Latest news with #StanislausCountySheriff'sOffice
CBS News
23-04-2025
- CBS News
Modesto man convicted of hate crimes in stalking, threats case
MODESTO – A Modesto man has been convicted of stalking and making terrorist threats toward people of Hispanic ethnicity, prosecutors said on Wednesday. The Stanislaus County District Attorney's Office said 39-year-old Anthony Ruben Rodriguez admitted to stalking and making threats towards victims because of their Hispanic ethnicity. One conviction is classified as a serious felony as it falls under California's three-strikes law. Between October 2024 and December 2024, multiple flyers containing what prosecutors described as hate speech were found throughout the Parklawn neighborhood and in other areas of Modesto. The flyers created outrage within the predominantly Latino neighborhoods, with some community members bringing the concerns forward at a community meeting. After law enforcement became aware of the flyers, Rodriguez was later arrested for making threats against a victim and stalking another. While serving a search warrant, the Stanislaus County Sheriff's Office found flyers like the ones distributed in the Parklawn neighborhood. The Modesto Police Department said a victim found "a note on their vehicle containing hate speech and threats to harm them based on their race" on Dec. 4, 2024. When Rodriguez was arrested, police said he admitted to being involved with the note. The stalking and threats charges came with special allegations that Rodriguez admitted to, making it a hate crime, prosecutors said. However, prosecutors added that many of the flyers that were distributed were protected by the Constitution. "We recognize that hate speech is deeply offensive and harms those it targets and those subjected to it," said District Attorney Laugero. "However, under the First Amendment, some offensive flyers are protected speech." Rodriquez will be sentenced on April 24. Prosecutors said any fines paid by Rodriquez will be sent to local organizations that help victims of hate crimes. "Hate has no place in our community," Laugero said.
Yahoo
19-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Public speaks out on use of force, accountability after viral video in Patterson
In the wake of a viral video showing a Stanislaus County Sheriff's Office deputy using force on a man during a traffic stop, many people have called for Patterson to start a police review board. The video shows Deputy Alexander Helms punch, fire a Taser at, point a gun at and then arrest Joshua Rhodes' after he failed to exit his car when ordered to. Cell phone footage taken by Rhodes' passenger, Elliana Barraza, and Helms' body camera footage have made the rounds on social media. Rhodes was arrested on suspicion of resisting arrest by force, delaying or obstructing a peace officer and battery on a peace officer. Barraza was arrested on suspicion of delaying and obstructing a peace officer. At Patterson's City Council meeting Tuesday, nearly all of the about 20 public speakers complained about how the interaction was handled and how the Sheriff's Office conducts its internal reviews. Samuel White-Ephraim, vice president of the Stanislaus County NAACP, questioned virtually every aspect of the stop — saying that as a former cop, he saw a violation of many policies and procedures. 'I also know there is something amiss in that agency — that many need to be reeled in,' White-Ephraim said about the Sheriff's Office. 'If I were in charge of internal affairs, that deputy would not be having a badge.' Six public speakers supported creating a community police review board such as the one in Modesto, which was put together in 2022. Modesto's CPRB was part of the city's 2021 Forward Together Initiative, which came from a growing response for police reform across the country and locally. Some speakers also called for Patterson to create its own police department — citing smaller communities in Stanislaus County, such as Newman, that have them. Patterson Police Services are contracted under the Sheriff's Office. 'We've been demanding our own police department, we've been asking you for years,' said a public speaker who referred to himself as Mr. Gonzalez, a Patterson resident. 'What are you doing about it? Have you brought up any numbers? What has been done?' Mayor Michael Clauzel responded by saying he worked with the Sheriff's Office for two months on the city's strategic plan. 'You need to read it and see what I've done,' Clauzel said. 'I have worked very hard behind the scenes with the Sheriff's Office. … You can see we have in fact done something.' Patterson's strategic plan lists six bullet points of what it hopes to accomplish for 2024-28, which includes performing an analysis on the feasibility of creating its own police department. It also aims to 'explore options to expand law enforcement' through its partnership with the Sheriff's Office. There is not, however, any mention of exploring a community police review board. 'Let's be clear, public safety is not just about policing. It's about trust, accountability and protecting the right of everyone in our community,' said Valley Improvement Projects director Bianca Lopez, who called for the creation of a review board in Patterson. 'Yet too often when concerns are raised about misconduct, use of force, racial profiling or abuse or power, those concerns are investigated behind closed doors. … That is not accountability, that is a conflict of interest.' Since 2016, Stanislaus County sheriff's deputies have used force against Black individuals at a rate of more than six times their population, according to police data. A two-hour event on Feb. 18, organized by the NAACP, invited community members, dignitaries and law enforcement leaders to talk openly about solutions regarding use of force against Black people in Stanislaus County. The hope was the event was the first of many.
