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Aspiring Castro ‘Naked Guy’ Acquitted of Indecent Exposure

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San Francisco, CA — A 48-year-old man whose attempt to fit in with Castro nudists ended in his arrest was acquitted of indecent exposure following a jury trial, San Francisco Public Defender Jeff Adachi announced today.

Jurors deliberated one day before finding Richard Sierra of San Francisco not guilty Thursday afternoon, said his attorney, Deputy Public Defender Cindy Elias. The misdemeanor charge carried a maximum penalty of a year in jail and Sierra faced lifetime registration as a sex offender if convicted.

Sierra decided to participate for the first time in the “urban nudism” movement in the Castro on the morning Nov. 11, 2012.  Over the past several years, a group of nudists, dubbed “the naked guys,” had been drawing increasing attention for congregating in the Castro District.

“At the time Mr. Sierra was arrested, San Francisco supervisors had not yet passed the ban against public nudity,” Elias said. “Until Feb. 1, 2013, it wasn’t a crime to be naked in San Francisco.”

Sierra, an inexperienced nudist, felt self-conscious completely disrobing. Instead, he pulled his pants down to his knees and pulled his tank top to just above his genitals in order to hide scars on his stomach. While many of the longtime Castro nudists wore cock rings, Sierra had only a metal ring from a binder. He attached it to his shirt and looped it around his penis to ensure his scars were covered. Sierra stood in front of Citibank on Castro Street, his genitals exposed.

Meanwhile, a 53-year-old man walking his dog saw Sierra arranging his genitals and flagged down two police officers on bicycles. The dog walker reported that Sierra appeared to be masturbating with personal lubricant.

While being detained, Sierra tried to explain to officers that he was not masturbating. He told them that he wanted to like the “naked guys” but was too shy to embrace total nudity. Sierra asked the officers why they were bothering him while numerous nude men walked around the neighborhood. Sierra was arrested.

During the three day trial, Sierra testified that he was not touching himself for sexual gratification and that he did not have personal lubricant – only a prescription cream for his chronic eczema. He did not apply the cream to his genitals, he testified, noting that he uses the medication sparingly due to its cost of $100.

Police did not book any of Sierra’s items into evidence, nor attempt to collect cell phone photographs taken by numerous passersby.

Rusty Mills, a well-known nudist activist, took the stand as an expert witness in the case. Mills testified to the various purposes of cock rings other than for sexual purposes.

Sierra, who had no history of sexual crimes, wept with relief when the jury returned its verdict, Elias said.

Jeff Adachi commended jurors for looking beyond first impressions in the case.

“Mr. Sierra was arrested at a time when public nudity was common and went unpunished in the Castro. Mr. Sierra’s failed attempt at being a nudist certainly does not warrant lifetime registration as a sex offender,” Adachi said.

Jennifer Johnson Honored With Mental Health Award

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San Francisco, CA — San Francisco Deputy Public Defender Jennifer Johnson has been honored by state officials and mental health leaders for her championing efforts to end criminalization of individuals with mental illness.

Johnson, who helped develop San Francisco’s Behavioral Health Court, was named County Champion Thursday evening at the Words to Deeds Paradigm Awards in Sacramento. The event is produced by the Forensic Mental Health Association of California and hosted by the California State Association of Counties.

The awards recognize leaders who champion progress and positive change in the forensic mental health system, whether it is through innovative new local programs, statewide legislation or bringing national attention to the problem of incarcerating the mentally ill, said Executive Director Molly Willenbring of the Forensic Mental Health Association of California.

“Jennifer Johnson has not only co-founded the successful and progressive San Francisco Behavioral Health Court as its resident public defender, she has also become a national champion of mental health courts and services for mentally ill individuals in the criminal justice system. We, at the Forensic Mental Health Association of California, applaud Jennifer’s work and congratulate her on winning the Words to Deeds Paradigm Award as a County Champion,” Willenbring said.

Johnson’s award is well deserved recognition, San Francisco Public Defender Jeff Adachi said.
“San Francisco is a healthier, safer, more just place because of Jennifer Johnson’s promotion of early intervention, access to effective treatments and planned reentry for people with mental health issues,” Adachi said. “We are very proud of her tireless efforts to improve the criminal justice system’s treatment of mentally ill people.”

