Jose Lumbreras, 25, has pleaded no contest on two counts of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated for the deaths of 22-year-old UC Berkeley graduate Milanca Lopez and her 6-year-old son, Xavier Chevez. The Alameda County District Attorney’s office is requesting the maximum 12 years in prison, according to Deputy District Attorney Teresa Drenick.

“It is a tremendous relief to know this particular chapter has come to a close without the trauma of what we knew would be a painful trial for her family and friends,” said Rue Mapp, a UC Berkeley graduate and neighbor of Lopez, in an email. “We will continue to celebrate Milanca and Xavier’s lives and remember the beautiful friend and mother she was in our community.”

Paul Wolf, Lumbreras’ defense attorney, disagrees with the prosecution’s pursuit of the maximum sentence. He said Lumbreras has suffered greatly from the accident and that 12 years is too severe for the crime.

“Jose has never denied nor sought to shirk his responsibility for the damage and pain for which he has shared and continues to experience,” Wolf said. “He loved both of them. It’s an accident, and he’s responsible for it.”

Wolf will argue for a lighter penalty during Lumbreras’ sentencing on June 11.

At approximately 1 a.m. on May 18, 2012, Lumbreras drove into a tree in central Berkeley, killing Lopez and seriously injuring Chevez. According to police, his blood alcohol level was twice the legal limit.

Chevez was placed on life support and died from his injuries one week later at Children’s Hospital and Research Center in Oakland.

Prior to her death, Lopez and her son lived in university student housing at University Village in Albany. Lopez began studying at UC Berkeley in 2007 and was planning to begin a master’s program for teaching at UCLA following her graduation.

Lumbreras came to UC Berkeley in 2010 after receiving a degree in sociology from UC Santa Barbara. He received a graduate degree from UC Berkeley’s ethnic studies department not long before the accident.

The couple was allegedly drinking in celebration of their recent graduations prior to the collision, Wolf said.

Lumbreras is currently being held at the Santa Rita Jail in Dublin, and his bail is set at $200,000, according to the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office inmate locator.

“It’s one of the most tragic cases I’ve ever been involved in, and I’ve been a criminal defense lawyer for 37 years,” Wolf said. “It caused nearly intolerable injury and loss to three people and their respective families.”

Andy Nguyen is the lead crime reporter. Contact him at anguyen@dailycal.org
and follow him on Twitter @Andy_Truc.

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Holder gave his speech amid protests from human rights and medical marijuana activists. In his remarks, Holder touched on some of protesters’ concerns surrounding the U.S. government’s policies on the legal prosecution of suspected terrorists. The attorney general also commended the graduating students for their sense of social responsibility.

“From protesting tuition increases across the state to rallying support for same-sex marriage, you’ve raised your voices on some of the most pressing issues facing your peers and fellow citizens,” Holder said of UC Berkeley students.

In the second half of his speech, Holder defended the civilian legal system against critics who claim that federal courts are incapable of handling terrorism cases.

“(Civilian courts) have enabled us to convict scores of people of terrorism-related offenses since September 11,” Holder said in his speech. “Hundreds are properly, safely and securely held in our federal prisons — not Guantanamo — today.”

Outside the ceremony, around five protesters wore orange jumpsuits and black hoods similar to those worn by prisoners and handed out fliers to people as they arrived. The protest was organized by the San Francisco chapter of The World Can’t Wait, an organization that aims to stop the use of torture around the world.

A similar protest was held at last year’s ceremony and criticized the continued employment of law professor John Yoo, who wrote a series of controversial memos for the Bush administration that defended the use of controversial interrogation tactics.

In his address to graduates, Holder criticized the policies Congress enacted in the aftermath of 9/11, saying that they had placed “unwise and unwarranted restrictions” on where terrorist suspects could be held, charged and prosecuted.

“We used techniques that were of questionable effectiveness but were certainly inconsistent with who we say we are as a people,” Holder said. “In short, many lost faith with our founding documents and our time-tested, effective institutions.”

