Recently in San Bernardino County Category

After a six-month investigation, sheriff's detectives have arrested a man and woman from Apple Valley in the shooting death of 19-year-old Raquel Rayas at Deep Creek.

Sheriff's detectives say the two suspects, Joseph Villa and Angela Lucia Sanchez, knew the victim. But detectives did not release any motive that the pair may have had in Rayas' death, said Cindy Bachman, a sheriff's spokeswoman.

Villa, 23, and Sanchez, 38, pleaded not guilty to murder charges at their arraignments Wednesday in Victorville Superior Court, according to the San Bernardino County District Attorney's Office.

A man who raped and killed a Redlands High student in 1977 was denied parole during a hearing at a state prison in Blythe.

A parole board determined that John Wilton Zenc was "unsuitable" for release on parole during proceedings Wednesday at Ironwood State Prison, confirmed Deputy District Attorney Jennifer Dawson.

Zenc, now 54, was convicted of raping and killing 15-year-old Paula Hernandez, as she walked home from school in March 1977.

The California Supreme Court announced that it will issue a written opinion tomorrow morning in the standing case over Proposition 8, which sought to define marriage in this state as being between a man and a woman.

The court is scheduled to release the opinion at 10 a.m. in the case Perry v. Brown, according to a statement today from the Judicial Council of California. It will be available on the California Courts website at: www.courtinfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/opinions.cgi

At issue is whether supporters of Prop 8 have the legal standing to appeal a federal judge's ruling last year - which overturned the ban on same-sex marriage - when the governor and attorney general decline to do so.

A man who raped and killed a female Redlands High student in 1977 is seeking parole at a hearing Wednesday in Blythe.

Family members of 15-year-old Paula Hernandez are doing whatever they can to keep the teen's killer, John Wilton Zenc, behind bars. They will be attending the hearing at Ironwood State Prison, where Zenc is currently housed.

"I don't want this to happen to another family," said Ruth Lopez, Paula's sister. Zenc, now 54, has hired an attorney in his bid to get paroled, Lopez said.

A proposed settlement has been reached in a 2006 federal class-action lawsuit filed against San Bernardino County and its courts over accessibility for disabled persons at more than a dozen courthouses.

The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Riverside, claimed that parking, paths of travel, courtrooms, bathrooms and other areas were inaccessible to people with mobility or manual dexterity disabilities.

Lawyers for the Disability Rights Legal Center in Los Angeles, which represented plaintiffs in the case, said Tuesday that both sides worked hard to reach what they described as a model settlement that could be a blueprint for any court system in any county.

By Melissa Pinion-Whitt, The (San Bernardino County) Sun
Posted: 11/14/2011 12:44:44 PM PST

San Bernardino Superior Court has agreed to settle an $831,000 class-action lawsuit claiming the county's courthouses are inaccessible to the disabled, court officials said today.

Four plaintiffs named in the federal lawsuit will split $80,000 in damages. San Bernardino County is expected to pay $690,000 in attorneys' fees and costs, and another $61,000 to monitor the county's progress in making courthouses accessible.

The settlement terms include plans to improve disabled access in entrances, emergency exits, witness stands, jury boxes and other areas of the courthouses.

San Bernardino County and the Superior Court officials "denied and continue to deny the allegations and claims in the actions," according to the settlement.

SAN BERNARDINO - A judge dismissed criminal charges this morning against Andrew Eloy Lozano, a local member of the Vagos motorcycle club who was arrested last month in a law enforcement sweep across Southern California.

At a scheduled preliminary hearing for Lozano in San Bernardino Superior Court, Judge James Dorr ruled that prosecutors presented insufficient evidence to hold Lozano for trial on charges of possessing body armor and participating in a criminal street gang.

"The court finds there is insufficient evidence as to both counts and the allegation," Dorr said during the proceedings.

Joe Nelson and Mike Cruz, The (San Bernardino County) Sun
Posted: 11/10/2011 05:01:31 PM PST

RIVERSIDE -- A federal judge seemed poised to rule that federal agents did not violate the civil rights of Rancho Cucamonga developer Jeff Burum when they served search warrants at his home and office in September.

During a two-hour hearing Thursday in U.S. District Court, Judge S. James Otero heard arguments from Burum's attorney, Stephen G. Larson, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jerry A. Behnke over whether federal prosecutors should be able to retain documents and other information seized during the Sept. 15 raid.

There is no deadline or estimated amount of time for Otero to deliver a decision, lawyers said. All they can do is wait for an email alert from the court that a ruling is available.

RIVERSIDE -- District Attorney Michael A. Ramos announced plans Wednesday to strengthen his office's partnership with federal prosecutors.

Ramos told members of the Inland Empire Chapter of the Federal Bar Association that he plans to cross-designate one of his local prosecutors with the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Ramos revealed the plan while discussing a host of top issues affecting public safety, such as street gangs, medical marijuana and mortgage fraud, alongside Riverside County District Attorney Paul Zellerbach and U.S. Attorney Andre Birotte Jr. during a meeting at U.S. District Court in Riverside.

SAN BERNARDINO -- Prosecutors delivered their opening remarks Monday in the trial for two young men who repeatedly struck an elderly San Bernardino woman with hammers while ransacking her home for money and other valuables.

"Storma Del'Andrae, who is 87 years old, was murdered for a handful of cash, a suitcase and some costume jewelry," said Deputy District Attorney Tristan Svare. "That's what this case is all about."

The prosecution's opening remarks came just prior to witness testimony in San Bernardino Superior Court. Defense lawyers reserved their statements for later in the trial. Each defendant has his own jury.

By Jim Steinberg Staff Writer
Posted: 11/05/2011 09:23:21 PM PDT

FONTANA - The teachers union has filed a lawsuit against the school district seeking to reinstate laid-off counselors on the basis of seniority.

The legal action, filed in San Bernardino County Superior Court, contends that the Fontana Unified School District's practices violate the California Education Code, a charge the district denies.

Pat Mazzulli, president of the Fontana Teachers Association, said the district created new job categories after it laid off 68 counselors at the end of the 2010-11 school year.

A Claremont mother and son are among four people named in a federal indictment alleging they operated a money laundering scheme related to the distribution of a powerful cough syrup nicknamed "purple drank."

A trial is set to begin November 29 for Lucita Uy, 70, and her 42-year-old son, Lemuel Libunao, both of Claremont, in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, according to a statement Friday from the U.S. Attorney's Office in Los Angeles.

