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Californai Jailers Arrested in Death




Henry A. Barrios / The Californian
Kern County Sheriff Mack Wimbish, left, and Kern County District Attorney Ed Jagels hold a press conference concerning the in-custody death of James Woodrow Moore after a beating by KCSD jailers Aug. 15. Moore died at Mercy Hospital Aug. 21 from the injuries.


CHRISTINA VANCE
Courtesy of Bakersfield Californian



The weapons used by three Kern County jailers to kill a defenseless inmate in August were simple, District Attorney Ed Jagels said Thursday.

"Boot. Fist. Elbow," he said.

Sheriff's officials arrested five of their own Thursday -- some on suspicion of murder and others solely on suspicion of assault.

James Moore of Bakersfield was bound, hand and foot, when three detention deputies struck heavy blows to his head on Aug. 15, Jagels said.

Moore, 30, died of blunt force head trauma six days later at Mercy Hospital, according to coroner's reports.

Arrested on second-degree murder charges were Daniel Thomas Lindini, 48; Ralph Contreras, 32,; and Roxanne Fowler, 41, according to Jagels and jail records.

Lindini is a 23-year veteran of the department. Contreras and Fowler have 11 and 10 years of experience, respectively, the department said.

Two other jailers, 34-year-old Angel Lopez Bravo and 20-year-old Lisa Diane Romero, struck unnecessary but non-lethal blows to Moore's body, Jagels alleged Thursday.

Both face charges of assault under the color of authority and were released after posting $50,000 bail Thursday, officials said. Bravo was hired by the department 10 years ago while Romero was hired in June, according to the department.

All of the suspects were booked into the downtown jail where the beating occurred months ago.

Moore was arrested Aug. 15 on suspicion of making threats after he got into an argument with the mother of his younger son, his family and sheriff's officials said.

Jagels said Moore got into a total of four "violent confrontations" with jail staffers that same day, but the jailers' actions were only criminal during the fourth incident.

"Mr. Moore was acting extremely irrationally and violently. According to all the witnesses, he was incredibly strong," Jagels said.

Jagels added Moore wasn't under the influence of drugs because a test done at the time of his arrest ruled that out.

During the first three incidents, detention personnel used a baton, pepper spray and a carotid-artery hold to try to subdue Moore, according to the investigation of the incidents, Jagels said. No criminal violations were found in those incidents, Jagels said.

The fourth incident was another story.

It began when detention deputies took Moore into the parking garage, intending to put him in a patrol car and take him to Kern Medical Center, Jagels said. They wanted him checked out because of the artery hold and because of his behavior, Jagels said.

Detention officials cuffed Moore's hands to a waist restraint and they restrained his legs, Jagels said.

Moore was on the ground when one detention deputy kicked his head, Jagels said. After Moore was strapped to a gurney, he said, multiple deputies hit Moore in the head with their fists and elbows.

"The victim was completely restrained, could not present a danger to anyone," Jagels said. "The amount of force was not justified."

The investigation of the beating began when a sheriff's deputy who witnessed part of the incident wrote a memo to a supervisor, Jagels said.

Sheriff Mack Wimbish said Thursday's arrests marked a "sad day" in the Kern County Sheriff's Department.

The sheriff said the jail system was getting a fresh look and changes would be made.

"There's an ongoing, top-to-bottom, full assessment of this detention bureau," he said.

With the criminal investigation completed, Wimbish said, an internal affairs investigation will proceed within the department.

Jagels praised sheriff's investigators for the thoroughness of their work in the case.

"No stone was left unturned," he said.

The investigation took months to complete because some tissue samples were sent to a private lab for analysis, Jagels said.

After more than three months of waiting, Moore's sister, Josie Chapman, said she didn't know exactly how to feel.

"I don't want to say I'm glad someone was charged with murder because I wish it had never happened," she said. "I have mixed emotions about what these people's families will go through."

Lawyer David Cohn, who represents Moore's son James Jr. in a lawsuit against the Sheriff's Department, said he's not sure the public is getting the entire story on the beating.

Cohn said he found it "perplexing" that Jagels differentiated between the four incidents in August, which he described as "beatings," not "confrontations."

"The facts have not come out in this case. I think we're a long way from the truth," he said. "How much can we trust the department to investigate itself?"

Cohn questioned the culture in the department, recalling an embarrassing incident in 2003 when photos of joke Kern County sheriff's car decals that read "We'll Kick Your Ass" appeared on the Internet.

"Apparently, that (kick your ass) message was a message that was given to the jailers," Cohn said.

Meanwhile, Brenda Kimble said she was heartbroken over the senselessness of the beating that took her son.

"I no longer have a son, and he no longer has a father," she said, gesturing to James Jr. "We'll never have him again."

James Moore Jr. said he used to play video games and fish with his dad, but he knew what he'd miss most of all.

"Just having him around," the 13-year-old said Thursday.

Lawyer Daniel Rodriguez, who represents Moore's young son Bryce in a lawsuit against the Sheriff's Department, said the family wants justice. A trial date in that case was scheduled Wednesday for July 2007.

"We just hope the District Attorney's office is as interested in prosecuting killer cops as they are cop killers," he said Thursday.

A second-degree murder conviction carries a penalty of 15 years to life. An assault under the color of authority conviction carries penalties of 16 months, two years or three years, Jagels said.

The five suspects were scheduled to appear in court on Monday, according to jail records.

Wimbish said the jailers remained on paid administrative leave Thursday, but that could change after their court appearance.

"They haven't been proven to be wrong," he said.

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