article: Holzworth preliminary hearing scheduled

[originally published in Oak Leaf News March 27, 2014]

The trial over embezzled campus parking meter money inched closer to commencing after a March 27 readiness hearing confirmed a preliminary hearing set for April 2.

Former Santa Rosa Junior College officer Jeffrey Holzworth held sole responsibility, without oversight, for collecting parking fees from SRJC campuses in Santa Rosa, Petaluma and Windsor. Holzworth, a 28-year veteran with SRJC District Police, faces 11 charges of receiving stolen property and one charge of embezzlement, enhanced for an amount over $150,000. Prosecutors allege Holzworth embezzled $300,000 since 2005.

Holzworth’s wife Karen faces three charges of receiving stolen property and one charge as an accessory to a crime.

Judge Jamie Thistlethwaite presided over the brief March 27 readiness hearing in courtroom 2 to confirm the April 2 preliminary hearing. Holzworth’s attorney Joe Passalacqua confirmed his own readiness and spoke on behalf of Karen Holzworth’s attorney George Boisseau, absent from the hearing defending another case. Passalacqua said “with that caveat” of Boisseau’s temporary absence, the defense was ready for the preliminary hearing.

Assistant District Attorney Amy Ariyoshi confirmed the prosecution’s readiness, and its plan to bring a written summary of their case for the court.

The Holzworths and their defense attorney declined to comment after the brief hearing.

Santa Rosa Police detectives served their warrants Nov. 28, 2012 and their search of Holzworth’s personal and work vehicles, work locker and house discovered $14,259 in quarters, $1 and $5 bills, including 16 canvas bank bags full of cash, five glass jars full of coins and $350 in $5 bills tucked in a dresser drawer. One canvas bag held $470 in rolled quarters.

“Holzworth has also told staff at the [bank] that he owns a vending machine business, which appears to be his justification for possessing $1 and $5 in such large quantities,” according to SRPD detective Mark Azzouni’s search warrant affidavit. “Based on this information, it appears that Holzworth turns in bills with small denominations ($1s & $5s) for larger bills ($100s).”

Detectives also found notebooks full of sports betting information, casino player’s club cards, business cards for “female escorts” and shredded remains of SRJC parking permit machine test printouts. Holzworth’s work locker held the laptop and cable he used to erase the internal memories of SRJC parking permit machines. “In doing so, an accounting of the parking machine cannot be completed,” Azzouni’s affidavit said. “If he does not turn in the money from a particular machine, the omission would not be recognized by accounting or police department staff. By discarding the receipt, no one at the accounting or police departments would know that Holzworth collected money from that particular machine. In turn, Holzworth could keep the money.”

In a Feb. 5 hearing, Presiding Judge Kenneth Gnoss reviewed the three search warrants served by SRPD detectives, and the evidence collected by them. The first two warrants placed GPS trackers on Holzworth’s vehicles and obtained his Equifax credit report, and both based their probable cause entirely on observations made by Holzworth’s coworker Sgt. Stephen Potter. Gnoss ruled Potter made his observations while “acting in his law enforcement capacity,” therefore Potter’s discovery of stacks of small bills in Holzworth’s work bag and in his personal vehicle constituted illegal searches.

The “fruit of the poison tree” legal doctrine states an illegal or warrantless search taints any evidence discovered and excludes the tainted evidence from trial. Gnoss excised all of Potter’s tainted observations as well as the first two warrants based on them.

Azzouni based his third search warrant affidavit on personal observations made by several SRPD detectives assigned to follow Holzworth. Even after Gnoss excised all of Potter’s statements and everything obtained by the first two search warrants, enough evidence remained for Ariyoshi to say, “We still have everything.”

After the readiness hearing, Ariyoshi explained the new courthouse policy where all preliminary hearings will now be conducted in courtroom 10 under Judge Peter Ottenweller. Thistlethwaite estimated the hearing will take about four hours.

Holzworth’s preliminary hearing starts 9:30 a.m. in courtroom 10 of Sonoma County Hall of Justice.

article: A self-sufficient SRJC campus

(originally published in Oak Leaf News March 10, 2014)

Santa Rosa Junior College could defend our electrical power grid from terrorist attacks while cutting the college’s operating costs.

Fox News’ coverage of last year’s sniper rifle attack on a power station near San Jose demonstrates our massive power grid’s vulnerability to isolated terrorist attacks. Whenever Fox News finds a new way to panic its viewers, I try to figure out who’s making money.

SRJC’s blackout last semester left people trapped in elevators for over an hour. Sooner or later we’ll feel another power outage, from a brief brownout to a full-on terrorist assault against our electrical freedoms. Unlike most problems, we can prepare for the unexpected is before it happens.

It is a scientific fact that electricity can be generated from sources besides fossil fuels. One of these sources is the sun, a magical being who circles our planet in its golden chariot. Photoelectric cells are intelligently designed to transform this tax-free light from the sun into electricity, and can operate for 20 years or more with little maintenance.

Illustration by Daniel Barba

SRJC has room enough with flat roofs and large open parking lots to install hundreds of solar panels. While this may not be enough to power the entire school yet, it will bring the campus closer to self-sufficiency and reduce our reliance on the grid. SRJC could even acquire the solar panels at little or no cost to our college by applying for grants and community funding. Since SRJC offers certificates in solar photovoltaics, a solar power farm visible from Highway 101 would make a better advertisement than a billboard.

