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Without a body or murder weapon, the prosecutor in the Sierra LaMar murder trial used his closing rebuttal to urge the jury to “reject the unreasonable, accept the reasonable” explanations for her disappearance, fingerprints, DNA traces and other evidence that connects Antolin Garcia Torres to the crimes he is accused of.“Sometimes, to support a weak argument, (people) use gimmickry to distract you from the facts,” Santa Clara County Deputy District Attorney David Boyd said.He was likely referring to statements made the previous day by defense attorney Al Lopez in the Hall of Justice courtroom. According to various news reports, Lopez displayed a “bucket of shame” to the jury during his closing argument to illustrate the reasons Garcia Torres is not guilty.Garcia Torres, 25 of Morgan Hill, is on trial for the murder of Sierra LaMar, who disappeared from her home off Dougherty Avenue March 16, 2012 at the age of 15. Garcia Torres is also accused of three attempted kidnapping incidents in the parking lots of two Safeway stores in Morgan Hill in 2009.He has been on trial for these crimes—totaling four felony counts—for the last 13 weeks. The murder charge is a capital offense, as he faces a possible penalty of death if found guilty.The prosecutor and defense attorneys wrapped up their closing arguments May 4. Superior Court Judge Vanessa Zecher sent the jury of six men and six women into the deliberation room shortly after these arguments were over.Sierra’s father, Steve LaMar, gave a brief statement to reporters outside the courthouse.“It’s been a long trial, but it’s just a blink of an eye compared to how much time we haven’t had Sierra with us,” Steve LaMar said May 4. “Now the justice for Sierra is in the hands of the jury.”He extended his thanks to Boyd and the D.A.’s office, as well as sheriff’s deputies and numerous volunteers who helped search for Sierra’s remains, which have not been found.“Now we wait and we pray, and we hope for justice for Sierra,” he added.Boyd told the jury May 4 that, according to the law, they have to “consider the totality of the facts” when deciding on a verdict. He argued that Lopez was asking them to consider each fact in isolation, which could persuade the jurors to accept the “innocent” explanations for certain evidence.For example, defense attorneys argued the reason Garcia Torres’ thumbprint was on a 9-volt battery found in a stun gun used in one of the Safeway attacks was because, as an employee at the store, he had repackaged the item and placed it back on the shelf for sale when its packaging was damaged.Boyd noted, however, that Garcia Torres’ Safeway colleagues testified during the trial that they had never seen the defendant perform such a task while employed at the store.“Is that innocent explanation reasonable?” Boyd asked rhetorically.Lopez also argued that Sierra ran away from home, and she might not even be dead. He cited previous arguments with her mother, her recent move to Morgan Hill—away from her longtime friends in Fremont—and even a handwritten note found in her school notebook that allegedly indicates she wanted to run away.Boyd, however, said these circumstances do not consider “the whole of the facts,” which also include Sierra’s vast social media footprint, her dependence on her parents for basic needs and her love for her father and her cat, Chester.He added that the three kidnapping attempts in 2009, in which he attacked three women as they were walking out to their cars after shopping at Safeway, were Garcia Torres’ practice for the murder of Sierra. He continued to attack women until he was able to kill one, Boyd argued.“This was planned. This was premeditated. This was cold and calculated,” Boyd said. “It takes time to find a girl that fits the bill.”He also responded to Lopez’ claims that there should have been more of Sierra’s DNA in Garcia Torres’ Volkswagen Jetta if he had kidnapped and struggled with her. Boyd argued that the vehicle was not thoroughly searched until Garcia Torres was arrested about three weeks after Sierra’s disappearance. An expert testified during the trial that DNA deteriorates when exposed to sunlight, humidity or moisture, and that could be why there wasn’t more of Sierra’s genetic material in the car.Sierra disappeared as she was walking to her school bus stop at the intersection of Palm and Dougherty avenues in north Morgan Hill. She was a sophomore at Sobrato High School.Boyd concluded his rebuttal, “He silenced her so she could not say what happened to her. He silenced her body so it could not say what happened. Please find the defendant guilty.”Zecher advised the jury they can set their own deliberation schedule, which could include Fridays even though court is typically not in session that day.Search volunteers respondAfter Sierra disappeared, hundreds of people throughout the Bay Area responded to a call for volunteers to help search for her remains in and around Morgan Hill. As the years passed, those numbers dwindled to a handful of regular volunteers, but they remained committed to supporting Sierra’s family.“I’m glad it’s finally come to this point,” said David Arocha of Sunnyvale, who has attended the trial almost every day since it started Jan. 31. “Mr. Boyd is doing a wonderful job with this. I’m glad he’s the prosecutor.”Roger Nelson, a coordinator of the search volunteers, said outside the courtroom that Boyd delivered a “strong performance” during closing arguments and the rebuttal.“He gave just enough detail where he was able to accomplish his goals and not lose the jury,” Nelson said.