Since 2003, Words to Deeds has provided a unique forum for agency and organizational chiefs, elected officials, and officers of the court to convene and develop strategies and collaborations for decriminalizing mental illness.

Former Restaurant Manager Found Not Guilty of Burglary, Theft

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San Francisco, CA — A 29-year-old man on trial for burglarizing his former workplace was quickly acquitted after jurors learned that police failed to properly investigate the crime, San Francisco Public Defender Jeff Adachi announced today.

Jurors deliberated only 25 minutes Wednesday afternoon before finding Matthew Thayer not guilty of burglary and petty theft. If convicted, the new father faced a year in jail, said his attorney, Deputy Public Defender Jeffrey Jacobi.

“Jurors said that part of the time spent in deliberations was trying to figure out how much money was collectively wasted by bringing this extremely weak case to trial,” Jacobi said.

In the early morning hours of June 20, 2011, someone stole a $700 deposit from The Fog City Diner’s locked safe. Thayer, who had been terminated for non-theft reasons two weeks earlier, was phoned by a police inspector later that evening. Thayer cooperated with the inspector, answering all questions and offering to come into the police station if more information was needed. The inspector thanked Thayer, reassured him that he was not a suspect, and ended the call.

Thayer never heard about the incident again until a year later, when he was pulled over for a traffic infraction. Officers informed him he had a warrant for his arrest and he was booked into jail. Thayer, who had no history of theft, spent two days behind bars before making bail.

At the two day trial, the police inspector testified that three months after the incident a janitor had come forward to say he witnessed Thayer in the restaurant the morning of the burglary.

The inspector signed the arrest warrant without contacting Thayer again and did not investigate the matter further, she testified.

“The jurors were incredulous that the police inspector had not called a single person in the year that passed. She never questioned the employee who closed the restaurant the night before, nor did she properly question the manager who opened that morning,” Jacobi said.

Jacobi argued that the morning manager who called in the theft had motive and opportunity to commit the crime, presenting evidence of four other thefts at the restaurant while the man was in charge. The manager, who lived with Thayer and his wife at the time of the crime, was upset with the couple for planning to move out of the apartment, taking their furniture and appliances with them. The man, who did not have a checking account, frequently was late with his share of rent and bills, causing friction between the roommates.

The janitor also took the stand, saying he saw Thayer in the restaurant the morning of the theft. However, jurors found it difficult to rely on his testimony because he appeared confused and could not remember how to spell his own name, Jacobi said. The janitor also testified that the morning manager had called him to discuss the incident.

“It became clear that the morning manager saw the janitor as an easy target for manipulation and sought to influence his testimony,” Jacobi said.

Thayer’s wife testified that Thayer was home sleeping the morning in question, adding that he could not have left and come back without her knowledge. She was pregnant at the time, she testified, and woke frequently to use the restroom.

An employee who witnessed Thayer’s termination also took the stand, testifying that Thayer handed over his keys to the restaurant, reacted professionally and did not appear angry.

Adachi expressed relief that the jurors reached the right result in the case.

“This case should have never even been brought to trial.  It was an extremely weak case that resulted in a terrible ordeal for an innocent man,” Adachi said. “Fortunately, the jury cleared his name and he can get on with his life.”

Mo’ MAGIC Director Honored By Civil Rights Group

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San Francisco, CA — For her work empowering youth in the Western Addition, Mo’ MAGIC Director Sheryl Davis will be honored by the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay Area.

Davis will receive the Anthony F. Logan Award Jan. 31 at the organization’s 26th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Awards Luncheon at the Westin St. Francis Hotel. Logan Award winners are selected for their outstanding contribution toward advancing and empowering communities of color.

The MAGIC (Mobilization for Adolescent Growth in Our Communities) was founded by the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office to improve the quality of life for families in low income San Francisco neighborhoods and provide early intervention activities that help reduce juvenile crime. Bayview Magic was born in 2004, and Mo’ MAGIC began in 2006 to serve those in the Fillmore/Western Addition.

Kimberly Thomas Rapp, executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay Area, said Davis was selected for her vision and community leadership.

