LAKEPORT ? A witness testified Wednesday in the trial against Bismarck Dinius that he raced Russell Perdock across Clear Lake hours before the collision on April 29, 2006.
Dinius was at the tiller of Mark Weber”s sailboat when Capt. Perdock of the Lake County Sheriff”s Office crashed into the vessel with his speedboat. Perdock was off-duty at the time of the crash.
Passenger Lynn Thornton died as a result of the collision.
John Jansen testified that while he saw Perdock at Konocti Harbor Resort & Spa “everybody had a cup in their hand.” Jansen beat Perdock when they raced, he said.
“I shut my boat down, he came up next to me and we talked about our boats,” Jansen said.
The men then drove off in different directions, Jansen said.
Dinius is charged with felony boating under the influence and two misdemeanor boating under the influence charges that carry a three-year sentence.
District Attorney Jon Hopkins asked Jansen whether he had a conversation with two of his friends about facts in the case in front of Denise Rockenstein, staff reporter for Lake County Publishing. Jansen said he didn”t, but that Rockenstein questioned him.
Carol Stambuk, who brought a civil case against Perdock, wrote a letter to council and was called before the court without jurors present for questioning.
Stambuk, a friend of Thornton”s, said she saw a juror talking with a friend of Hopkins Wednesday at Angelina”s Bakery & Espresso. As the friend was leaving he told Hopkins, “Good luck in the case,” Stambuk said.
Judge J. Michael Byrne questioned the juror, who said he talked football with Hopkins” friend and didn”t hear any mention of the case. Byrne reminded the juror of the rules and court continued.
Defense Attorney Victor Haltom requested to have the jury visit to Clear Lake near the site of the collision to observe shore lights at night. Byrne denied the request because he doesn”t believe the conditions can be sufficiently re-created, he said.
A total of 10 witnesses testified Wednesday.
Dennis Olson, the assistant director of security at Konocti Harbor Resort & Spa, testified he saw Perdock on the grounds of the resort the day of the collision but the officer wasn”t drinking.
“When he”s driving his own boat I”ve never seen him drink,” Olson said.
Olson testified he assisted the REACH helicopter by clearing an area for it to land the night of the collision. An ambulance then loaded a woman onto the helicopter, Olson said.
Joseph Gliebe, manager of security at KHRS, testified he saw Perdock at the Tenderfoot Bar on resort grounds the night of the crash. He said he also assisted the helicopter but no patient was transported.
Myra Martinelli testified she worked security at the resort but wasn”t working the night of the crash.
Julie Knight testified Dinius invited her and her friend, Jean Strak, on the sailboat the night of the collision but she declined. The sailboat left Richmond Park Bar and Grill with its lights on, she said.
Strak testified she saw the sailboat “lit up like a Christmas tree,” with string lights around the boat.
She said a LCSO officer interviewed her three or four days after the collision but she never saw a copy of the report.
Hans Elmer, a retired patrol sergeant for the East Bay Regional Park District, testified he was at the Young Scandinavian Club on the night of the collision. He watched the lit speedboat drive across the bay and hit something he couldn”t see, he said. Elmer estimated Perdock was driving between 50 and 55 mph.
“I said ?There”s an idiot for you,”” Elmer said. “?He”s gonna kill himself or somebody else.””
Elmer said he called 9-1-1 that night to inform dispatch of the accident and that he and other people witnessed the collision. After multiple calls to LCSO, Elmer eventually called Sacramento County Sheriff”s Office and spoke with investigating Lt. Charles Slabaugh.
Peter Erickson was at the Young Scandinavian Club on the night of the collision but didn”t see the crash. He got on a boat with four other men and helped tow the sailboat to shore.
Erickson testified he heard Perdock say he had a soda at Konocti and he thinks a lot of information in the case is untrue. He said he has no bias.
“I do believe this case is kinda fishy,” Erickson said.
Donna Perdock, the ex-wife of Russell Perdock, testified the timeline he submitted had some errors, such as he left their house about 7 p.m., not 8 p.m.
She said her ex-husband enjoyed the exhilaration of going fast on his boat.
After Russell Perdock left with his boat, Donna Perdock didn”t see him until she met him in the emergency room, she said.
“He was very upset,” she said. “He was bleeding from his head and he was sitting down.”
Sgt. Dennis Ostini testified as to why he left the sailboat unattended from about 2 a.m. to 8 a.m. April 30, 2006.
“I made a mistake,” Ostini said. “I should have had someone on it but my thought was we didn”t have the resources to remove it.”
The trial will continue 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.
