Officer Rich May Murder Trial

New Year's Resoloution

2012-01-08T15:12:00.000-08:00

It is time review those pesky New Year’s resolutions. You know which ones - lose weight, exercise more, eat better, drink less, etc. How long did you stick to these commitments last year? Not very long.

Let's start this New Year is off better than we did a year ago. It’s easy - volunteer to help others! It is time to look at a resolution that is easy to keep and actually helps you and your neighbors. Step forward and provide assistance for a disadvantaged young person in our community. This does not necessarily mean that you bring a homeless child into your home. What I am suggesting is that you simply find a local non-profit organization that provides assistance to youth in need, and give them a little personal help.

As you read this note on New Year’s resolutions, you are probably sitting at home or at work. You may have challenges of your own. However, it takes very little effort – and no money - to help set up tables and serve refreshments at a youth event. It takes very little effort to assist with schoolwork – 3 out of 10 kids will not graduate from high school. It takes very little effort to be involved with a young person during an evening each week – juvenile crime is up between 3 PM and 7 PM. It takes very little time to coordinate that desire of yours to lose weight when you can do this with a young person – 3 out of 10 kids are OBESE and need a mentoring adult to help them into better health.

It is easy to start. Call a local youth mentoring agency. The best in the Bay Area is Friends for Youth, located in Redwood City (650-368-4444). Or, call United Way to learn about agencies that support youth.

Easy to start? – YES. Call now and make a commitment. Give a little time once a month. Give a little time each week. And, if you can afford to, donate to a non-profit such as Friends for Youth (www.FriendsForYouth.org). Make the call now, before you get busy with other more important issues. Commit to a resolution that will stay with you this year and next.

GOLF FUNDRAISER - October 3, 2011 - Sharon Heights Golf and Country Club

2011-09-24T05:30:00.000-07:00

Join me for the 24th Annual Peninsula Golf Challenge

Fund Raiser to provide what Rich did as a Police Officer - Mentoring Youth in a One on One basis

Octiber 3, 2011 - Sharon Heights Golf and Country Club

Follow Rich May's Work - Support Mentoring

2011-08-30T11:57:00.001-07:00

Here is your chance to support Rich's way of life - he mentored a number of individuals. You can help by donating $10 toward a mentored youth and that youth's adult go to the snow.

Go to this GROUPON site:

http://www.groupon.com/deals/gt-friends-for-youth

Five Year Anniversary of the Murder of Officer Richard May

2011-01-06T21:02:00.001-08:00

Rich May pictures at www.OfficerRichardMay.net

Change of Address

2010-07-17T17:27:00.000-07:00

Please excuse this late notice.

To the drug dealers and gang member friends of Alberto Alvarez, his address has changed. Alvarez failed to place a Notice of Address Change at the Post Office. So, here it is:

Alberto Alvarez, CDC
San Quentin State Prison
San Quentin, CA 94974

Deanna's 18th Birthday

2010-03-08T13:45:00.000-08:00

A good day for the May family.

See Deanna's party picture at www.officerrichardmay.net

Alvarez - Probably Will Live Longer In San Quentin than on the Streets as Drug Dealer

2010-02-11T12:02:00.000-08:00

Alberto Alvarez, transferred to San Quentin State Prison on Tuesday, will become the 699th death row inmate at San Quentin, condemned to spend the rest of his life in a 4-foot by 9-foot cell, prison spokesman Lt. Sam Robinson said.

His death sentence was handed down Monday by San Mateo County Superior Court Judge Craig Parsons. Alvarez was convicted in November of first-degree murder with the special circumstance of killing a peace officer for shooting May after a foot chase that stemmed from a disturbance at an East Palo Alto taqueria on Jan. 7, 2006.

Alvarez was arrested the following day and was taken to the Maguire Correctional Facility in Redwood City where he remained without bail throughout his trial.

Once transferred from the jail, Alvarez will be placed in San Quentin's Grade B housing unit, which holds more than 100 of the most violent condemned inmates, as well as the new arrivals.

"Grade B inmates (are considered) the worst of the condemned inmate population," Robinson said.

"We house new inmates there because we don't know what we've got," Robinson said. "We don't know what a guy's attitude is going to be as a newly arrived death row inmate."

After 30 days in Grade B, also called the "adjustment center" when used for new inmates, the prison staff decides whether the inmate will remain in Grade B or be moved to Grade A, where the general population condemned inmates are housed.

"They're guys who follow the rules and get along with other individuals," Robinson said.

The lifestyles of Grade A and Grade B inmates differ dramatically, he said. For instance, those housed in Grade A get five hours of outdoor time per day, whereas Grade B inmates only get 10 hours per week.

When moving through the prison, Grade A inmates are handcuffed and escorted by one officer. Grade B inmates are also handcuffed, but are accompanied by two officers.

Grade A inmates get phone privileges, Grade B inmates do not.

"A Grade B condemned inmate's movement is severely restricted," Robinson said. "Their privileges are restricted. It's not the best place to be if you are an inmate."

Food is the same for both classes of inmates, though. Both get three meals a day -- two hot meals and a paper bag lunch. They all have the same size cells and same items inside; a bed, a desk, a toilet and a sink, as well as a shelf with dividers where the inmates can keep their personal property in six cubic feet of space.

"When (Alvarez) is here at San Quentin, he won't be living in a lap of luxury," Robinson said. "A 4-by-9 cell isn't a whole lot of space," he said, adding that the cell is smaller than some closets.

Alvarez's case will be automatically appealed to the state Supreme Court, as are all death row cases in California.

No one has been executed at the prison since 2006, and only 13 inmates total have been executed there since 1978 when California reinstated the death penalty, Robinson said.

San Quentin is the only prison in California that houses male condemned inmates, and the only prison in the state where inmates sentenced to death are executed, Robinson said.

Notorious inmates on death row at San Quentin include Richard Ramirez, who resides in Grade B, and Scott Peterson and Richard Allen Davis, who are in Grade A.

From the BAY CITY NEWS SERVICE

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

2009-12-25T19:33:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year - to the Jurors of the Officer Richard May, Jr. murder trial, The San Mateo County District Attorney’s Office, The San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office, and the Redwood City Police Department.

To the amazing Jurors, thank you. Our family wishes you and your families a very Merry Christmas. We know you came to the courthouse many months ago with the expectation that you were either going home the same day, or probably spend one or two days on a simple trial. Instead, you completed a long and public murder trial of a Police Officer. We watched you every day. On the positive side, it was an educational experience. We all learned about real forensics. We learned how to match finger prints. We learned about spent bullets. We learned about gun ejection of shell casings. It is always amazing to see a piece of cloth that can stop a bullet. On the negative side, we all worried that the Defense Attorneys would be able to use “missing evidence” to convince you that Alberto Alvarez was innocent of Murder. You did not hear the words “Gang Member” during the trial because it might have biased your opinion of Alvarez. You may not have recognized that the defendant wore long sleeve shirts during the trial. You did not have a picture of Rich prior to his death – because his constant smile might have biased you. And, you learned that evidence can be presented by different “experts” in an attempt to tell a different story. We do not envy you in any way for your work during the penalty phase. We cannot imagine the discussions that resulted in the decision to come to the death penalty. For Police Officers everywhere, thank you for the Death Penalty.

To the District Attorney’s Office, and the investigators, specifically Sgt. Jeff Liu and Senior Investigator John Minahan – Thank You! ONE person is responsible for presenting this case to the jury in the manner that produced such a prompt and clear statement on the execution murder of Rich - Chief Deputy District Attorney, Stephen M. Wagstaffe. Any public person who witnessed any portion of the trial will agree - there is no better prosecutor, anywhere, than Steve Wagstaffe. Your visit each evening to my parking lot motor home was a great way to end each day. I know you worked seven days a week during the trial, because you also came out each weekend evening. To the residents of San Mateo County, remember this amazing prosecutor during the June, 2010 election for your next District Attorney. It will be my honor to return to work on Steve’s election.

To Marco Marquez, the 16 year old Explorer riding with Rich on Jan. 7, 2006 – thank you for all your help. You were brave during this horrendous event. You helped the prosecution during the trial. And you remain in the teen Police Explorer program. Rich would be proud.

To San Mateo County Sheriff Greg Munks and Lieutenant Victoria O’Brien – a big thank you for your hospitality. Your constant and kind support during every day of the trail, the security of my business computer, the power and water and other supplies so that I could reside next to the Courthouse – all unmatched by the finest hotel concierge. Thank you. A special thanks to the Office of Emergency Services for checking on me each day.

To Judge Parsons, bailiff Baker, and the two Sheriff’s guards who stayed close to Alvarez in the courtroom and transferred him back and forth to his jail cell – thank you. Judge Parsons conducted this trial in a manner that all students of he court should observe.

To all the Redwood City Police Officers who came by the motor home to visit and take me to dinner, or bring dinners fixed by your significant others – a BIG thank you. I was under the false impression that I would be able to lose weight while fixing my own meals every day. I gained weight! Redwood City Police officers are the finest and most compassionate officers I have met anywhere. Thank you all, and specifically Officer Gouldson. Stay safe.

To all the Richardson family members – thank you for the apartment. We will be visiting all our new friends in Redwood City often, and will stay in your “visitor” apartment. Thank you, thank you, and thank you.

To all you officers and civilians who made me aware that you are Marines – thank you. Rich WAS a Marine! I have his beautiful dress uniform in a large upright case along with his other mementos.

To all you who email me direct or email me anonymously through this blog, you can contact me direct at rmay@rapidid.com.

And finally, to all you who donated to the Mentoring program in East Palo Alto – a big thank you from the youth of East Palo Alto. Because of Rich’s job as a police officer, he had the unique ability to reach into families and help troubled youth one at a time. The mentoring program continues exactly what Rich did on a daily basis – helping young people with adult intervention. Continue to donate at www.FriendsforYouth.org.

This is my final blog. Thank you for becoming part of our new big family.

Rick May, Rich’s father rmay@rapidid.com

http://www.officerrichardmay.net/2008/05/memorial-two-years-later.html

DEATH PENALTY

2009-12-22T17:22:00.001-08:00

The jury this afternoon sentenced Alberto Alvarez to death for murdering East Palo Alto police Officer Richard May in 2006.

The same six men and six women who last month found Alberto Alvarez guilty of first-degree murder with the special circumstance that May was performing his police duties when killed deliberated his penalty for nearly four days.

I was not in town for the Jury Announcement - if you wish to send an email... rmay@rapidid.com

Rick

www.OfficerRichardMay.org

Murder Trial - the Defense: Alberto Alvarez was "not the worst of the worst"

2009-12-17T18:31:00.000-08:00

The closing arguments given today and the judge read the jury instructions. The jury deliberated for 75 minutes and will resume deliberations Friday morning at 9:00. The case is now in the hands of the jury.

Steve Wagstaffe's two arguments emphasized that there was nothing mitigating or sympathetic about the defendant or the defense case and there was no reason whatsoever for the jury to exercise mercy for the defendant. The defense arguments simply told the jury that this defendant was not the "worst of the worst" and was not an appropriate candidate for the death penalty.

The jury was instructed and deliberated for 75 minutes at the end of the afternoon. The trial resumes Friday morning at 9:00 with further jury deliberations. The defendant remains in custody on no bail status.

www.OfficerRichardMay.net

Final Penalty Phase Evidence - Officer Richard May Murder Trial

2009-12-15T18:53:00.000-08:00

Erin & Rich

-63rd day of jury trial was completed in Dept. 9, Judge Craig Parsons. The fifth day of the penalty phase was conducted and the third day of defense evidence was presented. Three defense witnesses testified: Dr. Nancy Cowardin, Dr. Rahn Minagawa and the defendant’s father. Dr. Cowardin is an educational psychologist who gave the defendant a battery of tests and concluded he has low normal intelligence, an IQ of 84 and although he has no academic learning disabilities, he has extensive auditory processing disabilities that caused his attention deficit disorder and stunted his growth in school. Dr. Minagawa is a social psychologist who testified about the defendant’s juvenile years and how the absence of his father due to drug addiction, the failure of school teachers to see his deficits, his life in the crime-ridden town of East Palo Alto, and 25 other risk factors influenced the defendant toward the criminal life he adopted (thus he is the product of his environment.) On cross-examination he described in detail the defendant’s extensive juvenile record, the efforts made by others to intervene and steer the defendant away from crime (which he rejected) and his involvement in the street gang. The defendant’s father testified, said his drug addiction was responsible for everything, and asked the jury to spare his son’s life. In rebuttal the prosecution called the defendant’s two parole officers to testify that the defendant’s parents requested his parole be transferred to Merced County where they had moved, that the parole officers approved the move and the defendant told them he did not want to leave East Palo Alto. The trial is in recess Wednesday (mandatory state court furlough day) and will resume Thursday morning at 9:30 with the reading of the jury instructions (20-30 minutes) and the presentation of the closing arguments. The defendant remains in custody on no bail status.

More police killed by gunfire in ’09 than ’08

2009-12-12T17:49:00.000-08:00

NEW YORK - A police officer is gunned down in his patrol car in Penn Hills, Pa., while waiting for backup. Near Seattle, four officers starting their day at a coffee shop are ambushed by an ex-con with a handgun. Another four officers are shot to death in Oakland, Calif., after a traffic stop gone awry.

Across the nation, 2009 was a particularly perilous year for officers involved in gun disputes.

The number of officers killed in the line of duty by gunfire increased 24 percent from 2008, according to preliminary statistics compiled by the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, a national nonprofit organization that tracks officer-related deaths.

As of Saturday, 47 police officers have died nationwide this year after being shot while on duty, up from 38 for the same time in 2008, which was the lowest number of gunfire deaths since 1956, according to the data.

Over the past decade, small spikes in gunfire deaths have been common, but experts say they are surprised by the number of officers this year who have been specifically targeted by gunmen.