A group of members of Americans for Safe Access, a marijuana advocacy group, also protested against the federal government’s stance opposing medical marijuana.

The demonstration follows a lawsuit recently filed by the federal government against Berkeley Patients Group, a medical marijuana dispensary in Berkeley.

Throughout the ceremony, a plane circled the theater, towing a banner that read “Holder End RX Cannabis War #Peace4Patients.”

Holder, however, ended his address on a positive note, encouraging graduates to advocate for justice.

“Use your unique skills, your idealism and the power that your new law degree affords to better yourselves, to improve your communities and to solve the complex problems that undoubtedly lie ahead,” he said.

Contact Andy Nguyen at anguyen@dailycal.org.

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The Alameda County Sheriff’s Office Coroner’s Bureau released its report in the investigation of the death of 41-year-old Kayla Moore Friday afternoon. The coroner’s report lists the cause of death as an “acute combined drug intoxication.”

Toxic amounts of methamphetamine and codeine were found in Moore’s blood, according to the report. It also noted that an enlarged heart and morbid obesity were contributing factors to her death.

In addition to the coroner’s office report, Berkeley Police Department released the findings of its own investigation into Moore’s death Friday afternoon. The report also concluded that the death was accidental.

In recent weeks, the department has faced criticism from community members as well as Moore’s family, who claimed that BPD had not been forthcoming with its investigation.

A press hold had been put on the coroner’s report since the beginning of the investigation, and groups like Berkeley Copwatch demanded that the hold be lifted and the report released. Demonstrations were held at a City Council meeting, and protesters marched to BPD headquarters calling for more transparency from the department.

“We understand there was a need to get information quicker, and there was a desire on our part that we provide all the information we could to the community,” said BPD spokesperson Jennifer Coats. “But at the same time, we wanted to make sure we did a proper and thorough investigation for Moore but also for Moore’s family, the community and the officers involved.”

The report goes into detail about what occurred on the night of Feb. 12 and includes witness statements and interviews with the responding officers. The report also includes a written statement by John Hayes, who lived with Moore at the Gaia Building apartment complex and was the one who called the police.

According to Hayes, Moore used drugs on a regular basis, including crack and methamphetamines. On the night of the incident, Hayes said Moore was drunk and high on methamphetamines, causing her to act belligerent.

“(Kayla) asked me for money to get more speed and alcohol, and I told him to go ask someone else and leave me alone,” Hayes said in the statement. “(Kayla) got really angry and wouldn’t leave me alone, we began and arguing and … (she) told me to just get out.”

Hayes left the apartment and called the police afterward, fearing Moore would attack him and saying that she had a history of aggression. He cited an incident in which Moore stabbed someone in San Francisco.

According to Coats, police were originally called in to take Moore, a diagnosed paranoid schizophrenic, to a mental health evaluation at Alta Bates Summit Medical Center. Officers discovered Moore had an arrest warrant out for an earlier incident in San Francisco and proceeded to arrest her instead. Moore got into an altercation with the officers and was eventually restrained to a gurney.

“(She) became increasingly agitated and uncooperative to the officer’s verbal commands and began to scream and violently resist,” according to a statement from BPD. “After struggling with officers, they were able to gain control of the subject and place (her) in restraints.”

Officers soon discovered Moore had stopped breathing, and they performed CPR. Moore was rushed to the medical center, where she was pronounced dead.

Staff writer Sophie Ho contributed to this report. 

“Andy Nguyen is the lead crime reporter. Contact him at anguyen@dailycal.org
and follow him on Twitter @Andy_Truc.
“

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El Monte Police Department was notified at approximately 10:40 a.m. by an unknown caller that there were bombs at CSU L.A. and “Cal State Berkeley,” according to the Associated Press. This comes after Monday’s Boston Marathon bombings, which left three people dead and more than 100 injured.

While both law enforcement officials in Los Angeles and Berkeley deemed the threat a low risk, CSU L.A. evacuated its campus, and a bomb squad was dispatched to the scene. The squad eventually found no evidence of explosives. UCPD decided to silently conduct its search of the campus and found no explosives as well, according to department spokesperson Lt. Eric Tejada.