“Sheryl Davis is an exemplary community partner who inspires others. We have partnered with her and Mo’MAGIC to provide important legal services and education to the community. Sheryl’s visionary leadership through Mo’MAGIC has been invaluable to empowering individuals and communities of color. Community empowerment is at the heart of the mission of Lawyers’ Committee and the bedrock of the ongoing civil rights movement. Sheryl is the well-deserved recipient of the Committee’s Anthony F. Logan Award for her outstanding contribution to advancing social justice,” Rapp said.

San Francisco Public Defender Jeff Adachi praised Davis’ accomplishments providing health, literacy, educational and mentorship support to countless Western Addition families.

“For over six years, Sheryl Davis has led one of San Francisco’s largest and most successful collaboratives of youth and family providers, and she has worked tirelessly to improve outcomes for underserved youth in the Western Addition/Fillmore neighborhoods,” Adachi said.  “Under Sheryl’s leadership last year alone, 1,200 students went to school with new backpacks and school supplies, more than 800 children participated in summer learning day and more than 600 residents attended National Night Out.”

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Man Acquitted of Vehicle Tampering in Mistaken Identity Case

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San Francisco, CA — A 48-year-old man with no criminal history was cleared of vehicle tampering and vandalism charges after a jury determined he was the victim of mistaken identity, San Francisco Public Defender Jeff Adachi announced today.

Jurors deliberated less than two hours Tuesday before acquitting Mannuel Griffin of San Francisco of both misdemeanor charges, said Griffin’s attorney, Deputy Public Defender Chesa Boudin.

Griffin’s trouble began on July 6 at nearly 3 a.m., when the Tenderloin resident decided to walk a few blocks from his apartment to Carl’s Jr. in order to purchase a strawberry shake. As he traveled on Jones Street toward Market Street, he heard the sound of glass breaking and saw a man rifling through a Jeep. Not wanting to get involved, Griffin continued walking. The Jeep, which belonged to a dancer at a nearby strip club, was robbed of $1,400 in cash, a Louis Vuitton wallet, a large wicker bag and numerous items of women’s clothing, the 30-year-old Hayward woman later told police.

Across Jones Street, a DJ was walking home from his shift at a nightclub. He also heard the sound of breaking glass and spotted Griffin walking away from the area. The DJ, a 30-year-old San Francisco man, testified he never took his eyes off of Griffin, following him to Carl’s Jr. while on the phone with a 911 operator.

Police responded and detained Griffin at Carl’s Jr., where Griffin told officers about witnessing the break-in, described the suspect, and consented to a search. Police found no stolen property, blunt instruments or broken glass on Griffin, officers testified during the three day trial. However, he was arrested for auto burglary after the witness identified him as the man he saw walking away from the Jeep. The charges were later reduced to misdemeanor vehicle tampering and vandalism. To avoid this kind of incident, make sure to replace broken, or damaged windows for thief may take advantage of it. Also, here are the other benefits of window glass replacement. It includes greater comfort and enjoyment for homeowners, can lower energy costs, can reduce outside noise, and provide easier home maintenance.

During the trial, the DJ testified that while he was certain Griffin was the man he followed, he did not actually see him breaking into the vehicle.

While Griffin and the man who broke into the Jeep are both African American, the similarity ended there. Griffin described the auto burglar to police as 5’7” with dreadlocks. Griffin is 6”2 and clean cut.

“The witness was honest and credible. He was trying to do the right thing. He admitted on the stand that he had significant doubt that Mr. Griffin was the person who broke the car window,” Boudin said.

The fact that Griffin consented to a police search and did not have any stolen property in his possession helped jurors reach their verdict. There were no fingerprints, DNA evidence or video linking Griffin to the crime.

“A big hole in the case became, ‘Where’s all the stuff?’”  Boudin said. “The witness testified he never took his eyes off Mr. Griffin, so Mr. Griffin could not have dropped the stolen items on his way to the restaurant. Police found nothing suspicious when they searched him. Mr. Griffin had nothing to hide,” Boudin said.

Adachi said justice was served in the case.

“Mr. Griffin was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time,” Adachi said. “Fortunately, the jury realized there was no real evidence against Mr. Griffin and cleared his name.”

