Judge Drops Murder Charges Against Suspect in Deadly Skateboard Attack on Good Samaritan
Midway through the jury trial of Jason Ryan Barnes, the judge has acquitted Barnes of second-degree murder and voluntary manslaughter.
Judge Timothy Canning’s ruling this morning leaves jurors to consider only charges of involuntary manslaughter and assault with a deadly weapon in the death of Bernhard “Ben” Bertain, who died three days after Barnes struck him with a skateboard in December 2018.
Barnes.
Deputy District Attorney Roger Rees had just rested his case for the prosecution when Deputy Publc Defender David Celli argued, with the jury out of the courtroom, that Rees had not presented evidence justifying either a murder or voluntary manslaughter charge. There was no evidence Barnes acted with malice, Celli said, and no evidence that an objective observer would believe striking someone with a skateboard would cause death.
Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office press release:
On April 24, 2021, at about 11:44 a.m., Humboldt County Sheriff’s deputies were dispatched to a motel on the 300 block of State Highway 96 to contact an individual harassing medical and emergency communications dispatchers via 9-1-1.
Robert Melvin Hurd. | HCSO
Robert Melvin Hurd, age 63, contacted the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office Emergency Communications Center via 9-1-1 approximately 26 times over the course of eight hours. During these contacts, Hurd was uncooperative and belligerent with dispatch staff. Upon deputy contact, Hurd continued being hostile with deputies.
Hurd was taken into custody and booked into the Humboldt County Correctional Facility on charges of unlawful 9-1-1 calls
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Former Candidate for Second District Supervisor Given Two Years Probation for Attacking Neighbor With a Machete
A former candidate for county supervisor was placed on two years probation today for assaulting his neighbor with a machete during a property dispute in April 2020.
French.
Richard “Rick” French was expected to be released today from Humboldt County Correctional Facility, where he has spent nearly a year. Judge Christopher Wilson said probation is appropriate for French, who is 76 years old and has “mental health difficulties.”
The incident with French’s former Hydesville neighbor Bryan Richter was “a situation that is hopefully unusual,” the judge said.
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