“We determined it was a pretty low-risk bomb threat, so we did some searches of our own and decided to go business as usual on campus,” Tejada said. “Obviously, we didn’t find anything, and it was a very low-risk threat assessment, so we didn’t do a WarnMe messaging or anything like that.”

Andy Nguyen is the lead crime reporter. Contact him at anguyen@dailycal.org
and follow him on Twitter @Andy_Truc.

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After 10 years of working for the department as a captain, Margo Bennett has been appointed the new UCPD chief of police.

Bennett has been acting as interim chief of police since former chief Mitch Celaya stepped down from the position in December. This prompted a nationwide search for a new chief that saw the initial pool of 71 candidates narrowed down to four before Bennett was finalized.

“I’m totally honored to be receiving this appointment,” Bennett said. “This is a great department to work for, and we got some great people here, so I’m excited and anxious to get to work.”

Bennett has been with the department for more than a decade and has over 35 years of law enforcement experience, according to a statement by Associate Vice Chancellor of Business and
Administrative Services Ron Coley Thursday morning.

“She has an understanding of the culture of our community and the workings of the department that will prove invaluable as we institute the type of significant changes that are necessary to achieve our goals of exceptional security and service,” Coley said in the statement.

The selection process included a forum held at the end of March, during which students had the opportunity to talk with the four remaining finalists and ask them questions about what they would do as chief. The other finalists included Rhonda Harris, chief of police at Old Dominion University; Eric Heath, deputy chief of police at the University of Chicago; and Nate Johnson, chief law enforcement officer for the California State University system.

News of the appointment was greeted with enthusiasm by UCPD, excited at the prospect of working under Bennett.

“She’s done a great job keeping us on track,” said Lt. Eric Tejada, UCPD’s spokesperson. “She has a very inclusive management style and is very aware of the needs of the university.”

Bennett hopes to implement a better way to approach protests on campus, learning from the mistakes made during the Occupy Cal demonstrations in 2011 that saw UCPD officers strike students with batons.

“It’s a situation that many don’t want to see repeated,” Bennett said. “I regret anytime the police take action where people are hurt, especially students … I’m hoping we can develop stronger relationships across the campus to help us accomplish a common good.”

These relationships include all facets of the campus including the students, staff and faculty, according to a university press release.

“Such ties should lead to more individuals contacting the police department about crimes and suspicious activities, and working with the department to ensure that campus events can be handled through the cooperative engagement of all involved,” the statement said.

Andy Nguyen is the lead crime reporter. Contact him at anguyen@dailycal.org
and follow him on Twitter @Andy_Truc.

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Organized by Kayla’s family, the celebration will be held at the Gaia Building apartment complex at 5 p.m. on what would have been her 42nd birthday.

Moore, a diagnosed paranoid schizophrenic, died in police custody on the night of Feb. 12 after officers were called to her apartment to respond to a call about a disturbance.

Following the event, Berkeley Copwatch has organized a march to the Berkeley Police Station to call on the department to release information about their investigation into Moore’s death.

“Our first objective is to honor Kayla Moore and the grief that her family has endured as a result of her murder,” said Copwatch member Andrea Prichett. “Then we’re going to the police station, asking them to release the hold that they have placed on the coroner’s report … we’re asking BPD to correct that situation and let the public and the family have access to the report.”

There is currently a “press hold” placed on the release of the autopsy report by the BPD as the investigation is still ongoing. The coroner’s office is also still currently conducting their own investigation at this time, said Deputy Damon Wilson from the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office Coroner’s Bureau.

Maria Moore, Kayla’s sister, says the department mishandled the incident and that the officers lacked the necessary training to handle suspects with mental illnesses.

“(The incident) was handled horribly,” Maria said. “One of the neighbors said that (Kayla) was quiet and didn’t know why the police was called. The situation only escalated when the police came.”

According to Maria, the department has not been forthright with information about the investigation to the family, saying they had to reach out to BPD in order for someone to respond.