To power SRJC at night, gas turbines could be installed “upstream” of the equipment already burning natural gas, like water heaters. These gas turbines are like a jet engine bolted to a generator instead of an airplane wing, generating power directly. The “waste heat” can power a steam turbine to generate electricity and hot water. The hot air could heat a building or an oven, allowing SRJC’s amazing culinary program to be funded by its own bake sales.

Since SRJC also offers classes to make biofuel from vegetable oil, building power generators for campus use could become part of the curriculum. Imagine a campus where the same oil cooking the students’ food also powers their lights and computers. Our economic future depends on freeing ourselves from fossil fuels, and by expanding and promoting alternative energy projects, SRJC could help lead the way.

While generators and solar panels cost money, that alone should not be our limiting factor. There are people and companies eager to help us, like Sir Richard Branson, whose Virgin Green Fund invests in renewable energy research. With a little help, the SRJC Virgin Generators could make our campus a leader in energy innovation – the cherry on top of an amazing college.

Facebook death announcements; a tribute to my cousin Michael "Jorgo" Jorgensen

When my father died last spring, my sister found out on Facebook. I thought she already knew the bad news when I posted, that somebody had already called her the night before to tell her. I was wrong.

I found out that my dad died right before my all-day final. My step-brother emailed me the night before, but I didn't check Facebook until I got to school the next day. Dad really wanted me to finish college, and I came close to finishing before he died. My final started at 10 a.m. and I had to put on my game face and swing for the fences until I finished about 4:30 that afternoon.

 Afterward, I posted, "The Good News is that I just aced my Digital Video Postproduction final this afternoon. The Bad News is that my father passed away last night, but I was too busy trying to finish school to go visit him - and I was planning on driving out there this afternoon."

My father Victor W. Jorgensen, Jr. in his natural habitat.

Dad had been very sick for over a month, and his condition quickly deteriorated from “very bad” to “much worse” over his final week, so his terminal news at 79 came as no shocking surprise. I assumed my sister already knew the bad news that afternoon when I posted on Facebook.

My friends all liked my dad, and they know my feeble sense of humor. If I had simply posted "My dad just died," they all would have worried I was taking it too hard. But a bad joke is no way to share a family tragedy.

Dad’s last Facebook message to me said, “That was my dad who stood in front of the Jeep.  His troops were afraid, and wouldn't lie the lines till that.” I asked him about my grandfather in World War II, when his prison-furloughed troops were terrified of snipers. Grandpa stood in his Jeep’s headlights and told them the snipers now had a target to shoot at.

My father, my friend, will never “Like” me again.

Discovering dead friends and family members on your Facebook wall is a sad new technological trend. If it hasn’t happened to you yet, it probably will.

A couple days ago after class, I checked Facebook at the library. A picture of my cousin Michael came up, one massive arm gently holding a newborn baby, a tiny cubit of cuteness. He beamed proudly with his dual expression of both accomplishment and unlimited possibilities. I felt so happy for him – until I saw my cousin’s message under the photo, "My brother Michael died yesterday at 35." I held Michael when he was an infant, and that news hit me hard where it hurts.

I don't always cry in the library, but when I do it's because I hurt really, really bad inside. The students using the computers around me must have been distracted listening to me try to stifle my unmanly blubbering. But to my credit, I was mostly successful on several occasions.

I have had to post twice on Facebook that the rumors of my death were greatly exaggerated, as Mark Twain claims he said.

The day before Christmas a few years ago, somebody from my small hometown with my exact name died in an avalanche while snowmobiling. I knew people would see his name in the newspaper and think I was dead. After updating my Facebook status to “alive” I learned lots of my friends and neighbors had read my name on the front page that Christmas morning.  

I discovered Erik eight years ago while looking myself up on Facebook, to find out how easy it would be for my friends to find me. We had the same name from the same small town, and since my relatives settled around there, I wondered if we were related. It turned out we weren’t, but I said I would look him up the next time I was in town. His final message was, “Sounds good.” A few months later he died doing what his family said he loved the most.

Last summer I discovered a giant spike in hits for my new blog, all for the obituary I had just written for my father. They came from a Google search for “Erik Jorgensen obituary.” I knew something had just happened to one of my name-twins, and was morbidly curious enough to Google which one had just died.

The headlines read, “Erik Jorgensen dead of self-inflicted gunshot.” Erik defused bombs in Afghanistan and went missing one Friday from Mountain Home Air Force Base outside Boise, Idaho. Massive news coverage urged people to be on the lookout for the missing soldier, diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and possibly off his medication. Several days later, the TV news reported finding Erik’s dead body.

Both my parents were both born in Boise, and I lived in nearby Emmett through first grade. Since this happened shortly after my dad’s funeral and I have several relatives still in the area, I had to post something, anything. My cousin Michael’s sister told me she saw my name on that tragic news coverage. I’m glad I posted something.

Facebook hasn’t always been the traditional messenger of death.

When my step-brother was shot in the head by his step-father, and his mother found drowned fully clothed in the same house a year later, I was informed by phone. When my cousin Judy came out of the closet, then took her own life a couple years later, and when my cousin Lisa Marie was victim of a murder-suicide, Mom called and brought up the subject gently. From her tone of voice I knew it was very bad news, so I was able to brace myself for it.

Learning of Michael’s death somehow hit me much harder than any other family member’s death. I don’t know how much of that was from finding out through Facebook. I didn’t know what else to do but write on his wall, “I'll miss you, cousin. I wish I had gotten to know you better.” His brothers both “Liked” that.