"There's an increasingly desperate population out there," said Eugene O'Donnell, a professor of police studies at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York. "Other than in rare cases for ideological reasons, we really haven't seen people taking on the cops head-to-head. Something is amiss. It should be cause for grave concern."

Officer Richard May, Jr. was shot and killed in the line of duty on January 7, 2006 in East Palo Alto.

www.OfficerRichardMay.org

Defense Penalty Phase

2009-12-10T21:02:00.000-08:00

We may have one more day of the penalty phase presentations. Then, the Jury will determine if Ablerto Alvarez will receive the Death Penalty or Life Without the Possibility of Parole.

During the first two days of this week, the Jury heard about Officer Richard May - from many family members and friends - the fact that Rich was an amazing person, a good police officer, a missed father, brother, partner, and an excellent family man The jury heard from all these fine people that Rich was a person who spent his full time helping others, and of most importance, .

It is appropriate at this time to add comments from those who email. Many emails, with content I cannot copy here, can be summarized with the most common two words - "FRY HIM". Jury members - do your duty and make a clear statement in support of police officers: the Death Penalty.

Today, Thursday, the defense presented witnesses asking the jury to spare Alberto Alvarez's life. The defendant's mother cried a lot and said the defendant's behavior changed for the bad when his father became a drug/alcohol addict and was gone most of the time; the defense presented a video of family photos of little Alberto Alvarez and family; the mother said she wanted the defendant to live; but on cross-examination she painted a picture of her husband as a good man who was a good father and worked hard (sort of puncturing the defense theory that he abandoned his son and turned him into a criminal by his inattention). The defendant's cousin said he nearly went bad but was sent to Aunt Victoria in San Jose who cleaned up his act and he turned out great (the defendant was also sent to Aunt Victoria but he left after a few weeks because he would not take her discipline). The defendant's high school classmate grew up in East Palo Alto and had a good father who gave him good values and he was able to overcome the gangs and violence (just like the parents of the defendant, but the defendant chose to turn the wrong way). The defendant's sister talked about her brother helping her as a child and asked the jury to let him live. In the afternoon a defense psychologist stated that the defendant is not an evil person or a psychopath and is remorseful (but admitted on cross-examination that the defendant's answers to test questions show a lack of remorse and manipulation and deceitfulness, among many other bad characteristics). In the end, he is just a low-down good for nothing murderer.

The defense did not make any big points today and did not present anything that would sway a juror who is on the fence.

Penalty Phase - Officer Rich May Murder Trial

2009-12-07T17:55:00.001-08:00

-59th day of jury trial was completed in Dept. 9, Judge Craig Parsons. The first day of the penalty phase was conducted and the prosecution and defense opening statements were presented (attorney Liberman gave the defense opening remarks). The first day of prosecution evidence was presented and 17 witnesses testified. Evidence of the defendant’s 2002 possession of a semi-automatic handgun and his 2003 pointing a semi-automatic pistol at the PAL Market security officer and threatening to kill him was presented. Evidence of two attacks by the defendant on other jail inmates (murderer Shawn Hedlin and mentally ill Julio Bolanos) was presented as well as the discovery of two jail made weapons (sharpened pen and soap bricks). Three victim impact witnesses (Officer May’s mother, step-father and sister) testified at the end of the afternoon. The trial resumes this morning at 9:15 with further prosecution evidence (12 other victim impact witnesses). The prosecution case should be completed by the end of the morning. [On November 25, 2009 after a total of six hours of deliberation, the jury returned verdicts of guilty Counts I 187(A) first degree murder and II 12021(A)(1) felony possession of a firearm by a felon. The jury also found true the special circumstance that the victim Officer Richard May was murdered while in the lawful performance of his duties.] The defendant remains in custody on no bail status.

You will see no reference to me, Rich's father at the penalty phase of the trial. I am home and back at work. There are 15 relatives, friends, and officer partners providing statements about this amazing police officer. The jury has no chpoice but to come back with the Death Penalty.

www.OfficerRichardMay.org

Officer Rich May Jury - Thank You

2009-12-01T11:50:00.001-08:00

To the jury for the Officer Richard May Murder trial – Thank you for your public service. Thank you for looking at the facts and thinking about the witness testimony. Thank you for not focusing on the unbelievable story presented by the Alberto Alvarez Defense team. I write this note following your Thanksgiving four day holiday. I expect that you had a good time with your family as our family did. We had a full house three of the four past days. Family, friends, and visitors. I expect the same for each of you. When you return on December 7th, you will start the penalty phase of the trial. When you get together again to determine whether Alberto Alvarez is given the Death Penalty or Life Without the Possibility of Parole – remember that there are police officers everywhere who look to you for the protection and support that the Death Penalty for a Cop Killer provides them.

While we wait for the next phase of the trial, we need to thank all the support people and entities in San Mateo County. The Sheriff’s Department, the Redwood City Police Department, the individual personnel of each department, and specifically, my two new families – Jeri’s extended family and Vickie’s family. We’ve added many great new friends to our growing family.

When the trial ended, the daily input of emails increased. The emails have been very supportive and from all walks of life – mothers, wives, and friends of officers. There are emails from people who only met Rich one time briefly and those who describe Rich as their “Best Friend”. There are many emails from residents of East Palo Alto who met Rich during official police work – and state how blessed that are for the meeting. There is one email from a potential juror that was not selected offering support. While it is not easy to know the address from most who offer their support and statements of relief for the jury decision, emails came to this blog from across the country. To all of you, thanks. To those whom I should not identify in this blog because of your involvement, thank you. I am discontinuing this blog at the penalty phase – and ask all of you to support your local police officers with the type of support offered here.

Thanks to all those in Rich’s home town for their support. For close to four years in San Luis Obispo, the notes and personal comments were condolences. Following the Jury’s strong statement last Wednesday, the handshakes, the friends, and those whom we may not really know – all offer congratulations – which must be directed to the legal system.

The reason for such a fast return from the jury – Mr. Stephen M. Wagstaffe, Chief Deputy District Attorney, San Mateo County District Attorney’s office. To the people of San Mateo County - Steve is an incredible public employee, a professor, an expert attorney, a skilled court room manager, a friend to all – and the reason the jury came back with a Guilty on All Counts in record time. Residents of San Mateo County – do not let this man get away from you!

Finally, now that the Murderer of a police officer, execution style, is off the street forever – we need to move forward. We need to support Rich’s work of helping the trouble youth of our communities. Rich’s job allowed him the unique position of seeing into troubled families and then having the ability to reach back into the family to help the young. From Rich’s services at the HP Pavilion, one statement remains for all of us to remember: “Find one young person who needs help. Spend your time with that youth. Help that person become a good and productive adult. And do it with a smile.” We can do this by donating our time and/or money to the Mentoring organization which reaches direct into the families as Rich did. Friends for Youth provide the support and relationships to the youths in the community. Take a minute and go to this web site www.FriendsforYouth.org Select Donate Here. Make a donation, and note that the donation is in Rich’s name. Regardless of the size of your donation, you are helping match good volunteer adults with troubled youth in the community.

An added note – we have great sorrow for the families and fellow officers at the Lakewood, Washington Police Department. I was given a statue of St. Michael by a relative a couple years ago. I keep this statue with me all the time in my briefcase. The statue comes out when I am in hotels, and getting through airport security. So, to officers everywhere, the story of St. Michael:

St. Michael protected God from the rebellious and disloyal angel, Lucifer. He wasn't asked but on his own he attacked Luther. He became a strong Leader and Warrior sending Satan and his Evil Followers straight to Hell. He obeyed His only God, he was loyal and trustworthy, he fought the criminal, and he saved God and Heaven from an evildoer. He polices Heaven and earth even today. So we ask him to protect our police who are protecting the good citizens from the evil one!

Alvarez - A Cold Blooded Killer

2009-11-23T20:46:00.000-08:00

Prosecution provided the summary of events today. Alberto Alvarez is a cold blooded killer – who shot and killed Officer Richard May. This is the clear statement from the prosecution in summary at the trial. Officer May followed Alvarez because he fit the description and was running from the fight for which Officer May was dispatched following a 911 call. Alvarez, an armed felon, ran away from Officer May. Officer May yelled for Alvarez to stop. This all comes from witnesses. What we do not know is what words were exchanged between Alvarez and Officer May during the period May was following Alvarez on foot. We will never know if Officer May knew Alvarez. We do know that Alvarez turned and shot Officer May. Several times. We know that Officer May was able to get off one shot as he started falling to the ground, hitting Alvarez in the leg. We know that Alvarez then stepped up to officer May on the ground and fired a couple more shots into Officer May to make sure he was dead. Execution Style.

The defense, in their closing argument, described how Alberto Alvarez was an innocent person who only hurried across a busy road and was not running from the officer. During the trial the defense stated that Alvarez only ran across University Avenue because of the busy traffic. The defense had a local store video showing Alvarez running. In the video, there were NO CARS ON UNIVERSITY at the time of the run across the street. The explorer scout riding in Officer May’s car stated that Alvarez looked at them in the car, he looked worried, and turn and ran. The defense attorneys then state that Alvarez, afraid for his life, ran away from the officer who told him to stop. The defense attorneys had the gall to say that nothing else happened that provoked Officer May to take out his asp (baton) and strike Alvarez on the outside of his shoulder. The next and amazing statement from the defense was that officer May then shot Alberto Alvarez for no reason. The defense then said that Alvarez feared for his life when he was shot for no reason – and at that time only, Alvarez took out his gun and fired many times at Officer May in defense – while Officer May no longer fired at Alvarez. Amazing. This armed felon feared for his life? No. He feared he was going back to jail. This is exactly the same reason four Oakland officers were killed a few months ago! A parole with a gun that did not want to back to jail.

I receive a lot of emails asking how the defense attorneys sleep at night. I do not know the answer to that question. Actually, I think of the relatives of the defense attorneys. How embarrassing this must be for them to listen to this amazing “scared for his life” defense.

Rick May

Rich’s father.

Officer May - did more in his short lifetime than 100 other people

2009-11-21T09:49:00.001-08:00

Rich Jr, EPAPD - Rick Sr, Reserve

Officer Richard May, Jr. was shot and killed on January 7, 2006. Alberto Alvarez was caught and admitted to the killing. Including the second execution style shots as Officer May lay on the ground. The jury hears the prosecution and defense final statements on Monday. The prosecution (the people) will to make it clear to the jury (working within the limits set by the court) that Alvarez shot FIRST, hitting Officer May. As Officer May fell backwards, he got off one shot, hitting Alvarez in the leg. The defense (paid by the public) is offering the amazing story that their admitted drug dealing felon, in possession of a fully loaded 9 mil handgun, feared for his life with Officer May telling him to stop running away from him. (How do defense attorney’s sleep at night?)

Officer May was considered one of the kindest officers in any police force – by the public, by those whom he arrested (yes), and by fellow officers. Officer May spent his whole public life supporting youth activities and raising money so that trouble youth would receive support and direction. Officer May was killed by a 22 year old gang member and drug dealer.

It is time to provide more information about Officer May’s life. What follows is my 2 Year Memorial to Rich:

At approximately 4:30 PM on January 7, 2006, Officer Richard “Rich” May, Jr. was shot and killed when he responded to a disturbance call while on duty in East Palo Alto. When he arrived at the disturbance, one of the men fled. Rich attempted to stop that male. The suspect turned around and opened fire with a semi-automatic handgun, killing Rich. The suspect fled on foot. A young Police Explorer Scout was participating in a ride along with Rich at the time of the incident, but was not injured. It was the Explorer who made the radio call for help.

East Palo Alto is a city of 32,000 that once led the nation in murders per capita. In 1992, a body count of 42 earned the city the dubious distinction of "murder capital of the country”.

Rich, a 1985 graduate of San Luis Obispo High School, was a US Marine Corps veteran. He had served with the East Palo Alto Police Department for 18 months. He had previously served for 14 years with the Lompoc Police Department.

Rich’s parents were divorced when he was young. His mother moved to the Bay area with a new family. Rich was raised by his father Rick, and later, the two were joined by Lynn in San Luis Obispo. (Lynn is recognized by all as the person who gave Rich his sound and good direction in life). In Rich’s early years in grammar school, junior high and high school, he was known as a good person. “I remember taking Judo classes after school with Rich when we were going to Laguna Junior High, way back in the early 80's. This memory is still clear because Rich was such a neat person, so fun to be around, and he made you feel good about yourself, even at such a young age as we were then.” Another of Rich’s friends from school – a woman – remembered her first day at Laguna Jr. High. She wanted to pass through a doorway which was blocked by an older 8th grade student. When she asked if she could get through, the older student told her to go some other way. She said a skinny young boy near her turned to the older boy in the doorway and politely suggested that he should move. The boy moved. The young girl realized she met her first Jr. High. friend – Rich.

Within minutes after Rich’s shooting in East Palo Alto, officers from nearby agencies arrived to help in the search for the suspect. Police officers blocked off the neighborhood to search for the suspect, who was armed with a semiautomatic pistol. In all, more than 250 officers from 25 agencies participated in the manhunt. A suspect was caught about 6:00 AM the next morning after officers at a checkpoint became suspicious when they stopped a car and saw someone ducking in the back. The suspect, a 23 year old gang member on parole, was found with a bullet wound to his leg, that had been inflicted by Rich before he died.

