LAKE COUNTY ? A criminalist told the jury in the case against Bismarck Dinius Wednesday that the stern light of the sailboat was not on when the filament inside broke.
Dinius was at the tiller of Mark Weber”s sailboat when Capt. Russell Perdock of Lake County Sheriff Office (LCSO) collided with the vessel in his speedboat on April 29, 2006. Perdock was off-duty at the time of the crash. Sailboat passenger Lynn Thornton died as a result of the collision.
Toby Baxter, assistant lab director for the California Department of Justice, testified that he didn”t know if the filament in the sailboat”s stern light broke before, during or after the crash. He could tell that the light was off when it broke because of the rough edges of the broken metal filament, he said.
“The lamp was not on when it broke and there”s no evidence it was on when it broke,” Baxter said.
Defense attorney Victor Haltom objected to Baxter”s qualifications, which include a DOJ course on examining lamp filaments, but Judge J. Michael Byrne overruled and allowed the witness to testify.
Dinius is charged with felony boating under the influence and two misdemeanor boating under the influence charges that carry a three-year sentence.
Lt. Charles Slabaugh of Sacramento County Sheriff”s Department (SCSD) went back on the stand and testified about marine navigation rules. Navigation rules state the person operating a boat, crew, master and owners are responsible for switching on lights, Slabaugh said.
“If it”s not done by one it should be done by another,” he said.
Slabaugh concluded his findings on the collision, but has yet to tell the jury who was at fault because he hasn”t been asked.
Sgt. Wesley Frey of the Lake County Sheriff”s Office (LCSO) testified that he looked up a report on the accident out of curiosity, leaving a trace of his initials, but didn”t alter the document.
Jeff Holdener lives in Konocti Bay and drove his boat out to the “chaotic” scene of the accident with bright halogen lights to offer help, he said. Holdener helped light another boat”s way to tow the sailboat to shore.
Stephanie Green met up with her friends, Weber and Thornton, the afternoon before the collision at Richmond Park Bar and Grill to celebrate, she testified. They were all drinking alcohol, she said.
As a police officer for about 15 years, Green said she noticed Weber was “highly intoxicated.” Green met Dinius for the first time that evening but was unsure if he was intoxicated, she said. As Dinius, Weber and Thornton left the dock, Green noticed the sailboat”s lighting was switched on, but she was unsure what color it was or where it was on the boat.
Weber and Thornton asked Green to come out on the sailboat that night, Green said.
“My husband talked me out of it because I don”t know how to swim,” Green said.
Craig Scovel, a friend of Perdock”s, testified that he went to Konocti Harbor Resort & Spa the day of the collision. Scovel said the restaurant and inside bar was practically empty and he would have seen Perdock if he were there.
Yet, Scovel thought he went to the resort Friday, not Saturday, which was the day of the accident.
When it was dark Scovel took his boat home. Scovel got a call from Perdock”s mother about the crash and spoke with the officer that night. Scovel and two of his friends got Perdock”s truck and trailer and with the help of Sgt. Dennis Ostini towed it to a sheriff facility.
The trial will continue at 9 a.m. today in the Lake County Superior Court at 255 N. Forbes St. in Lakeport.
Contact Katy Sweeny at ksweeny@record-bee.com or call her directly at 263-5636, ext. 37.