Blue Mouse Theatre in Tacoma held a tribute to Jorgo

I got to know Michael a little better after seeing how many friends posted on his wall, and wished they had taken the time to tell Jorgo how much he had touched their lives. Michael performed as Eddie in “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” at Tacoma’s Blue Mouse Theatre. His “Rocky” family held a special memorial performance for him.

Blue Mouse’s Facebook page said, “Dust off your dancing shoes. Tonight is ‘Rocky Horror’ and tonight we remember the life of Jorgo and what he brought to ‘Rocky Horror.’ RIP Jorgo this one will be for you.” Underneath, a poster read, “Keep calm and do the Time Warp again.”

Michael’s wife Christina wrote on Blue Mouse’s Facebook page, “Thank you to all Mike’s Rocky family, I really enjoyed the Jorgo tribute. He would have loved it.”

My cousin Dave wrote, “The best Rocky Horror I’ve ever seen. What good friends Michael has in all of you. Thank you for honoring my brother with such a personal, lively experience. He would have loved it.”

My last conversation with my cousin Michael was asking about his expertise in videogame design: “Unfortunately no, I’m more the traditional PC game dev. Not sure the constraints on making something for Facebook.”

I just didn’t feel like going directly home after learning the bad news about Michael. At my neighborhood pub, the bartender said, “I just read what you posted about your cousin. That must be rough. Let me buy you a beer.” He said some other things too, which I just can’t recall, but at the time I thought it was the perfect thing to say to somebody. The beer itself was a kind gesture, but his compassionate words I will never forget, even though I’ve forgotten his exact words. I wish I could thank you enough, Joe, but all the words I know still can’t cover it. Keep up the good work.

It is hard to know what to say to somebody grieving, even having been on the receiving end of condolences. Over the years I’ve learned through Facebook about several friends losing parents, even both parents. I never know what to say except, “So sorry. Hang in there.” Celebrity death announcements are very common on Facebook, but there is a very different feeling from losing somebody you actually know.

I don’t want to say how many dead Facebook friends I have collected. Too many, and the number won’t get smaller. The same will happen to you someday. I’m sorry for your loss in advance.

Grandpa told me, “When Life hands you lemons, make a song.” So Michael, this ravensong is for you. I wish I got to know you better.

article: SRJC Board of Trustees approves new member

(originally published in Oak Leaf News March 11, 2014)

 

Santa Rosa Junior College gained new board member Kathleen Doyle at its March 10, 2014 Board of Trustees meeting. With a six-to-one vote, Doyle replaced Onita Pellegrini of Petaluma, who resigned Jan. 14 from her board position. Doyle previously served an 11-year stint on SRJC’s Board of Trustees until being replaced by Pellegrini in 2005.

“I welcome the opportunity to serve,” said Doyle. “I’m very much looking forward to this position.” She is not related to the famous Doyle family who gave their name to SRJC’s library and scholarships. Doyle said she doesn’t need to be brought up to speed with SRJC agenda items, since she has gotten a copy of the Board’s agenda every single month since she served eight years ago.

“As a resident of Petaluma, I’ve heard nothing but positive about her commitment to the college,” said SRJC president Frank Chong. “I’m certain we could use her expertise in terms of her financial background. I think she’ll be a great trustee.” Chong extended his thanks to all the other applicants. “I think it’s a testament to the college how many people were interested in serving. I’m looking forward to working with her.”

Student Trustee Robert Edmonds cast the sole opposing vote but also looks forward to working with the new Trustee. “As with the rest of the Board, sometimes I disagree with points of view, but that is what a good Board should do, is disagree about things periodically and come to some consensus.”

Doyle’s appointment will be up for election in November. “She’ll hit the ground running,” said Trustee Dick Call.

article : Weapons Possession Arrests on Campus

[originally published in Oak Leaf News Feb. 15, 2014]

Two different 19-year old suspects were arrested at Santa Rosa Junior College in two separate incidents of possessing weapons on campus, just a week after SRJC District Police Chief Matt McCaffrey delivered an Active Shooter seminar.

On Wednesday Feb. 12 at 12:45 p.m. SRJC PD officer Wright pulled over Christian Eric Candelas-Garcia, 19, for speeding on Armory Drive in front of the SRJC District Police Station. When Candelas-Garcia opened the glove compartment to retrieve his paperwork, officer Wright saw a black handgun inside and initiated a high risk enforcement stop.

After officer Wright took the suspect into custody, the handgun was retrieved and discovered to be a pellet gun replica of a Sig Sauer semi automatic pistol. Officer Wright also found a machete with an 18-inch blade.

Weapons found in car of Nicholas Grgich - photo by SRPC Police

On Thursday, Feb. 13 at 7:16 p.m. SRJC District Police cadets patrolling Burbank Circle behind Pioneer Hall saw an unoccupied vehicle with several weapons visible in the passenger area. Officers set up surveillance and arrested Nicholas Dusan Grgich, 19, without incident.

A search of the vehicle revealed three realistic replica pellet handguns and two pellet rifles, three fixed-blade combat knives and a machete with a 27-inch blade. The passenger area held two of the handguns and a rifle, and the trunk held the other handgun and rifle.


There is no confirmation whether these two suspects knew each other, or whether these two incidents were isolated.