Two defendants from Texas appeared Friday in U.S. District Court in Houston.

Two young men who beat to death a counselor at a Yucaipa group home in 2009 with a closet dowel were sentenced today to state prison.

A jury recently found Carlos Dubose and Davion Whitmore guilty of murder charges in the 2009 death of counselor George Onyango at Aiming High Treatment Center on Fifth Place in Yucaipa. They were charged as adults.

Friday in San Bernardino Superior Court, Judge Duke Rouse sentenced Dubose, who was 17 at the time of the attack, to life in state prison with the possibility of parole plus another life sentence, said Deputy District Attorney Beth Houser.

SAN BERNARDINO - Eleven search warrants served over a two-year period in a sweeping corruption probe tied to a legal settlement between the county and a Rancho Cucamonga developer were ordered released Friday by a Superior Court judge.

Judge Michael A. Smith ordered the search warrants released Friday after defense attorneys did not appear in court to object to their release or request redactions be made to the documents.

Six of the 11 warrants, which span from Dec. 2, 2008, to Oct. 22, 2010, were released. The remaining five are expected to be released early next week.

The documents provide a glimpse into the private life of former county assessor and former Board of Supervisors Chairman Bill Postmus.

A San Bernardino Superior Court judge is expected to decide today whether to unseal hundreds of pages of search warrants and affidavits from the investigation into a Rancho Cucamonga developer's landmark lawsuit settlement with San Bernardino County.

Judge Michael A. Smith granted a defense request on Oct. 24 to tentatively unseal the warrants and affidavits at a hearing in San Bernardino Superior Court. The judge allowed the documents to go to the defense lawyers first so they can review them for any objections or redactions.

The judge then scheduled a hearing for today. If no objections or redactions are presented, or the lawyers don't appear in court, Smith said the documents would be unsealed to the public.

SAN BERNARDINO - A former Rialto schoolteacher, who pleaded guilty in July to giving drugs to a teenager, is back in county jail after he allegedly violated the terms of his probation.

Michael Jacob Edmondson of Rancho Cucamonga is scheduled for a probation violation hearing Nov. 17 before Judge Kyle Brodie in San Bernardino Superior Court, according to court records.

Deputy District Attorney Melissa Rodriguez, who prosecuted Edmondson's case, confirmed Wednesday that he is scheduled for the hearing. However, Rodriguez had not yet received a report from law enforcement, so she did not have details about Edmondson's arrest, she said.

SAN BERNARDINO - Prosecutors amended the charges against a local member of the Vagos motorcycle club, who was arrested during a sweep in October, to include a 1980 conviction in Idaho in the strangulation of a 19-year-old woman.

Thomas Henry Gibson of San Bernardino appeared Tuesday before Judge Michael Dest in San Bernardino Superior Court, where prosecutors announced the newly amended charges, according to court records. Gibson pleaded not guilty to the charges.

With the addition of the prior conviction, the 60-year-old Gibson is now being held at West Valley Detention Center in Rancho Cucamonga, in lieu of $350,000 bail - an increase of $100,000.

Gibson is one of several San Bernardino County members of the Vagos arrested last month in a sweep conducted by state and local authorities. Drugs, weapons and body armor were seized during the raid, agents from the California Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement said.

In a rare move, federal prosecutors have agreed to return materials to a Rancho Cucamonga developer that were seized in September as part of an investigation into alleged corruption surrounding the $102 million lawsuit settlement between Colonies Partners LP and San Bernardino County.

The materials were seized by FBI agents serving search warrants at the offices and home of developer Jeff Burum, Colonies co-managing partner, and looking into alleged bribery and conspiracy related to the landmark 2006 settlement.

Stephen Larson, Burum's attorney and a former federal judge, argued in the days after the Sept. 15 search that agents erred by taking documents and other materials not covered under the warrant.

A jury has found a Montclair man guilty of lesser charges after a meeting with his estranged wife last year erupted into violence and he ran down the woman with a GMC Yukon outside a Chino auto parts store.

Jurors in the trial for Carlos Briseno returned verdicts late Friday in Chino Superior Court, finding him guilty of attempted voluntary manslaughter for the horror he inflicted on 41-year-old Martha Briseno.

Carlos Briseno was also found guilty of assault with a deadly weapon -- the SUV -- and inflicting corporal injury on a spouse or cohabitant, court records state. He returns to court Nov. 30 for sentencing.

Prosecutors had sought an attempted murder conviction.

SAN BERNARDINO -- A series of motions filed by the lawyers representing Old Fire suspect Rickie Lee Fowler were continued for another several weeks.

Fowler, 30, appeared today in San Bernardino Superior Court for a scheduled hearing for two motions, one which seeks to dismiss the indictment against Fowler and another which aims to recuse the San Bernardino County District Attorney's Office from prosecuting the case in favor of state prosecutors.

The 170-page dismissal motion alleges prosecutors failed to present exculpatory evidence - which tends to show a person should not be indicted - to a criminal Grand Jury assembled in August 2009 to hear witness testimony about the wildfire.

SAN BERNARDINO - The family and lawyer of a Lancaster man who is accused of robbing a Grand Terrace liquor store three times in 2009 say he isn't the armed man who authorities see in surveillance videos.

Derik Carl Garcia appeared Friday before Judge Harold Wilson in San Bernardino Superior Court, where lawyers set a jury trial for Garcia in December. He returns to court Nov. 23.

Garcia, 30, is charged with robbing Smart Time food store at gunpoint in August and twice in December 2009. Sheriff's detectives have surveillance videos that show a Hispanic man robbing the store on Barton Road, near Canal Street, according to the defense.

By Lori Consalvo, Staff Writer
Posted: 10/28/2011 06:05:18 PM PDT

RANCHO CUCAMONGA - A man claiming to be the son of famed Doors' lead singer Jim Morrison denied a prosecutor's offer to significantly lower his prison time on a robbery charge Friday.

Clifford Morrison, 42, could get 75 years to life if he is found guilty of robbery and ramming a police car during a chase early last year in Ontario.

San Bernardino County Deputy District Attorney Dinah Touny said she would take the life sentence off the table, and Morrison could have 15 years with an "end date."

"We offered again today, on the record," Touny said during the hearing. "It had been conveyed to the defendant's attorney... and his attorney indicated that he was not interested."

SAN BERNARDINO -- Three defendants in the "Devils Professor" drug-trafficking case -- including alleged methamphetamine supplier Jeremy Disney -- pleaded not guilty to the charges Friday.

