Hollister
– Law enforcement officials saw a relatively quiet Christmas
weekend in San Benito County.
Hollister – Law enforcement officials saw a relatively quiet Christmas weekend in San Benito County.
Arrests from the weekend included one man picked up on suspicion of domestic violence and five men arrested for driving under the influence. Two of those DUI arrests were the result of crashes.
San Benito County Sheriff’s Office Det. Bryan Penney said no arrests were made on Christmas Day itself.
“It was a very peaceful Christmas Day,” Penney said. “Christmas was slow this year.”
Officer Rosie Betanio, a spokeswoman for the Hollister Police Department, agreed. She said her department responded to only three incidents on Christmas day including one domestic dispute call that did not result in an arrest and two traffic accidents.
Betanio added that Christmastime can produce more domestic quarrels.
Marcos Lopez Mendoza, a 26-year-old Hollister resident, was arrested by the San Benito County Sheriff’s Office on suspicion of domestic violence involving a child and woman, both felonies, and willingly causing injury to a child, a felony, at 10:47pm Friday, according to deputies. Mendoza began fighting with a woman, slamming her and pinning her down on a bed, according to deputies.
California Highway Patrol Officer Chris Gallego said five DUI arrests were made in San Benito County over the long holiday weekend. Christmas weekend typically produces about 10 DUI arrests, Gallego said. In 2005, Hollister police made seven DUI arrests.
“For San Benito County that was rather light,” Gallego said. “But on the same token you have two DUI crashes.”
Gonzalo Arellano Reyes, a 47-year-old Hollister resident, was arrested by the CHP on suspicion of driving under the influence, a misdemeanor, and possession of an open container, a misdemeanor, on Highway 156 west of Lucy Brown Road at 5:52pm Friday, according to the CHP. Reyes was eastbound on Highway 156 when he veered off the road and his vehicle overturned, according to CHP. Reyes was not injured in the crash.
Keith Michael Collison, a 44-year-old Hollister resident, was arrested by the CHP on suspicion of driving under the influence, possession of a controlled substance paraphernalia, and hit and run, all misdemeanors, at 12:09am Sunday, according to the CHP. Collison was driving in the 200 block of Briggs Road when he hit a power pole and fled the scene, according to the CHP. He was arrested near his vehicle, according to the CHP.
Gallego said despite the two crashes, Christmas weekend did not produce as many arrests.
“Either people are staying put or they’re designating a driver,” Gallego said.
Michael Van Cassell covers public safety for the Free Lance. He can be reached at 831-637-5566 ext. 335 or [email protected].