Both suspects were charged with felony possession of a weapon on school grounds and both had their bail set at $10,000.

article: The Hoppiest place on earth

[Originally published in Oak Leaf News Feb. 10, 2014]
Story and Photos by Erik Jorgensen, Co-Editor-in-Chief

Under Santa Rosa’s first real rainfall of the year, clumps of colorful mushrooms slowly sprang up down 4th Street. A crowd of curious onlookers gathered, documenting the sporadic sprouts spreading down to the corner and around it. Then several antennae shot skyward, tilting up their parasols to broadcast far over the canopy of the umbrellas huddled below.

It was a strange sight, but Santa Rosa locals have grown used to the two-week Pliny the Younger season each February, when news crews gather to interview people, from all corners of the globe, waiting in line for a golden glass of Russian River Brewing Company’s coveted Triple-IPA, currently ranked #2 in the world.

Every year, TV news crews from as far away as Sacramento and beyond come to tell the same story about a long line of lingering people. Some are first timers; others ritually make the annual pilgrimage from as far away as Japan or Sweden. Some arrived in a group; others gather here from around the world just to wait in line together.

Last year’s 13,000 visitors for the two-week Pliny the Younger release, covered in depth by Oak Leaf News, brought in over $2.2 million according to a survey conducted by the Sonoma County Economic Development Board. Last November the EDB’s first-ever conference on craft beer, cider and distilled spirits outlined the $200 million liquid gold rush here in the craft beer movement’s birthplace.

New Albion Brewery opened in Sonoma in 1976, built from used dairy equipment by brewing legend Jack McAuliffe, became the country’s first microbrewery. While New Albion stayed open only a couple years, their “Eureka!” was the shot heard ’round the world in the craft beer revolution. Even multinational brewing conglomerates have started taking notice.

“If the tail can was the dog that hard, it’s not the tail anymore,” said Lagunitas Brewing Company owner Tom Magee, keynote speaker at the EDB conference. Lagunitas accounts for about 70 percent of Sonoma County’s craft beer sales, and opening their new brewery in Chicago will quadruple their production capacity.

Sonoma County’s craft breweries benefit from the county’s existing wine tourism industry – and so can students at Santa Rosa Junior College. SRJC’s Wine Studies and Hospitality programs are already well in-place, and could soon expand to include beer.

After the EDB conference, Lagunitas marketing direct Ron Lindenbusch said, “If you want to be in the marketing end of things, SRJC has a great culinary program to be able to take the whole ‘beer & food’ thing to a whole other place.” Lindenbusch said students interested in working for a brewery should take SRJC’s wine-related courses and “try to put a ‘beer’ angle to it, and you’ve got something that has a dual purpose in the consumer’s mind.”

Most craft brewers started home brewing, a hobby whose history was also written in Sonoma County. Byron Burch wrote and published “Brewing Quality Beers” before President Jimmy Carter officially legalized home brewing in 1978. Burch’s book comes with every home brewing kit sold at The Beverage People, which Burch helped open over 30 years ago to supply local beer, wine and cheese makers. Some wit described a brewer as a janitor who knows how to cook, and Burch’s guidebook is a great place to try a taste.

Whether it’s the water or the weather, Sonoma County grows breweries with the same magic it grows hops and grapevines.

article: SRJC brewing up new beer program

[Originally posted in Oak Leaf News Feb. 10, 2014]

A new beer-related program may soon bubble up at Santa Rosa Junior College. “We’re looking at the situation,” said SRJC president Dr. Frank Chong. “We need the resources and we need industry support – like we’ve got for our wine programs – so we can target the needs of the industry.” SRJC currently offers degrees in viticulture and wine making as well as certificates for wine-based business and hospitality.

Chris Wills teaches the Wine Studies Program and runs SRJC’s award-winning Shone Farm Winery in Forestville, founded in 2008. “With the talent we have in Sonoma County, we could have a world-class brewing program,” Wills said. “I think we could offer a certificate program as an alternative to the brewing program offered by UC Davis. There is already talk of an ‘intro to fermented foods’ class, possibly in the sustainable agriculture program.”

Wills said this entry level class would feed into focused courses like cheese making, malting barley, brewing beer and fermenting fruits and vegetables.

“We used to have a Community Ed course in brewing taught by Bryon Burch, who used to own The Beverage People,” Wills said. “I don’t know why it stopped.”

Lagunitas Brewing Company’s marketing director Ron Lindenbusch expressed interest in supporting a fermentation sciences program. “Beer hospitality would be a great  class,” he said. “We’d love to be in it!”

Wills encourages any local brewers to contact him at cwills@santarosa.edu with any feedback on creating SRJC’s new beer brewing and hospitality courses.

Court hears arguments to quash Holzworth evidence

[originally published in Oak Leaf News Feb. 3, 2014]
by Erik Jorgensen, Co-Editor in Chief
 

 Santa Rosa Junior College District Police officer Steven Potter, whose observations launched an investigation into 28-year veteran officer Jeffrey Holzworth’s alleged theft of more than $300,000 in SRJC parking funds, testified in court on Jan. 15 about two incidents that led him to tell his superiors about his suspicions.

Potter’s testimony was part of a hearing on motions to throw out evidence found by Santa Rosa Police through a search warrant served on Nov. 28, 2012.
Holzworth held sole responsibility for collecting money from all SRJC parking machines and faces 11 charges of receiving stolen property and one charge of embezzlement over $150,000. His wife Karen faces three charges of receiving stolen property and one count of acting as an accessory.

