District Attorney Tim Ward has announced criminal charges against Visalia man Bryan Buhl, age 42, for a vehicle crash on July 2, 2020, that took the life of a motorcyclist. Buhl is charged with second-degree murder, gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, driving under the influence causing injury, driving under the influence over .08% BAC causing…
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SACRAMENTO, CA – Joseph James DeAngelo Jr., 74, pleaded guilty today to 13 felony counts of first-degree murder and 13 felony counts of kidnapping to commit robbery during a 13-year multicounty crime spree that terrorized much of California during the 1970s and 1980s. DeAngelo was identified through Investigative Genetic Genealogy (IGG) in 2018, more than…
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Today in Department 20 of the Tulare County Superior Court, South County Justice Center, Reedley man Hernan Rodriguez, 29, was sentenced to death for the 2015 murders of two men in a Dinuba orchard. In the early morning darkness of May 20, 2015, in a plum orchard off Avenue 400 and Road 74 in Dinuba,…
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District Attorney Tim Ward is pleased to announce the promotion of Criminal Investigator Beatriz Nicholson to supervisor. Nicholson is a 2002 graduate of the Tulare Kings Police Academy. She began her law enforcement career as a reserve officer with the Exeter Police Department. In 2005, Nicholson started her career with the TCDA Bureau of Investigations…
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District Attorney Tim Ward has announced murder charges in the June 5, 2020, incident in the city of Visalia that resulted in the death of a toddler. Ezequiel Ramirez, age 22, and Jasmine Blase, age 18, are each charged with one count of murder, assault on a child causing death, and torture. Additionally, Ramirez faces…
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Today District Attorney Tim Ward has announced additional murder charges in the death of a Visalia woman that occurred on May 26, 2020. Adam Hernandez, age 26, is charged with one count of first-degree murder with the special circumstances that the crime was committed during the commission of a burglary and a robbery, and special…
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Yesterday Visalia man Kyle Baker, age 22, was arraigned on grand theft auto, looting, and possession of drugs and drug paraphernalia for allegedly stealing a car on May 30, 2020. Prior to this filing, Baker had three open felony cases and five misdemeanor cases. On April 19, 2020, Baker was alleged to have been driving…
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District Attorney Tim Ward has announced murder charges against Tulare County resident Barry Dantzler, age 30, in the deaths of two Tulare County women in separate incidents on May 26 and May 29, 2020. Dantzler is charged with two counts of murder. Count 1 is enhanced with special circumstances that the murder was committed during…
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The Office of the District Attorney appreciates the interest in the incident that occurred on Mooney Boulevard over the weekend. As of this time, our office has not received any completed reports from the Visalia Police Department. We are aware that the agency intends to submit reports to us when the investigation is complete. Therefore,…
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Today in Department 6 of the Tulare County Superior Court, Farmersville man Randy Scroggins, age 44, was sentenced to 81 years-to-life in prison for attempting to kill his wife. On December 13, 2019, a jury found Scroggins guilty of attempted murder, assault with a firearm, domestic violence, and being felon in possession of a firearm…
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A Tulare woman was arraigned last week on a theft charge after having been released from custody on $0 bail as part of the judicial branch’s emergency orders concerning COVID-19. Nikki Gonzales, age 32, was arrested on May 5 after allegedly stealing items at a Tulare drugstore. In 2020 alone, Gonzales has been charged with…
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On May 5, 2020, at the California Institution for Men in Chino, a California parole board issued a 5-year parole denial for Juan Lopez, age 64, for the 1990 murder of his wife. On November 24, 1990, Lopez’s wife was found dead in a motel room in Lindsay. She had been struck with a liquor…
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District Attorney Tim Ward has announced the filing of criminal charges against seven individuals for the April 21 break-in of a north Visalia market. The following individuals were charged on April 23: Samantha Carrillo, 20 – looting, second-degree commercial burglary, vandalism over $400, receiving stolen property, attempted looting, misdemeanor giving of false information to a…
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Effective at 5 pm today, the Tulare County Superior Court will implement an emergency bail schedule (EBS) adopted by the California Judicial Council as part of its emergency rules on April 6. Under Emergency Rule 4, bail for all misdemeanor and felony offenses will be set at $0. Exemptions to the new schedule include violent…
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In a news release Friday as Californians sheltered at home during a national emergency, Governor Gavin Newsom announced that he granted clemency to convicted murderer Richard Flowers. In 1994, Flowers robbed, beat, and murdered 78-year-old Tulare woman Mary Eloise Garcia. What little Ms. Garcia had, Flowers took and used it to purchase cocaine. He was…
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Since the onset of the COVID-19 virus pandemic, the TCDA Bureau of Investigations has received nearly 50 calls from residents reporting price gouging. Price gouging is when a seller tries to take an unfair advantage of consumers during an emergency or disaster by greatly increasing prices (above 10% prior to an emergency declaration) for essential…
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A Tulare County man was arraigned today on murder charges in Visalia. Jarod Martinez, age 19, is charged with the stabbing murder of a man in Porterville on March 18, 2020. The murder charge is enhanced with special allegations of use of a deadly weapon, that the crime was committed when Martinez was out of…
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On March 13, 2020, at Centinela State Prison near El Centro, a California parole board issued a 7-year parole denial for Lucio Brito, age 43, for the 1997 stabbing death of a 16-year-old Visalia man. At 1:32 am on October 5, 1997, Visalia Police Department officers were called to Kaweah Delta Hospital regarding a stabbing.…
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Yesterday in Department 5 of the Tulare County Superior Court, Visalia Division, Tulare man John Brown, age 34, was sentenced to life in prison for murder and other violent crimes. On December 23, 2019, Brown pleaded to all charges filed against him – one count of second-degree murder with the special allegation that a deadly…
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This morning in Department 19 of the Tulare County Superior Court, South County Justice Center, the court sentenced Leonardo Nacoa, age 34, to life in prison for shooting his wife to death and child abuse. On November 25, 2019, a jury found Nacoa guilty of second-degree murder with the special allegations of personal use of…
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This morning, the Office of the District Attorney filed two counts of murder with special circumstances of multiple murders and arson related charges against two 13-year-old minors in the Porterville Library fire incident. The minors denied the charges, remain in custody, and will return to juvenile court on March 11, 2020. By law, no further…
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Statement by District Attorney Tim Ward on the arrest of two juveniles in #Porterville fire incident.
Two Visalia gang members have been found guilty of violent crimes in Visalia and Exeter. Around 4 am on February 23, 2017, using masks to conceal their faces, Vincent Lopez-Prado, 22, and Cesar Raya, 20, entered the home of an Exeter couple and stole firearms and ammunition. The homeowners were asleep when the men entered…
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Last week, criminal investigators from the District Attorney’s Bureau of Investigations served 21 felony arrest warrants for suspects wanted for allegedly committing welfare fraud in Tulare County. The following individuals were arrested and either booked into the Tulare County Pre-Trial Facility or cited and released: -Angelica Aceves, 35, of Visalia -Cynthia Hernandez, 22, of…
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For the third straight year as part of National Human Trafficking Awareness Month, the Tulare County Human Trafficking Task Force conducted sting operations and contacts in an effort to identify and rescue victims of human trafficking. The operations were part of a statewide law enforcement human trafficking effort called Operation Reclaim and Rebuild coordinated by…
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