Rape suspect
’s court hearing continued A suspect in a sexual assault case
made his first court appearance Tuesday, but it was an uneventful
appearance with no plea entered and the case will continue until
Aug. 30 at 1:30pm.
Rape suspect’s court hearing continued
A suspect in a sexual assault case made his first court appearance Tuesday, but it was an uneventful appearance with no plea entered and the case will continue until Aug. 30 at 1:30pm.
James Torres is being held in Santa Clara County Jail on $60,000 bail on charges of sexual assault and false imprisonment after an incident during a party at the victim’s home.
Torres’ public defender recused herself Tuesday, and legal aid was appointed for Torres. Morgan Hill Police say the investigation into the incident, which resulted in arrests on misdemeanor charges for two other men and a woman, is ongoing.
Acid spill closes U.S. 101 for five hours
San Jose – A poisonous spill on U.S. Highway 101 led California Highway Patrol officers to close north and southbound traffic for nearly five hours Thursday, causing a headache for rerouted motorists.
About 9:15am, the driver of the truck noticed nitric and sulfuric acid leaking from his rig and pulled to the shoulder of the freeway.
It is uncertain how the driver, Rafael Padilla of Stockton, knew a valve on the vehicle was leaking, said Chris Armstrong, CHP public affairs officer. But as he tried to shut the valve, he splashed the mixture of sulfuric and nitric acid onto his pants, Armstrong added. Emergency workers transported Padilla to Santa Clara Valley Medical with complaints of throat, nose and eye pain.
The spill led CHP to close down both lanes of traffic to avoid inhalation of the chemicals, which can cause a burning sensation in the throat, nose and eyes or sever burning if it touches skin.
“We responded to the scene, secured the scene,” Armstrong said. “Due to the severity and the possibility of inhalation, both lanes needed to be shut down.”
The San Jose police and fire departments told residents of 60 homes west of the spill to stay indoors.
CHP diverted traffic until opening the northbound lanes at 2pm and the southbound lanes at 2:45pm.
They completed clean up of the shoulder at 4:30pm.
The acids are believed to be waste by-products because they were mixed together and the truck contained 538 gallons. The tank leaked an unknown amount.
