One of the candidates for sheriff declined to comment on the
recent incident outside Bolado Park involving suspected outlaw
bikers pulling guns on a group of people, while the other one
contended it points to a need for improvement in how authorities
handle such reports.
One of the candidates for sheriff declined to comment on the recent incident outside Bolado Park involving suspected outlaw bikers pulling guns on a group of people, while the other one contended it points to a need for improvement in how authorities handle such reports.
San Benito County Undersheriff Pat Turturici and Watsonville police Lt. Darren Thompson are vying to succeed Sheriff Curtis Hill in the November election.
Turturici when asked by the Free Lance repeatedly said it is a “personnel issue” and that the outgoing sheriff, Curtis Hill, would have to comment. Thompson said the incident points to a “problem that needs to be fixed” and that the response protocol for 911 calls should get a full review.
The San Benito County Sheriff’s Office last week released audio of 911 conversations from a woman’s report Sept. 4 alleging that outlaw bikers held her, along with family and friends, at gunpoint outside Bolado Park after the Professional Bull Riders event. Sheriff’s officials later confirmed the suspected gang members were believed to be part of the Vagos Motorcycle Club.
After the woman’s initial 911 call to a dispatcher in the county communications center, that dispatcher relayed the report to a sheriff’s supervisor, Sgt. Tom Keylon. The dispatcher said to Keylon that the caller’s “story was super sketch and kept changing” – in regard to her confusion over the number of guns pulled on the group. Keylon responded to “go ahead and clear it for now. I’m not going to send guys in to 100 of the Vagos.” The sheriff’s office had been aware of the Vagos’ presence camping at Little Bolado Park, where the group reported being held.
Turturici remarked how he is “not the sheriff currently” and that Hill must respond to such matters.
“You’re making it into a political thing,” Turturici told the Free Lance. “It’s a personnel issue. It’s a personnel issue through the sheriff’s office.”
Asked if he felt it was handled properly, and Turturici responded: “I’m not going to comment on a personnel issue. I support the sheriff.”
Thompson initially responded in an e-mail and contended that the sheriff’s office and communications center “missed the mark on this one.”
He also wrote he is “not inclined to leverage this unfortunate event into any political gain.”
In a subsequent phone interview he said it was “fortunate nobody was hurt.”
“There was a problem that needs to be fixed,” he said. “This is a great opportunity to fix and improve on things.”
Thompson said the caller outside Bolado Park “outlined a risk for public safety.”
The sheriff’s office released the recordings of the seven phone calls about the incident after the Free Lance requested them. They include two conversations between the caller and dispatchers and a series of brief conversations between dispatchers and members of the sheriff’s office, along with a call the following day from another concerned neighbor who was distressed about the lacking response.
The first 911 call was placed at about 10:30 p.m. after the PBR event.
“Somebody needs to check out this situation,” the reporting caller said repeatedly, asking for a response at least seven times.
Throughout the same call, the dispatcher asked her how many guns were involved and if she wished to press charges.
“I don’t want to file any reports. I want it to be just taken care of,” she said. “I don’t know what filing a report would be.”
A sheriff’s office spokesman responded by saying the caller was “not really cooperating fully,” while the sheriff had this to say after the incident: “I can’t send my deputies out there to blow things up on a misdemeanor when the crime wasn’t committed in our presence.”