Holly Robinson, of Highland, Hans Preszler and Disney, both of San Bernardino, appeared before Judge Kenneth Barr, who entered the pleas and denied all allegations on behalf of the defendants, during their arraignment in San Bernardino Superior Court.

Prosecutors say the three defendants were part of a trafficking ring operated by Cal State professor Steve Kinzey, who authorities say is also president of the San Bernardino Mountains Chapter of the Devils Diciples motorcycle club.

SAN BERNARDINO -- A jury found two young men guilty Wednesday in the beating death of 63-year-old Nathan Macon during a fight at a San Bernardino convenience store.

Jurors found Milton Walker, and his brother, Jerome Walker, guilty of second-degree murder in the killing of Macon last year at Jimmy's Food Store, near Base Line and Medical Center Drive.

The Walkers, in their early 20s at the time Macon was killed, are scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 2. A key piece of trial evidence - a security video recorded from inside the store - showed the Walkers punching a drunken Macon after he had yelled threats.

Family members of the victim cried and hugged eachother upon hearing the verdicts.

Arraignment was postponed Tuesday for a Diamond Bar teacher who authorities allege was having a sexual relationship with a 14-year-old student.

Steven Shane Andrews, 41, was scheduled to be arraigned in Pomona Superior Court, but the proceedings were postponed, confirmed Sandi Gibbons, spokeswoman for the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office.

Andrews, a teacher at Lorbeer Middle School, faces 18 felony counts stemming from an alleged relationship with the girl from May through September, according to a criminal complaint filed in Superior Court by the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office.

Andrews is scheduled to return to court Nov. 1 for arraignment on the charges, Gibbons said.

The controversy over a California law that bars livestock which cannot walk from entering the country's food supply will be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court next month.

The state law,amended in 2008 in the aftermath of an investigation at the Westland/Hallmark plant in Chino, has created a legal showdown between the nationwide meatpacking industry and advocates for farm animals.

At issue is whether California can create its own laws to safeguard its food supply and prevent farm animal abuse, while preempting federal law which regulates slaughterhouses and prevents the slaughter and processing of cattle which cannot walk, according to court briefs.

The issue is set to be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court on Nov. 9, according to the court.

Nearly a dozen search warrants and their affidavits served by investigators probing the Colonies Partners LP $102million settlement with San Bernardino County were ordered unsealed Monday for defense lawyers.

Lawyers for Jeff Burum, co-managing partner of Colonies Partners LP, have been trying to secure release of the warrants since June as part of their effort to fight the criminal charges against their client.

Those charges are part of a sweeping criminal probe of alleged county corruption.

A San Bernardino man is expected to be arraigned today on charges alleging that he supplied methamphetamine to CSUSB associate professor Steve Kinzey for distribution in a drug trafficking ring.

Jeremy Disney, whose scheduled appearance Thursday in San Bernardino Superior Court was put over to today, faces two felony charges for his part in the so-called "Devils Professor" case, according to court personnel.

Prosecutors allege Disney, 31, also has four prior convictions in Superior Court, court records show.

Mike Cruz and Joe Nelson, The (San Bernardino County) Sun
Posted: 10/24/2011 02:55:29 PM PDT

SAN BERNARDINO -- A Superior Court judge on Monday declined to bar more than 2,000 pages of Grand Jury transcripts in a criminal corruption probe from being used in a civil case involving the county and three other public entities.

Attorneys representing the county filed a motion with the court in September attempting to block the defendants in an indemnity lawsuit from using the transcripts in its defense. The county sued San Bernardino Associated Governments (SanBag), Caltrans and the city of Upland in 2004, seeking to recover any damages that could arise from a separate land rights lawsuit it was engaged in with Rancho Cucamonga developer Colonies Partners LP.

The developer sued the county in 2002, arguing the county abandoned its flood control easements and refused to pay for flood control improvements on its 434-acre residential and commercial development in Upland. The county settled with the developer in November 2006 for $102 million, a settlement prosecutors now say was tainted by bribery and conflict of interest.

Liset Márquez, Staff Writer
Posted: 10/20/2011 12:03:54 PM PDT

RANCHO CUCAMONGA - City officials have reached agreement with the landlord to evict a medical-marijuana dispensary that has operated in the city for two weeks without a business license.

The landlord of a shopping center at 856 S. Mountain Ave. agreed Thursday to evict the tenant, HPMC, also known as Holistic Pain Management Center, which was order closed by the city Wednesday.

City Attorney John Brown said the landlord is expected to serve a notice to the dispensary no later than next week.

SAN BERNARDINO - Jeffrey Ortiz testified Thursday about the horrific, alcohol-related crash in 2005 that killed his brother and best friend - both just 17 years old - as the first witness called in the trial for Charles Gregory Callion.

Highway patrol officers allege Callion drove a Chevrolet Suburban the wrong way on the southbound 215 Freeway near Grand Terrace and collided head-on into a two-door Saturn carrying the three teens.

Callion had six prior convictions for drunken driving since 1991, say prosecutors. Now he faces second-degree murder charges as part of a six-count criminal complaint in San Bernardino Superior Court.

By Will Bigham, Staff Writer
Posted: 10/23/2011 03:16:18 PM PDT

RANCHO CUCAMONGA - Seven people have pleaded not guilty to murder and other criminal charges in connection with the alleged kidnapping and killing of a 22-year-old Montclair man.

Erick Estuardo Cate's body was found Tuesday in the area of the 15 and 8 freeways in San Diego. He was reported missing Oct. 12 from the 2400 block of West Arrow Route in Upland.

Prosecutors filed three felonies - murder, kidnapping and assault with a deadly weapon - against each of the seven people suspected of participating in Cate's alleged killing.

FONTANA - A Phelan man who plowed into a family on bicycles in Rialto while driving drunk - killing a little girl weeks before her second birthday - has been was sentenced to 19 years in state prison.

Jesse Rolando Astorga appeared in Fontana Superior Court for sentencing proceedings on Friday, after he pleaded guilty Sept. 9 to five felony counts as part of a plea bargain.

Rialto police say Astorga fled from a fender bender with another car in June 2008, when he ran his 2008 Honda Pilot into a median on South Willow Avenue a few minutes after noon, veered to the right, jumped a curb and struck a family of four riding on the sidewalk.

SAN BERNARDINO - Three of nine defendants in a conspiracy to commit murder case involving a local street gang took plea bargain Friday, while a fourth one picked up new charges for assaulting a confidential police informant.

