TranslatePress Release Index
District Attorney Announces $85,500 Settlement with Taco Bell Over Gift Card Violations
District Attorney Carla Rodriguez announced today that Taco Bell Corporation and its wholly owned subsidiary, GCTB LLC, entered a Stipulated Judgment which orders them to pay $85,500 for violations of California’s Gift Card Regulations. The money includes civil penalties, restitution, and costs to resolve allegations of violating California Civil Code section 1749.5, relating to the redemption of gift cards with a value of less than $10. Read full story
Victims Speak Out as Santa Rosa Child Molester Sentenced to Life in Prison
Defendant Thomas Anthony Yanes, 62 years old of Santa Rosa, was sentenced today by the Honorable Mark Urioste to serve 30 years to life in prison. Yanes had previously entered a guilty plea to four offenses including aggravated sexual assault of a child, sexual penetration of a child 10 years of age or younger, and two separate offenses involving lewd acts committed upon a child under the age of 14. Yanes committed his offenses against four separate children. Read full story
Concord Man Convicted for 2019 Petaluma Outlets Murder
Defendant David Kyle Lubkin, 29 years old of Concord, CA, was convicted today by jury of First Degree Murder and Discharging a Firearm at a Motor Vehicle causing death. These convictions stem from the September 28, 2019 killing of 19 year-old Ezequiel Garcia at the Petaluma Outlets. Read full story
WOMAN CONVICTED OF KNOWINGLY MAKING A FALSE REPORT OF ATTEMPTED KIDNAP
Kathleen Sorensen, 31 years old, formerly of Sonoma whose Instagram video went viral on December 2020 after she falsely claimed a Petaluma couple tried to kidnap her children at a local Michael’s store, was convicted of one count of making a false report of a crime. The jury deliberated for about a full day before returning a guilty verdict on one of the three counts charged. The Honorable Judge Laura Passaglia presided over the trial. The defendant was remanded into custody after the verdict and bail was set at $100,000. Read full story
Local Program Receives Community Awareness Project Funding for 2023 National Crime Victims’ Rights Week
The Victim Services Division of the Sonoma County District Attorney’s Office has announced it has received funding from the National Association of VOCA Assistance Administrators (NAVAA) through a grant from the Office for Victims of Crime (OVC), within the Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice, to promote community awareness of crime victims’ rights and services during the 2023 National Crime Victims’ Rights Week. Read full story
ROBERT JACOB SENTENCED FOR LEWD CONDUCT WITH A MINOR
Defendant Robert Jacob, 46, formerly of Sebastopol, California was sentenced today by the Honorable John A. Behnke to seven years in prison for six felony offenses involving sexual misconduct with a minor. Read full story
SONOMA COUNTY PROCLAIMS MARCH AS FAMILY JUSTICE CENTER AWARENESS MONTH AND ANNOUNCES SURVIVOR ETERNITY GARDEN EVENT
The Sonoma County Board of Supervisors has officially proclaimed March 2023 as Family Justice Center Awareness Month, to raise awareness about the vital services provided by the Family Justice Center Sonoma County (FJCSC). The Family Justice Center is a place where victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, child abuse, elder abuse, and human trafficking can receive comprehensive services under one roof. The FJC model was created in San Diego in 2002 and has since been replicated in over 100 locations worldwide. Read full story
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE OFFENDER SENTENCED TO 7 YEARS, 4 MONTHS STATE PRISON
Defendant Cesar Alfaro Garibay, 39 years old of Santa Rosa, was sentenced yesterday by the Honorable Robert LaForge to serve 7 years and 4 months in state prison after he admitted a violation of probation for a prior residential burglary from 2022, a new felony vandalism offense, and a violation of a domestic violence criminal protective order. Read full story
EL VERANO PRIOR FELON CONVICTED OF POSSESSING FIREARM AND METHAMPHETAMINE
Following an approximately week-long trial before the Honorable Troye Shaffer, a Sonoma County jury has convicted defendant Hiramu el Kenyatta Bey (also known as Demond Battiest) 50 years old of El Verano, of all filed charges, including being a felon in possession of a firearm, being a felon in possession of ammunition, and felony possession of a loaded operable firearm while also being in possession of methamphetamine. Read full story
District Attorney Announces $1.7 Million Consent Judgment with Five Gas Station Owners and Operators for Environmental Violations at Northern California Gas Stations
Sonoma County District Attorney Carla Rodriguez, along with the California Attorney General Rob Bonta and the District Attorneys of Alameda, Lake, Mendocino, and Santa Clara counties, have announced a $1.7 million settlement with several owners and operators of gas stations resolving allegations that the defendants violated state environmental laws while operating above ground and underground storage tank systems at 14 gas stations. Read full story