As an officer, Rich committed much of his time to the DARE program in Lompoc, founded the town's youth Police Activities League, and helped turn the Lompoc Boys and Girls Club into a viable place for young people to spend after school time. “Rich was my DARE officer at Hapgood School about 10 or so years ago. A very nice, sharp, professional whom I greatly admired as did my class. What a fine, decent, and beautiful individual. He is one of the finest examples of law enforcement I can think of”. Rich taught Administration of Justice at Lompoc High School to give young adults a different view of the laws of society. Rich also taught classes to new recruits at the Alan Hancock Police Academy. “I worked closely with Rich when he taught at the Allan Hancock Police Academy. He was a brilliant and creative teacher.” During his time in Lompoc, Rich’s Marine Reserve unit was activated for Operation Desert Storm. In East Palo Alto, he helped by mentoring the Boy Scout Explorers. He worked tirelessly to help local young people in a one on one relationship. “the times that I spent with you in ride-alongs were exciting and fun I will never forget all the advice that you have given me in regards to my Future career in the marines/then my career in law enforcement the time that we spent having many discussions in the squad car will be priceless, I will always remember you”

While at the Lompoc Police Department, Rich received the prestigious H. Thomas Guerry Award in 1994 from the Santa Barbara Citizens Council on Crime for his role in saving the life of a victim suffering from cardiac arrest. In 1997 he was honored with the Distinguished Service Award from the Santa Barbara County Probation Department for his work with juveniles. The Lompoc Boys and Girls Club recently dedicated their gym to Rich. During his off duty hours, Rich raised money, painted, and repaired the building so young people would have a place to play after school. The center court circle will read “RICH MAY COURT”.

Rich always went out of his way to help others. A mother in East Palo Alto – “I was fortunate to witness first hand when Rich helped with my daughter over a year ago. She was missing and I can't even begin to explain how I felt. Officer May showed up, not because he was called to come out and take a report- that had been done. He knew our family and his face reflected my desperation. He wanted to find her; he wanted to help. One look at his face and I could tell that he genuinely empathized. He spoke of being a father himself. He was so articulate and poised. Most importantly though, his warmth just radiated about him. What a fantastic officer and human being.” From an East Palo Alto City Council person “When I first met him, I was happily surprised and impressed by his demeanor. In full uniform he radiated a disarming and comforting presence. Officer May was a person that was clearly at ease with himself and with our community. Community residents echo similar feelings about his gentlemanly manner in which handled his duties. He was the embodiment of community policing and served as a shining example of how an officer should comport him/herself in any community”. A school official – “Officer May came to the school and my aide on numerous occasions. He was the first one to respond when our Katrina funds were stolen. I was glad he responded because I think of him as the polite police officer that listened. Well God sent the right one that day. Even though he was calm, and in his usual professional manner, I could tell his heart was saddened.”

The letters from the individuals who state that Rich's personal involvement saved their lives are too difficult to share."

My sense of outrage is great. I'm outraged to see this tragic waste of a good and decent man," said state Attorney General Bill Lockyer as he fought back tears speaking at Rich’s services at the San Jose HP Pavilion. "We know that we can take some comfort in understanding that he was doing what he loved."

I spent many shifts riding with Rich on his Lompoc patrols. He often called me and asked that I ride with him. I suspected it was so he could talk. We never talked about anything specific – just talked. It was clear to me that he was good at what he did. It was normal for officers in the field to call him for a meeting so they could ask his opinion about a pending arrest or how to complete a form. An officer asked one evening how he could impound the tractor cab of a big rig that was in town at the truck driver’s friend’s house. It seems the driver would unhook from his trailer outside of town then drive in a very noisy way to the residential street. Neighbors had complained about the loud noise for many months. Rich reminded the officer that when the department impounds the vehicle of a drunk driver, the driver can get to work the next day by bus or a friend. Rich explained that the truck was the driver’s office and that they should not impound the truck. Rich explained how to write a ticket that would be an expensive and firm reminder of the noise. On another occasion, Rich pulled over a small older car that had just slowly rolled through a stop sign. He talked for a few minutes to the woman driver then came back to the patrol car and drove away. He explained that the woman’s driver license had expired a few days earlier. There was a new baby in a car seat, the windows were down, the baby was crying, the car was full of grocery bags, seat belts were on, and it was 110 degrees outside. Her home was only a couple blocks away. Rich handed back the license asking the woman to apply for a new license – and then told her he had another call. The woman obviously knew what Rich did because she came to the police department a couple days later to show Rich her new license and to thank him for allowing her to continue home. On another occasion, “I remember how one Christmas Eve me and my family were forced to flee our house and stay in a hotel because my ex-husband had become really violent. Rich came to talk to my kids and when he spoke to the 11 year old, tears formed in his eyes when she showed him the little Christmas tree she had decorated with lights and put up in the hotel room. He told her that she was very brave.”

A few weeks after high school, Rich wrote home from Marine Corps boot camp describing the time he was required to have a firm, non smiling face for his official picture. Because it took several takes to get a firm picture, Rich had to do extra physical activities.

Rich took on a special job for one year while at the Lompoc Police Department. He was the SHO officer. SHO was a special Granted program - the Serious Habitual Offender program. Juveniles that had several misdemeanors and felonies during the previous 12 months could be assigned to Rich. It was Rich’s full time job to keep track of these young people, talk with them, try to keep them in school, and help in their family life. I remember going to one juvenile’s apartment because the juvenile had not been seen for a couple months. The apartment was in the name of a man who was the boy friend of the juvenile’s stepmother. The real mother and father were in jail. We never made contact with this person. However, there were many other meetings with young SHO kids who respected Rich and were doing their best to work within the rules as established by Rich.

Funerals for fallen police officers are heartwarming, amazing, difficult and impressive. Heartwarming because our family suddenly had thousands of close friends, all offering do anything from hugging to grocery shopping. Amazing simply because of the mass of friends at the services. Difficult because it is so public. One minute we were at a happy surprise birthday party, the next in a hotel room protected by officers to make sure we were not bothered, then to a service that filled the San Jose HP Pavilion with thousands of officers and general public. Impressive because of the ceremony, the rider less horse with the backward boots, the 21 gun salute, the missing person flyover, and the long procession. The California Highway Patrol stopped traffic on the Southbound 101 from East Palo Alto to San Jose. The motorcade of police vehicles stretched four miles. It took 20 minutes for the full procession to pass under a huge U.S. flag, suspended over four-lane road in East Palo Alto by two fire department cranes. The procession followed Highway 101 southbound to San Jose, empty and quiet as cars were held at on-ramps. Officers were saluting at attention at all the on ramps. Overpasses were lined with fire trucks and saluting firefighters. Then a second service. The public process all over again. The funeral in Santa Maria two days later.

Those who knew Rich during his off duty hours, remember his constant companions everywhere he went - his two daughters, Deanna and Lauren and stepdaughter Brittany Cofield.

Rich was as involved with youth in East Palo Alto as he was in Lompoc. From a volunteer affiliated with the East Palo Alto Teen Home - “our agency has relied on our police department for assistance in dealing with our teen girls. Officer May would at any time, call our facility as well as have follow-up visits to check on the girls and hold them to high standards in working on their programs. I found it unusual for Officer May to speak to our girls in a fatherly manner, as well as an officer. It's not the type of personal, one on one interaction I expected to be a part of and it made me realize there was something different about this person. In speaking with other members of the community, checking in on you was the way he performed his job. Officer May I am sure, set many goals for himself. The goal of making a difference in the lives of others was attained.” From a department employee – “Having worked for 3 Police Department's in my life, I can say that Rich was the kindest, most compassionate, caring and all rounded officer I've ever had the pleasure to work with.”

A local corner grocery store In East Palo Alto was the object of regular robberies. Rich started visiting the store regularly to make his presence known to the area. He often sat in the store doing his reports. He stopped by several times a day to purchase lunch or a soft drink. Robberies ended at this store. Rich called me one day to tell me how bad he felt. Shortly after he left his shift the evening before, the store was robbed and one of the owners was shot in the shoulder.

One statement resonated from the funeral – “To honor Rich, individually find one young person who needs help. Spend your time with that youth. Help that person become a good and productive adult. And do it with a smile." Our family is working with, and raising funds for, the Redwood City Friends For Youth - the RICH MAY One-On-One MENTORING PROGRAM in East Palo Alto. Helping at-risk youth becoming attached to responsible adults on a one-on-one basis is the best way we can duplicate what Rich was doing. Our family is involved in several other projects. We are arranging for a scholarship for graduates from Rich's high school in San Luis Obispo, who need help attending police or fire academies. We are assisting the Lompoc Police Department PAL organization with youth activities - currently raising funds to purchase scoreboards for youth softball fields. We assist the Lompoc Boys and Girls Club in any way possible. The Boys & Girls Club is adding to their facilities for youth services. We assist with youth sports in East Palo Alto. Rich’s mother’s family is working on a field and building for youth activities in the City of East Palo Alto. If you wish to support one of these fine activities, send an email note to Rick May at OfficerRichardMay@gmail.com

San Mateo County is holding the 23 year old suspect in jail. The trial is expected to start December, 2008.

From the San Jose Mercury News “If every cop who dies in the line of duty is a hero, then perhaps Richard May was a superhero”. A retired Highway Patrol officer recently said Rich “was the best damn officer he ever met”.

And finally, a note shortly after Rich’s death from his cousin Sean. “Rich was my cousin and someone I looked up to my whole life. I am just now starting to be able to be sad, because all I have been able to feel is anger. For you kind people that did not know Rich and are offering your condolences, I wish you did know him. If all of the kind words spoken by those who knew Rich make it seem like he was a great guy, it only touches the surface of what an outstanding man he was. It is not often that people come along that are able to have such an impact on so many people in such a small amount of time. Being a police officer did not define Rich, it just happened to be the honorable way that he was able to help others. If Rich had been anything else he still would have been one of the best people I have ever known. (To Rich’s family), I wish so much that I could take your pain for you. My family and I are in so much agony for what you are going through. I hope we can all hold on to the good memories, and find some peace in knowing that Rich did the good deeds of 100 people in his own lifetime. We love you Rich, and we miss you, but we will never forget you. God bless. “

http://www.officerrichardmay.org/

Jury Instructions Debate

2009-11-19T20:20:00.000-08:00

A court day closed to the public. The defense had four attorneys arguing the instructions at the public's expense.

People. v. Alberto Alvarez (9-6-83), East Palo Alto PD 187(A)&190.2(A)(7)& 12022.53(D)/12021(A)(1) 1-7-2006 Fatal Shooting Of EPAPD Officer Richard May On Weeks Street In EPA During Foot Pursuit Following Disturbance At Restaurant; Grand Jury Indictment; Death Penalty Case (DDA Steve Wagstaffe)

-54th day of jury trial was completed in Dept. 9, Judge Craig Parsons. The judge discussed jury instructions with the attorneys all day. The court ruled on numerous legal issues involving the legal instructions to be read to the jurors Monday morning. Over prosecution objection, the judge granted the defense motion to instruct the jury on voluntary manslaughter based on the theory that Officer May provoked the defendant by hitting him with the asp and the defendant killed the officer while in a heat of passion. The court will also instruct the jury on voluntary manslaughter based on a theory that the defendant killed Officer May in the unreasonable but honest belief in the need to shoot in self-defense. So the jury will be given the choices of first degree murder, second degree murder, voluntary manslaughter and not guilty based on true self-defense. Judge Parsons granted prosecution special instructions on use of force and rejected the defense special instructions on use of force and unlawful detention. The trial resumes Friday morning at 11:00 with further discussion of the jury instructions. Closing arguments remain scheduled for Monday morning at 9:15 (the court will pre-instruct the jury the first hour, take a short break, and the closing arguments will follow). The defendant remains in custody on no bail status.

My guess - the judge provided several options for the jury in order to limit the number of appeals following the jury's decision.

Last day of Witnesses - Completed

2009-11-17T20:10:00.000-08:00

53rd day of jury trial was completed in Dept. 9, Judge Craig Parsons. The third day of defense evidence was presented and one witness testified. Criminalist John Jacobsen of Forensic Analytical (defense crime lab) testified about his testing of the firearms evidence and about crime scene reconstruction. He testified that the physical evidence proves that Officer May fired the first shot and the defendant’s return fire resulted in the fatal headshot with the first bullet. On cross-examination he conceded that his version of the shots was not consistent with the testimony of several other witnesses (the three eyewitnesses, Dr. Benson and even the defendant’s version of events), but refused to budge and stated that his reconstruction of the order of shots was perfect and error was not possible. The defense rested its case at 3:20. The prosecution called one witness in rebuttal, Chief Ron Davis. Chief Davis testified as an expert in the policy of use of force, police practices and racial profiling. He testified that the testimony of defense use of force expert (Winthrop Taylor) was racial profiling when he stated that reasonable officers assume an Hispanic male does not speak English when he refuses to stop and that the primary reason an Hispanic male runs is because he is undocumented. Both sides rested at the end of the afternoon. The trial is in recess Wednesday for the court furlough day and the trial resumes Thursday when the jury instructions will be discussed

The prosecution presented 61 witnesses and the defense presented six witnesses. Closing arguments will start Monday morning and probably last most of the afternoon. At 9:15 the court will read the jury legal instructions to the jury; that takes about 45-50 minutes. Steve Wagstaffe will give his closing argument, followed by the defense closing argument. Then Steve Wagstaffe will give a rebuttal argument. The jury should get the case for deliberations by the end of the afternoon Monday.

http://www.officerrichardmay.org/

Newspaper Headlines do not Depict Court Events

2009-11-17T10:21:00.000-08:00

Newspaper Headlines do not Depict Court Events

This note is to all those across the country who send me emails asking about the day in court, based on the information they read online. This note is to those who knew Rich growing up in San Luis Obispo and those who work and live in the two communities he served – Lompoc and East Palo Alto, California.

The headlines rarely have anything to do with the actual events in the court. The reading of the articles gives anyone sitting in the court the idea that there is a bias to the articles. What is clear at this time is that the defense witnesses are quoted and their thoughts are well covered. There is little coverage of the results of the prosecutor’s cross examination of the defense witnesses.