Defense attorneys Joe Passalaqua, representing Jeffrey Holzworth, and George Boisseau, representing Karen Holzworth, attacked the integrity of search warrant. Between Holzworth’s home, personal vehicle and work locker SRPD detectives found more than $14,259 in quarters and $1 and $5 bills stashed in 16 canvas bags, five glass jars, two plastic bags and a dresser drawer.
Passalaqua and Boisseau filed motions to quash and traverse the search warrants; quashing corresponds to mistakes or errors within the warrant itself, while traversing corresponds to a warrant based on false or fraudulent statements. Basing their arguments on the “Fruit of the Poisonous Tree” legal concept, the defense attorneys questioned the integrity of SRPD’s fruitful search by testing whether their warrants were based on an illegal search, which would “poison” any evidence obtained. “[Holzworth] made incriminating statements only after he was confronted with a pile of evidence,” Passalaqua wrote in his motion to quash and traverse. “The illegally-acquired evidence made it appear as if the ‘cat was already out of the bag’ and therefore [the] defendant had nothing to lose – and perhaps something to gain – by confessing his guilt and making incriminating statements.”

Since SRPD’s warrants were based on observations Potter made about Holzworth, defense attorneys questioned Potter during the Jan. 15 hearing about the scope of his search of his co-worker’s car. Potter described two incidents, one from 2006, where he said he saw money inside Holzworth’s partially-unzipped work duffel bag in the police locker room, then opened it “out of curiosity” and to verify its ownership. Potter said the bag contained the tools Holzworth used to maintain the parking machines, including the laptop he used to zero out their internal accounting computers, along with several loose dollar bills. In the second incident, Potter claimed he saw stacks of bills inside the center console of Holzworth’s personal vehicle while getting a ride on Oct. 24, 2012.

Defense attorneys asserted that since Potter was ‘on duty’ at the time, opening Holzworth’s work bag or center console amounted to a warrantless search.

Passalaqua asked Potter whether he removed money while investigating Holzworth’s work bag, if Holzworth gave him permission to search the center console and whether Potter knew how Holzworth dealt with his ‘personal money.’ Potter answered no to those questions, and also said he was only acting as an employee of his agency, not as an officer conducting an investigation, when he wrote the memo of his observations. Then-new SRJC District Police Chief Matt McCaffrey brought that memo to the attention of SRPD detectives Mark Azzouni and Michael Lazzarini in October 2012, who then launched their own official investigation.

Boisseau mostly questioned Potter about looking inside Holzworth’s center console, after noticing the cup holders were full of quarters, while getting a ride on Oct. 24, 2012 to a training session at the gym. Potter testified he saw five or six rubber banded stacks of $1 and $5 bills with about 100 bills in each stack. Boisseau asked how long Potter examined the contents of the center console, or whether Potter had reached inside to count them correctly. Potter said he just took a “very quick mental picture” without moving the stacks to count or measure them.

When Boisseau asked how Potter was able to count the bills without reaching inside and touching the stacks, Potter said the stacks appeared neatly bundled and the same size, so he assumed the bills had all been counted first. Based on their thickness, Potter said 100 bills seemed the most likely amount.

Outside the courtroom, Passalaqua and Boisseau had no comment.

The Jan. 15 hearing only heard Potter’s testimony, but another hearing for Azzouni’s testimony is scheduled at 1:30 p.m. Feb. 5 in courtroom 15 at Sonoma County Superior Court.

interview: Big Leaguer Jonny Gomes remembers SRJC roots

[originally printed in Oak Leaf News Dec. 8, 2013]

Hometown Boy in Big Leagues, Remembers Roots

The word “hero” gets overused so often it hardly means anything. Heroism is not just a one-time action, but a way of life. Few people walk the walk of true heroism more than Santa Rosa Junior College’s most successful baseball player, Jonny Gomes.

Before winning this year’s World Series playing for the Boston Red Sox, Petaluma native Gomes played baseball for Santa Rosa Junior College until getting drafted by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in 2001. Gomes also played for the Cincinnati Reds and Washington Nationals before returning home to play for the Oakland A’s for the 2012 season. In his very first World Series appearance, his three-run homer won Game Four against the St. Louis Cardinals and helped the Red Sox win the series.

Gomes is known for inspiring the best from his teammates, both on and off the field. He donates money and equipment to various charities, and paid to rebuild Casa Grande’s baseball field house – twice - after arsonists burned it down in 2006. Gomes demonstrates his generosity of spirit by taking time for an interview with SRJC’s Oak Leaf earlier this year, shortly after the Boston Marathon bombing:

Oak Leaf: So, can you tell me a little bit about playing at SRJC and what it was like when you were finally drafted?

Jonny Gomes: Gotcha. I tell you what, I was very grateful to have drawn two coaches, Ron Myers and Damon Niedlinger. To this day, in the Big Leagues, about ten years later, I’m doing the same drills I learned there, and I’m really, really lucky as a player to meet both those guys; true geniuses of coaching the game. And we weren’t that good, at all, to tell you the truth, but those two coaches really got the max out of everyone’s talents, and I think we played a little bit over our skills just because of those coaches.

OL: I understand you have the ‘707’ [area code] put on your gear; that’s actually done in the factory?

JG: That’s right.

OL: Can you talk a little about that?

