Arrest Made In 1975 Massage Parlor Slaying

SAN DIEGO — Authorities announced an arrest Friday in connection with a 1975 killing at a massage parlor in a then-seedy downtown area now known as the Gaslamp Quarter.

San Diego police detectives traveled to Parchman, Miss., on Thursday to take custody of 57-year-old Leon Johnson, who had been arrested on a warrant charging him with murdering 27-year-old Luz Borrayo in 1975, San Diego Police Department Lt. Ernie Herbert said.

Borrayo’s body was found inside the Twilight Massage Parlor on Nov. 22, 1975 in the 600 block of Fifth Avenue. The victim had been beaten and strangled.

Two years ago, investigators with the SDPD Cold Case Team reopened the case and resubmitted “viable evidentiary items” to the department’s crime lab for renewed analysis. Those reviews resulted in the identification of Johnson as Borrayo’s suspected killer, according to Herbert.

Herbert declined to disclose the type of evidence that allegedly implicated the suspect.

Johnson is being held in county jail in downtown San Diego pending an arraignment scheduled for Monday afternoon.

New County Bail Policy Takes Effect

SAN DIEGO — A new law enforcement policy could land anyone caught committing a petty crime in San Diego County in jail.

The new policy started this week and it means anyone from drivers caught speeding to petty thieves will likely wind up in a jail cell. The policy is in place because another new policy freed the jails up.

Since the beginning of 2010, bailing out of jail has become cheaper because inmates now only have to pay for one of their crimes regardless of how many they were arrested for. It makes bailing out of jail more affordable.

“Doesn’t this make it easier for someone who committed all these crimes to bail out of jail?” asked 10News I-Team reporter Mitch Blacher.

“The amount to bail out would be less, yes,” answered San Diego County Sheriff Bill Gore.

“Will decreasing the amount of bail affect public safety?” Blacher asked

“I don’t think so,” Gore responded.

Gore said he sees this as an opportunity to better police the county since more people bailing out means more room in the jails.

Gore sent a letter to every police chief in the county on Monday saying in part: “Recently, the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department inmate population has decreased significantly, resulting in an opportunity to reevaluate and broaden the current booking acceptance criteria.”

“So you’re saying, ‘Let’s charge for some more crimes?’” Blacher asked “Oh, absolutely. I don’t want to have empty beds in my jail,” Gore said.

Law enforcement officers will now start arresting people more often for 32 specific crimes including, giving an officer a fake ID, excessive speeding and disturbing the peace.

Violent, repeat and serious offenders can’t get out on reduced bail, law enforcement officials said.

Please, Put Me in Jail

Last year, employees of Geo Group, a private prison corporation, contributed more than $2000 to the campaign fund of San Diego’s interim sheriff Bill Gore. Geo operates San Diego’s old downtown jail at 220 C Street, where the company houses more than 750 federal prisoners awaiting trial or transfer to a federal prison.

Documents filed with the San Diego County Registrar of Voters, as well as memos obtained under the California Public Records Act, reveal that Geo Group used San Diego lawyer Mike McDade and Geo Group’s Ken Fortier to lobby county officials in an effort to renew their lease of the downtown jail, as well as take charge of the Descanso Detention Facility.

Formerly a unit of Wackenhut Corporation, Geo Group is headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida. The rise of their influence in California has coincided with the administration of Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.

In April 2006, the Institute on Money in State Politics issued a white paper titled “Policy Lock-Down: Prison Interests Court Political Players” that was critical of the use of private prisons. Their existence, the paper contended, was largely due to political decisions regarding crime.

McDade, an attorney with the downtown firm of Wertz, McDade, Wallace, Moot & Brower, is registered as a lobbyist in the city of San Diego but not the county. McDade once worked for former San Diego County supervisor and city mayor Roger Hedgecock. He served as chairman of the San Diego Port Commission in 1997 and has been heavily involved in redevelopment projects downtown.

Last September, McDade and Fortier lobbied April Heinze — director of the county’s Department of General Services, which oversees county leases of buildings — about renewing Geo’s lease on the downtown jail. Neither McDade nor Fortier registered as a lobbyist with the county of San Diego in 2009.

San Diego County defines a lobbyist, or legislative advocate, as “any individual who, on behalf of another individual, firm, corporation, or organization other than himself attempts to influence any County decision by contacting, personally or by telephone, any of the specified County officers or employees.”

