LAKEPORT, Calif. – After less than four hours of deliberation, a jury on Tuesday found a Clearlake man guilty of a July 2015 drive-by shooting that claimed a man's life.

Billy Raymond Mount, 36, was convicted of second-degree murder for the shooting death of 40-year-old Steven Galvin on July 2, 2015.

In addition to the murder conviction, the jury found Mount guilty of assault with a firearm, discharge of a firearm from a vehicle, felon in possession of a firearm, as well as numerous special allegations, including shooting a firearm from a vehicle, discharge of a handgun, personal use of a firearm, inflicting great bodily injury and being a member of a criminal street gang, according to statements from Senior Deputy District Attorney Sharon Lerman and defense attorney Andrea Sullivan.

Lerman said the jury found that Mount – a known skinhead – had committed the crime for the benefit of, or with direction from, a criminal street gang.

Galvin had been walking through a neighborhood on 35th Avenue when witnesses said a small white pickup pulled up. Two shots were heard and Galvin collapsed in a nearby yard after being struck in the back by a .22-caliber bullet.

When the case's lead investigator, Det. Ryan Peterson of the Clearlake Police Department, arrived at the scene, paramedics were trying to examine Galvin, who was writhing on the ground and gasping, based on footage from Peterson's body camera shown in court both during opening and closing arguments.

Peterson asked Galvin, “Who did this to you?” Galvin clearly told him several times, “Cyclops,” the name for David Cox, another Clearlake resident and known skinhead who had several confrontations with Galvin over his belief that Galvin had stolen his tablet computer.

During about six weeks of trial Lerman had argued that it was Mount who committed the crime, with Cox and another man, Sean Whiteman, giving key testimony in the case.

Cox received a total of three immunity agreements during the different phases of the case – the initial investigation, the preliminary hearing and the trial – in exchange for truthful testimony, according to statements in court.

Some of his key testimony related to interactions with Mount, including a confrontation he said they had shortly before the shooting in which Cox called out Mount for a domestic violence issue. Cox also claimed that Mount confessed to him that he shot Galvin.

Mount had ridden in Whiteman's white Chevy S10 pickup to the shooting scene, according to Whiteman's testimony.

Whiteman also would lead police to a gun he said was used in the shooting. While there was DNA and fingerprint evidence on the weapon, experts were not able to lift the prints or DNA. They were, however, able to find a print and DNA from Mount on an AC/DC CD case in Whiteman's pickup, according to statements in court.

Sullivan, however, argued that Galvin's dying declaration held the truth – that it was Cox who had shot him. Galvin would die at the hospital less than an hour after the shooting.

Closing arguments had wrapped up on Friday, at which point the jurors began deliberating. Both Sullivan and Lerman estimated the jury was in session about an hour that day, before returning on Wednesday morning at 9 a.m. The verdict came in at about 11:30 a.m., and was read just before noon.

“I was very surprised,” Sullivan said of the verdict. “I thought that the evidence was pretty convincing that there was reasonable doubt in light of the witness credibility issues and the fact that there was a dying declaration and no physical evidence.”

Sullivan said she didn't believe the prosecution's theory made sense, and felt Whiteman had been caught in lies that discredited his testimony.

“It's hard to tell what they based their verdict on,” Sullivan said of the jury, explaining that while she sometimes polls jurors on their decisions, she did not feel it was appropriate to do so on Wednesday as one of the jurors was visibly crying.

For her part, Lerman said she believed justice was served by the jury's decision.

“It was a long trial and it wasn’t an easy one to sit as a juror,” she said, adding that she believed the jury showed a lot of patience and tenacity in reaching its verdict.

Lerman said she told Galvin's brother of the verdict, and he expressed relief that there was justice in the case.

As for Cox, Lerman said the immunity agreement is limited, which means that his testimony can't be used against him.

“It does not mean that he can never be charged,” she explained.

However, Lerman added, “As the evidence stands today, we don’t have evidence to charge him with,” and she didn't know if he actually directed Mount to shoot Galvin or if it was an unfortunate circumstance that Cox couldn't see coming.