Yahoo
18-04-2025
- Yahoo
Hindu Temple in Modesto pleads for public's help after string of break-ins, thefts
( — Members of a Hindu temple in Modesto are speaking out after a recent string of break-ins, thefts, and vandalism. This week, they were able to capture footage of a possible suspect and now they're asking for the public's help to identify the thief or thieves responsible and put a stop to it. Shiu Bhawaan temple has been around for 15 years, and the temple's president, Aklesh Prasad, says they have never had any trouble before. But the last 6 months are when things have been taking a bad turn. The temple, located on North Carpenter Road, has been a place of peace and calm for many of the city's Hindu community. Deputies investigating a homicide after missing persons body found 'It's big. A lot of Fiji Hindu people are here. And all the Hindus are from other countries too; they come to this church, too,' said Prasad. But the recent string of break-ins and thefts has members of the temple on edge. Prasad says there have been at least four incidents in the last 6 months. 'When break-ins happened before, we didn't have the cameras, so after that, after a couple of break-ins, we started putting cameras up, and then last Monday, we caught this guy on our camera,' Prasad said. Prasad released a video that he says captured the most recent break-in earlier this week. In the video, a man is seen going inside the temple, and in another video, the same man is seen running out a back door. He says these incidents have resulted in stolen instruments, sound system accessories, and at least $18,000 stolen in donations. 'It goes back to the church, we use it for the utilities and insurance, and all that, we always donate for the funerals, people who need it, needy people…we donate,' Prasad said. Prasad says they are unsure if the same person in the video might be responsible for all the break-ins and thefts, but they have contacted law enforcement. He is hoping that sharing this video with the public might help them get some answers. They are asking anyone who may recognize the person in the video to contact the authorities. 'It's really annoying, you know, because this is a place of divine worship,' Prasad said. 'People come peacefully here, they socialize here, too, and then we are very much ashamed of ourselves when people from outside come and steal property, steal and damage our property, vandalize this whole property. It's not nice.' For now, prasad says they left having to pay for the losses out of their own pocket, along with the help of community donations. 'It's expensive. Those cost thousands and thousands of dollars to replace,' Prasad said. They're hoping that whoever is responsible for the thefts and break-ins will be caught soon so that their members will have some peace of mind, and they won't be dissuaded from coming back to the temple. The Stanislaus County Sheriff's Office says they have received the report and will be looking into these incidents. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
08-04-2025
- Yahoo
Body camera footage released of Stanislaus deputy's use of force during traffic stop
Body-worn camera footage of a Stanislaus County Sheriff's Office deputy using force during a traffic stop was released Monday evening. Cell-phone footage taken at the scene made its rounds on social media last week — sparking criticism of the deputy's use of force. The cell-phone footage was taken partway through the traffic stop. The first section of the released body camera footage begins with Deputy Alexander Helms approaching Joshua Rhodes' car and ends with Helms taking Rhodes to the ground and placing him in handcuffs. A second section shows what happened as Rhodes and Helms were leaving a hospital. During this portion, Rhodes says to the deputy, 'I legally challenge you to a fight. Do you accept?' and 'You punched me in my face, now I wanna punch you in your face.' Rhodes was arrested on suspicion of resisting arrest by force, delaying or obstructing a peace officer and battery on a peace officer. Rhodes' passenger, Elliana Barraza — who filmed the cell phone footage that circulated online — was arrested on suspicion of delaying and obstructing a peace officer. Helms pulled over Rhodes for not stopping at a red light, according to the Sheriff's Office. The released video shows Rhodes approaching the driver-side window of Rhodes' red Audi just after midnight April 1 on C Street in Patterson. Text at the beginning of the video states that Rhodes did not immediately pull over but continued driving, briefly stopped and then made a U-turn on Sixth Street before stopping on C Street. The released video does not explicitly show this. It does show Helm's flashing his lights and signaling his siren for a few seconds before exiting his patrol vehicle. Helms then approaches Rhodes' car, tells him why he pulled him over and asked for Rhodes' license, registration and proof of insurance. Rhodes doesn't say anything but hands Helms his driver's license. Things became tense early in the exchange when Helms asks Rhodes for his address. Rhodes tells Helms, but the deputy can't hear him and asks him to speak up. A back-and-forth occurs before Helms tells Rhodes, 'I don't understand why you have an attitude right now.' Much of what Rhodes says in the video is unintelligible. When Helms asks if Rhodes is on probation or parole, Rhodes tells him, 'You can look up all of that.' Helms responds, 