Crime

Governor Newsom Reverses Gator’s Parole

by The Editors on January 18, 2023

Mark “Gator” Rogowski, the pro skateboarder who has spent the last 30 years in prison for the 1991 rape and murder of Jessica Bergsten will not be paroled. The parole board voted to approve his release on June 14, 2022, however, California Governor Gavin Newsom has reversed Rogowski’s parole for the second time, according to a story on CBS8.com.

On November 4, 2022, Governor Newsom once again rescinded Rogowski’s parole. . . While citing Rogowski’s work to reform himself, Newsom wrote that Rogowski has “made efforts at self-improvement,” having participated in “significant self-help programming, including substance abuse prevention, anger management, and sex offense desistence courses,” [however] “Despite the constructive steps,” Newsom said a recent verbal disagreement with another prisoner and Rogowski’s inability to understand what caused him to act in such a violent way are reasons for his decision to repeal the parole board’s decision.”

Gator, who is currently serving a 31-years-to-life sentence, comes up for parole again in December 2023.

[Link: CBS8.com]

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Vans Battles On With Copycat Walmart

by The Editors on July 25, 2022

Walmart, the massive, big box, retailer, and obesity promoter, is a hulking bag of putrescence for so many reasons that it’s not worth listing any of them. But here’s one anyway. Back in February 2022 we mentioned a story about Vans filing a lawsuit against the monster retailer for knocking off most of Vans shoes.

Vans won an injunction against the company in March 2022 that required Walmart to stop selling the infringing shoes. But did Walmart follow that injunction? Of course not, according to a story on Reuters.

Vans told the court Friday that Walmart was “doubling down” with new shoes that are “even more similar” to its designs. It also said that Walmart was still selling other shoes that had been banned by the order. . . Vans’ court filing said Walmart has told the company it would stop selling the infringing shoes but “has not shown that it is actually putting its words into action.”

Vans wants Walmart to be fined $3,000 a day until they stop selling the shoes. But that probably won’t even stop the retail whale from continuing to plow ahead through the waters of copyright infringement, because why should they stop? They’re making boatloads of money. And they do the same thing in almost every category they sell in.

[Link: Reuters]

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Parole Board OK’s Gator’s Release, Again

by The Editors on June 15, 2022

Former pro skateboarder Mark “Gator” Rogowski, who was convicted of raping and murdering a girl in his Carlsbad, California condo in 1991, has again been approved for release from prison by the California Board of Parole. That doesn’t exactly mean he’s going to be leaving San Diego’s RJ Donovan Correctional Facility any time soon.

In 2019 California Governor Gavin Newsom overturned the board’s first release ruling in Gator’s case and San Diego District Attorney Summer Stephan is asking him to do it again, according to a story in the San Diego Union-Tribune.

In a statement, Stephan said family and friends of 22-year-old Jessica Bergsten “deserve the continued promise of justice in this case. “Our office argued strongly against releasing this violent defendant,” she said.

Governor Newsom has 60-90 days to decide what should happen in Gator’s case. If he doesn’t nothing, then Gator will be scheduled for release. Guess we’ll know sometime in the fall.

Click here to sign a Change.org petition to keep Gator in prison.
Or here to sign a Change.org petition in favor of release.

[Link: San Diego Union-Tribune]

 

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Trevor Jacob Stripped Of Pilot’s License

by The Editors on April 25, 2022

Well, after all that hoopla about having to bail out of his stalled plane in a parachute the Federal Aviation Administration has officially taken former pro snowboarder Trevor Jacob’s pilot license away from him stating that he “crashed the plane as a stunt,” according to a story in the Washington Post.

The FAA cited several pieces of evidence that Jacob intentionally crashed his plane in November, saying he did not call air traffic control, try to restart the engine or attempt to land the plane “even though there were multiple areas within gliding range in which you could have made a safe landing.”

And because of this, they are taking away Trevor’s right to pilot an aircraft in America. Looks like he’ll have to stick to skydiving and ultralights from now on if he wants to go flying. Hope the Youtube views were worth it. He certainly got some milage out of this one.

[Link: The Washington Post]

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Evan Hernandez Gets 8 Years In Prison

by The Editors on January 20, 2022

Former pro skater Evan Hernandez was just sentenced yesterday, January 19, 2022, to eight years in federal prison for “selling nearly two pounds of methamphetamine and laundering Bitcoin” for other drug dealers.

According to court documents, from at least March 2018 to March 2019, Hernandez distributed narcotics, conspiring with drug dealers to distribute the controlled substances over one of the world’s largest darknet marketplaces. . . Hernandez also was responsible for laundering Bitcoin for darknet drug trafficking operations. 