The nine alleged members and associates of the Pimps, Players, Hustlers and Gangsters street gang appeared before Judge Michael A. Smith on Friday to determine if their case was ready to go to trial in San Bernardino Superior Court.

Prosecutors announced new charges were filed earlier this week against Dearnaz Lorenzo Wilson, after he allegedly attacked the informant - the prosecution's sole witness in the conspiracy case - on Oct. 5.

SAN BERNARDINO - Have an old, unpaid traffic ticket that you just haven't taken care of? Now is your chance.

Starting in January, the Superior Court of San Bernardino County will be offering a 50-percent discount on some old, unpaid traffic tickets.

It's a limited time "amnesty program" being offered in all 58 counties statewide. Court officials estimate more than 6 million cases across the state could qualify.

"This is a win-win," Ron Overholt, interim administrative director of the courts, said in a press release last week announcing the program.

SAN BERNARDINO - Four local members of the Vagos motorcycle club, who were arrested earlier this month in a raid across Southern California, appeared before a Superior Court judge Tuesday.

Two of the men, Thomas Henry Gibson and Andrew Eloy Lozano, sought bail reviews by Judge Michael Dest in San Bernardino Superior Court to have their bail reduced.

Lozano's lawyer Mark McDonald, who substituted-in to represent Gibson, 60, of San Bernardino, told the court that Gibson is being held in lieu of $250,000 bail.

But based on his client's charges of possession of marijuana for sale and participation in a criminal street gang, McDonald argued that $50,000-100,000 bail "is more appropriate."

Joe Nelson, The (San Bernardino County) Sun
Posted: 10/17/2011 02:19:00 PM PDT

The attorney defending former San Bernardino County Assistant Assessor Jim Erwin in a sweeping corruption probe is alleging that an FBI search of Erwin's home was flawed and that Erwin's civil rights were violated.

A motion filed by attorney Rajan Maline in U.S. District Court in Riverside on Oct. 11 is the second to be filed in the last three weeks challenging the strength of the Sept. 15 FBI raid in connection with an investigation into the county's $102 million legal settlement with Rancho Cucamonga developer Colonies Partners LP in November 2006.

On Oct. 3, attorney Stephen Larson, who represents Colonies' co-managing partner Jeff Burum, filed a motion with the court alleging Burum's civil rights were violated and FBI agents essentially lied to him and in an official court document, tainting the search altogether.

SAN BERNARDINO - Emotions ran high Monday at the trial for two brothers accused of beating to death a 63-year-old man at a Westside convenience store.

A woman in the courtroom gallery reacted with a loud "wow" as prosecutors played for San Bernardino Superior Court jurors a video from a security camera that showed Nathan Macon being punched several times.

Moments later, another woman erupted into tears and was yelling as she left the courtroom. Loud sobs and yelling could be heard in the hallway.

The reaction came while the owner of Jimmy's Food Store - the trial's first witness - testified about the March 2010 deadly confrontation with Macon and the defendants, San Bernardino residents Jerome Walker and Milton Walker, then 22 and 21.

SAN BERNARDINO - A Superior Court judge has ruled that residents from the local mountains and northern portions of San Bernardino and Highland will not be among potential jurors in the upcoming trial for suspected Old Fire arsonist Rickie Lee Fowler.

In discussions Friday in San Bernardino Superior Court over a defense motion to exclude jurors from those areas, Judge Michael A. Smith acknowledged that residents in those areas may be "particularly more sensitive" to fire issues.

Lawyers grappled with the idea during court appearance for Fowler where discussions occurred about how best to exclude residents from the pool of potential jurors who may been evacuated, impacted or even lost a home during the devastating wildfire.

SAN BERNARDINO - Sara Cisneros had gotten off early at her job at San Manuel Indian Casino in August 2009 for a family celebration, and she was headed home to Redlands.

But on Cisneros' way home, a Ford F-150 pickup crossed into her traffic lanes on Orange Street, at the wash, and collided head-on into her Nissan Sentra. A 48-year-old Redlands resident and mother, she died at the scene.

The driver of the pickup, Ryan Christopher Wheatley, of Highland, was subsequently arrested on suspicion of drunken driving. Two years later, a jury found Wheatley was responsible for Cisneros' death.

A former Marine from Pomona, accused of embezzling $200,000 from a Palm Desert non-profit group that provides educational scholarships to other Marines, has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Jason Patrick Hitt appeared for arraignment on the charges Wednesday before Judge Victoria E. Cameron at Larson Justice Center, in Indio, according to court records.

Hitt, 35, pleaded not guilty to two felony counts of embezzlement and forging documents, court records indicate. He returns to court Thursday.

The man charged in the killing of a High Desert couple at an abandoned military bunker in 2008 has been found to be mentally competent to stand trial.

Jurors returned the verdict Wednesday in the trial for Collin Lee McGlaughlin of West Covina after receiving the case for deliberation a day earlier, in Victorville Superior Court, according to court records.

McGlaughlin, 21, returns to court Jan.27. He's accused of shooting to death Christopher Cody Thompson, 18, and his 16-year-old girlfriend Bodhi Sherzer-Potter, following a party at the bunker near Helendale.

SAN BERNARDINO - The trial began Tuesday for two brothers accused of fatally beating a 63-year-old man after police say he held open a door for them at Jimmy's Food Market on the city's Westside.

Prosecutors and attorneys for Jerome Walker, 24, and Milton Walker, 23, argued several motions in San Bernardino Superior Court to decide whether some evidence would go before the jury.

The Walkers are charged with murder in the death of Nathan Macon last year.

The defense sought to allow Macon's police citations for being drunk in public be used at trial, as well as evidence of violent acts involving family members.

SAN BERNARDINO - Three San Bernardino County members of the Vagos motorcycle gang were arraigned Friday in connection with the drug and weapons raid connected on Thursday.

A fourth member from Oak Hills has a warrant for his arrest and remains at-large, while a fifth member from Ontario was arrested and remained uncharged as of Friday.

Scott Randall Rivera and Scott Randall Rivera, both of San Bernardino, and Andrew Eloy Lozano of Fontana appeared for arraignment, via a video link, in San Bernardino Superior Court.

Staff and wire reports
Posted: 10/07/2011 12:37:02 PM PDT

Federal prosecutors in California are ordering dozens of medical marijuana dispensaries - including one in Montclair - to shut down in 45 days and warning their owners and landlords they face criminal charges or seizure of their assets if they do not comply.