Mount is scheduled to be sentenced at 1:30 p.m. Sept. 6 by Judge Andrew Blum, who has presided at his trial, Sullivan said.

Lerman said Mount is facing an indeterminate sentence of 25 years to life in state prison.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

NORTH COAST, Calif. – Authorities have arrested a woman on suspicion of setting more than a dozen roadside fires in the Geyserville area of Sonoma County on Tuesday.

Maria Acevedo, 26, of Geyserville was arrested on Tuesday evening, according to a report from Sgt. Spencer Crum of the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office.

Crum said that at 9 p.m. Tuesday Sonoma County Sheriff's deputies were called to the 13300 block of Skaggs Springs Road in Geyserville to assist a Cal Fire battalion chief with an arson investigation.

When the deputies arrived, they found that the battalion chief had detained a woman, identified as Acevedo, for setting fires in the area, Crum said.

During the course of the sheriff's office investigation, Crum said deputies learned that an alert property owner came across Acevedo, who was setting fires along the road.

Crum said the property owner stopped her from lighting the current fire and sought her assistance to put it out while he called for help.

Acevedo claimed to have been dropped off by her boyfriend in the very remote region of Sonoma County and she was setting fires so someone would come and help her, according to Crum.

“We determined that the woman set approximately 13 spot fires along the side of the road that encompassed a total of two acres burned,” Crum said. “During a search of her purse we located ammunition which she is not legally allowed to possess due to a previous felony conviction.”

The Cal Fire battalion chief was able to extinguish all the fires and Acevedo was arrested for arson, felon in possession of ammunition and an outstanding arrest for a drug-related charge, Crum said.

Crum said Acevedo was booked into the Sonoma County Jail and is being held on $45,000 bail.

LOWER LAKE, Calif. – Firefighters on Wednesday fully contained the last of two wildland fires that had broken out the previous evening in Lake County as well as a fire in Napa County.

Cal Fire said the Kugelman fire in Lower lake was fully contained on Wednesday evening at 45 acres.

It had first been reported shortly before 5:30 p.m. Tuesday off of Kugelman Street at Highway 53.

It destroyed one structure and had resulted in evacuations, as well as a power outage that lasted several hours and impacted several thousand area residents, as Lake County News has reported.

A second fire, the Canyon, which was located off of Seigler Canyon Road and Highway 29, was reported just minutes after the Kugelman incident. The Canyon had been fully contained on Tuesday night at 14 acres, according to Cal Fire.

Cal Fire said fire crews had worked through the night and much of the day Wednesday to fully contain the Kugelman incident and to extinguish exterior hot spots.

Resources remaining committed to the incident on Wednesday evening included 10 engine companies, two water tenders, two fire crews and a total of 75 personnel, including overhead or command staffers, Cal Fire said.

In neighboring Napa County, the Knoxville fire also was fully contained Wednesday evening, burning a total of 36 acres, Cal Fire said.

Cal Fire said the Knoxville incident was first reported just after 6 p.m. Tuesday on Berryessa-Knoxville Road near Lake Berryessa.

No structures were damaged or destroyed in the fire, officials reported.

Approximately 54 fire personnel, five engine companies and two fire crews remained on scene Wednesday evening, according to Cal Fire.

Cal Fire said investigators are still working to determine the causes of the Kugelman and Knoxville fires.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – Eleven months after the Valley fire tore through south Lake County, state officials released their conclusions as to the cause and discussed the next steps, including a review for possible criminal prosecution.

Chief Ken Pimlott, Cal Fire's director, came to Middletown on Wednesday to deliver the news that faulty electrical wiring at a residence was determined to be the cause of the fire.

The Cal Fire investigative report was released to the public Wednesday afternoon, about an hour and 15 minutes after local officials were briefed and given their copies of the report, according to Sheriff Brian Martin.

Right up to the document's release, local officials had indicated to Lake County News that they had no idea what Cal Fire's findings would be.

A copy of the final report can be found at http://calfire.ca.gov/fire_protection/fire_protection_firereports .

