Apr 24, 2024 | Press Release
Benicia Knapps Plead No Contest to Second Degree Murder Charge and A 19 Years to Life Sentence for the Murder of Blake Mohs
Members of Moh’s Family Approve Plea Deal and Were Present in Court During Negotiation with the Defense and When The Plea was Entered
April 23, 2024
Oakland, CA—Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price announces that the prosecution and defense reached a plea agreement in the case of People v. Benicia Knapps and David Guillory for the death of Blake Mohs. The plea deal covers both defendants and a gun enhancement charge against Ms. Knapps.
Defendant Benicia Knapps plead no contest to a Second Degree Murder Charge and a Gun Enhancement, and a negotiated sentence of 19-years-to-life in state prison. Her co-Defendant David Guillory pled no contest to Child Abuse, Accessory to a Robbery and Evading an Officer. He will receive 7 years and 4 months in state prison.
On April 18, 2023, Blake Mohs was working as a Loss Prevention Officer at the Home Depot store in Pleasanton and was shot to death by defendant Knapps after retrieving an item she stole from the store. “Blake Mohs was murdered for nothing more than doing his job,” said DA Pamela Price. “My condolences go out to his family, friends, coworkers and the community who are still grieving his death. While nothing can be done to undo this senseless tragedy, I hope that holding these two defendants accountable for taking Blake’s life will be an important step in the lifetime healing journey for his family and friends, and they will be able to move beyond their grief and trauma.”
The DA’s office and its Victim-Witness Advocates have been in continuous contact with Blake Moh’s family throughout the court proceedings over this past year. In open court, the prosecutor stated on the record that the resolution occurred with the blessing of the next of kin, who were present in court during the negotiations with the defense and when the plea was entered.
Benicia Knapps and David Guillory will be sentenced on June 6, 2024, at the East County Hall of Justice in Dublin.
Contact: damedia@acgov.org
The Alameda County District Attorney’s Office (DAO) is one of California’s largest prosecutors’ offices and is led by Alameda County’s first Black woman District Attorney Pamela Y. Price. Price brings her vision to this office to fairly administer justice in the pursuit of thriving, healthy, and safe communities for every person who steps foot in Alameda County, no matter their race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, income, or zip code. Price has been recognized as one of the most progressive prosecutors through her forward-thinking, innovative strategies to interrupt cycles of violence and crime and bring change to a criminal justice system rooted in systemic racism.
Follow Madam DA on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook, and @AlamedaCountyda on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
Apr 22, 2024 | Press Release
Alameda County Death Penalty Cases Are Reviewed After Prosecutors Discover Evidence of Prosecutorial Misconduct Excluding Jewish and Black Residents from Jury Service in Death Penalty Cases
U.S. Federal Judge Directs Alameda County District Attorney’s Office to Review all Death Penalty Cases
April 22, 2024
San Francisco, CA— U.S. Federal District Court Judge Vince Chhabria directs the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office to review all death penalty cases after evidence of what appears to be the exclusion of Jewish and Black jurors was found during the resentencing settlement of Mr. Ernest Dykes.
Ernest Dykes was convicted and sentenced in 1995 for the attempted murder of Bernice Clark and the murder of her 9-year-old grandson Lance Clark during an attempted robbery in 1993.
Judge Chhabria is presiding over the Dykes case, which was assigned to him in 2023. While reviewing the Dykes’ case file, a Deputy District Attorney found handwritten notes by prosecutors which appear to show that they intentionally excluded Jewish and Black female jurors from the jury pool. The notes were promptly disclosed to the defense and the Court. In light of this discovery, Judge Chhabria has directed a review of all death penalty cases from Alameda County for any potential signs of prosecutorial misconduct in the form of the exclusion of jurors based solely on race.
“The Sixth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution guarantees the right to a trial by an impartial jury of one’s peers,” said DA Pamela Price. “Any practice by prosecutors to eliminate potential jurors because of their race betrays that core pillar of the criminal justice system. As the Ninth Circuit has pointed out, “It does not matter that the prosecutor might have had good reasons to strike the prospective jurors. What matters is the real reason they were stricken.” A Wheeler violation is prejudicial per se because racial discrimination in jury selection undermines the structural integrity of the criminal tribunal itself. My office is committed to following Judge Chhabria’s direction in reviewing all death penalty cases in Alameda County for any signs of being tainted by prosecutorial misconduct from the past.”
35 death penalty cases have been identified and are now under review by the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office. The District Attorney’s Office is reaching out to victims and survivors whom these crimes may have impacted. Anyone who has not been contacted but who was directly impacted by one of these cases is urged to contact the assigned Victim-Witness Advocates at 510-208-9555 or email them at shawn.mitchell@acgov.org. Lawyers are also standing by to answer questions and offer information about the status of each case. On April 26, 2024, the District Attorney’s Office, in collaboration with Broken by Violence, will host an open event for survivors who want trauma-informed support in connection with these events.
Contact: damedia@acgov.org
The Alameda County District Attorney’s Office (DAO) is one of California’s largest prosecutors’ offices and is led by Alameda County’s first Black woman District Attorney Pamela Y. Price. Price brings her vision to this office to fairly administer justice in the pursuit of thriving, healthy, and safe communities for every person who steps foot in Alameda County, no matter their race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, income, or zip code. Price has been recognized as one of the most progressive prosecutors through her forward-thinking, innovative strategies to interrupt cycles of violence and crime and bring change to a criminal justice system rooted in systemic racism. Follow Madam DA on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, and @AlamedaCountyda on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
Apr 18, 2024 | Press Release
Three City of Alameda Police Officers Charged by the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office’s Public Accountability Unit for the In-Custody Death of Mario Gonzalez
April 18, 2024
Oakland, CA— Today, the conclusion of an extensive review of the in-custody death of Mario Gonzalez by prosecutors with the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office’s (ACDAO) Public Accountability Unit ends with involuntary manslaughter charges filed against three City of Alameda Police Officers; Eric McKinley, James Fisher and Cameron Leahy.