The state's four U.S. attorneys announced at a Sacramento news conference Friday that they have stepped up efforts to curtail both marijuana cultivation and retail sales of pot conducted under the cover of California's 15-year-old medical marijuana law.

U.S. Attorney Benjamin Wagner, who represents California's Central Valley, said not all of the thousands of storefront pot dispensaries thought to be operating in the state are being targeted.

Posted: 10/07/2011 06:16:20 PM PDT

The president of a Rancho Cucamonga company was sentenced last month to probation and fines for Worker's Compensation fraud.

Anthony Perry, president of Perry Roofing was ordered on Sept. 30 to pay $15,000 to the California Department of Insurance, and $670 in restitution to the State Compensation Insurance Fund.

The San Bernardino County District Attorney's office started an investigation in August of last year after getting information that Perry was under reporting payroll and employees.

Investigators then served a search warrant at the business in February of 2010, according to a District Attorney's news release.

An investigation determined that Perry was paying an employee cash and misrepresenting the number of employees to his insurance company in order to get a lower premium, according to the release.

jannise.johnson@inlandnewspapers.com

Mike Cruz, Staff Writer
Posted: 10/07/2011 04:51:25 PM PDT

A man who says he is the son of Jim Morrison, the late front man for the band the Doors, is facing charges of robbery and ramming a police car during a chase last year in Ontario.

Wearing an orange jail jumpsuit and restraints on his wrists and ankles, Clifford Marston Morrison sat in the jury box of a Rancho Cucamonga courtroom on Friday, waiting for his case to be called.

With his shoulder-length hair, strong brow and scruffy red beard and moustache, Clifford Morrison catches attention.

By Rick Orlov Staff Writer
Created: 10/06/2011 06:00:16 PM PDT

The union representing Los Angeles County prosecutors won a major round this week in its battle with District Attorney Steve Cooley, with a tentative settlement granting it a permanent injunction and $575,000 in penalties.

The deal calls for the county to pay $125,000 to the Association for Deputy District Attorneys and $450,000 to Deputy District Attorney Marc Debbaudt, who had alleged retaliation for his union activities.

The settlement, still subject to Board of Supervisors' approval, also made permanent a temporary court injunction ordering Cooley to refrain from harassing or intimidating ADDA members based on their union membership.

By Mike Cruz, The (San Bernardino County) Sun
Posted: 10/06/2011 03:46:10 PM PDT

Hundreds of weapons, including an anti-tank gun and a rocket launcher, methamphetamine and cocaine were seized Thursday when several members of the Vagos motorcylce gang were arrested during a seven-county sweep across Southern California.

State agents say 52 search warrants and 12 arrest warrants were served Thursday, resulting in nine actual arrests and targeting the "upper echelon" of the Vagos. Five of the arrests occurred in San Bernardino County.

At a news conference at San Bernardino Police Department, law enforcement officials said the investigation started 18 months ago when they began looking into a narcotics trafficking ring.

That investigation grew to include other alleged crimes by Vagos members, such as solicitation of murder, receiving stolen property, auto theft, perjury, extortion, robbery and rape, state agents said.

Joe Nelson, Staff Writer
Posted: 10/06/2011 07:11:55 PM PDT

Senior state Assistant Attorney General Gary Schons will retire at the end of the month and will begin a new job at the San Diego County District Attorney's Office, officials from both offices said.

San Bernardino County Assistant District Attorney Jim Hackleman also is retiring. His last day is Friday.

Schons and Hackleman oversaw the prosecution of Rancho Cucamonga developer Jeff Burum and three former county officials in a sweeping corruption scandal tied to a $102 million legal settlement between the county and Burum's development consortium, Colonies Partners LP. In a joint prosecution, the District Attorney's and state Attorney General's offices allege the settlement was tainted by bribery and extortion.

Andrew Edwards, Staff Writer
Posted: 10/04/2011 03:56:03 PM PDT

State Attorney General Kamala Harris said Tuesday she left national settlement talks with lenders over potential mortgage and foreclosure violations because she doesn't expect a deal will provide enough compensation for troubled California homeowners.

"I do not believe that the total number of Californians who are in foreclosure would be eligible for relief," Harris said in a conference call with reporters.

Harris also said she was concerned that a deal would allow lenders to escape civil, or even criminal, penalties for alleged wrongdoing.

VICTORVILLE -- A pair of mental health experts may have concluded that a West Covina man accused of the execution-style slayings of a young High Desert couple at an abandoned military bunker is mentally competent to go trial for the killings, say lawyers.
But the decision about Collin Lee McGlaughlin's present mental competence won't be up to the experts.

A jury began hearing witness testimony Wednesday as a trial began in Victorville Superior Court to determine whether McGlaughlin is compentent to go trial for the 2008 deaths of Christopher Cody Thompson, 18, of Apple Valley and his 16-year-old girlfriend, Bodhisattva Sherzer-Potter of Helendale.

The jury will decide whether McGlaughlin is mentally competent now, not his state of mind when the crimes occurred.

But before any witnesses testified Wednesday, lawyers for both sides delivered their opening remarks. McGlaughlin is presumed competent, and it's up to the defense to prove otherwise.

Joe Nelson, The (San Bernardino County) Sun
Posted: 10/04/2011 01:59:35 PM PDT

Federal search warrants served at the home and business of Rancho Cucamonga developer Jeff Burum were unconstitutionally overbroad and vague, according to a motion filed Monday in U.S. District Court in Riverside.

Burum's attorney, Stephen G. Larson, is demanding that all of Burum's property seized during the Sept. 15 FBI and IRS raid immediately be returned to him.

The warrants were served at nine locations in San Bernardino and Riverside counties in connection with a sweeping corruption scandal involving allegations of bribery, extortion and fraud, according to the federal search warrant.

The allegations stem from a $102 million legal settlement between the county and Burum's development consortium, Colonies Partners LP, in November 2006.

By Andrew Edwards, Staff Writer
Posted: 10/04/2011 03:56:03 PM PDT

California Attorney General Kamala Harris held a conference call today to explain her decision to leave national settlement talks with lenders over potentially illegal mortgage and foreclosure practices.

In the call, Harris said the state is experiencing a renewed wave of foreclosures and that the dollar figures being discussed in negotiations would not be sufficient to provide relief to Californians at risk of foreclosure.

Harris first announced her withdrawal from settlement talks on Friday. Her leaving clears the way for California to press its own investigation of lending and foreclosure practices, which she said may lead to civil or even criminal filings against lenders.