JG: Well, it’s just a little tribute, if you will, to sticking to my roots and remembering where I’m from, and at the same time there are charities at whatnot back at home, and I’m able to donate that equipment and auction it off.

OL: That brings another question: when Casa Grande’s field house got burned down twice in 2006, did you take that personally?

JG: No. No, I didn’t take it personal by any means; probably just some jackass, you know, just trying to burn it down. I mean, if he had made it more personal, I don’t know, with some personal… something.  But it was probably just some punk looking for something to do.

OL: I understand that you’ve been batting with the names of the Boston Marathon victims on your bat.

JG: Yeah, I just did it for one game, just two at-bats. I had two bats made, and I used it my first at-bat and then used it my second at-bat and then gave them to the team and let them auction it off for The One Fund, and I think they sold yesterday.

OL: I have a couple friends, Drew and Tony, who always get season tickets with the [Oakland] A’s. So last year, when you were playing with the A’s… They both grew up in Santa Rosa, now seeing a local boy in the big leagues. So as a player, how is it having fans from your hometown watching your team?

JG: Well, I think that pretty much comes with the invite with playing in your hometown, or near your hometown. But growing up a die-hard A’s fan, obviously when they won the World Series in ’89 and then lost in ’90, really set off my love for the game of baseball, and it’s just a complete honor to be able to wear that uniform.

OL: Did you have a favorite baseball player growing up?

JG: Ah, I just had a favorite team – and that was the A’s.

OL: Oh, great! Now, when you were at SRJC, did you have any favorite teacher or classes?

JG: No. Baseball.

OL: Well, I don’t really have any other questions – I wasn’t expecting a lot of time with you. Do have anything you’d like to say to the JC students?

JG: No, just that I was very grateful to attend that college, and it holds a lot in my memories, and being able to travel the country now helps me understand it’s one of the nicest campuses around.

OL: Well, I really appreciate your time I’m going to try to see you next time you play in town, and hopefully interview you on camera if you have time.

JG: All right, chief.

OL: Have a great game.

SRJC baseball coach Damon Niedlinger also took the time to answer a few questions about Gomes:

Oak Leaf: What are your impressions of Gomes from his SRJC days?

Coach Niedlinger: Jonny Gomes improved as much as any player from his freshman to sophomore years.  He was a very hard worker that overcame a lot of challenges off the field.

OL: Is Gomes a credit to the SRJC athletics department?

CN: Absolutely, Jonny has been a strong supporter of the SRJC program as well as his hometown of Petaluma.  He is a very generous man with his time and his resources.

OL: What are your impressions of Gomes' professional career?

CN: Great teammate.  Jonny is associated with winning and the importance of having unselfish guys in the clubhouse.  He always stays ready to play and truly wants his teammates to have success.

OL: Can you comment on Gomes' charity work - like helping rebuild Bob Leslie Field at Casa Grande High School?

CN: Jonny is a very generous man that demonstrates that he remembers where he came from.  From helping rebuild Bob Leslie Field to the all the support/awareness he raised for the Petaluma Little Leagues and the support of their families to be able to see there kids play. Jonny is consistently one of the guys that is always at the top of the list when the professional team he is with recognizes charity/community outreach work.

When Jonny was with the Reds & A's he was always terrific to the kids of friends and past coaches.  I was at a game one time and he brought my son down on the field during batting practice to meet Dusty Baker and gave him a bat and some batting gloves.  What makes Jonny special is that it is very genuine and he makes the kids feel special.

The Oak Leaf would like to thank Abby DeCiccio, Red Sox Media Relations Specialist, for setting up this interview, and would also like to thank Jonny Gomes for being such an inspirational sports hero, both on and off the field.

article: Holzworth Trial Starts Next Quarter

[originally printed in Oak Leaf News Dec. 8, 2013]

