Editor’s note: This is an annual review of the Plumas County District Attorney’s office activities and criminal cases, written by Plumas County District Attorney David Hollister.
Thank you all for your support and efforts in making Plumas County a safe and just place to live, work and play. I am especially grateful for the tremendous efforts of those throughout our community who continue to work so hard and make so many sacrifices to keep Plumas County safe.
I apologize for the delay in our criminal case update. We continue to be exceptionally busy on many fronts and offer this as both a 2023 review and first update for 2024.
Here at your district attorney’s office, we continue to vigorously, fairly and compassionately seek justice each day. As the chief law enforcement officer in Plumas County, I take our mission and daily responsibilities very seriously. We could not possibly meet our obligations without the tireless public service of the DA staff. Team members Assistant District Attorneys Graham Archer and Brian Hagen; front office staff Nicole Romero, Kathy Green and Ian Thompson; Fiscal Officer Sheri Johns; investigators Jessica Beatley and Shawn Adams; and alternative sentencing’s Stephanie Tanaka, Sam Rick, and Bree Martin have all consistently performed at the highest of levels. In serving Plumas County, these dedicated workers regularly deal with disturbing subject matter, stressful situations and victims going through the worst day of their lives. Our staff addresses these daily challenges with a consistency, fairness, grace and perseverance of which we are all rightly proud.
During 2023, the DA’s office reviewed approximately 796 investigations, filing criminal charges in approximately 605 cases, not counting juvenile cases or probation violations. We are, and have been for the last year, fully staffed, having suffered no losses in staffing since 2022 while maintaining one of the most experienced staffs in Plumas County. For the 13th consecutive year, the Plumas County District Attorney’s Office did not have a conviction reversed on appeal (nor were we the subject of any type of lawsuit).
Alternative Sentencing Program
In addition to the traditional prosecution of crime, the DA’s office houses and supports an award-winning Alternative Sentencing Program (ASP). ASP exists to assist low-level offenders in the journey of becoming clean and sober, curb drug-related crime, reduce impaired driving, and reunite broken families. ASP is responsible for creating responses to the ever-changing criminal justice system while keeping Plumas County relevant and up to date with programs mandated by state and federal governments, including administering Plumas County’s highly successful Drug Court (Community Justice Court). ASP works with the courts throughout Plumas County, ancillary service providers, non-profits as well as law enforcement to ensure that quality, evidence-based pretrial, re-entry, and reintegration programming is being offered in Plumas County.
Truancy Prevention Team
The DA’s office continues to partner with our schools in providing prevention services through the Truancy Prevention Team. The TPT supplements school truancy programs by offering early intervention designed to identify and correct a student’s root cause of truancy.
DA Investigator Shawn Adams has led this response, meeting regularly with school site administrators to identify those students who are truant. Once the student has been identified, a plan is formulated between Shawn and the school to check on the student’s welfare and encourage the student to reintegrate with school staff. To meet this challenge, Shawn routinely travels from Portola to Chester visiting students. In addition to making sure Plumas County children receive the education to which they are entitled, our truancy prevention efforts also provide an important safety net for some of the most vulnerable in our community.
An excellent example of the importance of this program occurred a few years ago. During the fall of 2020, Shawn returned to the Indian Valley residence of a six-year-old who had not been seen by her school nor had picked up materials for distance learning. Shawn had previously visited the residence and expressed concern about the health and safety of the three children living there. When Shawn returned he found the six-year-old student babysitting her three- and five-yea- old brothers. All were in a trailer described by a responding deputy as being in “shambles – the carpet was filthy and covered in food; trash was strewn about the residence.” The boys were dressed only in diapers and were restrained with zip ties in car seats and placed in front of a television. The six-year-old, who had not seen her parents in hours and did not know where they were, was dressed in dirty clothes with her shirt on inside-out and backwards, wearing mismatched shoes on the wrong feet and wearing glasses so scratched it was difficult to see out of them. When Shawn first approached the house the six-year-old had difficulty opening the front door, and there was nothing readily available to cut the zip ties and free the boys from their undersized car seats. Upon these observations, Shawn contacted and engaged Plumas County deputies and social services workers, who all responded and addressed the situation.
Legal actions outside of court
Outside of the courtroom, we also continue to serve Plumas County. As part of the historic Pacific Gas & Electric criminal settlement stemming from the Dixie fire, we continue to work with our monitor to hold PG&E to the terms of our agreement. This five-year supervision includes, for example, pushing back on PG&E’s attempts to abandon or curtail effective but expensive Enhanced Vegetation Management in favor of far cheaper Enhanced Powerline Safety Settings.
We also represent the People of the State of California in parole hearings, providing efforts to assist surviving relatives and make sure offenders serve an appropriate sentence.