Appeals Court: Chronic Inebriate Program Unconstitutional

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San Francisco, CA — San Francisco’s new chronic inebriate court misuses the civil contempt process to keep people jailed without trial, a practice that must be abandoned, the California Court of Appeal ruled Thursday.

“The Court of Appeal charted a clear path for San Francisco: We must provide effective substance abuse treatment that does not come at the expense of the constitutional rights of our citizens,” said San Francisco Public Defender Jeff Adachi, who filed the challenge with the 1st District Court of Appeal on Sept. 28, 2012.

Mayor Edwin Lee’s 4-month-old program, also called the chronic offender court, attempted to force homeless drinkers into jail-based treatment by charging them with civil contempt of court for failing to appear on multiple infractions issued by police. Citizens could be jailed up to 150 days without a trial. No assessment was done as to whether the person was a chronic inebriate, or was already in treatment. There was no requirement that the person be intoxicated at the time of arrest. Of the nine men charged by the court, at least three were sober and already undergoing alcohol treatment.

The practice is unconstitutional, the public defender’s office argued in its challenge.

“The U.S. Constitution provides that a person accused of a crime is entitled to a jury trial. The chronic inebriate court attempted to do an end run around this right by holding people in civil contempt instead of filing criminal charges, such as drunk in public or disorderly conduct,” Adachi said.

The public defender challenged the law on behalf of Warren Morris, a San Francisco man who failed to appear on 22 citations issued between June 28, 2010 and June 30, 2012 and was subsequently charged with contempt of court.  Morris pleaded no contest and was sentenced to 110 days with six months suspended on the condition he participate in the chronic inebriate program.

In its decision, the Court of Appeal concluded that violating a promise to appear on a written citation cannot be the basis for a judgment of contempt of court, and a judge has no authority to jail a person for refusing to respond to what amounts to a traffic ticket.

“The notices to appear (Morris) signed are not equivalent to a judicial proceeding or process,” the justices wrote. The Court of Appeal also concluded that the Superior Court had no authority to hold Morris in custody for three weeks.

The court ordered the contempt case against Morris annulled.

Adachi noted that his office has been on the forefront of fighting for quality treatment, leading the charge in implementing the city’s Drug Court, Behavioral Health Court and Domestic Violence Court.

“I am in favor of getting people into treatment, but we must do it in a way that doesn’t trample their constitutional rights,” Adachi said. “It is fundamentally wrong to jail people without a trial.”

Other U.S. cities offer treatment programs for street alcoholics that do not interfere with due process. In San Diego’s Serial Inebriate Program, for example, a person taken into custody is charged with a misdemeanor and therefore has a right to a jury trial.

The full text of the decision can be seen at http://bit.ly/VIApH5.

SF Public Defenders Won Half of Trials In 2012

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San Francisco, CA — The city’s poorest residents received extraordinary legal representation in 2012, with public defenders winning approximately half the cases taken to trial last year, San Francisco Public Defender Jeff Adachi announced today.

The numbers, released this week as part of the San Francisco Public Defender’s 2012 Annual Report and 2013 Calendar, show that of the 60 felony trials handled by public defenders last year, 62 percent resulted in an acquittal, a hung jury or a dismissal. Another 16 percent of felony trials resulted in a split decision, meaning a client facing multiple charges was convicted on some counts and found not guilty on others.

Public defenders also secured an acquittal, hung jury or dismissal in 42 percent of the office’s 199 misdemeanor jury trials. Another 27 percent of misdemeanor trials resulted in a split decision.

The report’s theme, “Gideon Turns 50: Celebrating Free Defense for All,” marks the 50th anniversary of Gideon v. Wainwright, the landmark Supreme Court decision that mandated that all states provide defense attorneys at no cost to poor people accused of crimes. That case, which centered on a Florida drifter who was forced to represent himself on burglary charges despite an eighth grade education, was decided March 18, 1963.

The 2012 Annual Report and 2013 Calendar includes full color pictures in photojournalism and portrait styles of actual public defender clients and employees taken by photographer Richard Bui, the office’s web architect. The publication was not printed at public expense and is available, free, to the public at the Public Defender’s Office, 555 Seventh Street.

