MADERA COUNTY — One of two juvenile females accused of vandalizing vehicles at the home of a Yosemite High School soccer coach in Oakhurst has admitted to her part in the alleged crimes, while another continues to deny everything.
Both teens appeared in Madera County Juvenile Court on Friday, Mar. 25.
According to Madera County District Attorney David Linn, the teenager who took responsibility for her actions has been released into the custody of her parents and returned home under house arrest with electronic monitoring. She will be back in court in 30 days, when the judge will reevaluate her situation and decide whether she is eligible for probation.
The second girl arrested in the case denied all the allegations, and her father and grandmother declined to pay for the expense of GPS monitoring and house arrest, so she remains behind bars in Juvenile Hall, says Linn, who described her as uncooperative. She will be back in court next week for a pre-trial hearing.
“The second girl and her family have just decided to play this thing out,” said Linn, who notes that though each was charged with three felony counts of vandalism and the case is being heard in Juvenile Court, he is not ruling out hate crime charges or the possibility of charging her as an adult.
The suspects allegedly vandalized two vehicles on Pierce Drive early Monday morning by smearing paint, mustard, and feces on them as well as writing things including “faggot,” “go back to Mexico” and “cut my grass better.” One of the cars was also dented in several places.
The girls, ages 15 and 16, were arrested on Tuesday, Mar. 22, when their identities were revealed after one of them phoned the victim, Victor Salazar, in an attempt to apologize.
Their names are not being released due to their juvenile status.
https://sierranewsonline.com/yhs-coach-victim-of-a-hate-crime/
https://sierranewsonline.com/arrests-made-in-racially-motivated-vandalism-in-oakhurst/