The county does provide exemptions to this requirement, including allowing “a member of the State Bar of California who is performing a service which lawfully can be performed only by an attorney licensed to practice law in California.”

McDade’s primary focus as an attorney is government and land-use issues, and he said it was not necessary for him to register as a lobbyist with the county, citing the provision for attorneys. He added that his role in advocating for Geo Group was “sporadic,” and he considered himself only a part-time consultant for Geo.

“The county usually provides an exception for practicing attorneys working on leasing issues. My advice was focused on renewing the downtown jail lease for Geo, and I was not trying to lobby for any new lease,” said McDade.

District attorney spokesman Steve Walker said he was not sure what the exemption included nor what the penalty for failing to file would be. But David Hall of the San Diego County clerk’s office noted that “every attorney was not exempt from registering as a lobbyist due to being an attorney.”

Fortier does not fall under any county exemptions, as he is not a lawyer and does not qualify by any other county exemption standards listed by the county clerk. A former San Diego police officer, Fortier graduated from the San Diego Police Academy in 1962 and served as a patrol officer until being transferred to investigations in 1966. A year later, he was promoted to sergeant.

“He continued to climb through the ranks, earning the positions of lieutenant, captain, inspector, deputy chief and assistant chief. He left San Diego in 1992 and began employment with Riverside on Jan. 18, 1993,” wrote Lisa O’Neill in an August 17, 1997 article for the Riverside Press-Enterprise newspaper.

Fortier took over as Riverside’s police chief in January 1993. His tenure was credited with lowering the city’s crime rate and modernizing the Riverside Police Department’s organization.

But Fortier left Riverside under the cloud of repeated battles with the police union of Riverside, and in July 2000 he was appointed vice president of Geo-Wackenhut’s western region. The company announced Fortier would be based in Irvine, California, and would manage “eight current facilities and one facility under development, with a total of 6,866 beds.”

In multiple emails last summer to San Diego County staff, Fortier campaigned for Geo Group to gain control of the Descanso Correctional Facility, closed by the sheriff’s department as a cost-saving measure last June, and to renew the lease on the downtown jail. Fortier contacted Carl Harry, Real Estate Services Division project manager for the county, on several occasions. Harry often referred to Fortier as a representative of Geo Group to other county officials.

“Ken represents GEO Group in California and Nevada and is currently working with both the U.S. Marshal and with I.C.E. [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] on programs to try and provide more inmate beds in San Diego County,” said Harry in an October 12 exchange with April Heinze and Cal Fire unit chief Howard Windsor.

The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, usually known as Cal Fire, expressed an interest in the Descanso site. But between June and November, Fortier maintained constant contact with Harry and other members of county staff regarding the Descanso Detention Facility and the downtown jail. April Heinze acknowledged meeting with Fortier and McDade. Geo Group, which operates private prisons throughout the United States and specializes in the detainment of immigration detainees, was seeking to expand its base in San Diego through acquisition of the Descanso facility.

In September, the county decided to turn over the Descanso facility to the San Diego County Probation Department. But on November 26, the Probation Department announced it would not take the facility, citing expenses. Heinze said the Department of General Services contacted Geo Group and Cal Fire to let them know the facility was once more available. As of early this month, no decision had been made, but Corrections Corporation of America, the largest private prison corporation in the country, had also expressed an interest.

Fortier donated $500 to Sheriff Gore’s campaign on February 19, 2009, and gave a second donation of $500 on June 30. Both times he identified himself as “retired” on Gore’s campaign donation lists. Among other contributors to Gore’s campaign were Wayne Calabrese, president and chief operating officer for Geo Group; Eric Noonan, warden at Geo’s downtown facility; and Kyle Schiller, director of business management for Geo’s western region.

When asked why his employment by Geo was not disclosed on Gore’s campaign statements and why he had not registered with the county as a lobbyist, Fortier refused to comment and referred all questions to Geo Group’s corporate headquarters in Florida. Repeated calls to Calabrese or anyone in authority at Geo Group as to why they were contributing money to the Friends of Bill Gore campaign for sheriff were not returned.

According to Roman Porter of the California Fair Political Practices Commission, complying with the state’s legal requirement to disclose contributors’ true occupations is the responsibility of the campaign. A campaign has 60 days from the date of the donation to either correct the information or return the money. A December look into the campaign forms revealed no contributions returned or corrections made to Fortier’s employment status.

Repeated calls to the Gore campaign were unreturned.