I am biased in my reports here in the blog. I am Rich’s father. But the great newspaper reporting bias in favor of the defense team is not proper. It can be expected in today’s media – which itself has fallen to a low in public respect. Allow me to present a couple examples:

“Lab Director Lampoons San Mateo County Criminologists”. A recent headline. The facts are – this person was hired by the defense to shoot holes in the county’s accumulation of crime scene material. This person is very qualified, and did point out several tasks that were not done correctly. One was the fact that an officer picked up Rich’s firearm because it was on the ground next to Rich and cocked, read to fire. The gun was carefully moved so that the emergency personnel could try to offer aid to Rich. The second event that was pointed out as incorrect was the fact that someone moved Rich’s patrol vehicle out of the way so paramedic vehicles could move to the scene. Again, a mistake. HOWEVER, when all “mistakes” at the crime scene were described, the defense criminologist witness could not say that any of the evidence presented in court was not correct and proper. A nice try by the defense, but scored nothing in front of the jury. They did score in the public because of the misleading headline.

“Accused said he Feared for His Life” In a surprise event, the defense attorneys put their client on the stand. The defense team asked Alvarez questions about his involvement and he answered all questions, including the fact he shot and killed officer May, including shooting officer May again as the officer was on the ground. In a very well coached effort from the stand, Alvarez looked meek, quiet, and someone who could not remember a lot about the event which has him facing the death penalty. If anyone in the courtroom believed his “I don’t remember” statements, then there is a total lack of realty to that person’s life. The newspaper stories stated that the prosecution called Alvarez a liar. Correct. That was his very first statement to Alvarez when it was his turn to cross examine Alvarez. All the remaining questions brought these statements from Alvarez: He first admitted he WAS A LIAR. He stated clearly that his job was a Drug Dealer. He admitted that he knew his way around the local properties, including having keys to the fenced area at the nearby apartment complex so he could pass through when he needed to get away. Alvarez admitted he knew he could not have a gun. He admitted that he carried a gun for protection. He admitted that he carried the gun with the Safety Lock switched off – so that he could shoot quickly. He admitted that he had time, but did not toss his weapon before the officer caught up with him. He sold Meth to two regular buyers that morning (but could not remember their names). He purchased his 9 millimeter gun from the pool hall near the shooting scene, but could not remember the name of the person he purchased from. Alvarez said he had $1000 in his pocket from drug deals, but could not remember why he told officers when arrested that he had no injuries. He was hoping to hide the fact he received a shot to the leg as Rich was falling to the ground after being shot by Alvarez. The newspaper headlined that Alvarez stated he “feared for his life”. The newspaper did not make it clear that he stated more than once to the prosecution that he “was a liar”.

I do not need to continue. Please remember when you read newspaper stories coming from the trial that these are certainly specifics about what the defense is doing, and the headline may have a thread of truth – but neither provides a true story of the day in court.

I cannot finish without making a comment about the defense attorneys (paid by the public). In any other court, the names and order of witnesses are provided to the other side. The defense is not doing this. The placement of Alvarez on the stand was a well planed movement, without notification to the prosecution. Alvarez was well coached. I expect that the defense hoped to catch the prosecution off balance by not being prepared to see Alvarez on the stand. It did not work. I expect the defense is hoping that they may have swayed one juror by his sad looks and low voice. Possible. However, Alvarez still admitted to walking to Rich and shooting again while Rich was down. Did the headline in the papers state this – no, the headline said he feared for his life.

To all of you, thanks for the large amount of email. To you officers – be smart. The unfortunate fact is that there are others who place no value of human life and will take it with a gun at any time.

Rick May
Rich's Father

http://www.officerrichardmay.org/

One Day Remains for the Defense Witnesses

2009-11-16T19:25:00.000-08:00

One more day remains for the Defense Witnesses

Today was the "52nd day of jury trial, completed in Dept. 9, Judge Craig Parsons. The second day of defense evidence was presented and five witnesses testified. The cross-examination of the defense use of force expert Winthrop Taylor was completed. He admitted several significant errors in his report from February 2009 and, when asked why he did not write a supplemental correcting the errors, he said the defense attorneys told him that would not be necessary. (For example, one of the errors was that he originally wrote that the defendant suffered injuries from the police baton on both his right arm and his right buttock; he admitted in court that the only injury was to the arm and stated that he had confused a picture of the defendant’s arm with his right buttock)."

This was a sorry day for the defense. Mr. Taylor had nothing left to show that he was, in any way, an "expert". My personal opinion, an embarrassment for the Defense.

"Other witnesses were defense investigator Dan DeSantis (measurements), Sgt. Dave Carson (response to the shooting) and fiber evidence expert Laurie Kaminiski. Celia Hartnett of Forensic Analytical Lab (defense lab) testified in the afternoon about the alleged extensive mistakes made by the county forensic lab in collecting and testing evidence."

Ms. Hartnett was a very qualified witness for the Defense. However, she had to admit that none of the evidence brought to the trial was incorrect.

The trial resumes Tuesday morning at 9:15 with the final defense witness (criminalist John Jacobsen on firearms and crime scene reconstruction). The prosecution rebuttal case will be in the afternoon. Jury instructions will be discussed Thursday and closing arguments will be Monday morning. The defendant remains in custody on no bail status.

The only other important information this Monday evening - is that my granddaughter, Deanna, brought home made chocolate chip cookies to me in the motor home in the county parking lot. We had them for desert, with a coke. I think that is one of the requirements of being a grandfather - not doing what we taught our children. Rich, we miss you.

Rick May

http://www.offiicerrichardmay.org/

Death - or - Life Without The Possibility of Parole

2009-11-15T22:54:00.000-08:00

Death - or - Life Without The Possibility of Parole. A Sunday evening reminder to those who are emailing. There are only two possibilities to the outcome of this trial. Alberto Alvarez will never see the streets again. His shooting of a police officer that only asked him to stop running away from him, and then stepping up to add execution shots as the officer lay on the ground - will only end with one of these two possibilities. The killing of a police officer requires only these two penalties. The execution shots require that this unbelievable person be put to death. There should not be a second option.

Rick May
Rich's father
http://www.officerrichardmay.com/

Alvarez Admits on the Stand that he Shot Officer May, followed by EXECUTION style shots while Officer May was on the ground

2009-11-13T14:04:00.000-08:00

The Murderer of Officer Richard May took the stand on Thursday. There was no defense of his actions. He admitted to the killing of a police officer. He spoke clearly about his full time job – a drug seller. But spoke vaguely about his killing of Rich. He spoke about his sale of meth during the morning and what he ordered to eat at the taqueria that afternoon. Alvarez knew he had a thousand dollars in his pocket. But could not explain how he stepped up to Rich on the ground and fired shots again – in execution style.

We know from the evidence that Alvarez fired first and fired several times. Rich was able to get his gun out and fire one shot as he fell backward, hitting Alvarez in the leg.

Alberto Alvarez did his best to look meek and quiet on the stand. He amazingly stated that Rich shot first, hitting him in the leg. Then he described how Rich simply stood there pointing his gun at Alvarez doing nothing while Alvarez fired many times in “self defense”. The prosecutor, Steve Wagstaffe, spent three hours showing the jury that Alvarez lied about everything he described.

My opinion of the surprise placement of Alvarez on the stand – the defense had nowhere to go but up. The defense team was looking for a sympathetic juror. To date, the defense has been very weak in their attempt to save Alvarez from the death penalty. Alvarez was coached well before he took the stand. He was quiet, and continued to say that he could not remember much.

The second witness of the day was the defense’s Use of Force “expert”. This “expert” stated that in his opinion, Rich should not have tried to stop Alvarez in the manner that he did. We do not know what words were exchanged between Alvarez and Rich during the short period that Alvarez (an armed Felon) was running from Rich, and then turned on Rich with his gun, and then firing. The prosecutor, Steve Wagstaffe, had the “expert” admit that his knowledge of the use of force was limited. In addition, the “expert” witness admitted that he was fired from his last job as Police Chief in a small town in Washington State, for cause. A key reason was a full vote of Non Confidence by the police and city personnel. It seems that he is not really an expert – but a person the defense had to go far to find to support their opinion. Probably the most damaging statement from the “expert” witness for the defense was when he admitted his first report to the defense attorneys stated that Rich “probably” used the wrong choice of force in attempting to stop Alvarez. Once the Defense team reviewed the report, it was returned and changed by the “expert” to state that Rich “did” use the wrong choice of tactics. Amazing – for an “expert”. This witness returns on Monday morning for further questioning by Wagstaffe.

For All the Marines I met Today - Veteran's Day

2009-11-11T19:56:00.000-08:00

THE FINAL INSPECTION

The Marine stood and faced God,
Which must always come to pass.
He hoped his shoes were shining,
Just as brightly as his brass.
'Step forward now, Marine,
How shall I deal with you?
Have you always turned the other cheek?
To My Church have you been true?'

The soldier squared his shoulders and said,
'No, Lord, I guess I ain't.
Because those of us who carry guns,
Can't always be a saint.

I've had to work most Sundays,
And at times my talk was tough.
And sometimes I've been violent,
Because the world is awfully rough.

But, I never took a penny,
That wasn't mine to keep...
Though I worked a lot of overtime,
When the bills got just too steep.

And I never passed a cry for help,
Though at times I shook with fear.
And sometimes, God, forgive me,
I've wept unmanly tears.

I know I don't deserve a place,
Among the people here.
They never wanted me around,
Except to calm their fears

If you've a place for me here, Lord,
It needn't be so grand.
I never expected or had too much,
But if you don't, I'll understand.

There was a silence all around the throne,
Where the saints had often trod.
As the Marine waited quietly,
For the judgment of his God.

'Step forward now, you Marine,
You've borne your burdens well.
Walk peacefully on Heaven's streets,
You've done your time in Hell.'
Author Unknown~

50th Day of the Murder Trail of Officer Rich May

2009-11-10T20:46:00.000-08:00

-50th day of jury trial was completed in Dept. 9, Judge Craig Parsons. The eleventh day of prosecution evidence was presented and two witnesses testified. The testimony of Sgt. Jeff Liu was completed and firearms expert Andy Smith testified as the prosecution 60th and final witness. His testimony was completed at 2:15 and the prosecution rested its case. The jury was released for the day and the defense section 1118.1 motion for judgment of acquittal was argued. The court denied the section 1118.1 motion in its entirety. The trial resumes Thursday morning at 9:15 with the start of the defense case. The defendant remains in custody on no bail status.

Photo - Marine Boot Graduation. Me,Rich and the Drill Sergeant

http://www.officerrichardmay.org/

Happy Birthday - US Marine Corps

2009-11-10T12:47:00.000-08:00

Today is the Birthday Celebration of the United Stated Marines. Rich was a proud member of the Corps. In his Honor, a Marine in full dress uniform attended for a half hour this morning.

SEMPER FI

A Picture of Officer Rich May

2009-11-06T11:18:00.000-08:00

Every day in the court, I am reminded that no picture of Rich prior to the murder is allowed. My guess is that a picture of Rich will greatly bias the jury. They will see an intelligent young man, a good father, a friend to all, and a person who loved his job. A person so involved with his friends that everyone can state he was their "Best Friend"

So, for the lack of a picture in court, here is a nice picture of Rich with Deanna and Lauren

Friday - No Court Today

2009-11-06T10:32:00.000-08:00

Every Friday during the Murder trail, Judge Parsons takes care of his many other Calendar items. A Special note - Judge Parsons runs a strong and clear process in the courtroom. In addition, his Bailiff, Officer Baker, runs the daily tasks of the court. A good operation.

In answer to emails received. First, a definition of the outcome of this trial. There is no question that Alberto Alvarez shot and killed Officer Rich May. The defense team admitted this fact during their opening statement. At the end of this trial, Alberto Alvarez will face either LIFE without the possibility of parole, or the DEATH penalty. The prosecution is presenting a case for the death penalty, which includes the fact that Alberto Alvarez approached Officer May, wounded on the ground, and shot him again. An execution. The defense team is hoping to convince the jury that Officer May stepped outside his authority in telling Alberto Alvarez to stop running away from him, which ended in a shootout that apparently Alberto Alvarez felt necessary to defend himself. And, the final executionstyle shots are not execution if Officer May was already dead - an amazing proposition. If the jury accepts this presentation, then Alberto Alvarez will get Life without the possibility of parole

Finally, a picture of my home at the San Mateo County Courthouse.

Rick May

http://www.officerrichardmay.org/

People v. Alberto Alvarez - Murder Trial of Officer Rich May

2009-11-05T20:49:00.000-08:00

(Our family trip Walt Disney World - Rich and a young Deanna, now a senior at Menlo-Atherton Hign School)

People. v. Alberto Alvarez (9-6-83), East Palo Alto PD 187(A)&190.2(A)(7)& 12022.53(D)/12021(A)(1) 1-7-2006 Fatal Shooting Of EPAPD Officer Richard May On Weeks Street In EPA During Foot Pursuit Following Disturbance At Restaurant; Jury Indictment; Death Penalty Case (DDA Steve Wagstaffe)

-49th day of jury trial was completed in Dept. 9, Judge Craig Parsons. The tenth day of prosecution evidence was presented and five witnesses testified. David Rose, the prosecution use of force expert, testified all morning and half the afternoon. He testified that Officer May had reasonable cause to the defendant and his use of the police asp to strike the defendant on the arm was not excessive use of force. He stated that when the defendant took out his handgun, the officer was fatally “behind the curve”. He testified that Officer May did not use excessive force but actually used inadequate force in light of the facts he did not know: that the defendant was a parole with a loaded handgun. He stated that Officer May unknowingly was bringing an asp to a gunfight. The other four witnesses were Sgt. Rick Tippins (photographs of the bruise on the defendant’s arm), Officer James Byrnes and Deputy Eric Mertl (finding the letter in the defendant’s cell in which he tried to manufacture a mental defense), and investigating officer Sgt. Jeff Liu. One defense witness (defense investigator John Maness) testified about the PAL market security video with the dispatch audio laid over the video and photographs of the defendant’s car. The trial is in recess Friday and Monday (defense attorney family event) and will resume on Tuesday at 9:15 with the final prosecution witness. The defendant remains in custody on no bail status. The defense attorneys are Charlie Robinson and Eric Liberman.