Holzworth Trial Starts Next Quarter

            The criminal trial proceeded slowly with attorneys on both sides scheduling an evidentiary hearing to test the validity of search warrants served against Jeffrey Holzworth, the former Santa Rosa Junior College District Police officer accused of pilfering over $300,000 from SRJC parking machines since 2005. The 28-year veteran held sole responsibility for collecting money from parking machines at SRJC campuses in Petaluma, Santa Rosa and Windsor, and faces 11 counts of receiving stolen property and one charge of grand theft; his wife Karen faces three counts of receiving stolen property and one count of acting as an accessory.
            On Nov. 21, 2013 Judge Kenneth Gnoss heard arguments from Assistant District Attorney Amy Ariyoshi and defense attorney Joe Passalaqua regarding motions to quash and traverse the affidavits and search warrants served by Santa Rosa Police Department detectives on Nov. 28, 2012 which discovered receipts from SRJC parking machines and ATMs, casino player’s club cards, gambling records and several caches of stashed cash in quarters, $1 bills and $5 bills totaling $13,487.
            Ariyoshi explained the difference between motions to quash and motions to traverse a search warrant outside the courtroom after the hearing. A motion to quash corresponds to the “four corners of the warrant itself,” such as a lack of probable cause or if the judge reviewing the warrant got something wrong. A motion to traverse corresponds to search warrants based on misrepresentation or reckless falsehoods. In a review of either of these motions, quashing is limited to the search warrant itself without bringing in additional evidence, whereas traversing requires bringing in outside information.
            “It’s all a technicality issue,” Ariyoshi said.
            In court, Passalaqua’s motions all focused on “the fruit of the poisoned tree,” a legal doctrine excluding evidence obtained from improper search warrants. If the warrant itself is illegal, the “poisoned tree,” then any evidentiary “poisoned fruit” found is also inadmissible.
            Passalaqua described two incidents, in 2006 and in 2012, where SRJC District Police officer Steve Potter discovered evidence suggesting Holzworth’s misappropriation of the parking meter money he was entrusted to collect. Potter’s observations amounted to a warrantless search by an on-duty officer, Passalaqua said. If Potter’s original affidavit were found improper, any later search warrants based on that affidavit, or based
            In 2006, Potter saw a gym bag in the District Police locker room and unzipped it to verify the bag’s owner. Inside, Potter saw the laptop Holzworth allegedly used to erase the internal memories inside the parking machines, as well as a “large sum of U.S. currency,” and secured the gym bag in the evidence locker. Passalaqua said this constituted a warrantless search by an on-duty officer.
            Ariyoshi countered, saying it was merely an action of one co-worker securing another’s valuable property accidentally left out. “There is no indication any officer had any suspicions or any knowledge of violation of law,” she said. “The reasonable presumption was Holzworth got his bag back and proceeded to act as normal.”
            Passalaqua disagreed and said, “Potter was not acting as a private citizen, because private citizens cannot lock items into evidence.”
            On Oct. 24, 2012 Holzworth, in his personal vehicle, gave Potter a ride to a defense training session at Tauzer Gym, and Potter said he noticed the cup holders were full of quarters, and no other coins. When Holzworth stepped out of the vehicle monetarily, Potter opened the center console and looked inside, where he saw six stacks of $1 and $5 bills. Ariyoshi said this was the action of a private citizen getting a ride from a co-worker, not an active investigation by an on-duty officer, and there was no reasonable expectation of privacy in an unlocked center console.
            Passalaqua disagreed and said, “If I was a guest in Your Honor’s car, you wouldn’t want me to go through your center console – and vice versa. The Fourth Amendment has to stand for something, and if it doesn’t protect from the Fruit of the Poisonous Tree, then why have it at all?”
            Ariyoshi said California law doesn’t support the assertion that a law enforcement officer is on duty at all times, and even while on duty an officer’s actions may be those of a private citizen, not an acting agent of the government. For example, in 2012 when Holzworth gave Potter a ride to their defense training session, they wore civilian clothes and did not have their handguns with them. “There is no indication Potter was acting as law enforcement. He wasn’t investigating a crime,” Ariyoshi said.
            “It’s ludicrous to say he wasn’t on duty,” Passalaqua said. “When you are a salaried officer, part of your job is defense training.” In regard to Holzworth’s unsupervised oversight of collecting money from campus parking machines, “That supports bad policy on the part of the JC – no mechanisms in place,” Passalaqua said.
            Outside the courtroom after the hearing, Ariyoshi said law enforcement officers do not have extra Fourth Amendment rights. “It’s outrageous to take advantage of the fact a police officer is surrounded by other police officers, to use that as a technicality,” Ariyoshi said. “Can an officer shoot somebody in the head, as long as it was only observed by another officer? It’s an absurd technicality to base a case on.”
In the worst case, Ariyoshi said, if the judge dismissed the entire case by tossing out Potter’s affidavit, the District Attorney’s office would “strenuously disagree” and file an appeal, but expressed doubt the entire search warrant would be thrown out. “Everything else is a plain sight observation,” Ariyoshi said. “Just suppressing two observations, from 2006 and 2012, to just ignore everything else over a 6-year time frame, would be throwing the baby out with the bathwater. The defense can’t attack basic facts, that Holzworth had control of that job. He was master of his own domain.”
            Passalaqua had no comment outside the courtroom.
            On Dec. 3, 2013 attorneys from both sides met in court briefly to schedule an evidentiary hearing at 1:30 p.m. Jan. 15, 2014 in courtroom 15, where Potter and SRPD  detectives Azzouni and Lazzarini will give testimony supporting the probable cause backing up their search warrant affidavits.

article: First Beer, Cider & Spirits conference in Sonoma County

[originally published in Oak Leaf News Nov. 18, 2013]

Conference Pans Out New Job Prospects For SRJC Students In Liquid Gold Rush

Sonoma County EDB's confernece on Beer, Cider & Spirits

Sonoma County’s first-ever Beer, Cider and Spirits Conference tapped opportunities for Santa Rosa Junior College students in the county’s $200 million home-brewed industry. Speakers and panelists included 2nd District Assembly member Wes Chesboro and brewers from 20 breweries, five cideries and four distilleries in Sonoma County, the birthplace of the modern microbrewery.

2nd Dist. Wes Chesboro addresses the EDB conference.

Chesboro said California’s 422 craft breweries, opening at a rate of about one a week, employ 48,000 people, pay $850 million in taxes and add $4 billion to the state’s economy. Chesboro described California’s craft beer industry as “guerilla capitalism” battling the “culture of sameness placing mediocrity over adventure”  and tapping into the barrels of people looking for a new favorite.

California Craft Beer Association Executive Director Tom McCormick outlined the industry’s positive impact on city and state economies, as well as Sonoma County’s world-wide fame as the cradle of the craft beer countermovement.

When Sonoma’s now-tapped-out New Albion Brewery opened in 1976, Jack McAuliffe transformed used dairy equipment to build from the ground up what became the first microbrewery in the U.S. McCormick said New Albion is known around the world, even in recently-visited Denmark where he said, “they treat you like a rock star if you say you’re a brewer from Sonoma County.”