Two co-defendants in the "Devil's Professor" methamphetamine trafficking case entered not-guilty pleas Tuesday to conspiracy charges.

Chelsea Marie Johnson, 34, and Eric Cortez, 31, both of Redlands, entered the pleas and denied all allegations at a formal arraignment before Judge Harold T. Wilson in San Bernardino Superior Court.

Both defendants face charges in connection with a methamphetamine trafficking ring allegedly run by Cal State San Bernardino professor Steve Kinzey.

Johnson and Cortez were ordered held on the charges after a preliminary hearing on Sept. 27. Judge Douglas Gericke ruled then that sufficient evidence was presented to hold over the defendants for trial.

Also on Tuesday, lawyer Sean O'Connor, who represents Johnson, sought a hearing to argue for a reduction in his client's bail. She is currently being held on $150,000 bail, according to the Sheriff's Department.

Neil Nisperos, Staff Writer
Posted: 10/03/2011 12:25:41 PM PDT

A federal investigation into the practices of two San Bernardino County tax service companies has resulted in one of the largest indictments issued for tax fraud, federal officials said.

The Fontana-based Old Quest Foundation Inc. and Rancho Cucamonga-based De la Fuente and Ramirez and Associates filed false federal income tax returns containing bogus claims for refunds that sought more than $250 million, officials said.

The IRS investigation, code named "Operation Stolen Treasures," resulted in 32 federal indictments that name a total of 55 defendants. Nearly half were arraigned in U.S. District Court in Santa Ana.

VICTORVILLE - A jury will begin hearing evidence Wednesday in the mental competency trial for a West Covina man accused of the execution-style killings of a young man and woman in 2008 at an abandoned military bunker near Helendale.

Lawyers in the trial for Collin McGlaughlin spent Monday arguing pretrial motions, deciding whether some evidence could be used at trial and selecting a jury. Opening statements are scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. followed by testimony Wednesday in Victorville Superior Court.

The issue before jurors is whether McGlaughlin has the necessary mental competency to go to trial again later where he will face murder charges - and the possible death penalty - in the shooting deaths of Christopher Cody Thompson, 18, of Apple Valley and his 16-year-old girlfriend, Bodhisattva "Bodhi" Sherzer-Potter of Helendale.

A Montclair man found guilty in July of sexually abusing his stepdaughter was sentenced Monday to 58 years in state prison.

Juan Trujillo Barajas, 40, was sentenced according to the terms recommended by the county Probation Department in West Valley Superior Court, in Rancho Cucamonga. He received credit for 582 days already served in county jail, and he must serve at least 85 percent of the sentence before he can be considered for release.

The 16-year-old victim spoke at the sentencing hearing and asked the court for leniency, according to prosecutors.

Two Rialto men are back in court next month in the beating of San Francisco Giants fan Bryan Stow on Opening Day at Dodger Stadium.

Louie Sanchez and Marvin Norwood appeared Friday in Los Angeles Superior Court, where they are set to return Nov. 4 to schedule the date for a preliminary hearing, according to sports news web site ESPN.com.

At a preliminary hearing, a judge listens to witness testimony to determine if sufficient evidence exists to support the charges and hold over the defendants for trial.

Stow, 42, and a father of two, remains hospitalized after he was beaten in the parking lot of Dodger Stadium as fans left the Opening Day game.

Prosecutors have decided not to file charges against a Victorville grandmother and her friend, who were arrested last month after her 11-month-old grandson was found inside a hot car they drove to a wedding reception.

The decision not to file criminal charges against Maria Davila, 56, came Friday from prosecutors at the District Attorney's Office in Victorville.

"There was insufficient evidence to support the filing of charges," said Chris Lee, a District Attorney's spokesman. He could not say anything further about the case.

Sheriff's deputies arrested Davila and her friend, Margarita Simbana, 51, of Los Angeles, on Sept. 3 on suspicion of child cruelty after the little boy was plucked from a car seat inside the sweltering vehicle.

The outdoor temperature that day was about 97 degrees, and the grandmother had been entrusted with watching with the little boy, say sheriff's officials.

Davila and Simbana were attending a reception at the Social House in the 12100 block of Cottonwood Avenue. Deputies say the child's parents were also at the reception.

Lawyer James Terrell accompanied Davila and the child's mother, Alma Medina, on Wednesday while she said the incident was a miscommunication and that Davila did not know the child was placed in the car, according to a report in a High Desert newspaper.

Terrell did not return a phone call nor email requesting comment.

SAN BERNARDINO - A Superior Court judge denied a request Friday to dismiss the charges against three of nine alleged members and associates of the Pimps, Players, Hustlers and Gangsters street gang, who are accused of conspiring to kill two rivals.

Lawyers for Edward Jermaine Lair, Henry Duffy and Dearnaz Wilson argued their case in a motion before Judge Michael Smith in San Bernardino Superior Court.

Lawyer Stuart O'Melveny argued there was a lack of evidence showing that his client, Lair, was a participant in the alleged conspiracy.

Meanwhile, lawyers Andrew Haynal and Marjorie Barrios, who represent Duffy and Wilson, said information from a confidential informant - who told police he had smoked PCP that night - is unreliable.

Joe Nelson, Staff Writer
Posted: 09/29/2011 09:38:47 PM PDT

The attorney for Bill Postmus is concerned that his client, who is cooperating with state and local prosecutors in their investigation of San Bernardino County's $102 million legal settlement with a Rancho Cucamonga developer, could be in legal jeopardy from a federal investigation into the deal.

The former county supervisor's name appears in a federal search warrant served Sept. 15 by roughly 100 FBI and IRS agents in San Bernardino and Riverside counties.

The FBI and IRS are investigating allegations of bribery, extortion and fraud in connection with the record settlement with Rancho Cucamonga developer Colonies Partners LP, according to the warrant.

Stephen Levine, Postmus' attorney, said he contacted prosecutor Lewis Cope, who heads the District Attorney's Public Integrity Unit, last week to discuss the federal investigation and whether state and local prosecutors have some kind of agreement with the FBI in which Postmus would be immune from federal prosecution. The two have yet to discuss the matter.

Mike Cruz, Staff Writer
Posted: 09/29/2011 04:46:49 PM PDT

Prosecutors in the High Desert could reach a decision as early as today about whether to charge a Victorville woman accused of leaving her 11-month grandson in a hot car while she attended a wedding reception.