The third most damaging fire in California history burned from Sept. 12 to Oct. 6, 2015, wreaking most of the damage in just the first few days.

Altogether, 76,067 acres burned and 1,955 structures were destroyed, among them 1,349 homes.

Then there was the loss of human life. Bruce Burns, Robert Fletcher, Barbara McWilliams and Leonard Neft perished in the fire. A fifth person reported missing at that time, Robert Litchman, has never been found, Martin said.

Four Copter 104 firefighter crew members from the Boggs Mountain Helitack were injured, with Cal Fire officials reporting that one of the injured men was unable to return to his job due to his injuries.

Pimlott was accompanied at Wednesday's announcement by Sheriff Martin, District Attorney Don Anderson, District 5 Supervisor Rob Brown, County Administrative Officer Carol Huchingson and a host of other local officials.

Pimlott said Cal Fire's responsibility on incidents like the Valley fire “doesn't stop when the fire goes out.”

Noting that the Valley fire had begun just north of where they were standing, Pimlott said fire investigators began their work on the incident within hours, and were among the first to arrive on the scene. That investigative process concluded on Wednesday, he said.

“The investigation uncovered evidence that a residential electrical connection arced and ignited surrounding dry grass behind a home located on High Valley Road.”

Martin acknowledged that it has been a long, emotional year in the wake of the fire. “This has been a tragedy that has everyone that lives in Lake County, both directly and indirectly.”

He said the investigation had taken a long time, for a very good reason. “They wanted to make sure that they got it right.”

Martin referred to continual speculation about possible fire causes among community members, as well as information people submitted to law enforcement.

“It's fair to say there were hundreds of leads that investigators had to follow up on,” Martin said.

During the course of their work, Cal Fire investigators followed up with numerous community members who had made reports on the fire, chased down allegations that they couldn't confirm about one man setting a backfire, responded to a tweet from a teen with mental development issues who suggested that a book of matches lying in dry grass was responsible, as well as some leads they determined likely were altogether false.

Not long after the fire, investigators began interviewing John Pinch, who along with wife Cindy and friends Parker and Laura Mills have owned 8015 High Valley Road since 2009.

It was at that property that firefighters found the fire burning shortly after dispatch on Sept. 12. The home is the Pinches' main residence and a second home for the Mills. A shed and pickup were burned on the property but the home survived.

During the investigation, Pinch admitted to investigators that he installed an unpermitted wiring circuit – which was not installed to national standards – for a hot tub that Cal Fire said malfunctioned and ignited the fire. Parker Mills gave investigators similar details about the electrical circuit that Pinch had installed.

Investigators also looked at an area at Highway 175 and Gifford Springs Road where a second fire was reported after the Valley fire was under way. They searched the fire area but could find no signs of an ignition source.

Ultimately, Cal Fire Northern Region Law Enforcement Deputy Chief James Engel concluded that the fire on Gifford Springs Road was a spot fire from the main Valley fire, noting that he found no signs of arson or a power line that caused it.

He also attributed the main fire's source to Pinch's wiring, with the loose electrical connections arcing and igniting the dry grass on the property.

An ongoing process

The release of the report nearly a year after the fire broke out leaves local officials with a challenging case and, potentially, a short amount of time to make key decisions.

Martin said the final Cal Fire investigative report is being forwarded to the District Attorney's Office for review. “There's a process that needs to take place,” and additional time will be required, Martin said.

He urged the community to be patient, to provide information to authorities when they have it and to ask questions. In turn, he said authorities will work to answer questions and keep the community informed to the best of their ability.

Anderson, who by that point had only been able to briefly look at the report, said he couldn't go into the details of the case.

However, he said that first thing on Thursday he was turning the case over to his investigative staff for further inquiry, while his legal staff will determine if any crime has been committed and if the facts justify anyone being charged.

The report concluded that there was a misdemeanor violation of the Health and Safety Code referring to failing to take precautions to prevent fire when using objects that can start fires, and a violation of California Residential Code requiring proper permitting.

