707.784.6675.

Benicia, Coronavirus, Covid 19, Marin County CA, Napa County CA, Solano County CA

Should Benicia and Solano impose fines on COVID violators like Napa and Marin?

Coronavirus: Marin County votes to impose fines on violators of public health orders

Individuals can be fined up to $500 and businesses up to $10,000 — but the goal is to be educational, not punitive
A man leaves a restaurant with a take-out order in between outdoor eating tables at City Plaza on Fourth Street in San Rafael, Calif. on Wednesday, May 27, 2020. (Sherry LaVars/Marin Independent Journal)
Mercury News, by Evan Webeck, July 22, 2020

Another North Bay county has the newfangled authority to fine anyone not wearing a mask or complying with social distancing protocols.

The Marin County Board of Supervisors approved a temporary measure to make violations of public health orders punishable by administrative fines, following in the footsteps of officials in Napa County, who put a similar measure in place last week.

The move authorizes city and county employees, as well as police officers, to cite businesses and individuals not complying with the orders, though the priority is first to intervene and educate. Depending on the severity and frequency of the violations, individuals can face fines between $25 and $500, while businesses can be fined between $250 and $10,000.

The policy suggests a “grace period” of up to 72 hours before an enforcement officer would issue a fine, but it doesn’t prevent a citation from being issued on the spot. It also does not eliminate the misdemeanor penalty that such violations were originally categorized as, but supervisors said that enforcement mechanism had rarely been used.

Officials’ goal is to move public health citations out of the lengthy legal system and allow to enforce the orders without levying a misdemeanor the heftier financial penalty that accompanies it.

“It was a pretty steep fine that police officers were reluctant to give,” County Administrator Matthew Hymel said during the virtual board meeting. “A lower-level fine, they’re more comfortable giving that out.”

In a staff report sent to the board recommending the measure, officials also emphasized Gov. Gavin Newsom’s threat to withhold federal stimulus funds — up to $26.5 million from Marin County — from counties that don’t follow the state guidelines.

The county also recently launched a new email address that residents can send complaints about businesses violating the public health orders. Supervisors said they had received about 60 responses since the tool launched last week.

The public can submit complaints to SIPViolation@MarinCounty.gov.

Benicia, Coronavirus, Covid 19, Solano County CA

ALERT: 7 new coronavirus cases and Solano County’s FIRST DEATH

UPDATE: See today’s latest information

Thursday, April 2, 2020

Solano County Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Updates and Resources, April 1, 2020.  Check out basic information in this screenshot. IMPORTANT: Note the County’s interactive page has more.  On the County website, you can click on “Number of cases” and then hover over the charts for detailed information.

Yesterday:

Summary:

Solano County reported 7 NEW POSITIVE CASES today – total is now 61.  Today Solano County reported its FIRST DEATH.

As of today, 69 percent of positive cases were individuals between the ages of 19 and 64, and 31 percent were 65 were older.  23 of these are active cases (4 more than yesterday), and 22 of the total cases have resulted in hospitalizations (4 more than yesterday). The first reported case in Solano County was in Vacaville in February, which was also the first reported case in the United States of someone contracting the virus without having traveled abroad or knowingly come into contact with someone who tested positive.

Check out basic information in the screenshots here on Benicia Independent.  IMPORTANT: Note the County’s interactive page has more.  On the County website, you can click on “Number of cases” and then hover over the charts for detailed information.

The chart at right, “Cumulative number of cases…” gives a clear picture of the infection’s trajectory in Solano County.  Our coronavirus data curve is on a steep upward trajectory.  Everyone stay home and be safe!

Note:

Solano staff refuses to divulge WHERE in the County the positive cases reside.