SLO County citizens plan March for Justice

January 7, 2020

By CCT Staff

A group of San Luis Obispo County residents is holding a march to demand justice in San Luis Obispo County, according to the following press release.

March for Justice press release:

Join us as we march to demand justice in San Luis Obispo County on January 14 at 3 p.m. at the courthouse on Monterey Street. Join our cry for justice, truth and transparency.

Our March for Justice is focused on seven cases of injustice propagated by law enforcement, social workers, prosecutors and/or local judges.

Government employees regularly fight to withhold evidence that will show they have fabricated the facts. Appearing to be more concerned with their win rate than justice, prosecutors fight to withhold evidence that supports the accused, transparency and truth.

Even if the truth comes out in court, our local judges and the District Attorney’s Office refuse to prosecute law enforcement, government employees, witnesses and lawyers who lie in court. There is no justice in a judicial system that turns a blind eye to perjury and other crimes committed by goverment employees and officials.

Four examples of injustice in SLO County:

After more than 30 years working as a security guard, Eugene Haugh knew proper procedures. In July 2017 he found a woman, who had been arrested and ordered to stay off the Irish Hills Plaza property a month earlier, panhandling in the parking lot. He called the police department and detained her for the 45 minutes it took police to arrive.

Haugh discovered the woman had become a confidential informant for the police following her earlier arrest. Police then destroyed or lost the record of her earlier arrest.

Without interviewing Haugh about the trespasser’s allegations, officer Josh Walsh asked the District Attorney’s Office to charge Haugh with kidnapping and assault based on the pan handler’s account. Prosecutors complied.

In court, Officer Walsh perjured himself claiming the earlier trespass arrest never occurred, but the security company had a copy of the earlier arrest report, which was also made by Officer Walsh. Following Officer Walsh’s perjury, and the disclosure of the earlier arrest report, the jury found Haugh innocent.

However, neither the judge nor the district attorney’s office took action against Officer Walsh for his perjury, a felony in California. When social workers, law enforcement officers, or employees of the District Attorney’s Office lie in court, our judges and prosecutors need to take action.

In Feb. 2018, a 911 caller reported an elderly man was being assaulted by two young men. Officers arrived, misidentified 66-year-old Dane Senser as a man with multiple arrests, and told the employer of the two young furniture movers not to worry, they would have no problems.

“Under a recommendation by the police department, the District Attorney’s Office then filed assault charges against Senser, who was taken to the hospital by ambulance. The two young men had no injuries.

While Senser’s public defender made more than a dozen motions to get evidence including officer camera tapes and the audio recordings of the 911 calls, the prosecutor fought each attempt. After severalmonths, the prosecution released a small portion of the tapes, which showed the officer’s poor behavior.

After the defense saw the tapes, prosecutors dropped all charges.

Instead of using taxpayer monies to fight the release of evidence, our District Attorney’s Office should support truth, transparency and justice. How many people have pleaded guilty to avoid the possibility of jail time, when the evidence would have proved their innocence?

Cheyne Orndoff and Vanessa Bedroni, the couple caught up in the search for the gun that San Luis Obispo Police Chief Deanna Cantrell lost in a restaurant bathroom, were charged with felony child neglect based on a blood test that was possibly misinterpreted by social workers and the District Attorney’s Office.

This is in addition to a warrantless search that occurred because the District Attorney’s Office mistakenly listed Orndoff, the victim in another case, as on probation.

While Orndoff and Bedroni’s preliminary hearing was originally set for October, it has been repeatedly delayed while the defense seeks a review of the blood test and copies of police officer recordings and records. At each hearing, the prosecutor has argued against providing evidence to the defense, and the couple’s preliminary hearing has been delayed.

In order to promote justice, the District Attorney’s Office should stop fighting disclosure of evidence, and the judges should insist on transparency.

In September, two police officers responded to a false report of a possible burglary at a residence on Santa Rosa Street. While on the property, Officer Josh Walsh began cursing at resident Riley Manford, because he was afraid of her dog. Another officer told Walsh to calm down, but Officer Walsh shot and killed Manford and Nick Regalia’s dog.

The SLO Police Department later reported that the dog had charged Officer Walsh, who drew his weapon and fired to protect himself. Manford and Regalia want the public to know the truth, but the department has fought several legal attempts to see officer body camera videos of the shooting.

While the SLO Police Department regularly releases recordings that support the department, generally when they refuse to give up records, it is because the recordings show bad behavior by officers. All police camera video recordings of interactions with citizens should be public in support of justice and public safety.

These are just four examples of injustices, but there are many more. Please walk with us in our March for Justice on January 14 from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. at 1050 Monterey Street in San Luis Obispo.

For more information about the march, call Nick Regalia at 707-227-8060.