'Look, this can either go one of two ways. One is you can just be respectful and we can move on with our business.' There's a back and forth before Rhodes tells Helms, 'Why can't you do your job?' Helms responds, 'I am going to.' Helms then asks Barraza for her ID. Sgt. Nate Crain, a training sergeant for the Sheriff's Office's academy and spokesperson for the agency, said this was because Barraza was not wearing her seat-belt when Helms first saw her. Barraza tells Helms she did not have her ID on her. Rhodes again tells Helms, 'Do your job' and requests that the deputy call his supervisor. Helms declines. Rhodes then calls 911 on his cell phone, to which Helms responds, 'Are you really calling 911 right now?' Rhodes tells the 911 operator he's calling because 'I don't feel safe.' Helms tells Rhodes, 'Hang up your phone or I'm placing you under arrest.' Helms repeatedly demands Rhodes exit his vehicle, which the driver refuses to do. Eventually, Helms tries to open the door of the car and pull out the driver. At one point during a struggle, Rhodes grabs Helms' arm. Helms appears to strikes Rhodes a few times in the face. Eventually, Helms pulls out his Taser and deploys it, appearing to hit Rhodes and Barraza. After that, Helms pulls out his gun and points it at Rhodes. Once backup arrives, Rhodes is pulled out of the car, taken to the ground and put in handcuffs. Backlash in the form of social media comments and a statement submitted to The Bee came as a reaction to a the initial footage of the traffic stop that was posted online. In the statement, Bianca Lopez of Valley Improvement Projects criticizes the deputy's actions during the stop and a Patterson Police Services press release that advised citizens to 'Be Polite and Respectful' during a traffic stop. Crain said Rhodes' 'general lack of respect or civility' contributed to what happened and that 'your general demeanor goes a long way' when interacting with law enforcement. 'These types of encounters are difficult for us to be a part of and we simply ask that when you are pulled over by a deputy, recognize that the traffic stop itself is not the time or the place to argue,' Crain said. 'Your rights to due process come in a court of law in front of a judge.' Crain said he could not speak on behalf of Helms or what Helms' rationale was for his actions, but he said, 'We can all act civilly in those encounters and give the information that's it's asked for.' Crain added that having to ask a person multiple times for information, such as someone's home address, can make a situation more difficult. 'It was stated, 'I'm asking you a simple question. I'm just looking for a simple answer.' And the response is, 'Well, go do your job' ... I think you could agree that that's just not proper etiquette in a civilized society, and when we're trying to have a civil conversation.' Crain said that following a use-of-force incident, experts on the subject are brought in 'to ensure that our deputy properly interpreted and evaluated law and policy ... so that we can ensure that if there is an improper application of law.' After that is done, the Sheriff's Office has the option to retrain Helms if it so chooses. Internal affairs investigators will examine whether Helms followed policy, said Crain.
Yahoo
28-02-2025
- Yahoo
Teacher Who Also Worked as 'Beauty Advisor' Accused of ‘Unlawful' Sexual Conduct with Teen Boy: Police
A California high school teacher who claimed on her LinkedIn profile to also work as a beauty advisor has been accused of engaging in unlawful sexual conduct with a former student, who was underage at the time. Dulce Flores, a teacher in Riverbank, Calif., was arrested on Tuesday, Feb. 28 by the Stanislaus County Sheriff's Office, the Riverbank Police Department said in a statement. Flores, who has been a Spanish language teacher with Riverbank High School since 2016, was arrested following accusations that she engaged in 'an inappropriate' relationship with a 17-year-old male student in 2023, per police. According to Flores' Linkedin profile, she also works as a beauty advisor for a cosmetics company. It wasn't immediately clear when the investigation began. Riverbank police say they began looking into the matter after a school official was tipped off by an unrelated party about the alleged "relationship.' Flores, who graduated with a bachelor's degree in Spanish language and literature in 2014, was arrested in her home. She was taken to Stanislaus County Jail in lieu of $20,000 bail, though court or jail records did not show her information as of Friday has reached out to the Riverbank Unified School District and the cosmetics company for comment. The district previously told the Modesto Bee that they will cooperate with investigators if necessary and have placed Flores on leave as the investigation continues. Flores has been charged with one count of unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor, per Riverbank police. It wasn't immediately clear if Flores has entered a plea or retained an attorney to speak on her behalf. An investigation is ongoing and police are urging anyone with information to contact them at (209) 869-7162. Anonymous tipsters can contact police at 1-866-60-CRIME or go to If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual abuse, text "STRENGTH" to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor. If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages. Read the original article on People