Anderson was asked for his opinion about what crimes the report conclusions fall under. He said that it was hard to know without having further reviewed the report. However, he explained that criminal law goes beyond mere negligence.

He also wasn't sure how much time he might have to act.

Misdemeanor cases have a statute of limitations of a year, leaving Anderson just 32 days to review the investigative report and make a determination on whether or not he can pursue a criminal filing.

If his office were to attempt to file felony charges, he said he would have another two years and 32 days due to the three-year statute of limitations.

Pimlott said all wildland fires are investigated for cause and origin, with negligence always considered.

He said Cal Fire will have discussions with the California Attorney General's Office on possible charging in concert with the work that Anderson's office does locally.

He added, “Every fire we investigate, we learn something from,” and that what has been gleaned from the Valley fire will be useful in approaching future incidents.

The release of the report was a milestone moment, but one that didn't appear to offer much satisfaction to the people whose lives were intimately and radically affected by the devastating incident.

Responses from Valley fire survivors have run the gamut of rage and disbelief, sorrow, resignation, to the determination to keep moving forward and looking for ways to keep the community safe.

Officials on Wednesday acknowledged the ongoing challenges the community is experiencing.

“Suppressing the fire was just the beginning. This community has really banded together to move forward,” said Pimlott.

He acknowledged, “The recovery process is slow, it's painful and it's difficult,” adding, “We're not done until the community's done.”

Supervisor Rob Brown said that while the release of the fire's cause is good news, it's also extremely important to focus on the community's strength and resilience.

As such, he urged the community to not be distracted by the fire cause and to continue to look toward recovery.

“Just stay focused on the positive, stay focused on moving forward, and allow the process to run its course, both criminally and civilly,” Brown said.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – On Wednesday Cal Fire officials said the Valley fire – the third most destructive in California's history – was the result of faulty wiring.

The announcement came at a Wednesday afternoon press conference at Cal Fire's Middletown station that the agency had called only a few hours beforehand.

Cal Fire said its investigators were dispatched as part of the initial response to the fire 11 months ago and immediately began working to determine the origin and cause of the fire. 

The ensuing investigation, which Cal Fire said was comprehensive, uncovered evidence that a residential electrical connection arced and ignited surrounding dry grass.

Cal Fire said it is submitting its investigation report to the Lake County District Attorney’s Office for review. A copy of the final report can be found at http://calfire.ca.gov/fire_protection/fire_protection_firereports .

Cal Fire's release of the results of its investigation came just a month short of the Valley fire's one-year anniversary.

The fire erupted in the area of High Valley Road on Cobb on the afternoon of Saturday, Sept. 12, 2015, sweeping through southern Lake County and also burning into Napa and Sonoma counties.

State Sen. Mike McGuire said the fire's damage in Lake County alone is estimated at $1.2 billion.

At the height of the fire nearly 20,000 people – or close to one-third of Lake County's population – were forced to evacuate from the communities of Anderson Springs, Clear Lake Riviera, Cobb, Hidden Valley Lake, Loch Lomond, Twin Lakes and Middletown.

The Valley fire resulted in four confirmed fatalities.

Altogether, the Valley fire burned 76,067 acres and destroyed 1,955 structures, among them approximately 1,349 residences, according to Cal Fire's final damage estimates.

At its peak, more than 4,000 firefighters battled the blaze which cost nearly $57 million to extinguish. Four firefighters with Copter 104 from the Boggs Mountain Helitack were seriously injured in the initial attack.

The incident was fully contained on Oct. 6, 2015.

A full story on the press conference and report will be posted later on Lake County News.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

CLEARLAKE, Calif. – A Washington state man wanted by law enforcement was arrested in Clearlake on Wednesday.

Justin Craig Johnson, 40, was taken into custody by sheriff's deputies and detectives, according to Lt. Steve Brooks of the Lake County Sheriff's Office.

Brooks reported that on Wednesday Sheriff’s Major Crimes detectives received information that a wanted subject out of the state of Washington was in Lake County, with that individual identified as Johnson.