By E.A. Barrera | Published Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2010

No prison time for Leaf in plea deal

Infamous former Chargers quarterback Ryan Leaf will plead guilty to felony prescription drug charges and will receive 10 years of probation and a $20,000 fine as part of a plea deal reached yesterday with his attorney, a Texas prosecutor said.

The deal doesn’t include prison time largely because his alleged burglary victim asked prosecutors not to pursue charges against him, said James Farren, the prosecutor in Randall County, Texas.

A Texas judge will have final say on the plea deal recommendation.

Farren expects Leaf to arrive in Randall County next week to enter his plea. He said he does not expect Leaf to cancel the agreement, which could have turned out much worse for him. Leaf, 33, faced 20 years in prison on the burglary charge alone.

The charges stem from Leaf’s tenure as an assistant coach at West Texas A&M in 2008, when police said he broke into a player’s apartment and stole an unknown quantity of a player’s prescription hydrocodone, a painkiller.

Farren said the player wrote his office a letter saying he did not want to pursue charges against Leaf. It may have helped Leaf avoid prison time.

“Probably,” Farren said. “The burglary would have been a bigger problem for us to agree to probation, but it’s hard to proceed without a victim. … We try to give a voice to victim when we can. A lot of young men still look up to Mr. Leaf, and I understand that.”

Leaf, 33, couldn’t be reached for comment. His attorney in Texas didn’t return a call seeking comment.

A grand jury in Randall County issued nine indictments against Leaf in May 2009, including charges of trying to obtain a controlled substance by fraud and delivery of a simulated controlled substance to a player.

Farren said he anticipates the judge will order various conditions concerning his probation, which likely will include community service and counseling.

“The ball’s kind of in his court,” Farren said of Leaf. “If he has a handle on what we believe is a problem with prescription drugs, he may be fine. If he doesn’t, he may find probation difficult.”

The Chargers selected Leaf with the No. 2 pick in the 1998 NFL draft, right behind Tennessee quarterback Peyton Manning, who was selected first by Indianapolis. Leaf played in the NFL from 1998-2001 and often is cited as one of the biggest busts in NFL history.

After his football career in 2002, Leaf sued Chargers doctors for medical malpractice, alleging that a wrist and shoulder injury were not properly treated. He later dropped the case. A former confidant of Leaf said the wrist had bothered him for some time after he stopped playing and likely played a role in his use of painkillers.

Farren said in May that Leaf had been in drug rehab in British Columbia, where he had been living and working.

Leaf told The Globe and Mail in Canada last year that he liked living there because “I’m the one who controls my celebrity up here, not the sports media down in the States.”

Jackson to serve 4 days in San Diego jail

San Diego Chargers receiver Vincent Jackson pleaded guilty to a 2009 DUI charge on Monday and received a four-day jail sentence and five years probation.

It is unclear when Jackson will serve his jail time.

Since joining the Chargers, Jackson has been arrested twice for suspicion of driving under the influence. He pleaded guilty in a 2006 case and was on probation when he was arrested again last January.

City Attorney’s Office spokeswoman Gina Coburn said Jackson was given the standard sentence for a DUI with one prior, including a $2,408 fine and 10 days of public work service. He also was given an additional five days of public work service on the 2006 DUI.

The jail time can be served as work release, Coburn said, and Jackson, who entered his plea on Monday, can report between now and March 23.

With the guilty plea, Jackson likely will be subject to the NFL’s personal conduct policy and could face at least a one-game suspension in the 2010 season.

Jackson faces arraignment on March 2 for driving with a suspended license. He was handcuffed briefly and had his car impounded following a traffic stop just a few hours before the Chargers’ playoff loss to the New York Jets. Jackson was pulled over for playing loud music. He was cited for driving with a suspended license and expired tags.

Jackson likely will be a restricted free agent this offseason, unless the NFL and its players can agree to a new contract before March 5. If a new contract is agreed to, then Jackson would be an unrestricted free agent.

Jackson enjoyed his best NFL season in 2009 with 68 catches for 1,167 yards and nine touchdowns.

Chargers general manager A.J. Smith didn’t return a call to The Associated Press seeking comment Tuesday.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

San Diego Jails release 260 inmates with California’s sentencing reform

Mothers across California saw their sons released from jail early. In San Diego County, the sentence was shortened for 260 inmates. The incarcerated were let out of jail in response to the new state law mandating San Diego to follow suit with the rest of California to reduce prisoner populations by 40,000 in coming years.