Sheriff's deputies arrested Maria Davila, 56, on Sept. 3 on suspicion of child cruelty after the little boy was plucked from a car seat inside the sweltering vehicle.

The outdoor temperature that day was about 97 degrees, and the grandmother had been entrusted with watching with the little boy, say sheriff's officials.

The decision whether to charge Davila could come today or Monday, said Supervising Deputy District Attorney Jim Hill.

Melissa Pinion-Whitt, Staff Writer
Posted: 09/29/2011 02:41:21 PM PDT

A San Bernardino County sheriff's deputy suspected of beating his girlfriend in Beaumont and then holding police at bay before his arrest returned to work at the Sheriff's Department less than a week after the incident.

Alfredo Lopez, 32, was released Sept. 22 from Robert Presley Detention Center in Riverside and was cleared to come back to work late last week, said sheriff's spokeswoman Cindy Bachman. He is assigned to Central Detention Center in San Bernardino.

"Our policy does not prohibit an employee from working during the legal process," Bachman said. "In this case, we understand he's facing misdemeanor charges."

Beaumont police received a call at 2:53 a.m. Sept. 18 regarding a domestic dispute in the 1300 block of Bird of Paradise Court. Lopez fled the residence by the time officers arrived.

By Melissa Pinion-Whitt
Posted: 09/29/2011 08:06:46 AM PDT

The owner of San Bernardino-based Wilson Towing, who is also a former Los Angeles police detective, pleaded no contest Tuesday to two counts of workers compensation fraud.

John Vach Jr., a 15-year veteran with the Los Angeles Police Department, was ordered to pay $105,000 in restitution to Los Angeles and given three years probation, police said.

Under his plea bargain, the Burbank man agreed to resign from the Police Department.

Investigators said Vach operated two private businesses while off work on a disability claim for stress related to his job at Los Angeles Police Department. He also sought a lifetime disability pension.

A warrant was issued for his arrest in October 2010.

Vach was initially charged with seven felony counts of workers compensation fraud, perjury and attempted grand theft.

A Loma Linda man, who taught elementary school in Fontana, was taken into custody Tuesday after a jury found him guilty of possessing child pornography.

Jurors returned the guilty verdict against Clark Alexander Mahoney Jr. after about an hour of deliberations at his trial in Fontana Superior Court, according to court records. He had been out of custody on his own recognizance.

Mahoney, 45, was found guilty of one count of Penal Code 311.11, defined as possession or control of child pornography, court records state. He is being held without bail at West Valley Detention Center, in Rancho Cucamonga, and he returns to court Nov. 4 for sentencing.

A teacher at Date Elementary School in Fontana, Mahoney was arrested last year on allegations of inappropriately touching two students.

SAN BERNARDINO - A Redlands man and woman were ordered held on conspiracy charges at a hearing earlier this week in connection with a methemphetamine trafficking ring that was allegedly run by Cal State professor Steve Kinzey.

Co-defendants in the case, Chelsea Marie Johnson and Eric Cortez, appeared for a preliminary hearing on Tuesday before Judge Douglas N. Gericke in San Bernardino Superior Court, according to court records.

After listening to testimony from three witnesses, Gericke ruled that sufficient evidence existed to hold over the pair for trial, court records state.

Alleging a conflict of interest exists, the attorney for Rancho Cucamonga developer Jeff Burum wants the district attorney recused from prosecuting his client.

The alleged conflict stems from conversations the pair had before conspiracy charges were filed against Burum, said attorney Stephen Larson.

Larson also said Tuesday in San Bernardino Superior Court that District Attorney Michael A. Ramos had appointed Burum to his advisory committee.

The relationship between the pair, says Larson, results in a conflict for Ramos in the prosecution of Burum.

Josh Dulaney, Staff Writer

SAN BERNARDINO - Accusations flew from both candidates Tuesday night in Council Chambers during a forum that pitted City Attorney James F. Penman against challenger David McKenna.

The two are facing each other in the Nov. 8 election.

Penman, who turns 64 on Wednesday and was first elected as city attorney in 1987, accused McKenna, 66, of being hand-picked by Mayor Pat Morris to move here in June and run for the City Attorney's Office.

McKenna said Penman acts more like a boss to political factions in the city.

SAN BERNARDINO - Former Police Chief Garrett Zimmon may be entitled to a disability retirement after a recent state court ruling sided with him in his lengthy legal battle with the city.

A three-judge panel of the state 4th District Court of Appeal in Riverside issued a 24-page ruling on Sept. 16 that reversed a pair of earlier court decisions in favor of the city and denied Zimmon a disability retirement.

Doctors diagnosed Zimmon with a cardiac arrhythmia with a history of recurrent atrial fibrillation, better known as a irregular heartbeat, according to the ruling. Zimmon attributed the condition to the cumulative trauma, stress and pressures of the job.

SAN BERNARDINO - Details about a methamphetamine trafficking ring allegedly run by Steve Kinzey, a CSUSB professor and chapter president of Devils Diciples motorcycle club, may come to light Tuesday at a court hearing.

Judge Kenneth Barr ordered co-defendants Chelsea Marie Johnson, Eric Cortez and Wendi Lee Witherell to return Tuesday to San Bernardino Superior Court for a preliminary hearing.

At such a hearing, a judge will listen to witness testimony - usually from law enforcement officers - to determine if sufficient evidence exists to hold over the defendants for trial on the charges.

Locally well-known lawyer Wayne Rozenberg died in a dirt bike accident Thursday in Perris, according to Riverside County coroner officials.

Emergency personnel were dispatched shortly after 9:30 p.m. to a motocross park in the 18700 block of Lake Perris Drive, according to a statement from coroner's officials.

Rozenberg, 46, of Murrieta, was taken to Riverside County Regional Medical Center in Moreno Valley where he was pronounced dead at 10:11 p.m., authorities reported.

For unknown reasons, Rozenberg reportedly "lost control of his dirt bike while landing from a jump," according to the coroner's statement.

Rozenberg was once connected to - and later cleared from - San Bernardino County's major attorney capping and bail bonds investigation last decade.

Prosecutors charged Rozenberg in 2004 with illegally recruiting clients in San Bernardino County jails, but the case against him fell apart during Grand Jury proceedings for the bail bond companies. The charges against Rozenberg were dismissed in 2008.

SAN BERNARDINO - The FBI is investigating allegations of conspiracy, bribery, money laundering, wire and mail fraud and theft of federal funds in connection with Wednesday's raid at San Bernardino International Airport, according to a federal search warrant.