Johnson, a convicted felon, had an active felony warrant out of Washington for failure to appear on drug and weapon charges, Brooks said.

Brooks said Johnson was recently featured on Washington’s Most Wanted list and was listed to be extraditable in all 50 states. 

Major Crimes Unit detectives and patrol deputies were able to locate a motorhome that Johnson was associated with in the parking lot of Walmart in Clearlake, Brooks said.

As deputies located the motorhome, Johnson was seen in the doorway of it. Brooks said detectives and patrol deputies quickly surrounded the motorhome and ordered Johnson to step out the vehicle.

Brooks said Johnson exited the motorhome and immediately tried to flee, but the detectives and deputies were able to take Johnson into custody after a short struggle with him.

Johnson was arrested for his active out of state warrant and resisting arrest. He was then transported to the Hill Road Correctional Facility where he was booked, Brooks said.

LOWER LAKE, Calif. – Firefighters continued their work overnight on two wildland fires that burned in Lower Lake beginning on Tuesday evening, resulting in evacuations and power outages.

The Kugelman and Canyon fires were reported minutes apart shortly before 5:30 p.m., as Lake County News has reported.

Firefighters first responded to the Kugelman fire at Kugelman Street and Highway 53, with the Canyon fire occurring in the area of Seigler Canyon Road at Highway 29.

Cal Fire issued a late Tuesday night report putting the Kugelman's size at 45 acres with 70 percent containment. The Canyon burned 14 acres and was fully contained by about 9:30 p.m.

Each of the fires burned one structure, according to Cal Fire.

When firefighters first arrived at the scene of the Kugelman incident, they found it was rapidly spreading and threatening structures, resulting in evacuations for Morgan Valley Road to Bonham Road. The nearby Lake County Social Services building also was evacuated, based on reports from the scene.

In addition, firefighters reported lines down, with power later shut off at the request of incident command.

At the peak of the outages, Pacific Gas and Electric reported that nearly 9,100 customers were without power in the fire areas.

Cal Fire and the Lake County Sheriff's Office reported that, as of 10:15 p.m. Tuesday, the mandatory evacuation orders had been lifted.

Road closures also had been lifted, except for one-lane traffic remaining in effect on Seigler Canyon Road late Tuesday, Cal Fire said.

In addition to Cal Fire and Lake County Fire, agencies involved in responding to the incidents included Lakeport Fire, Kelseyville Fire, the Lake County Sheriff's Office, California Highway Patrol and Lake Evacuation and Animal Protection.

Resources assigned to the incidents late Tuesday included 15 engine companies, five volunteer companies, four water tenders, four fire crews, two bulldozers and 150 personnel, including 10 overhead personnel, Cal Fire said. Air resources had been utilized on Tuesday evening.

Cal Fire said firefighters would remain assigned to both incidents through the night and into Wednesday. On the Kugelman fire, firefighters were working to establish containment lines and extinguish interior hot spots, while mop up was taking place on the Canyon incident.

The causes of both fires remain under investigation, Cal Fire said.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

CLEARLAKE OAKS, Calif. – Authorities have arrested a man believed to be involved in a Lakeport burglary case.

David Paul Sander, 50, was arrested on Wednesday, according to Lt. Steve Brooks of the Lake County Sheriff's Office.

On Wednesday Lake County Sheriff’s Major Crimes Detectives served an arrest warrant in the 12000 block of Widgeon Way in Clearlake Oaks, Brooks said.

Brooks said the arrest warrant was obtained after an extensive investigation into a burglary that occurred in the 60 block of Soda Bay Road in Lakeport. The approximate value of the property lost was $14,000.

The suspect was identified as Sander with the assistance of video surveillance at the crime scene, Brooks said.

Brooks said Sander recently moved to Lake County from Alameda County.

Sander was booked at the Lake County Jail for burglary and grand theft. Sander remained in custody on Thursday with bail set at $115,000.

Anyone who has had recent dealings with Sander related to buying or selling property is encouraged to contact the Lake County Sheriff’s Office Major Crimes Detective Shamus Stafford at 707-262-4231.