Additionally, we attend unexpected and necessary appearances such as we will do at the end of the month, when a Santa Cruz County Superior Court judge considers ordering a sexually violent predator to be housed in Plumas County. We will attend this hearing in person to vehemently object to such an inappropriate and dangerous placement.
Community service
Not lost among the many accomplishments of the staff of the district attorney’s office is the dedication to serving our community. As an office, we pick up trash, keeping State Route 70 clean through the Caltrans Adopt a Highway program; we host the Quincy Community Supper, serving a hearty meal of enchiladas, rice, beans and salad for 100-plus members of our community; and we also provide educational opportunities, allowing local college students to intern in our office to learn about criminal law as well as serving as a mentor for a local high school senior as they prepare a mock trial for their senior project.
Criminal case update
Below, please find a sampling of recent case summaries. Space does not allow the updating of all pending, or recently concluded cases. The following updates involve cases in which we have received requests for information. Should you have a question about the status of a case, please do not hesitate to contact the DA’s office directly by email or phone.
Quincy attempted murder of off-duty deputy – People v. Henry Evans
Henry Maxwell Evans II, 25, of San Jose, California, was originally charged on June 27, 2023, with three felony crimes stemming from an incident in Quincy during the evening of June 25, 2023, at the residence of an off-duty sheriff’s deputy.
Evans was alleged to have travelled from his home in San Jose to the Quincy area and camped in the Snake Lake area. While camping, Evans consumed psilocybin mushrooms. The hallucinogenic substance is alleged to have caused Evans to strip off his clothes and walk through the woods. Evans came to an unoccupied and unlocked house belonging to a deputy sheriff. Evans entered to the house, put on the deputy’s duty pants and took the deputy’s gun to the bathroom. Upon the deputy returning home, he noticed someone had entered his house. He then confronted Evans in his bathroom. During the confrontation Evans pointed the gun at the deputy and pulled the trigger, with no round discharging as one had not been chambered. The off-duty deputy was able to subdue and secure Evans until other law enforcement arrived. In mitigation, Evans, upon gaining sobriety, was apologetic and had no prior criminal record.
On October 27, 2023, Evans was convicted of first-degree burglary (a felony) and a use of a firearm enhancement was found to be true. Later, on December 8, 2023, Evans was sentenced to 12 years in state prison.
Quincy attempted murder of roommate – People v. Cole Adam
On June 20, 2023, Plumas County District Attorney David Hollister filed a three-count criminal complaint against Cole Brock Adam, 20, of Quincy, California, stemming from an incident at a Claremont Court (Quincy) residence during the early morning hours of June 18, 2023, where a 20-year-old man suffered significant injuries.
In the criminal complaint, Adam is charged with three felonies: willful, deliberate and premeditated attempted murder, aggravated mayhem, and assault with a deadly weapon. The complaint alleges two enhancements: use of a weapon, in that Adam is alleged to have used a machete, and great bodily injury, in that Adam is alleged to have caused injuries to the victim, including dismembered fingers, severe lacerations to the head, and a punctured lung. If convicted, Adam may face up to life in state prison. Adam is presumed innocent of the charges of which he is being accused.
Adam remains in custody at the Plumas County Correctional Facility with bail being set at $500,000. Adam is scheduled to next appear in court on January 26, 2024.
Portola assault and fire – People v. Dale Clutter
On December 19, 2023, Dale Lee Clutter, 63, of Portola, was convicted of felony assault. At the time of his conviction, Clutter had two cases combined – one an assault and the second an allegation that Clutter recklessly started a fire at an apartment complex on Rocky Point Road in Portola. Clutter is scheduled to be sentenced on February 9, 2024, when it is expected he will receive a state prison sentence.
Embezzlement of Bucks Lake Firefighters funds – People v. Jeffery Iversen
On December 16, 2022, Jeffery Michael Iversen, 64, now of Florida, was charged in a one-count criminal complaint with felony embezzlement. Iversen is alleged to have embezzled $302,395.70 from the Bucks Lake Fire Department Inc., and Bucks Lake Volunteer Firefighters Inc. A preliminary examination was heard on November 3, 2023, where the judge found sufficient evidence for Iversen to be tried on the charges. Iversen’s motion to dismiss the information was denied on January 5,2024, and the matter is now calendared for February 16, 2024, to set a jury trial.
Possession of child pornography – People v. David Kinney
On May 26, 2023, David Allen Kinney, 30, of Greenville, was charged with one felony count of possessing child pornography. Kinney was later convicted, on July 28, 2023, and sentenced to two years in state prison on September 29, 2023. Kinney was initially contacted during an unrelated incident. During the contact law enforcement searched Kinney’s phone, finding a number of images of child pornography. During the investigation it was discovered that Kinney had made efforts, albeit unsuccessful, to contact female minors.