“We had to call them several times just to get a phone call back,” Maria said. “We may have to get a lawyer involved because they’re not producing any information.”

Maria also criticized the rate at which the investigation is being handled, saying that it has been two months without any word from the department. In an email, Officer Jennifer Coats, spokesperson for BPD, said that the investigation is going at its current rate because officers want it to be as thorough as possible.

The investigation involves detailed interviews with witnesses as well as a collection and analysis of all evidence, according to Coats.

“We understand the community’s concern over this incident and their desire to have as much information as possible,” Coats stated in the email. “This can take some time and we are committed to conducting a thorough investigation into this matter.”

Andy Nguyen is the lead crime reporter. Contact him at anguyen@dailycal.org
and follow him on Twitter @Andy_Truc.

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At approximately 2 a.m., Berkeley Fire Department and Berkeley Police Department responded to a medical call at a home in the 1200 block of Dwight Way. Soon afterward, shots were fired from inside the residence, according to Officer Jennifer Coats, spokesperson for BPD.

“The officers were responding when BPD reported shots fired inside,” Coats stated in the email. “One of the firefighters was hit, and received a non-life threatening injury, that did not required hospitalization.”

BPD officers were able to make contact with the shooter, an 88-year-old man, who was then taken into custody and sent to a local hospital for a psychiatric evaluation. His name is currently being withheld.

“BPD works very closely with BFD and we are very grateful that the firefighter was not hurt more seriously,” Coats said in the email.

Andy Nguyen is the lead crime reporter. Contact him at anguyen@dailycal.org
and follow him on Twitter @Andy_Truc.

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Residential burglary — 3000 block of King Street

On March 25 at approximately 2:16 p.m., a resident on the 3000 block of King Street reported a burglary of a rear storage unit. The unknown suspect entered by breaking one of the unit’s window. According to the victim, nothing appeared to have been taken.

Vandalism — 2700 block of Bancroft Way

On March 26 at approximately 2:15 a.m., an unknown suspect broke the window to a residential building on the 2700 block of Bancroft Way. The suspect used a brick to break the window.

Residential burglary — 900 block of Tulare Avenue

On March 27 between 2:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m., a residential burglary occurred on the 900 block of Tulare Avenue. The unknown suspect entered the residence by prying a door. The suspect stole a computer and jewelry from the home.

Auto theft — 3100 block of Lewiston Avenue

On March 28 at approximately 9 a.m., a victim reported a vehicle stolen on the 3100 block of Lewiston Avenue. The victim parked the vehicle the night before on the city street. The victim went out in the morning and discovered the vehicle missing. Taken was a black 1998 Honda Civic. The vehicle was recovered on Northampton Avenue in Berkeley.

Possible arson — 1900 block of Shattuck Avenue

On March 29 at approximately 2:01 a.m., a BPD officer was on patrol and discovered a city of Berkeley trash can on fire on the 1900 block of Shattuck Avenue. Using a fire extinguisher, the officer put out the fire. Berkeley Fire Department arrived to assist and indicated the fire may not be accidental. The incident is still under investigation.

Narcotics violation — 2100 block of Fourth Street

On March 30 at approximately 11:20 p.m., a BPD officer on foot patrol on the 2100 block of Fourth Street noticed an individual hiding behind a vehicle smoking a substance. The officer investigated further and determined that the individual was smoking what was suspected to be methamphetamines. The subject was arrested for possession of drug paraphernalia.

Please note that these are Calls For Police Services only and are subject to review and reclassification. These CFS numbers only reflect part one crimes reported to BPD. The numbers reflected in the report are only a snapshot of what occurs in the city of Berkeley. The numbers are considered for informational purposes only and should not be used for data analysis or comparison to other agencies. Cases may be reclassified after further review of the incident by supervisors, investigating detectives or the district attorney as appropriate.

View Crime Blotter March. 25—30 in a larger map

Andy Nguyen is the lead crime reporter. Contact him at anguyen@dailycal.org
and follow him on Twitter @Andy_Truc.