One final witness on for the Prosecution on Tuesday. Then the defense starts with their witnesses.

I skipped a few days of blog. The trail has become quite difficult for me. Pictures, explicit description by the criminologists and the forensic specialists. I missed several hours on a couple days, and missed yesterday completely. I felt much better today. A good day, thankful the forensics are finished. It is a real pleasure watching Mr. Wagstaffe question each witness.

Our family thanks all of you for the growing number of emails of support. It looks like there is a possibility that the case will go to the jury by Thanksgiving. If this is true, the trial is going quicker than I expected.

Good Night, Rick

Autopsy Photos of Rich May

2009-10-30T20:13:00.000-07:00

This is a brief note - I did not go to the courtroom as the autopsy was discussed - with pictures of Rich.

I would like to keep the pictures I have in my mind of the fun young man who went every where with me and I went every where with him. Fishing. PTA meetings. School Trips. Youth sports. High School swimming events. High School Choir. Disneyland. Pictures of Rich in the Marines. I have many photos in my mind.

I am not going to add to these memories.

My guess - next week may be a lot of "CSI" type of witnesses. DNA. Hand prints.

http://www.officerrichardmay.org/

44th Day of Officer Rich May Murder Trial

2009-10-29T07:20:00.000-07:00

An educational day for the public on how public service agencies come together for critical events.

By the numbers. Wednesday was the fifth day of prosecution evidence, with twelve witnesses testifying during the day. Wednesday was the 44th court day since the jury selection process started.

The day was interesting because Mr. Wagstaffe, Chief Deputy District Attorney, started the day with the East Palo Alto Police Sergeant emotionally describing her view of Rich on the ground as she drove up to the crime scene on Weeks Avenue. The witness process started with the description on how the East Palo Alto Police Chief asked Sheriff Greg Monks to take command of both the crime scene and the search for the murder suspect. This request triggered the setup of the Critical Event Command Center at the East Palo Alto Police Department. We learned from the Sheriff’s Sergeant, who arrived shortly and established the command post. The Sergeant set up commanders for each task – such as perimeter control around the neighborhood where the murder suspect was apparently hiding, press liaison, Swat teams if needed, teams of officers going door to door, etc. You need to remember – at this point in time, the suspect could be holding a resident family hostage, hiding in the brush, etc. – and is armed. Each door to door event included Swat members. After an hour or two, a Sheriff’s Department Captain whose responsibility is Critical Events arrived to take command of the teams working from the command center.

The command center requested the services from a special agent with the Department of Justice. This agent’s specialty was tracking cell phones. He came to the command post and helped initiate the document necessary for a judge to sign, authorizing the access to the murder suspect’s cell phone. The access included calls coming into the cell phone and calls going out of the cell phone. Of most importance, the agent was able to see the general location of the cell phone – which was within the area under perimeter control.

Once the murder of Officer May happened, and it was apparent the suspect was in the area and on foot, mutual aid was requested. There was a need for officers to help in the search, barricade streets around the search area, work on communications, and much more. Officers came from departments around the bay. The Highway Patrol, local police departments, federal agencies, and Sheriff Departments responded. It is estimated that there were approximately 275 officers in various active tasks through the night. This included teams who went to addresses of the suspect, and searches for the suspect’s friends who were talking by cell phone with the suspect. A very important search component of the night was the light from the helicopter. The Highway patrol kept a helicopter in the air over the search neighborhood all night. The bright search light was on and moving back and forth across the search area. Moving a backup helicopter into the air when the one over the scene needed to take a break – all night! The goal was to keep the suspect from moving in the dark across yards and fences.

The final witnesses included the two Pacifica Police Officers and the Sheriff’s Officer manning an intersection as part of the perimeter. Like all the other officers, they were doing their job, all night in the cold of January, controlling an intersection as part of the perimeter control. Shortly before 6 AM on the morning after the murder, a small car approached the three officers, coming out of the search area. The car kept moving slowly toward the sheriff officer who was in the street lane holding his hand up and yelling STOP. The car kept moving. The officer drew his service weapon and aimed at the driver requesting again to stop. This time, the car stopped. As the Pacifica officers approached the car from the driver’s side, they saw someone crouched down in the back floorboard. One of the officers immediately drew his weapon and demanded the person hiding in the back to show his hands. It was approximately 14 hours after Rich’s murder on Weeks street in East Palo Alto. Alberto Alvarez sat up and held his hands up.

Trial - Wednesday Morning - A Catch Up

2009-10-28T06:07:00.000-07:00

I expect that by the end of today, Mr.Wagstaffe will have presented about 20 witnesses for the prosecution. Approximately 40 more to go. For the last day and half, we listened to neighbors on Weeks street explaining what they heard, and what one neighbor witnessed first hand. As the trial continues, I expect that we will soon move to crime scene experts.

Some general notes in response to all the email I am getting. First, YES, it is cold at night in the motor home. I try not to turn everything on unless I need to.

My evenings are usually busy. With the amazing support from the San Mateo County Sheriff's office, specifically Sheriff Greg Munks and Lt. Vickie O'Brien, and the many Redwood City officers who visit, I am kept very busy with coffee and conversation. Thank you!

I park in the employees lot during the day (sorry to those employees for my use of 5 parking spaces) and then back into the maintenance/fuel building for the night to plug into power. The OES stepped up and is providing power where I park during the day. Thank you! Prior to today, I got up each morning in the dark/cold and unplug, wrap up the cables, and move out into the lot - then back into the power each night. After today, no more moving.

The court is open to the public, normally operating Monday thru Thursday. The Courts are closed on the third Wednesday of each month. Second floor of the San Mateo County Courthouse, Judge Parson's court.

For one question - yes the court is very automated. I watch as the attorneys use their laptops on their table - and once in a while sending a document or picture to a printer and then turning to retrieve their document as needed for the trail. When the trial started, Judge Parsons asked the jurors to not read papers or watch TV or talk with relatives, or anyone about the trial. He added "Facebook", Twitter", and others. The instructions have been updated.

On Tuesday, a class and instructor came in and observed for part of the trial.

An important note - I am staying in a luxury 40 foot motor home. This motor home was donated to my family for the trial so we did not have to stay in a hotel for these two plus months. Mr. John Dallaire of Atascadero is the kind gentlemen who provided this motor home. It is 20 years old, and shows signs of weather on the outside - but has everything available to motor homes 1989. Still, I try to not use anything unless necessary, so tonight the extra covers come out. If you are in the area, come by and say hi. Only rules - I cannot talk about the trial or related subjects.

My best meal so far - cheerios and bananas with my granddaughter. Deanna, Rich's first daughter, lives here in Redwood City. She spent a large part of her life growing up at our house. She is a senior at Menlo-Atherton High School and still visits our home in San Luis Obispo a couple weekends a month. She was just down for homecoming at SLOHS. Anyway, she eats cheerios when she is down. For dinner two nights ago, she brought the cheerios and milk. I had the bananas.

Showers - yes, I am learning to take a shower in less water than I use for the coffee pot.

Well, that answers the questions I can answer in the emails.

Please excuse my delay in the blog. I have a couple companies to run. I am working at both ends of the day. Tired, but still here. (As I sit here writing this blog, at 6:45 AM, already up for a couple hours working - my cell phone 'wake up' alarm just sounded).

Rick

Rich May Murder Trial -- Father's Blog Will Continue

2009-10-23T19:40:00.000-07:00

(Picture of Cedric Adams of San Luis Obispo Police Department. Cedric was possibly Rich's FTO at Lompoc Police Department. Cedric is wearing Rich's badge #33 on his duty - on the anniversary of Rich's death)

Hello to all...

I will return to creating a daily Blog on the court proceedings. I received mail asking that I continue with my notes. I will, and will be careful in what I record here.

Two comments this Friday evening from my new courthouse parking lot home. First, I must commend all people who become part of a jury. This can be a half day service, or a two day service. In the case of this jury trial, two plus months. This jury has a long road ahead. I commend these local citizens for their participation.

Second, Judge Parsons is doing a great job running the trial. Very clear guidelines and good decisions on allowing or disallowing objections/further questions.

More Monday evening after Monday's trial.

Rick

www.OfficerRichardMay.org

www.OfficerRichardMay.net

Embedded at the Murder Trial

2009-10-23T14:34:00.000-07:00

Hi:
Rich's father here. There is no court today, as for all Fridays during the trial.
I am here at the courthouse in a motor home. You can find me in the county parking lot. Come by for coffee. I can talk about Rich as he grew up, High School, and the Marines, but nothing specific about the trial.
Rick May

Second day of Officer Rich May Murder Trial

2009-10-20T18:46:00.000-07:00

Rich and Deanna (now a senior in high school)

It is time for me to discontinue specific trial coverage. After watching the District Attorney's office and Defense attorney presentations, I recognize that I must not make any comments. I have been told that the defense reads this blog to see if there is anything for them to learn.

Thus, I will only write notes when there is something important for me to cover that will not influence the court process.

If you have questions, send me a note at rmay@rji.cc

Rick May

Officer Rich May's father

http://www.officerrichardmay.org/

http://www.officerrichardmay.net/

...IN THE LINE OF DUTY....

2009-10-20T11:17:00.000-07:00

In the San Mateo County Courthouse lobby, there is a display dedicated to the county officers who gave their lives in the line of duty. If you look at that display today, you will see parts of the display taped over. The words " in the line of duty " are temporarily covered.

From The Palo Alto Daily News: "There is no dispute that Alvarez did shoot and kill East Palo Alto police Officer Richard May, lead defense attorney Charles Robinson said in his opening statement Monday afternoon. But he acted in self-defense against excessive and unlawful police force employed by May, he said. Robinson argued for a charge of second-degree murder and voluntary manslaughter. There was no special circumstance because May was not acting in his lawful capacity as a police officer, Robinson said."

The defense attorneys requested, and the judge agreed, that the words "in the line of duty" should be covered until it is determined that Rich was operating withing the law as a police officer. The defense team does not want a juror to see the wording. I may not agree, but I understand with the judge in his ruling.

I look forward to the return of "IN THE LINE OF DUTY".

Rick May, Sr.

http://www.officerrichardmay.org/

http://www.officerrichardmay.net/

Three Years, Nine Months, Twelve Days

2009-10-19T21:59:00.000-07:00

It has been three years, nine months, and twelve days since Officer Richard May, Jr. was shot and killed on duty in East Palo Alto. Today, Steve Wagstaffe, Chief Deputy District Attorney, presented the peoples case to the jury. It was impressive. A great day in court!

The Officer Rich May Murder Trial Starts on October 19th

2009-10-15T17:08:00.000-07:00

Rich and his Father and DI at Marine Corps Boot Camp Graduation

The 23rd day of jury selection was completed and in the morning nine additional prospective jurors were questioned for cause. One of the nine jurors passed for cause and the other eight were excused for their views on the death penalty. Of the extra 145 jurors brought in after the court ran out of jurors last week, eight jurors were passed for cause; since there was one juror who called in sick last Thursday, there will be nine jurors to fill out the five alternate juror seats. The final selection of alternate jurors will take place Monday morning at 9:00. The court will then pre-instruct the jury and the prosecution and defense opening statements will be presented in the morning. The prosecution will start presenting witnesses and evidence Monday afternoon.

The trial will be in session only on Monday and Tuesday next week. Wednesday is a court furlough day (third Wednesday of each month is a state-wide court furlough day to save money). Judge Parsons granted the defense request to be out of session on Thursday (one of the defense attorneys had a family matter to attend to). The trial is in recess on Fridays throughout the trial. So it will be a slow start with just two days of evidence. We have a full four day week the following two weeks (October 26 and November 2.)

After three weeks of motions in March and nine weeks of jury selection starting in August, it appears the trial will finally begin next week.

http://www.officerrichardmay.org/

http://www.officerrichardmay.net/

The 5 Alternate Jurors Will be Seated on Monday - October 19th

2009-10-14T20:55:00.000-07:00

This Picture - is the plaque being placed at San Luis Obispo High School by Rich's Class of 1985 - below a modern lighting system at the new entrance to the high school

Today we finished the 37th day of jury trial overall and 22nd day of jury selection. 20 jurors returned to court for general questioning and 5 of these jurors were passed for cause and directed to return on Monday, October 19, 2009 9:00 for the final jury selection and start of the trial. Fifteen jurors were excused for cause (seven anti-death penalty, four automatic death penalty for officer murder, and four for general reasons (one juror is married to a police officer and could not be fair and impartial; another juror’s son is a police officer and same reason.) Eight jurors have been cleared for cause for the final selection of alternate jurors on Monday morning. Jury selection resumes Thursday morning at 9:00 with questioning of the remaining nine jurors.

http://www.officerrichardmay.org/

http://www.officerrichardmay.net/

Questioning for the 5 Alternates Starts

2009-10-13T18:30:00.001-07:00

The 36th day of jury trial was completed today. Further jury selection to get potential jurors for the alternate juror seats was conducted all day.

In the morning 69 new prospective jurors were questioned for hardship and 15 of the 69 jurors were passed for hardship and requested to fill out a questionnaire. They will be questioned Wednesday and Thursday this week. In the afternoon 10 jurors (who were passed for hardship last Thursday afternoon) were questioned generally and 2 of the 10 jurors were passed for cause. The other eight were excused from jury service. The two jurors passed for cause were directed to return Monday morning, October 19, 2009 9:00 for the completion of jury selection and start of the trial.