Greenville commercial burglary – People v. Kasey Bennett
On October 27, 2023, Kasey Lyn Bennett, 47, of Taylorsville, was sentenced to two years in county jail following her August 29, 2023 convictions for felony second-degree burglary and felony grand theft. Bennett was found, on July 21, 2021, to have broken into the Mohawk Trading Company in Greenville, where she stole cash and gems. The crime occurred as the Indian Valley community was preparing for the Dixie Fire, which consumed much of Greenville some two weeks later.
Taylorsville Tavern assault – People v. Samuel Howell
On November 16, 2024, a Plumas County jury found Samuel Oliver Howell, 34, of Taylorsville, guilty of felony battery with serious bodily injury and misdemeanor battery. Howell was convicted of being in a bar fight at the Taylorsville Tavern. When the owner attempted to break up the fight, Howell pushed the owner, causing him to fall into a wood stove , knocking him unconscious, and leaving him with a head wound requiring three staples to close. When another person case to the owner’s aid, Howell pushed her to the ground as well. Howell is scheduled to be sentenced on January 12, 2024.
Human Resources conflict of interest – People v. Nancy Selvage
On November 16, 2023, Plumas County District Attorney David Hollister filed a three-count criminal complaint against Plumas County Human Resources Director Nancy Louise Selvage, 68, of Quincy, California stemming from a May 2022 pay raise she is alleged to have negotiated and recommended a pay raise on behalf of both herself and the county. The criminal investigation occurred over many months, drawing additional focus after the Plumas County Civil Grand Jury published its 2022-23 report. The matter is next set for continued arraignment on January 19, 2024.
Challenges and solutions for 2024
Of the many challenges faced by the DA’s office, the most significant exist close to home. The past 18 months have been a particularly unstable time for our local government. During this time, the county has lost one-third of its appointed department heads (even after raises were provided in May 2022); support from some county departments has been inconsistent; our sheriff’s office is recovering from lost staff only recently addressed with salary corrections; and board of supervisors meetings seem to consistently include the county administrative officer announcing a new crisis. To meet these challenges and help improve the service provided by local government, I am suggesting four changes for our board of supervisors, which can be implemented immediately and will provide the direction forward for our county to provide quality services in a cost-effective manner. These suggestions will also lessen the strain on individual supervisors and transition local government from crisis management to one of stability, consistency, transparency and service.
1– Hiring: The hiring of leadership positions (appointed department heads) needs to occur in a fair and consistent manner to cast as wide a net as possible to bring in the highest quality candidate. Recruitment for these crucial positions should consistently last at least four weeks and be open to any qualified applicant, whether currently a county employee or not. Once a candidate is selected, a thorough background check should occur – above and beyond simply checking for a criminal history. We do not have the luxury, for example, of flying such important positions for one week with the applicant pool limited to county employees.
2– Evaluation: Leadership positions (appointed department heads) should undergo an annual “360 degree evaluation,” where the people they work for, with and supervise are interviewed. With the appointments of some department heads without prior experience, such a process is imperative to help grow the best leaders possible. To provide evaluations based simply on how the department head is perceived by the board of supervisors has proven itself to be ineffective.
3– Brown Act compliance: The Brown Act mandates transparency in local government and makes sure our citizens are aware of what work their elected officials are doing on their behalf. Meeting the letter and spirit of the Brown Act must become a priority and goal rather than an obstacle. To the board’s credit, the first meeting of 2024 ended the board’s past practice of listing every appointed department head as a closed session evaluation item – a practice seemingly designed to hide which, if any, appointed department head was being evaluated.
4– Ethics training: Assembly Bill 1234 (passed in 2005, effective in 2006) requires all local elected officials to undergo two hours of ethics training within 12 months of taking office and every two years thereafter. This training covers important issues such as conflicts of interest, the Brown Act, California Public Records Act requests, and government transparency. It is designed to create an awareness of ethical laws fostering good, transparent governance. The law provides for a county to designate employees to be required to undergo this training and to maintain records of completion of the training (specifically subject to Public Records Act requests) for five years. Given the variety of ethical challenges for the county, whether they be real or perceived, the training requirement of AB 1234 should be met and the board should designate, at a minimum, all appointed department heads to undergo the training.
There is a great deal of promise and hope for all who live, work and play in Plumas County. It continues to be a spectacular place on many levels. On behalf of the district attorney’s office, it is an honor to serve Plumas County and we are all grateful for the opportunity to provide the highest level of service, in the most cost-effective manner. Thank you again for your support and efforts. Should you have any questions or comments please do not hesitate to contact me at the DA’s Office.
Information submitted by District Attorney David Hollister