Photographs were shot inside courtrooms, San Francisco streets, a residential motel, a high school for students who have had trouble with the law and in front of Torn Constitution by Randy Figures, part of the SF Vets Mural Project, a mural project founded by Amos Gregory in 2011 to give voice to veterans, many of them homeless.

“We wanted our annual report and calendar to be more than a dry collection of numbers and graphs. Instead, we decided to show the sometimes gritty details of our work and the faces of our clients, people on whose behalf we fight each day,” Adachi said.

Other year-end accomplishments detailed in the report:

·    Helping clear the criminal records of 1,500 people through the public defender’s Clean Slate program and linking hundreds of clients to treatment and services through the office’s social workers and collaborative courts.
·    Implementing the state realignment initiative and providing reentry services to hundreds of returning state prisoners to reduce crime.
·    Working to stop the practice of police improperly using pass keys to gain entry into hotel rooms without search warrants.
·    Distributing more than 4,300 backpacks and school supplies to children and providing literacy and agency support through our community-based MAGIC programs.
·    Receiving the National Legal Aid and Defender Association’s “Reggie” Award for outstanding achievement in representing the poor.

The annual report and calendar kicks off a year of exciting public events celebrating the right to counsel.

On March 19, the office will hold the Public Defender’s Justice Summit at San Francisco Main Library, featuring leaders in the indigent defense movement and Karen Houpert, author of Chasing Gideon: The Elusive Quest for Poor People’s Justice.

On May 9, the public defender will co-sponsor the community event Together We Can End the Death Penalty: A Special Evening With Sister Helen Prejean at Temple Emanu-El. Sister Prejean, a leading abolitionist of capital punishment, was featured in the 1995 film Dead Man Walking.

The entire 2012 Annual Report and 2013 Calendar can be accessed at http://bit.ly/136vjKe

SF Dad Cleared of Battery After Spending Month in Jail

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San Francisco, CA — A San Francisco father who spent more than a month behind bars for battery was acquitted after a jury determined he acted in self-defense, Public Defender Jeff Adachi announced today.

Jurors deliberated only 45 minutes Thursday before finding Duane Chatman Jr., 24, not guilty of one count of misdemeanor battery against the mother of his 1-year-old son, said his attorney, Deputy Public Defender Abigail Rivamonte.

Chatman, who had no criminal history, was arrested Thanksgiving Day following an altercation with his son’s mother at San Francisco General Hospital. Chatman had brought his son to the emergency room as a precaution after the boy fell off the bed while playing with other children. The boy was not injured in the fall.

When the boy’s mother arrived at the hospital, she became extremely upset and blamed Chatman for the accident. The pair argued and she threatened to take Chatman’s son from him, Rivamonte said. In a fit of rage, she began punching and shoving Chatman in the chest multiple times, ignoring his protests for her to stop. Finally, Chatman grabbed the woman and pushed her away from him. A nurse who briefly walked into the room during the fight witnessed the shove.

The complaining witness told police that Chatman punched her in the neck and tried to hit her in the face. Police testified that the woman suffered no injuries or bruising and declined medical attention.

During the weeklong trial, Rivamonte warned jurors against letting stereotypes about men and women invade the courtroom.

“Just because Mr. Chatman is a man and his attacker is a woman doesn’t mean he has to give up his dignity and take the beating,” Rivamonte said. “The law allows him to use reasonable force to defend himself, and that’s exactly what he did. He simply pushed her away to get her to stop hurting him.”

The complaining witness’ history of anger problems was revealed during the trial, including a recent vandalism conviction for slashing the tires of another former boyfriend’s car, jumping on the roof and hood and breaking the windshield by stabbing it with a knife.

That former boyfriend testified that the complaining witness attacked his car after he refused to open his door when she came armed with a knife to retrieve her belongings. The man’s neighbor also took the stand, testifying that the woman had the knife hidden behind her back while ringing her ex-boyfriend’s doorbell and appeared extremely aggressive.

The woman admitted on the stand that she was jealous of Chatman’s new relationship. Chatman’s family testified that the woman kept her son from Chatman on Father’s Day and the boy’s first birthday. The estranged parents are also embroiled in a custody battle, giving the boy’s mother a motive to lie about the hospital attack, Rivamonte argued.