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The meetings, which will be held at the Haas Pavilion Club Room from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., will act as a way for students to speak with candidates for police chief, according to ASUC President Connor Landgraf. The candidates include interim UCPD Chief Margo Bennett as well as Rhonda Harris, Eric Heath and Nate Johnson, who all hail from police leadership backgrounds at other universities.

“It’s a really important time for students to come out and make their voices and opinion heard about this search so they can have the best police chief possible,” Landgraf said.

The campus has embarked on a nationwide search for former UCPD chief Mitch Celaya’s replacement and received 71 applications for the position, according to campus spokesperson Janet Gilmore. Celaya’s tenure as police chief was marked with noted controversy for the department’s handling of the fall 2011 Occupy protests.

For students like UC Berkeley junior James Chang, who was involved in Occupy Cal and is currently running for ASUC Senate, UCPD’s role in the November protests still remains a pivotal issue, and he hopes that the new chief will strive to prevent similar incidents.

“I would like to see this new chief of the UCPD pledge to make sure that the violence we saw from police officers in November 2011 does not occur again,” Chang said.

Landgraf said he believes that the new chief should work on improving student safety on campus as well as have an understanding of the relationships between the city and university.

All of the candidates have police backgrounds in university settings. Harris is chief of police at Old Dominion University, Heath is deputy chief of police at the University of Chicago and Johnson is chief law enforcement officer for the California State University system.

“(The police chief position) requires somebody who is willing to be a kind of community leader — a person who is willing to meet with student groups, faculty and staff,” Heath said.

The candidates also cite UC Berkeley’s reputation as a highly regarded university as one of the reasons they applied for the job.

“It only stands to reason that the University of California is one of the finest academic institutions in the world, and it truly deserves to have one of the finest police departments in the world,” Bennett said.

Gilmore added that the search will be an exhaustive process involving consultations with all segments of the Berkeley community.

“The criteria that (the search committee) were looking for included expertise in university policing, community policing, law enforcement leadership, relationship building and training and development,” Gilmore said. “They will meet with a broad group of folks including students, senior campus administrators, faculty leaders, community leaders, members of the UCPD and representatives from the BPD.”

The search committee will name its two final candidates toward the end of March, and these candidates will be interviewed by top UCPD leaders as well as Chancellor Robert Birgeneau and Ron Coley, associate vice chancellor of business and administrative services.

Andy Nguyen is the lead crime reporter. Contact him at anguyen@dailycal.org
and follow him on Twitter @Andy_Truc.

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At approximately 12:05 a.m., two armed suspects entered the Ashkenaz Music and Dance Center and demanded cash from employees, according to a statement from Berkeley Police Department. The suspects then fired their weapons, striking two of the center’s employees.

One of the employees has been identified as Larry Chin, the center’s executive director, according to ABC 7 news. Chin was shot in the neck, and the second employee, who has not been identified, was shot in the arm.

Within moments of the shootings, BPD officers arrived on scene and attempted to apprehend one of the fleeing suspects. Residents in the area were told to stay in their homes during a search for the suspect. Officers from the department’s Barricaded Subject Hostage Negotiation Team were called in to help due to the violent nature of the crime, according to the police department’s statement.

“Berkeley officers … conducted an extensive yard-to-yard search of the area looking for the suspect,” the statement said. “During the search a suspect was located behind a building in the 1300 block of San Pablo Avenue and taken safely into custody.”

The employees were sent to a local hospital for serious injuries but are expected to recover, according to a post on the center’s Facebook page.

“We at Ashkenaz are deeply touched by the support and concern already expressed by so many in response to last night’s events,” the post said. “We are relieved and grateful to report that our two family members are in stable condition and expected to recover.”

The second suspect is still at large, and BPD urges anyone with information to contact detectives in the robbery and homicide division at 510-981-5742 or 510-981-5900. Anonymous tips can be sent to the Bay Area Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477.

Andy Nguyen is the lead crime reporter. Contact him at anguyen@dailycal.org
and follow him on Twitter @Andy_Truc.

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