Parole officers will see their case load cut significantly. Critics doubt that the reform will reduce California’s recidivism rate now estimating 70 percent of offenders will become repeat offenders.

California’s Secretary of Corrections, Matthew Cate, explained the new law. “What this parole reform says is, if you commit a new crime you will go back, but not for technical violations.”

The current good time that prisoners earn will change so that now those sentenced can expect to serve half of the sentence given instead of the three-fourths time in effect until now.

About 9,000 of the violators who leave prison will now be on nonrevocable parole. Close to 5,000 classified as being a low risk will no longer be court ordered three years of supervised parole. In other words no one will be sent back to prison for a failed drug test anymore.

California’s over-populated prison system is a result of the hundreds of inmates serving life sentences under the state’s Three Strikes Law. Under this law, inmates who have never murdered but will never be released – do their time watching murderers come and go through the prison gates.
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Suspect in home invasions commits suicide in Central Jail

SAN DIEGO – A man linked by DNA evidence to a series of home invasions and sexual assaults killed himself in jail, police officials said Friday.

The body of Thomas James Parker, 39, was discovered at about early Friday at the San Diego Central Jail, police officials said. The San Diego County Sheriff’s Department, which runs the jail, confirmed that deputies found an inmate hanging in his cell when they made a security check at 7 a.m. Sheriff’s officials refused to identify the inmate until family members had been notified.

Parker was arrested Wednesday. Police said he attacked a woman in the garage of her Mission Valley apartment, but she was able to fight him off. The woman, a long distance runner, chased after her attacker until several bystanders, including and off-duty Border Patrol officer, caught him and held him for police.

Investigators said that Parker matched the description of a serial rapist being sought in connection with attacks on six women in the San Diego area over the last year. The assaults occurred in Carmel Valley, Tierrasanta, the College area and near UC San Diego, as well as Mission Valley. On Thursday, police announced that Parker’s DNA matched evidence collected in three of those attacks.

Parker was a married father of two young children and co-owner of It’s a Grind Coffee House in Little Italy.

Shawne Merriman and Tila Tequila: NFL Player Arrested

San Diego Chargers star outside linebacker Shawne Merriman was arrested Sunday and accused of choking and restraining his girlfriend, reality TV star Tila Tequila, as she tried to leave his suburban home.

Tequila, 27, signed a citizen’s arrest warrant, charging Merriman with battery and false imprisonment, San Diego County Sheriff’s Lt. Gary Steadman said.

Both are felonies.

Deputies responded about 3:45 a.m. to Merriman’s house in Poway, north of San Diego, after a woman called to say she was choked by the player and thrown to the ground when she tried to leave, Sheriff’s Department spokesman Jan Caldwell said at a news conference.

Merriman’s attorney, Todd Macaluso, disputed Tequila’s story and said he’s confident Merriman won’t be charged by the District Attorney’s Office.

“There was absolutely no wrongdoing on the part of Mr. Merriman,” Macaluso told The Associated Press by phone. “He essentially was doing what was appropriate under the circumstances in trying to protect the safety of Miss Tequila. There were numerous eyewitnesses that will support his version of the events that transpired at his home.”

Merriman, 25, was taken into custody and booked into the central jail at about 8:30 a.m. He was released shortly after 11 a.m.

Tequila was taken to a hospital. Her condition was not immediately available.
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Caldwell said deputies determined Tequila had been drinking.

Asked if Merriman was trying to keep Tequila from driving drunk, Macaluso said: “We don’t want to comment on her conduct. The bottom line is, he did everything in his power to ensure her safety. He hopes she comes forth and tells the truth.”

Caldwell said she wasn’t sure if Merriman had been drinking. Macaluso said witnesses he spoke with said Merriman had ordered water three or four times when his group was at a downtown San Diego club before going to his house. The attorney said none of Merriman’s teammates were at his house.

Tequila, whose real name is Tila Nguyen, is best known for “A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila,” which ran for two seasons on MTV. The bisexual dating show featured men and women vying for Tequila’s affections. She has also modeled for Playboy and other men’s magazines.

Scott E. Leemon, an attorney for Tequila, said in a statement that neither she nor her representatives would comment publicly.

Merriman didn’t return two e-mails seeking comment. His agent, Tom Condon, said he hadn’t heard about the arrest when contacted by The Associated Press.