Keynote speaker Tom Magee of Lagunitas Brewing Co.

Tom Magee, owner of Lagunitas Brewing Company in Petaluma, delivered the keynote address, dropping only one F-bomb in the process. Lagunitas accounts for 70 percent of the county’s beer sales and half the county’s 680 craft beer employees, and their soon-to-open expansion in Chicago will quadruple their production. Magee said the decision to expand came after “running the numbers” of their shipping costs of $150,000 per week and discovering he could borrow $25 million with that kind of cash flow.

Magee also spoke about “bankers, not brewers” running multinational beer conglomerates like InBev, the world’s largest brewing company that owns Budweiser, Busch, Löwenbräu, Michelob, Natural Light and several other brands found in supermarkets. Magee said Budweiser’s release of American Ale was “full of capitulation; it gave drinkers permission to leave the reservation” by offering an option besides the standard pilsner style.

“If the tail can wag the dog that hard, it’s not the tail anymore,” Magee said. Lagunitas attracted the interest of several Dartmouth MBA students “turning their backs on the morass of soullessness of Wall Street.”

"Branding of Sonoma County" panel

Ken Weaver, author of “The Northern California Craft Beer Guide,” sat on the panel “Branding of Sonoma County.” Weaver said the county’s craft breweries benefit from the tourism industry already deeply rooted and growing for another purpose, Sonoma County wine.

Jay Brooks, a syndicated beer writer on the same panel, spoke about the built-in recognition of the Sonoma name. While wine drinkers might view Napa and Sonoma interchangeably, craft beer drinkers only know Sonoma. “Around the world, people know the Big Three,” Brooks said, referring to Lagunitas Brewing Company, Bear Republic Brewing Company and Russian River Brewing Company. “People come to visit the Big Three and find out about the other 17.”

The panel on “Liquid Assets” included Richard Norgrove, owner of Bear Republic Brewing Company in Healdsburg, who said his biggest resource was his employees, but even with great employees a company still needs to have a product. “There is no such thing as a ‘loss leader,’” Norgrove said. “Every aspect of your business must be profitable, every decision has to make sense – but your bottom line is not always key.”

On the same panel, Fred Groth described using the Kickstarter website to raise $25,000 for equipment to expand his Sonoma distillery, HelloCello & Prohibition Spirits.

Natlie Cilurzo [left] on "Brewing Solutions" panel

Natalie Cilurzo, owner of Russian River Brewing Company in Santa Rosa spoke on the “Brewing Solutions” panel about the country’s most regulated industry. Of the nine regulatory challenges she raised, waste water topped her list as a barrier for new or expanding breweries. Cilurzo said Russian River Brewing Company, whose annual limited release of their Pliny the Younger brought Sonoma County $2 million in tourist dollars this spring, is not considering expanding their world-famous brewery partly because of regulatory barriers.

While brewery waste water is not toxic, it provides rich nutrients for organisms that overpower sewer systems. Assuming Russian River invested $1 million in a water treatment system for a brewery three times their current size that discharged only 100 percent pure water, sewage hook-up fees would be $1.2 million in addition to any monthly fees, Cilurzo said.

During the tasting session after the conference, some of Sonoma County’s world-famous home-brewed legends offered advice to SRJC students intent on tapping into the craft beer industry.

Russian River pours the world-famous Pliny the Elder

“Biochemistry knowledge is critical if you want to be a brewer,” said Lagunitas’ maketing head Ron Lindenbusch. “If you want to be in the marketing end of things, SRJC has a great culinary program to be able to take the whole ‘beer & food’ thing to a whole other place.” Students interested in restaurants and hospitality, already in place for the wine tourism industry, benefit by incorporating craft beer into those existing programs. “You learn that, and then you try to put a ‘beer’ angle to it, and you’ve got something that has a dual purpose in the consumer’s mind,” Lindenbusch said.

“There’s not currently any type of brewing science class [at SRJC],” Lindenbusch said, “but anything you know about making wine translates into beer in a lot of ways – a lot of the same chemistry, the same biochemistry. But you’ve got to make sure you’re old enough to drink before I can encourage that!”

Sebastopol's family-owned organic Devoto Orchards cider

Cilurzo advised SRJC students interested in opening a beer bar or a brewery that having enough start-up money is essential. “You need to have tons of capital, and you need a plan,” Cilurzo said. “You need money. No matter what you’re going to do, get money. If you just get to the almost-open point, but don’t have enough money to open, or once you get open and can’t get people in your door, it’s not going to work. It looks like a money-making venture, but it’s not; it’s a money-spending venture.”

Santa Rosa City Council member Gary Wysocky, former adjunct professor of accounting at Sonoma State University, advised SRJC students interested in any industry, “It’s all about personal connections. You do what you can to get in front of people, you do whatever job is offered, and you work your way up the food chain. But people skills are what matter.”

Wysocky also said desire was essential and “timing’s not the only thing – it’s everything. You can have forever-bad timing but you just have to be ready when that break comes your way – and it will. You just have to be patient for it and ready for it.”

Don Winkle, business attorney with Spaulding McCullough & Tansil LLP and moderator of the Brewing Solutions panel, advised SRJC students against sloppy texting habits to set themselves apart. “Learn how to write,” Winkle said. “Learn how to express yourself clearly and professionally and you will have a leg up on many, many people – regardless of what degree you get."