Chatman’s former high school teacher and mentor, whom he has known for 10 years, testified to Chatman’s honesty and peaceful nature, saying that of the hundreds of students she has taught, Chatman remains one of her favorites.

“In the end, jurors did not find the complaining witness credible. They believed she acted in a fit of rage that day and that Mr. Chatman’s lack of criminal history and the honest way he testified showed that he was the one attacked,” Rivamonte said.

Chatman broke down in tears when the not guilty verdict was read, Rivamonte said.

Adachi praised the jury for carefully examining the facts in the case.

“The evidence showed that Mr. Chatman was the victim, not the aggressor,” Adachi said. “After spending the holidays in jail, he can now enjoy the New Year with his family.”

Man Acquitted of Seven Counts of Attempted Murder

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San Francisco, CA — A San Francisco jury acquitted a man of seven counts of attempted murder after evidence showed that the fire he caused in 2010 was the unintended result of a botched suicide attempt, Public Defender Jeff Adachi announced today.

Jurors deliberated five hours Wednesday before finding Niels Conrad, 55, not guilty of the attempted murders of his mother, five police officers and a fire investigator, said Conrad’s attorney, Deputy Public Defender Hadi Razzaq. The attempted murder charges included allegations of premeditation and deliberation and Conrad faced life in prison if convicted.

The jury convicted Conrad of one count of arson of personal property and a lesser charge of unlawfully causing a fire.

Conrad was arrested March 4, 2010 after being found with singed hair and a laceration to his wrist, lying in the backyard of his burning childhood home on Broderick Street in Cow Hollow. Conrad, who was a gifted neonatal intensive care nurse for 28 years, had moved in with his mother less than two months earlier after a series of setbacks, including colon cancer, a heart attack, loss of his job and foreclosure of his home, Razzaq said.

On the day of his arrest, Conrad’s mother told him he could no longer stay with her. The two argued, and Conrad threatened to kill himself rather than be homeless. At one point, Conrad set fire to a paper bag and stomped it out on his mother’s rug, leaving a small burn. Conrad’s mother, then 81, called the police.

Conrad retreated to the basement to gather his things. While putting gas into his moped, he decided to commit suicide by self-immolation, he testified during the two week trial. Conrad began to pour the gasoline on and around him, but there was too little fluid left. He then tried to cut his wrists with a nearby paint can opener, but it was not sharp enough to reach his artery. While looking for a razor blade, Conrad heard a whooshing sound he thought was the furnace and he was briefly engulfed in flames. Struggling to breathe, he staggered to the back yard and collapsed.

Meanwhile, police and a fire investigator were upstairs talking to Conrad’s mother when they noticed heavy black smoke pouring through the heating vents. Firefighters responded and extinguished the fire. Conrad, the only person injured in the blaze, was taken to the hospital, where he told police he wanted to commit suicide.

“Mr. Conrad never had the intent to harm anyone other than himself,” Razzaq said. “He simply had no hope that the pain and suffering he was experiencing would ever go away.”

During the trial, Conrad testified about his lifelong struggle with depression, including two other suicide attempts, his devastation over losing his home and career, and his fear of being homeless.

A fire investigator who reviewed the evidence also took the stand for the defense. He testified that the physical and forensic evidence was consistent with Conrad’s statement at the hospital and trial testimony that the fire started unintentionally when the gas vapors on the ground were ignited by the water heater’s standing pilot light.

“In the end, jurors did not believe that Mr. Conrad wanted to or attempted to kill his mother or any law enforcement officers. There was simply no evidence he intentionally or maliciously started a fire in the basement,” Razzaq said.

Conrad’s arson conviction was for lighting the paper bag on fire and stomping it out on the rug. The lesser charge of unlawfully causing a fire was connected to the accidental fire in the basement and can be, at a judge’s discretion, charged as either a felony or misdemeanor.

Adachi commended the jury for looking at the evidence with a critical eye.

“This case was outrageously overcharged,” Adachi said. “Mr. Conrad had no history of violence and there was simply no evidence to suggest this was anything but a tragic suicide attempt that went terribly wrong.”

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