There had been considerable Twitter chatter between Tequila and Merriman during the last two months. She tweeted several times about going to the Chargers’ game Friday night and a party she held afterward at a downtown club, including:

_ “Im the Head Cheerleader Prom Queen and (at)shawnemerriman is the Prom King! hahaha! LETS GOOO! LIGHTS OUT! SAN DIEGO I WILL SEE U TOMORROW!”

Merriman was the 12th overall pick out of Maryland in the 2005 draft, and had 39 1/2 sacks in his first three seasons. The three-time Pro Bowl selection has been getting back into shape after missing nearly all of last season following knee surgery.

The Chargers, picked by some as Super Bowl favorites, open the regular season a week from Monday night at Oakland. Players had been off since after Friday night’s exhibition finale against San Francisco. They are due back at practice on Monday.

“It’s disappointing to hear about the issue involving Shawne Merriman,” Chargers general manager A.J. Smith said in statement. “We’ll continue to monitor the situation and let the legal process run its course.”

Smith didn’t return a call seeking further comment.

Smith often speaks of signing “character” players, yet the Chargers have had their share of embarrassing off-field problems in recent seasons.

In 2006, there were seven run-ins with the law by San Diego players, including linebacker Steve Foley’s shooting by an off-duty police officer who suspected him of drunken driving.

Merriman was suspended four games for testing positive for steroids in 2006, and linebacker Stephen Cooper was suspended by the NFL for the first four games of the 2008 season after testing positive for a banned stimulant.

Smith reportedly has been unhappy with Merriman’s extracurricular activities, and there’s been speculation the Chargers will let him leave when he’s eligible to become an unrestricted free agent. Merriman has various business ventures and is enamored with the Los Angeles social scene. While on injured reserve last year he flew back and forth to Los Angeles once a week to appear on a football preview show.

Grand jury report backs replacing Las Colinas jail

By Mark Arner

Thursday, May 7, 2009 at 11:58 p.m.

Most of the county’s 31 detention facilities are in good shape and managed well, but the Las Colinas jail for women is too old, crowded and has poor medical facilities, the county grand jury said in a report released Thursday.

As it has in recent years, the grand jury supported a county plan to replace the 1960s-era Las Colinas jail with a new, larger jail as soon as possible.

The Sheriff’s Department runs eight main jails, with a total of more than 5,000 inmates. Las Colinas is the county’s only all-female jail.

The grand jury also reviewed several juvenile detention facilities and temporary holding cells at police and sheriff’s stations countywide.

Las Colinas has a court-ordered maximum capacity of 500 inmates, but frequently houses more than 700. On the day the grand jury visited, it had 771 inmates, the 22-page report said.

The grand jury praised the sheriff’s staff for keeping Las Colinas operating and effectively serving inmates’ needs. It pointed out, for example, that during the past year, several housing units were painted inside and out, all housing-unit roofs were resealed, six dormitories were renovated, and rotted wood floors were removed and concrete floors installed.

In the meantime, county officials are hoping to review an environmental impact report in June for a new 1,216-bed jail proposed to replace Las Colinas at a cost of up to $300 million. Last year, the state announced tentative approval of $100 million for the project. If fully funded, the replacement jail would take about five years to complete.

The grand jury report also recommended installing video surveillance systems at all detention facilities and converting juvenile medical records from paper to electronic format.

Crime victims tracking San Diego county jail inmates online

A website that lets crime victims anonymously track jail inmates is up and running in San Diego County. Anybody can register online and be notified when an inmate is released.

It’s called VINE – Victim Information and Notification Everyday, and it’s been available on the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department website for the past six weeks.

“It’s designed for victims, but concerned citizens and members of the public can use this system,” sheriff’s VINElink project manager Rich Luczak said.

Just go to the San Diego sheriff’s website and click on Who’s In Jail. Search by last name to locate the inmate, then on the inmate’s booking page, register with VINElink. Simply enter your email or phone number, and you’ll be notified as soon as that person gets released or transferred from county jail.

“It’s extremely important to have a valid phone number and a valid email address or the individual will not get a notification,” Luczak said.

Since July 1, more than 4,100 people have registered to track inmates. That’s about 100 registrations per day, and the process is completely confidential.

Many of the inmates being tracked by victims are charged with domestic violence crimes, but anyone can track an inmate for whatever reason.

“If a neighbor was vandalizing or stealing in the neighborhood and you were worried about when he might be released from jail, you could certainly register and get the heads-up,” Luczak said.

Right now this system only works for San Diego county jails. It does not track inmates in state prison, but that may be coming next year.

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