Jury selection resumes Wednesday morning at 9:00 with questioning of another 10 jurors in the morning and 10 jurors in the afternoon.

www.OfficerRichardMay.org

Full Note of the requirement to interview more Jurors, for Alternates

2009-10-08T19:13:00.000-07:00

While it is very unfortunate that we did not have enough jurors to get our alternate jurors, the 12 jurors that were selected for our primary jury are all solid citizens and a fair and just consideration of the evidence should follow.

Of the 65 jurors who we previously passed for cause, 19 of them came into court today and made new requests to be excused from jury duty. Some requests were valid (i.e., three jurors who had been unemployed for lengthy periods of time had found work and would lose their new jobs if required to serve on this jury) and some were not. Judge Parsons granted 12 of the 19 requests, thus reducing our panel to 53. Another two jurors were deferred duty now but told to come back next week as part of the panel of jurors for the alternate juror seats.

The selection of the 12 primary jurors was completed after the prosecution and defense excused 28 jurors using 14 peremptory challenges each. The primary jury is comprised of six men and six women. Selection of the five alternate jurors was conducted until the panel was exhausted after each side exercised three peremptory challenges. The 12 primary jurors and the five prospective alternate jurors now occupying the alternate seats were directed to return on Monday October 19, 2009 9:00 for completion of the selection process with the new jurors followed by the opening statements and start of the prosecution evidence.

In the afternoon jury selection started over and a new panel of 75 jurors was brought into court for hardship inquiry and they will return on Tuesday and Wednesday for individual questioning. The trial is in recess Friday and Monday (Columbus Day - court holiday). The trial resumes Tuesday morning.

As noted above, opening statements will be presented Monday morning, October 19, 2009.

www.OfficerRichardMay.net

Opening Statements Delayed Until Monday, 10/19

2009-10-08T15:52:00.000-07:00

A quick note - A Jury of 12 was selected today. The 5 alternates need to come from a new set of prospective jurors. New questioning should start on Tuesday, 10/13

www.OfficerRichardMay.org

Second Phase of the Jury Selection is Completed

2009-10-07T21:23:00.000-07:00

Erin and Rich

Tuesday morning in the courtroom was like the previous days in the People vs. Alvarez murder trial jury selection process. It was the last day of the second phase of the selection process. It is expected that Thursday will be the final day of selection.

Listening to the questions presented to the jurors about the death of a police officer still brings tears to my eyes – and it has been close to four years since Rich’s murder. The next two months are going to be the most difficult time in my life – after the night Rich died.

San Mateo County Superior Court Judge Craig Parsons has conducted the Juror selection process in an exemplary manner. Chief Deputy District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe has done the same.

We enter Thursday with a pool of 65 jurors. Twelve regular and 5 alternates need to be selected. If this happens on Thursday (10/8), then the trial will start with opening statements on Tuesday October 13th (Monday is a holiday).
We have approximately 2 months ahead of us. The court will not be in session on Fridays during this trial.

The defendant, 26 year old Alberto Alvarez, could face execution if convicted of first-degree murder with the special circumstance that Rich was a police officer performing his duties when killed on Jan. 7, 2006. As expected, Alvarez has been appearing in court during the jury selection – clean cut, nice clothing, and nice shirts. A new appearance is not enough to sway a jury, knowing the evidence that will be presented.

Since Alvarez faces the death penalty or life without parole, Alvarez’s attorneys are questioning the potential jurors for the penalty phase of the trial. They have one job – to try to keep Alvarez alive.

The last scheduled day of questioning jurors.

2009-10-06T20:18:00.000-07:00

Rich and Deanna

This was the last scheduled day of questioning jurors. Another 17 jurors were brought in for individualized questioning and three of the jurors were passed for cause. Of the 14 jurors excused for cause, eight of them were excused based on their anti-death penalty views. 20 days of jury selection overall and 15 days of general voir dire have been completed. 65 out 237 prospective jurors have been passed for cause so far and return on October 8, 2009 for the final jury selection process. The trial is in recess today and will resume Thursday at 9:00 for the actual selection of the 12 jurors and 5 alternate jurors. If there are enough jurors to select the 12 jurors and five alternate jurors Thursday, the opening statements and start of the prosecution case will take place at 9:00 on Tuesday morning, October 13, 2009.

Judge Parsons decided today that if we run out of jurors on Thursday morning and are not able to get our 12 jurors and five alternate jurors, then we will start with a new panel of 75 jurors Thursday afternoon. This will delay the start of the trial until later in the week next week or even to the following Monday. We will know after jury selection Thursday whether there is any delay, and, if there is a delay, exactly how long it will be.

http://www.officerrichardmay.org/

One Day Remains in Juror Questioning - 62 in the Pool so far

2009-10-05T18:25:00.000-07:00

Week seven of jury selection was started today. This was the fourteenth day of individualized juror questioning. 17 jurors were brought in for questioning and three of the jurors were passed for cause. Our totals now are 62 jurors passed for cause out of 220 jurors that have been interviewed. Tuesday is the last scheduled day of juror questioning and another 16 jurors will be brought into court tomorrow. There is no court on Wednesday and the 62+ jurors passed for cause return Thursday morning for the final stage of the jury selection process.

Two More Days of Jury Questioning Remain

2009-10-02T10:18:00.000-07:00

Well, another week in court completed. Two more days of jury questioning to go next week and then we select our jury.

Today 17 jurors were scheduled for questioning, but one juror forgot to come in and was rescheduled for Monday morning. Of the 16 jurors we questioned, 4 jurors were passed for cause. Six jurors were excused for being an unable to consider the death penalty, one juror was excused for believing that only the death penalty could be considered, two jurors were excused for medical reasons, one juror was excused due to her sister's death this week, another juror was excused because her son was shot last week, and one juror was excused because he said any evidence of gang membership would cause him to vote guilty no matter what the evidence.

So today four of the prospective jurors were passed for cause and return on October 8, 2009 for the final jury selection process. After 13 days of general questioning, 59 jurors have been cleared for cause (out of 203 jurors). There are two days and 33 jurors left in the scheduled jury questioning process. There is no jury selection today but the trial is in session at 9:00 on master calendar, Dept. 24, Judge Stephen Hall, for another Pitchess discovery motion for the personnel files of two EPAPD officers. The trial resumes before Judge Parsons on Monday, October 5, 2009 with questioning of a new group of 17 jurors.

Judge Parsons decided at the end of the afternoon that we will complete the two remaining days of juror questioning and as planned on Thursday morning, October 8, 2009, attempt to select a jury plus five alternate jurors out of the pool of jurors we have. If we are successful, then the opening statements will be Tuesday morning, October 13, 2009 9:00. If we run out of jurors before getting the 12 main jury members and five alternates, then we will immediately start further selection on a much smaller number of prospective jurors. The jurors selected on October 8 will remain selected; we do not start completely over. If this occurs, it is hoped that the delay in opening statements and the start of evidence will not be more than a day or two, or at most until Monday, October 19, 2009. We will not know the answer until we see how things go next Thursday morning.

http://www.officerrichardmay.org/

Wednesday evening - 55 Jurors in the pool

2009-09-30T19:46:00.000-07:00

Another day of jury selection completed. Not the best of days in terms of three of the four jurors who were passed for cause. These three jurors lean strongly against the death penalty but remained on the jury because they stated they could still be fair and impartial and consider the death penalty in an appropriate case.

13 jurors were questioned today (instead of the usual 16 because three jurors were not present: one juror failed to appear, one juror flew to Taiwan to be with her ill father, and one juror was too sick to attend court) and four of the prospective jurors were passed for cause and return on October 8, 2009 for the final jury selection process. After 12 days of general questioning, 55 jurors have been cleared for cause (out of 187 jurors). There are three days and 49 jurors left in the scheduled jury questioning process. The trial resumes this morning with voir dire of a new group of 16 jurors.Just three days of jury questioning left.

Judge Parsons did not address the issue of what the court plans to do if we do not acquire enough jurors by the completion of jury questioning next Tuesday.

There is concern about the lower than expected number of jurors being selected

2009-09-29T19:26:00.000-07:00

The trial resumed today with questioning of another 16 prospective jurors. The sixteenth day of jury selection overall and eleventh day of general voir dire was completed. 16 jurors were questioned Tuesday and five of the prospective jurors were passed for cause and return on October 8, 2009 for the final jury selection process. After 11 days of general questioning, 51 jurors have been cleared for cause (out of 174 jurors questioned). There are four days and 64 jurors left in the scheduled jury questioning process. The trial resumes Wednesday morning with voir dire of a new group of 16 jurors.

Judge Parsons at the end of the afternoon expressed his concern about the number of jurors we have cleared for cause. He estimated that at this rate, next Tuesday when we complete questioning of the remaining jurors, we will have less than 70 jurors cleared for cause. Our goal was to have over 80-85 jurors cleared for cause. Judge Parsons asked the attorneys to consider how the court should proceed in light of the low number and be prepared to discuss it later this week.

Only One Juror Added to the Pool Today

2009-09-24T18:08:00.000-07:00

(picture from the San Jose Mercury News - Riderless Horse, with backward boots, outside the HP Pavilion Services for Rich)

The fifteenth day of jury selection overall and tenth day of general voir dire was completed. 16 jurors were scheduled for questioning today. One juror was passed for cause and 15 jurors were excused. All eight of the jurors in the afternoon were excused by stipulation of the parties based on their views on the death penalty. Excuses today were predominantly based on opposition to the death penalty, one excused for financial hardship (not previously raised), and several for their view that the only punishment for the murder of a police officer is the death penalty. After 10 days of general questioning, 46 jurors have been cleared for cause (out of 158 jurors). There are five days and 80 jurors left in the scheduled jury questioning process. The trial is in recess Friday and on Monday (religious holiday) and will resume on Tuesday with another 16 jurors.

www.OfficerRichardMay.net

45 jurors accepteds out of 142 jurors questioned

2009-09-23T19:27:00.000-07:00

(photo courtesy of San Jose Mercury News) Rich's casket being carried out from the service at the San Jose HP Pavilion

Another day in court was completed and what started as a productive day (three jurors cleared in the morning) finished with just one juror cleared in the afternoon. And we lost another juror who passed for cause two weeks ago due to new information about her knowledge of one of our law enforcement witnesses. So four steps forward and one step back.

The fourteenth day of jury selection overall and ninth day of general voir dire was completed. 15 jurors were questioned Wednesday (one juror called in sick with the flu and was rescheduled to next week). Four jurors were passed for cause and 11 jurors were excused. Additionally a juror who was passed for cause two weeks ago returned to court to advise that she learned at a party she attended that one of her friends was a Sheriff’s Office sergeant who will be a witness in our trial; her view was that he is an excellent officer and she would believe whatever he testified about. Judge Parsons excused her from the jury. Thus there are now 45 jurors cleared for cause (out of 142 jurors questioned). The trial resumes Thursday morning with general questioning of another group of jurors.

http://www.officerrichardmay.org/

Jury Selection - Another Day (We have 42 of the 85 Jurors needed)

2009-09-22T20:25:00.000-07:00

The thirteenth day of jury selection overall and eighth day of general questioning of jurors was completed today. 16 jurors were questioned and five of the jurors were passed for cause and directed to return on October 8, 2009 for the final jury selection procedure.

Of the 11 jurors excused for cause today, seven of the jurors stated they would only consider the punishment of death for the first degree murder of a police officer and would not consider the punishment of life in prison; three jurors were excused because they could never return a death verdict; and one juror was excused for bizarre answers on a variety of topics.

A total of 42 jurors (out of 127 jurors questioned) have been passed for cause and return on October 8. Our target is 83-85 jurors passed for cause, so we have a ways to go. Jury selection resumes Wednesday morning at 9:00 with questioning of another 16 jurors.

A total of 37 jurors, out of 111 jurors questioned, are in the October 8th pool.

2009-09-21T22:02:00.000-07:00

The 12th day of jury selection is overall and the seventh day of questioning jurors about their ability to be fair in sitting on this case was completed. Another 16 jurors were interviewed and four of the jurors were passed for cause. A total of 37 jurors (out of 111 jurors questioned) have now been passed for cause. The trial resumes this morning with general questioning of another 16 jurors.

Of the 12 jurors excused today, nine of the jurors were excused based on their opposition to the death penalty as a potential punishment in the case; one juror was excused because of his view that only the death penalty is appropriate for the murder of a police officer; one juror was excused based on a new hardship (loss of $10,000 in savings if he had to sit for this lengthy trial); and one juror was excused because he was the defendant's father's general physician for many years (what are the odds he would be called as a potential juror in this case; very long odds.)

The four jurors passed for cause are three professional women and one man employed at Kaiser Hospital. All stated they could fairly consider both the death penalty and life without parole in a penalty phase of the trial.

www.OfficerRichardMay.org

The eleventh day of jury selection - Next day in court is Monday

2009-09-17T19:13:00.000-07:00

(Picture from San Jose Mercury News - Mounted agencies outside the HP Pavilion Services for Rich)

Another day of jury selection was completed. This was the eleventh day of jury selection overall and the sixth day of individual questioning of the prospective jurors. Another 16 jurors were questioned and only three were passed for cause today. Of the thirteen jurors excused, four were for language problems, five for their anti-death penalty position (meaning they would never consider the death penalty), and four for their pro-death penalty position (meaning they jurors would only consider the punishment of death for killing a police officer and would not fairly consider the alternative punishment of life without parole.)

A total of 33 jurors (out of 95 jurors questioned) have now been passed for cause. The trial is in recess Friday and resumes on Monday morning at 9:00 with further voir dire of a new group of 16 jurors.