On April 19, 2021, the three Alameda police officers responded to a call involving a man behaving oddly in a public park on the 800 block of Oak Street. Subsequently, the officers learned that Mr. Gonzalez was a suspect in a shoplifting incident and attempted to detain him. He later died at that scene. An initial autopsy attributed Mr. Gonzalez’s death to “Toxic effects of methamphetamine” and as “other significant conditions contributing to death,” identified “Physiological stress of altercation and restraint; Morbid obesity; alcoholism.”
In 2021, the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office opened an investigation into potential police misconduct by the three officers. That investigation, ending in 2022, cleared the officers of any criminal liability for his death. In 2023, the ACDAO Public Accountability Unit reopened and re-examined the case. A second autopsy attributed Mr. Gonzalez’s death to “a result of Restraint Asphyxiation.”
Today, the following charges were filed: Officers Eric McKinley, James Fisher, and Cameron Leahy were charged with violations of Penal Code section 192(b) (involuntary manslaughter).
Contact: damedia@acgov.org
The Alameda County District Attorney’s Office (DAO) is one of California’s largest prosecutors’ offices and is led by Alameda County’s first Black woman District Attorney Pamela Y. Price. Price brings her vision to this office to fairly administer justice in the pursuit of thriving, healthy, and safe communities for every person who steps foot in Alameda County, no matter their race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, income, or zip code. Price has been recognized as one of the most progressive prosecutors through her forward-thinking, innovative strategies to interrupt cycles of violence and crime and bring change to a criminal justice system rooted in systemic racism. Follow Madam DA on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, and @AlamedaCountyda on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
Apr 17, 2024 | Press Release
Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price Charges an Alleged Hit-and-Run Driver with Vehicular Manslaughter in Death of an Elderly Pedestrian
April 17, 2024
Oakland, CA— Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price charged Jose Perez with one count of Vehicular Manslaughter with Gross Negligence and one count of Hit-and-Run Driving for the May 31, 2022, death of 72-year-old Emelia Martinez Roa. A pair of enhancements for Prior Convictions and Violence or Bodily Harm have been added to the charges against Defendant Perez. If convicted, Mr. Perez faces a possible sentence of six years in state prison.
Prosecutors believe the evidence will show that the victim was walking on International Blvd in Oakland’s Fruitvale District, when the defendant, who was allegedly driving a stolen vehicle at the time, allegedly hit and killed the victim without stopping to call for help or render aid. Instead, the defendant allegedly sped away from the scene of the deadly collision.
“Taking a walk in Alameda County should not end with someone losing their life due to the negligence of a driver behind the wheel of a motor vehicle,” said District Attorney Pamela Price. “The victim may have survived this tragedy if the person driving would have paid attention to the road before the collision and stopped to help afterward.”
The case is set for arraignment on April 25, 2024.
Contact: damedia@acgov.org
Apr 12, 2024 | Press Release
Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price Announces a Major Settlement Agreement with the California Department of General Services for Environmental Law Violations
April 12, 2024
Oakland, CA— Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price announces Alameda County will receive $879,333 in civil penalties in a settlement agreement reached earlier this week with the California Department of General Services (DGS). The District Attorney’s Consumer Justice Bureau partnered with the Sacramento District Attorney’s Office in a statewide environmental enforcement action against DGS.
The settlement agreement resolves DGS’s environmental violations in maintaining its Underground Storage Tanks (USTs) at several facilities in Sacramento and one in Oakland, as well as hazardous materials handling violations in Sacramento. DGS agreed to a total settlement of $2,665,000, including civil penalties, costs, and a Supplemental Environmental Project to promote statewide environmental training and enforcement efforts.
“The State of California, like any other entity, is liable for ensuring it follows the laws meant to protect the public and our environment and the disposal of hazardous materials,” said District Attorney Pamela Price. “This is another example of my office’s commitment to hold government agencies accountable when they fail to protect public health and the environment from harm because of unlawful mismanagement.”
In January 2023, the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office joined an investigation initiated by the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office following earlier administrative and civil enforcement proceedings against DGS in Sacramento County. The Alameda County Department of Environmental Health’s inspections of the Elihu Harris State Building in Downtown Oakland uncovered that DGS failed to perform required inspections and testing, operated its USTs without a permit, did not provide the required training to employees, failed to maintain proper records, and did not properly label, mark and store containers of hazardous waste.
Of the $2,665,000 total DGS settlement, $2,260,000 in civil penalties will be divided between Alameda County, Sacramento County, and the California Department of Toxic Substances Control, and $55,000 in costs will be divided between Alameda and Sacramento Counties. An additional $350,000 will be paid to fund a Supplemental Environmental Project to promote statewide environmental training and enforcement efforts.
Of the $879,333 in civil penalties Alameda County is receiving, $813,833 will go to the Alameda County Department of Environmental Health, $45,500 will go to the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office, and $20,000 will reimburse the District Attorney’s costs.
DGS also agreed to a permanent injunction requiring it to follow environmental laws and regulations regarding the proper maintenance and operation of its statewide Underground Storage Tanks and the above-ground petroleum storage, and its handling of hazardous materials.
Contact: damedia@acgov.org