Sources who received copies of the warrant on Wednesday and asked not to be identified confirmed the allegations. They also confirmed that investigators are hoping a truckload of documents seized during the raid will show a relationship between airport developer Scot Spencer and San Bernardino Mayor Pat Morris, airport director Donald L. Rogers, aviation director Bill Ingraham and assistant director Michael Burrows, among others.

Spencer did not return several phone calls seeking comment.

An emergency joint meeting of the San Bernardino International Airport Authority board and the Inland Valley Development Agency board has been set for Friday to address the FBI's serving of seven search warrants this week at the airport and the Riverside home of airport developer Scot Spencer.

The meeting was called by Josie Gonzales, who chairs the county Board of Supervisors, co-chairs the Inland Valley Development Agency board, and is a member of the airport authority board.

"I was angry," Gonzales said. "I'm disappointed. I'm frustrated and angry because here we go again with not being able to get ourselves into positions of leadership and trust."

SAN BERNARDINO - Two of the three people accused of killing a mentally challenged Rancho Cucamonga man in July will need new attorneys because they could face the possible death penalty or life in state prison.

The trio - Antonio Marquis Eubanks, his half-brother John Fitzgerald Dozier and Crystal Ann Carmelo, Dozier's wife - appeared before Judge Kenneth Barr Thursday in San Bernardino Superior Court where the new lawyers were discussed.

Prosecutors allege the three defendants killed Matthew Thomas Cook, 29, in July at a San Bernardino apartment building for financial gain. Cook was beaten to death and left in a trash can, say San Bernardino police.

A preliminary hearing for former San Bernardino County sheriff's Deputy Nathan Gastineau was postponed this morning until November so attorneys can have more time to review evidence.

Gastineau, 30, of Redlands, is charged with three counts of committing lewd acts with a minor and three counts of unlawful sexual intercourse. He is accused of having sex with a teen police Explorer.

His Redlands-based attorney, Andrew Haynal, asked San Bernardino Superior Court Judge John Martin for a continuance because he just received additional discovery or evidence in the case.

Gastineau is scheduled to return to court Nov. 1 to determine if the case is ready for a preliminary hearing Nov. 3.

Read more about Gastineau at www.sbsun.com

Former taxpayer advocate Gregory Eyler, one of several people suspected of political malfeasance and fraud in the San Bernardino County Assessor's Office, has been scheduled for a jury trial in January.

Eyler appeared for a pretrial hearing on Wednesday before Judge Michael Smith in San Bernardino Superior Court.

The trial was set to start Jan.30. Smith said he was "treating this as a firm date." An assignment calendar date, to ensure the case is ready for trial, was set for Jan.27.

Defense lawyers for Old Fire suspect Rickie Lee Fowler have filed a 170-page motion seeking dismissal of the Grand Jury indictment against him.

The motion alleges prosecutors failed to present exculpatory evidence - evidence that tends to show a person should not be indicted - to a criminal Grand Jury that was assembled in August 2009 to hear witness testimony about the 2003 deadly and devastating wildfire.

The motion from lawyers Donald Jordan and Michael Belter, which was authored by Jordan, was briefly discussed Monday at Fowler's scheduled appearance before Judge Michael Smith in San Bernardino Superior Court.

Read the actual defense motion here or here.

Two men who San Bernardino police say killed a Rancho Cucamonga man for his money and belongings are set to appear in court Thursday to confirm the appointment of their lawyers.

San Bernardino police detectives traveled last week to Decatur, Ill., to bring back Antonio Marquis Eubanks, his half-brother, John Fitzgerald Dozier, and Crystal Ann Carmelo, Dozier's pregnant wife, to face charges in the deadly beating of Matthew Thomas Cook in July.

Eubanks and Dozier have already pleaded not guilty to murder charges in San Bernardino Superior Court, according to court records. Carmelo has not yet appeared in court.

A candlelight memorial and a healing Mass ceremony are among the events planned for National Crime Victims' Rights Week in San Bernardino County starting April 26.

The San Bernardino County District Attorney's Office will host a candlelight memorial at the Rancho Cucamonga Civic Center, 10500 Civic Center Drive, at 6 p.m. April 30. District Attorney Michael A. Ramos is scheduled to speak at the event, District Attorney officials said.

A healing Mass will be 3 p.m. April 26 at Sacred Heart Church, 12704 Foothill Blvd., Rancho Cucamonga.

Remembrance boards will be on display in the lobbies of the District Attorney's offices in Victorville, Barstow and Fontana during the week.

melissa.pinion-whitt@inlandnewspapers.com

A jury on Monday convicted a San Bernardino man in a 2006 deadly shooting that stemmed from a dispute at El Patio Night Club in Rialto.

Andres Landeros Garcia, 23, was found guilty of murdering 24-year-old Rosa Trigo and the attempted murder of a man who was driving with her April 17, 2006, San Bernardino police said.

He was also found guilty of assault with a firearm on another passenger in the vehicle.

Trigo was wounded in the 1800 block of West 5th Street when several men inside a Hummer H2 pulled alongside the vehicle she was riding in and opened fire. She died minutes later.

Trigo and the man driving her were at the El Patio Night Club in the 300 block of East Foothill Boulevard in Rialto when a dispute arose between them and several men. Trigo and her companion left the club and were followed by several men in the Hummer.

melissa.pinion-whitt@inlandnewspapers.com

Jurors on Wednesday found a Victorville man guilty of the second-degree murder of a Hesperia woman, whose decomposed body was found in a Redlands field.

Regis Anthony Cooper is scheduled to return to court March 13 where he could face a prison sentence of 15-years-to-life, Redlands officials said.

The victim, 53-year-old Linda Odom was found dead Aug. 30, 2006 by workers clearing brush out of a field at the corner of Ford Street and Sunset Avenue.

Police had to scour missing persons databases and conduct a DNA comparison in order to identify her, due to her badly decomposed remains.

Cooper and his girlfriend had been living with Odom about a month when she was reported missing in April 2006.

The night before Odom's disappearance, Cooper and his girlfriend fought in the apartment on April 30. Police arrested Cooper's 20-year-old girlfriend. When she returned to the apartment on May 2, Odom was gone and Cooper said she left.

Family members confronted Cooper at the apartment complex, but he told them Odom had a stroke and was living with her mother. He later said she was in a hospital.

melissa.pinion-whitt@inlandnewspapers.com