And the march goes on.

www.OfficerRichardMay.org

Tenth Day of Jury Selection

2009-09-15T20:12:00.000-07:00

( San Jose Mercury News Photo - Front of the funeral procession from East Palo Alto to San Jose, along Hwy 101)

The tenth day of jury selection overall and fifth day of general voir dire was conducted. 16 jurors were questioned and six jurors were passed for cause. A total of 30 jurors have been passed for cause and directed to return on Thursday, October 8, 2009 for the final jury selection process. The trial is in recess Wednesday (state court closure day) and will resume Thursday morning at 9:00 with further jury questioning of another group of eight jurors in the morning and eight jurors in the afternoon.

Everything else proceeds on schedule.

www.OfficerRichardMay.org

Another day in the jury selection trenches

2009-09-14T19:39:00.000-07:00

(Image owned by the San Jose Mercury News - Firefighters on Hwy 101 overpasses as funeral procession travels from East Palo to the HP Pavilion in San Jose)

Another day in the jury selection trenches. The 22nd day of jury trial overall, the ninth day of jury selection overall and the fourth day of general questioning of the jurors was completed. Seven jurors were questioned on Monday and seven jurors were passed for cause and directed to return for the final jury selection day on October 8, 2009. A total of 24 jurors have been passed for cause out of the 64 that have been questioned so far. The trial resumes Tuesday morning at 9:00 with another eight jurors in the morning and eight jurors in the afternoon.

An uneventful day otherwise.

Murder Trial of East Palo Alto Police Officer Rich may

2009-09-10T18:56:00.000-07:00

[The front Seat of Officer May's Patrol car, taken a few weeks prior to Officer May's murder, by his father, Rick]

The first week of general questioning of the jurors was completed today. We questioned a total of 63 jurors and 17 made it through to the next phase. That seems small but it is about normal in a death penalty case. I think it was a good week for us and most of these 17 jurors would be pretty solid jurors for the prosecution in the case. Here is the breakdown for today:

The eighth day of jury selection overall and third day of general voir dire was completed yesterday. In the morning, one of the jurors (a 79 year old woman) passed for cause on Wednesday afternoon called and advised the court and counsel that after court she had major headaches and pain and requested to be excused for medical hardship. With the stipulation of the attorneys, the court granted the request and excused the juror. Yesterday 15 prospective jurors were questioned by the judge and attorneys concerning the death penalty, publicity and other issues in the case. Four of the 15 jurors were passed for cause and directed to return on Thursday, October 8, 2009 for the final jury selection process. A total of 17 jurors have been passed for cause so far.

The trial is in recess today and resumes on Monday morning at 9:00 with general voir dire of another 16 jurors.

www.OfficerRichardMay.org

After two days of general questioning - 14 jurors will return on Oct 8 for final Selection

2009-09-09T19:23:00.000-07:00

Today a new group of 16 jurors was in court for questioning on the death penalty, knowledge of the case, and other issues in the case. The questioning took all day and 8 of the 16 jurors were passed for cause and directed to return on October 8, 2009 for the final jury selection.

Of the eight jurors excused for cause, one was excused for a financial hardship and the other seven were excused based on their views on the death penalty (inability to fairly consider the punishment).

After two days of general questioning, 14 jurors have been passed for cause (this is a high percentage for a case involving the death penalty). The trial resumes this morning with questioning of the next group of 16 jurors.

Jury Selection Continues - First Day of Voir Dire

2009-09-08T19:03:00.001-07:00

Sixth day of jury selection overall and first day of general voir dire was completed today. 16 jurors were questioned by the judge and attorneys concerning their ability to be fair and impartial in considering the death penalty and other issues in the case. Eight jurors in the morning and eight jurors in the afternoon were examined. 6 of the 16 jurors were passed for cause and directed to return on Thursday, October 8, 2009 for the final jury selection process.

Of the other ten jurors, seven were excused for their views on the death penalty (could not consider or impose that punishment), one was excused due to health issues, and two were excused for prior knowledge or contact with participants in the case (one who knows the prosecutor and one who knows the Merrill family).

Jury selection resumes Wednesday morning at 9:00 with further voir dire of another group of eight jurors in the morning and eight in the afternoon.

Judge Parsons denied the defense motion to dismiss the jury panel

2009-09-03T19:24:00.000-07:00

Another day in trial but in the morning only.

The hearing was conducted on the defense Buford motion to dismiss the jury panel for failure to have an adequate representation by African-Americans in the jury pool. One witness testified: Superior Court Assistant Administrator Jill Selvaggio. Ms. Selvaggio testified about the system for summoning jurors for jury duty and how the jurors are placed on panels for jury duty in particular courtrooms. She testified that the system is completely race neutral and conducted randomly by computer processing. Judge Parsons denied the defense motion to strike the jury panel. The court then discussed jury questioning procedures (specifically questioning on the death penalty and other significant issues) for the start of individual juror questioning next week. The trial is in recess today and will resume on Tuesday, September 7, 2009 with the start of general voir dire of the prospective jurors.

240 juror questionnaires have been completed. The District Attorney's office has a lot of reading to do over the weekend and the ensuing days.

The fifth and last day of hardship jury selection was completed today

2009-09-02T19:04:00.000-07:00

The fifth and last day of hardship jury selection was completed today. Two additional panels of 75 jurors each were brought into court this morning and afternoon.

Of the 150 prospective jurors met today, 111 were excused due to hardship and 39 were passed for hardship and filled out questionnaires. Those 39 jurors were given dates to return for general questioning starting on September 8, 2009.

The total numbers for the five days of hardship jury selection are: 750 total jurors examined; 510 of those jurors were excused for hardship and 240 jurors were passed for hardship and will return for questioning at a later date in September. This now completes the first phase of jury selection. The court wanted approximately 225 jurors to make it through this phase and we easily exceeded that number.

The next phase of jury selection starts on Tuesday, September 7, 2009 with questioning of the individual jurors who passed for hardship. This process starts on Tuesday and will be conducted through October 7, 2009. We are still very much on pace for the opening statements on October 13, 2009.

The trial resumes tomorrow morning, Thursday, September 3, 2009 at 10:00 with a hearing on the defense motion to dismiss all of the jurors that were selected over the course of the last five days on the basis that the system used by the San Mateo Superior Court is flawed in that it failed to call an adequate percentage of African-American jurors into the prospective juror pool (the 750 jurors called into the courtroom). We will present the testimony of the Superior Court jury commissioner who will testify how prospective jurors are called and how the court computer system does so randomly.

We will also discuss further the jury selection questions to be posed to prospective jurors next Tuesday and the ensuing days of jury selection. I believe the trial will be in recess Thursday afternoon and on Friday.

Fourth Day of Juror Selection

2009-09-01T19:03:00.000-07:00

We completed the fourth day of jury selection today and another 148 prospective jurors were brought into court and asked about sitting on this three months trial.

Of the 148 prospective jurors, 99 were excused due to hardship and 49 were passed for hardship and filled out questionnaires. Those 49 jurors were given dates to return for general questioning starting on September 8, 2009.

The total numbers for the four days of hardship jury selection are: 600 total jurors examined; 399 of those jurors were excused for hardship and 201 jurors were passed for hardship and will return for questioning at a later date in September.

It appears we will complete hardship inquiry tomorrow (Wednesday) with the final panels of 75 jurors in the morning and 75 jurors in the afternoon.

Third Day of Jury Selection

2009-08-31T19:28:00.000-07:00

The third day of jury selection was completed today. Hardship inquiry was conducted on another 150 jurors (75 in the morning and 75 in the afternoon). We heard the usual hardship excuses from the prospective jurors. The primary excuses accepted by the court are 1) financial hardship (the tough economic times come through loud and clear with these jurors), 2) language problems, 3) pre-paid vacations, 4) child care and 5) full time students in school.

104 individuals were excused due to hardship and 46 filled out a questionnaire and moved on to the next stage of jury selection.

The totals now after three days of hardship jury selection are 450 total jurors interviewed and 152 prospective jurors have been passed for hardship and moved to the next stage. That is a 34% passage rate and that is higher than we thought we would get for this long trial.

Jury selection resumes Tuesday morning with another day of hardship inquiry on another 150 prospective jurors. The court plans on getting approximately 220 jurors through this stage.

Everything proceeds as expected.

Trial will Resume on Monday -100 Jurors pass the Hardsahip test

2009-08-27T18:08:00.000-07:00

A brief trial update today. The second day of jury selection was completed and hardship inquiry was conducted on another 150 jurors. 41 of the 150 jurors were passed for hardship and move on to the next stage of general juror questioning.

The two day total is 300 jurors questioned and 100 of them remain in play for the next phase of jury selection. That is a pretty high passage rate (33%) for a case where we are asking them to be available from October through December.

The trial is in recess Friday and will resume on Monday morning. Another 150 new jurors will be brought in on Monday for hardship inquiry.

First Day of Jury Selection - Rich May Murder Trial

2009-08-26T18:00:00.000-07:00

Wednesday - Auguest 26, 2009

The first day of jury selection was conducted and 152 prospective jurors were brought into court (67 in the morning and 85 in the afternoon). The jurors were silent when Judge Parsons advised them that this was a murder trial involving the killing of a police officer but there was an audible and loud gasp/groan when they were advised the trial could last until mid-December.

The jurors were told to fill out a hardship form if they were requesting an excuse from the case due to hardship (financial, educational, medical, etc.). 58 of the 152 jurors were passed for hardship and filled out questionnaires (that is a high rate for a trial that could last to mid-December).
The trial resumes Thursday morning at 9:00 with hardship inquiry on two more panels of 75 jurors.

Murder Trial Finally Started - With Motions

2009-08-25T19:10:00.000-07:00

The judge recovered and we were back in court today. Several motions were discussed and refined the jury selection process that starts tomorrow morning. Here is what occurred today.

Jury selection starts tomorrow morning, Wednesday, August 26, 2009 at 9:00. The first six days of jury selection will be spent on hardship inquiry: questioning jurors whether they have a hardship in sitting as a juror for a three month trial. These six days are August 25, 27, 31, September 1, 2 and 3. 900 jurors will be brought in for hardship inquiry. 150 jurors a day (75 in morning and 75 in afternoon) for the six days.

-The jurors will be advised that they will be needed for questioning for one day in September and if selected on the jury, they will need to be available from October 12, 2009 to approximately December 16, 2009. They will then be asked if they have a hardship which means financial hardship, school hardship, health hardship or language hardship that precludes them sitting on this jury. The court will discuss the hardship claims with the attorneys and rule whether to excuse the individual jurors requesting to be excused.

-Jurors who do not claim a hardship will then be asked to fill out a juror questionnaire (15 pages long with loads of questions about the juror and the juror's attitudes or topics like the death penalty, crime, police, etc.) Those jurors will then be given a day to return in September for individual questioning on their ability to be fair and impartial in this case.

-Individual questioning of the jurors who clear hardship will start on Tuesday, September 8, 2009 and will be conducted for the remainder of the month and perhaps the first week of October(Monday through Thursday; Fridays the trial is not in session). The court granted the defense attorneys' request for the trial to be in recess on Monday, September 28, 2009 (Yom Kippur).

-The jurors will come in groups of eight in the morning and eight in the afternoon and we will question the jurors on the specific topics of death penalty, gangs, pretrial publicity (knowledge of the case), police officer-victim and race. This questioning is to see if the jurors can be fair and impartial in hearing our case. It is a lengthy and tedious process but the goal is to get fair jurors.

-The court decided there will be five alternate jurors for our trial.

-As note above, the court set the tentative date for the opening statements for October 12, 2009 followed immediately the same day with the start of the prosecution evidence. The December 16, 2009 finish date is a broad guess and it is just to give the jurors a tentative outside date for completion of the case; it might go much quicker once we get going.

-The court denied the defense motion for a lengthy statement to the prospective jurors from the judge about the history of the death penalty in California and what the death penalty and life without parole mean today.

-Without prosecution objection, the court granted the defense request for 48 hour advance notice to the other side when one attorney is calling an expert witness (for planning purposes).

Judge was Sick - Delayed until Tuesday

2009-08-24T15:13:00.000-07:00

An update from our first day back in court after the five months delay. Holding true to form (that something always seems to be impeding our progress to justice in this case), at 8:30 this morning our trial judge, Judge Craig Parsons, called in sick with the flu. He told his court clerk that he had been up all night and simply could not come in today. He is hoping it is just the 24 hour flu and expects that he will be back in court Tuesday morning.

So our case was called in the courtroom of the presiding judge, Judge Stephen Hall, who simply continued the case for one day. Assuming Judge Parsons is healthy tomorrow, we will resume Tuesday morning and start jury selection Wednesday morning at 9:00.

MURDER TRAIL WILL RESTART AUGUST 24

2009-08-11T10:13:00.001-07:00

Hello all. Thank you for the many emails. A brief note...

The trial is currently scheduled to start in two weeks - assuming that no filings occur which will create another delay.

The Jury Selection process should start later in the week of August 24.

It is expected that opening statements and testimony from witnesses will begin at the end of September or more likely the first week of October.

The Defense is bringing a post-traumatic stress disorder claim along with a self-defense claim.

You can expect that Assistant District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe will bring a strong case against both of these claims.

Rich's Father...

Memorial Day - 2009

2009-05-25T09:20:00.000-07:00

Rich:

We remember your life and service to the communities where you worked - every day. Today, we remember all the heroes who gave their lives in the line of duty.

Always,

Your Family

2009-03-24T09:46:00.000-07:00

Tuesday, March 24

Officer Richard May's Murder Trial is delayed for five months - until August 24th.

We commend Judge Parsons and the Chief Deputy District Attorney Steven Wagstaffe for their work

Mr. Wagstaffe asked Judge Parsons to continue with the start of jury selection on Monday, stating that they could re-visit the issue murder of the Oakland officers if it appears it is too difficult to get impartial jurors. We appreciate Mr. Wagstaffe asking to get a trail started three plus years after the murder of Officer May. At the same time, we understand Judge Parsons decision to delay.