Police arrested a man who had multiple warrants after responding to a report of a domestic dispute.

The Oakwood boys basketball team improved its record to 7-1 with a 67-43 win over Gonzales High School.

Gilroy’s gangly former mayor with a broad smile, firm handshake and deep voice – a descendant of the city’s founding father and a much-decorated American war hero – died Wednesday morning at his home in Texas with his wife Patricia by his side. Kevin A. “Mike” Gilroy was 77.

Former Morgan Hill producer Gary Harmon ran a vast, pyramid-style scheme to defraud investors in his various entertainment ventures by dropping celebrities’ names and promising to help young people gain training and careers in the arts, according to court documents.Harmon, a 41-year-old former Sobrato High School teacher, faces two counts of grand theft and three counts of communications containing untrue statements and omissions of material facts in Santa Clara County Superior Court.He was arrested March 23 in Nevada, on a Morgan Hill warrant, in relation to these charges. He has since been released on $250,000 bail, and his next hearing is scheduled for July 13 at South County Courthouse in Morgan Hill.Harmon also faces a “white collar crime enhancement,” based on the allegation that he used “fraud and embezzlement” to steal more than $500,000 from the victims, according to the criminal complaint filed by the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office.Morgan Hill Police reports contained in the case’s court file list at least four victims who Harmon allegedly convinced to invest in his production companies or projects, with promises of repayment and profits that were never realized. The reports claim Harmon exaggerated or fabricated relationships with beloved celebrities—including country music legend Willie Nelson, Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak and former Motley Crue frontman Vince Neil—to fraudulently sell hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of investments to the marks, according to police.The fraud goes back to 2012, when Harmon—then the director of ISE Entertainment—asked Drew Perkins to loan him $125,000 to help produce “The Vince Neil Poker Series,” according to the police reports. Harmon promised to pay Perkins back in full by September 2012, plus interest and a share of the television series’ future profits.Perkins transferred the money to Harmon’s ISE account at Wells Fargo, but he was never fully repaid, according to police. ISE and Neil signed an agreement to produce the series in August 2012, but the television program never got off the ground.  Neil himself gained an advance payment of $20,000 for the series. This sum came from the ISE account into which Perkins dropped $125,000, according to police.The MHPD investigation report claims Harmon spent large sums of Perkins’ investment on transfers to other accounts, luxury car rentals, airfare and credit card payments.Complex scheme?Then in summer 2012, Harmon met Morgan Hill couple Jesse and Roni Jo Castillo, according to the police reports. Harmon told the couple that he was Nelson’s manager, and expressed interest in representing the Castillos’ daughter, a musician and artist.Harmon introduced the couple to another producer, Kerry Wallum. Wallum and Harmon later claimed they were the owners of another film production company, Luck Films, as well as Boulder Creek Guitars, which was based in Morgan Hill at the time, the court documents claim.Harmon also told the Castillos he was about to close a $10 million deal with Wozniak, the couple told police.The Castillos were thus convinced by Harmon to invest $125,000 in Boulder Creek Guitars, which Harmon said was going to “help students work with other musicians” and “work with Sobrato Arts to help students be involved in the arts.”The Castillos were promised they would be repaid in 90 days, with a profit on their investment, but they haven’t seen a dime, according to police.When Jesse Castillo started asking questions of Harmon about where the money went, Harmon allegedly