By Alexandra Ulmer
ST. HELENA, California (Reuters) – Last October, firefighter Ryan Bellanca and his crew battled to keep the raging Glass Fire from devastating an upmarket Napa Valley vineyard.
But Bellanca wasn’t working for any fire department. He owns a private company that had been hired to protect the vineyard. Authorities from Cal Fire and the Napa County Sheriff’s office eventually stepped in and detained the private firefighters for several hours, according to Bellanca and a sheriff’s office report. Bellanca said Cal Fire accused his crew of lighting dangerous backfires and failing to leave an evacuated area.
An Oakland law firm announced Tuesday that it has filed a federal wrongful death civil rights lawsuit against Napa County and a sheriff s deputy for what it called an unprovoked killing of a man pulled over for driving without his headlights on.
Juan Adrian Garcia, 47, was shot after a highway stop at Highway 221 and Kaiser Road on Oct. 5, 2020, and died the next day at Queen of the Valley Medical Center. The lawsuit follows a claim for damages filed against the county in January.
âThis unprovoked killing of an unarmed, non-threatening man, followed by their lack of transparency, is a terrible violation of Mr. Garciaâs and his familyâs constitutional rights,â Michael Haddad, an attorney with the law firm Haddad & Sherwin, said in a news release.
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In an effort to increase ease-of-access support for Napa Countyâs LGBTQ people, the Victim Witness Services Division of the Napa County District Attorneyâs Office will be holding office hours at LGBTQ Connectionâs Napa community center.
âHistorically DAâs offices silently went about our business and served those victims who came to us and asked for help,â Napa County District Attorney Allison Haley said in a news release.
âItâs clear this method has inhibited access to our most vulnerable communities. This is the first of our efforts to bring services out into the community and to meet those in need in spaces that are comfortable and safe to them. This is particularly important in providing compassionate and sensitive service to our LGBTQ community,â Haley said.