The key to the delay was not the fact of the murder of the Oakland officers - but the similarities. In both murders, the shooter was on parole and in possession of a handgun. If found, the parolee would return immediately to jail. The knowledge of this fact could be the reason for both murders.

Thank you to all the people in the San Mateo District Attorney's office for their investigative work to date.

And again, our most sincere condolences to the families and the department in Oakland.

2009-03-23T11:14:00.000-07:00

Monday, March 23

TRIAL IS DELAYED UNTIL AUGUST 24. Jury selection will restart on that date.

The change of date is, naturally, because of the death of four Oakland police officers.

Judge Parsons stated he regretfully had concluded that the highly publicized Oakland murders required that the trial be delayed for several months. He ruled that a brief continuance of a month or two would not work because to try to get a jury of twelve people and four alternate jurors who could give up their entire summer would be an impossible task.

Judge Parsons granted the defense motion to continue and reset the start of the trial to August 24, 2009 9:00 and jury selection will start on that day. The three weeks of motions we just completed do not have to be repeated since Judge Parsons will remain the judge on the case.

We send our sympathies to the Oakland officer families and the department, and the citizens of Oakland, California - and to all police officers ever where who risk their lives every hour of the day so the rest of us can live peacefully.

Rick May

2009-03-22T10:58:00.000-07:00

Sunday, March 22

It is time to pause and remember four young and brave Oakland Police Officers, their families, and their fellow officers at the department.

2009-03-19T17:38:00.000-07:00

Thursday, Friday March 19/20

No Trail on Thursday and Friday. Jury Selection Starts next week.

During this pause in the trial, you can wander through pictures of Rich when he was young. http://www.officerricardmay.org/

2009-03-18T18:14:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, March 18

The hearing on motions was completed today with the exception of a couple of motions the court deferred until later. Trial is in recess until Monday when jury selection starts. Here are
today's results (nothing major today).

(1) The court granted the prosecution motion to allow family members to be present in chambers during the review of juror requests to be excused from jury duty due to hardship; the court had previously decided that review of hardship requests of jurors will be conducted in the judge’s chambers.

(2) The court approved the final draft of the juror questionnaire; it is 27 pages in length.

(3) The court approved the combined prosecution and defense potential witness list of 181 witnesses (to show to the jurors to see if they know anyone).

(4) The court granted over defense objection the prosecution proposed admonition to prospective jurors to not approach or consider the Peace Officer Memorial on the first floor of the building (the defense motion to remove the Memorial or Officer May’s name from the Memorial had previously been denied). The court did change his prior ruling and decided to have the Sheriff’s Office cover the words “in the Line Of Duty” at the top of the Memorial in case a juror approached the and read the Memorial.

(5) The court heard arguments on the defense renewed motion for discovery and the court decided to defer the hearing on this motion to April 3, 2009 10:30.

(6) The trial is in recess the remainder of the week and will resume on Monday, March 23, 2009 9:30 with the start of jury selection. The first two weeks will be spent asking jurors whether they can sit for the duration of this trial which is estimated to last all of May and
June and perhaps (hopefully not) into early July. 840 jurors will be questioned about hardship. Regular questioning will start on April 6.

2009-03-17T19:17:00.000-07:00

Tuesday, March 17

Another day in the courtroom completed. The court ruled on six motions today. Here are the results:

(1) The court granted the prosecution motion to admit evidence of the defendant's fleeing the crime scene and hiding after the crime, as evidence of the defendant's consciousness of guilt for the crime.

(2) The court denied the defense motion to exclude evidence of the police manhunt after the murder and evidence of the defendant’s being found on the back floorboard of a car trying to escape the police perimeter. Defense argued the evidence was irrelevant and the court
rejected the argument.

(3) The court denied the prosecution Evidence Code section 1101(B) motion to rule admissible, during the guilt phase of the trial, evidence of four prior incidents involving chases of the defendant by the police or the defendant being caught in possession of a handgun. The court agreed with the prosecution that the four incidents may still be considered by the jury during the penalty phase. The court will rule on that after the guilt phase is completed.

(4) The court granted the motion of the Sheriff's Office to have the defendant, for security purposes, wear a locked leg restraint device. The device locks in place when the defendant stands up, precluding him from running. The court rejected the defense argument
that such a leg restraint was unnecessary.

(5) The defense motion to have the penalty phase motions (on the admissibility of penalty phase witnesses and evidence) heard prior to the start of jury selection was opposed by the prosecution and denied by the court (the motions will be heard after the guilt phase if there is to be a penalty phase).

(6) The prosecution motion to preclude death penalty questions to jurors about specific facts of the case and the jurors’ views of those facts was granted. The court agreed that such questions would be asking the jurors to prejudge the case and the court ruled that the
questions must be generic, not specific to feelings or conclusions about our case.

(7) The court deferred the defense Brady discovery motion for EPAPD personnel records until Wednesday morning.

(8) At defense request, the court deferred the prosecution motion to limit defense psychiatric testimony and the prosecution motion to allow prosecution questioning of the defense psychiatrists about the defendant’s gang involvement until April 10, 2009. The defense needs more time to respond to the prosecution written motions.

This was another good day for the District attorney's office (Steve Wagstaffe). They have a couple of motions in the morning and will finalize the jury questionnaire tomorrow.

Jury selection starts on Monday morning with a couple weeks of hardship inquiry (asking the jurors whether they can sit for a trial of this length). The jurors will be told that the trial will formally start in early May and could run as long as to mid-July. 840 jurors will be brought in the next two weeks to be questioned about hardship and their availability for a 2-1/2 months long trial.

2009-03-16T19:34:00.000-07:00

Monday, March 16

The court ruled on three motions today.

(1) Parole Status: In the morning the court heard extensive
argument on the prosecution motion to admit evidence of the
defendant’s parole status at the time of the crime to show motive,
intent and premeditation and deliberation. Over strenuous defense
objection, the court granted the prosecution motion to admit the
evidence, including the nature of the two felony convictions for which
he was sentenced to state prison (possession of a firearm and possession
of marijuana for sale), the fact that he served a state prison sentence,
the fact that he had a duty to submit to search and seizure and to a
detention as a parolee, the fact that he had a prior parole violation in
2005 and was incarcerated for the violation, and the fact that he knew
the carrying of a handgun would be a parole violation and send him back
to prison.

(2) Sanitizing Motion: The court denied the defense motion to
sanitize Count II 12021(A)(1) possession of a firearm by a felon to not
let jury hear what are his prior felony convictions. The court will
allow the prosecution to present evidence to the jury that his two prior
felony convictions are for (1) possession of a firearm and (2)
possession of marijuana for purposes of sale.

(3) Gang Membership Evidence: In the afternoon after hearing
extensive arguments from the attorneys, the court denied the prosecution
motion to admit evidence of the defendant’s gang membership to show a
secondary motive for the crime (kill a police officer and move to the
top of the gang in importance). The court excluded the gang evidence
during the prosecution case in chief. The second part of the
prosecution motion on gang evidence (to allow the prosecutor to
cross-examine the defense psychiatrists on the defendant's gang
membership and to offer the gang evidence in the prosecution rebuttal
case was deferred by the court until Wednesday). On Wednesday the court
will deal with prosecution motions to limit the defense psychiatric
testimony and allow cross-examination of the defense doctors on gang
membership.

2009-03-13T13:02:00.000-07:00

Friday, March 13

No court today for the Murder Trial of East Palo Alto Officer Richard May, Jr.

2009-03-12T18:08:00.000-07:00

Thursday, March 12:

The court ruled on three motions:

(1) Over DA objection, the court ruled admissible a 2004 incident in which Officer May was alleged to have punched and maced an arrested suspect improperly.

(2) The court also granted over DA objection the defense motion to admit a 2005 incident in which Officer May allegedly struck a suspect during an arrest with his gun.

(3) Over defense objection, the court granted the prosecution motion to exclude evidence of an argument with Officer May's ex-wife.

The trial is in recess Friday and will resume on Monday morning at 9:00 with further hearing on the trial motions. Two important motions will be heard Monday: (1) DA motion to admit evidence of the fact the defendant was on parole at the time of the murder, as motive for the shooting; and (2) DA motion to admit evidence of gang membership and the gang expert on the defendant's involvement in the Sacramento Street gang.

Jury selection remains set to start on March 23, 2009.

2009-03-11T17:55:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, March 11

Judge Parsons heard legal arguments from the attorneys and ruled on three motions today:

(1) The court granted the prosecution motion to exclude conclusionary statements of the prosecution witness next door to the scene of the shooting, about watching the defendant at the time of the shooting (after Officer May had been initially shot and fallen to the ground). The excluded statements were:

(A) He was right at the garage door. Like he was trying to, you know, figure out a way, figure out a way how to get out of there. And I was like, “Damn, somebody’s shooting at him.”
(B) I was like, damn, somebody’s shooting at him.
(C) I was like, oh, somebody must be shooting at him, seen him turn around like he was trying to defend himself… he looked like, either he was looking for a place to run but he wouldn’t have ran that way.
(D) I thought somebody was shooting at him.

(2) The court granted the defense motion to preclude witness Marco Marquez (the explorer) from using the word “jaywalking” to describe how the defendant ran across University Avenue away from Officer May and Mr. Marquez. Mr. Marquez can simply describe the manner in which he ran across the street.

(3) The court denied the prosecution motion to have the mannequin dressed in a similar police uniform for demonstrative purposes with the pathologist. The prosecution can use Officer May’s actual blood soaked uniform with the pathologist (just not on the mannequin). The prosecution is allowed to use a mannequin with the pathologist; just not a clothed mannequin.

Trial resumes Thursday morning at 9:30 with further hearing on the trial motions. The motions for Thursday involve defense motions to admit evidence of alleged prior use of excessive force by Officer May (couple of citizens who complained about two incidents of prior force). Prosecution has filed opposition to the defense motions.

2009-03-10T19:38:00.000-07:00

Tuesday, March 10

Judge Parsons heard arguments and ruled on five motions today.

1) The court denied the defense motion to remove Officer Rich May's name from the San Mateo County Peace Officer Memorial. The defense claimed jurors would be prejudiced by seeing the name on the Memorial and the words at the top of the Memorial "Killed In The Line Of Duty". Court accepted prosecution argument that the jurors could be instructed to stay away from the Memorial. Prosecution argued it was an insult to Officer May's memory to suggest the removal of his name from the Memorial.

2) The court granted the defense motion to prohibit spectators from wearing at the courthouse the badges with Officer May's face as potentially inflammatory to prospective jurors. The court took the cautious route and disallowed the badges. This applies only on days the jury is present. On other days spectators may wear the badges.

3) The court denied the defense motion to prohibit uniformed police officers to be in the courtroom during the trial (defense claimed it would be unduly prejudicial). Following a California Supreme Court case, Judge Parsons did restrict the uniformed officers present to three at a time. Officers not in uniform have an absolute right to be present in unlimited numbers. The limit of three does not include the bailiff or the two transportation deputy sheriff's that are always present.

4) The court denied the defense motion to prohibit the prosecutor in opening statement from using the phrase "execution" in describing the murder. In closing argument, the prosecution (Steve Wagstaffe) can use whatever phrase Mr. Wagstaffe desires. In opening statement Mr. Wagstaffe can say the defendant "executed" Rich (just not "execution-style"). Witnesses are directed not to use word "execution".

5) The court denied the defense motion to make the prosecutor set forth all legal and factual theories of the case. Prosecutor is not required to reveal his approach to the case.

None of these motions today was critical to the outcome. Steve Wagstaffe is generally satisfied with Judge Parsons' rulings today.

Three motions will be argued Wednesday. More significant motions start on Thursday. Jury selection still set to start on Monday, March 23, 2009.

2009-03-10T08:22:00.000-07:00

Monday, March 9

Today in the morning session the court ruled on the admissibility of crime scene and autopsy photos. Photos are always a part of a trial and the Judge ruled on the amount and type of photos he will allow. In the afternoon session the court dealt with scheduling issues for the remainder of the motions. This allows the court and the attorneys to be better prepared to argue the motions.

In a previous session:
Mannequin allowed; no photo of Rich alive til penalty phase; family members entitled to be present all of trial; jury procedures approved.

Trial for the Murder of Officer Richard May

2009-02-27T20:35:00.000-08:00

Friday, February 27, 2009
People vs. Alberto Alvarez - Murder of Officer Rich May

This page will carry the daily report from the murder trial; Officer Richard May was shot and killed on duty, January 7, 2006.

The jury trial is scheduled to formally start on Monday, March 2, 2009 9:00 A.M. before Judge Craig Parsons. There is one interim date of February 23, 2009 9:00 before Judge Parsons placed on the court calendar by the defense for final discovery compliance complaints.

The trial is ready to proceed on March 2, 2009 .

March 2, 2009 to March 20, 2009: Hearings on the trial motions to determine the evidence he will allow each side to present at the trial.

March 23, 2009: The start of jury selection. Judge Parsons has not yet announced what procedure he will use, but generally jury selection in this type of case (death penalty) takes four to six weeks. Approximately 600 prospective jurors will be called - The DA will need to find jurors who can afford to sit for a two month trial and who are impartial on the issues to be presented in the case.

The start of the guilt phase of the trial with opening statements and calling witnesses is probably sometime in late April or even into the beginning of May.

This schedule will be refined as Judge Parsons determines how he will proceed with the trial. Judge Parsons already determined that the trial will be in session Monday through Thursday with court not in session on Fridays. That is very typical for a case of this duration.

UPDATES as the trial starts.Questions - send a note to rick@officerrichardmay.org