told him Boulder Creek Guitars was raking in at least $60,000 per month, but did not present any paperwork proving that claim. Furthermore, the company was not paying rent or other bills, the police reports say.When the Castillos demanded a list of Harmon’s expenses made with their investment, he omitted thousands of dollars’ worth of cash withdrawals, transfers to other accounts controlled by Harmon, restaurant purchases and even a cruise, according to the police report.Around November 2012, Harmon convinced another victim—Mary McGreevy—to loan him $140,000, the court documents say. Harmon told McGreevy he needed the cash to pay off his debt to Perkins so Harmon could begin marketing a new program called “iJams,” which he said was developed by Wozniak.Harmon promised to repay McGreevy’s $140,000 by February 2013, plus 10 percent interest and 5 percent of proceeds from the Vince Neil series, reads the police report. McGreevy told police she has not been repaid.MHPD investigators could not find any evidence of a deal or personal relationship between Harmon and Wozniak.Police reports claim Harmon used McGreevy’s investment to repay Perkins $100,000, but also for personal purchases at airlines, restaurants, bars, movie theaters, limousine services and other expenses.Partial repayment allegedHarmon’s latest victim, according to the court documents, was his former friend and business partner Mike DiRubio, also a Morgan Hill resident. Harmon and DiRubio had worked together with the ARTTEC production company, and in 2014 brought big-name acts such as Kiefer Sutherland, Queensryche and Survivor to perform in Morgan Hill.DiRubio claims that in 2013, Harmon embezzled more than $250,000 from him by reneging on a promise of a share of ISE and recurring income, in return for the investment. Harmon only returned about $71,000 to DiRubio, according to the police investigation.As the weeks went by after making his initial investment, DiRubio noticed his name had been removed from the ISE bank account and he began asking Harmon about it, according to police. Harmon eventually told him his money went toward the Boulder Creek Guitars transaction.Harmon allegedly made about $72,000 worth of cash withdrawals from DiRubio’s investment, police claim. He also spent $26,000 on personal credit card payments, $20,000 to Luck Films (partially to repay McGreevy), $70,000 to Boulder Music Group and $97,000 to a nonprofit of which Harmon was director until May 2013.Wallum did not receive any of the funds invested by Harmon’s alleged victims, and he was not an authorized signer on any of the bank accounts into which the investments were deposited, the police report says.Boulder Creek Guitars is now based in Gilroy, and is not affiliated with Harmon or Wallum. Current owner Tom Strametz declined to comment on the Harmon case.In recent years, Harmon has filed a number of civil lawsuits against DiRubio, Wallum and other parties who have accused him of fraud.The court documents add that Harmon’s employment with Sobrato High was terminated in 2011, “after he was caught removing equipment from the school theater.”

Through the Livermore Valley and over Altamont Pass, Interstate Highway 580 is one of the main corridors out of the San Francisco Bay Area. As I pass through a landscape, I often feel it calling to me to look closer, but not when I travel through the bare hills near Altamont Pass. The myriad windmills and the absence of a plant taller than your knee make for a bleak scene. There is little to tempt the wandering soul.

Sheriff’s deputies are asking the public to be on the lookout for a man who exposed himself to a 13-year-old girl at a bus stop in unincorporated Morgan Hill last Thursday. The suspect’s vehicle description matches that of a similar incident reported by Gilroy...

The rains have returned to the Santa Clara Valley, and with them renewed anxiety over the capacity and stability of the county’s biggest body of water, the Anderson Reservoir. The source of that anxiety isn’t likely to go away until after as many as nine...