Hernandez will also reportedly have to turn over “a 2010 Mercedes-Benz, approximately $35,000 in cash, and various watches, necklaces, rings and other jewelry” to the government. Seems like only yesterday he was that little kid in In Bloom. Bummer all around.

[Link: Department of Justice]

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Volcom Store Gets Snatch and Grabbed

by The Editors on December 12, 2021

A group of teens reportedly stormed the Volcom Store in Santa Barbara, California grabbing a bunch of stuff and running right out the back door without paying on Monday, December 6, 2021, according to a story in Cal Coast News.

Shortly before 5 p.m., the teens entered the store and grabbed multiple items before escaping out the back door. A security alarm alerted store clerks that the teens had fled with the merchandise. . . The teens, who all wore similar jackets, fled on foot or on bicycles.

On the one hand, bummer, on the other apparently the kids are still alright with the brand.

[Link: Cal Coast News]

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Terry Kennedy Arrested For Assault

by The Editors on July 30, 2021

Pro skater Terry Kennedy, 36, was reportedly arrested on July 27, 2021 in Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois for allegedly “violently attacking a man at the motel” and “threatening to kill police” according to a story on TMZ.

During the booking process, though, the spokesperson says the skater became aggressive toward cops. . . Kennedy allegedly threatened to murder officers NINE different times … with the spokesperson saying Kennedy told cops, “I will kill one of you police. We kill police where I’m from.” . . .The spokesperson says Kennedy then referenced a 2017 cop-killing incident in Whittier, CA. … claiming the skateboarder said, “We killed ya’ll in Whittier, California. We killed ya’ll bitch ass.”

Kennedy was reportedly out on bail for a previous arrest when this arrest happened and is now in jail after apparently not posting a $100,000 bond. Sounds like things aren’t going as well as they should be for the talented skateboarder and we hope he’s able to sort things out.

[Link: TMZ]

[Update August 1. 2021: the man Kennedy allegedly attacked, 23-year-old Josiah Kassahun (an acquaintance of Kennedy’s), died from his injuries on Saturday, July 31, 2021, according to a new story on TMZ.]

NY Post: Terry Kennedy May Face Homicide Charges

Terry Kennedy Charged With Murder

Update August 10, 2021 From the Chicago Suntimes:

Prosecutors say Terry Kennedy, Josiah Kassahun, and Kennedy’s ex-girlfriend checked out of a room at the Comfort Suites Motel just after 11 a.m. on July 27 and were walking to the ex-girlfriend’s car when Kennedy became enraged for no apparent reason.

Kassahun told Kennedy to calm down, and Kennedy punched him in the face, causing him to fall and hit his head on the pavement, prosecutors said. Kennedy then allegedly kicked Kassahun before fleeing in the ex-girlfriend’s car.


Kevin Romar posted the above image to instagram.


A clip of Josiah Kassahun skating from 2020.

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Nyjah A Possible Superspreader Party Host?

by The Editors on February 20, 2021

Nyjah Huston has been charged with misdemeanor “creating a nuisance” by the Los Angeles Police Department for he and Fairfax home owner Edward Essa repeatedly hosting parties that were “possible super spreader events at the height of the COVID-19 Pandemic” according to a story in the LA Times.

Nyjah Huston, a four-time world skateboarding champion, and Edward Essa, the owner of a home in the Fairfax District where authorities say parties have been repeatedly shut down by police since last fall, are among those charged.

After the last party, the Mayor of LA reportedly requested that power be cut off to the house. How is Nyjah supposed to remain an LA party person without throwing parties?

[Link: LA Times]

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Friendly Canadian Police vs. Longboarder

by The Editors on February 9, 2021

Nice to see the macho police violence disease flows smoothly across the northern border. It’s almost as if violence is inherent in the system. All this after the longboard skateboarder was accused of “running a red light.” We particularly enjoyed the way the officer kept throwing the kid’s backpack onto the ground and into trunk hoping to teach even inanimate objects who’s the boss around Barrie, Ontario, Canada.

[Link: CBC via Daily Dot]

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San Clemente Tells Skaters To Pack Sand

by The Editors on April 17, 2020

The City of San Clemente, California has raised the absurdity bar to record heights with their latest “solution” to skateboarders continuing to exercise their right to exercise in the Ralphs Skate Court, according to a story in the San Clemente Times. They poured 37 tons of sand all over it.

“We did consider fencing. Fencing is really difficult to get right now, and we know we’ve done fencing at the skate park before, and it just gets hopped over,” Wylie said, later adding: “We also considered security, but there’s a cost to that. The sand, it cost us nothing to put it in, (and) it’ll cost us nothing to remove it. So that’s why we went with that decision.”

Problem solved. But now it looks like a really cool place to take your off-road RC cars, right?

[Link: SC Times]

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