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Category: Mitrice Richardson

  • Kamala Harris’s Historical Run for VP Will Not Overshadow Past Political Choices – Denying Justice to Mitrice Richardson

    Kamala Harris’s Historical Run for VP Will Not Overshadow Past Political Choices – Denying Justice to Mitrice Richardson

    Editor’s note: The Current Report contributor Dr. Ronda Hampton outlines Kamala Harris’s role in the investigation against the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department in the death of  Mitrice Richardson after she was released from the Malibu/Lost Hills Sheriff’s station September 17th, 2009, under suspicious circumstances. Richardson was experiencing a mental health episode when she was booked for failure to pay an innkeeper and possessing less than an ounce of marijuana. Shortly after midnight, Richardson was released with no money, cell phone or means to get herself to safety. Her naked, partially mummified remains were found less than six miles from the station, and 1.5 miles from her last known location. This is a factual account of Harris’s participation in the investigation which ultimately led to no sanctions against the Sheriff’s Department and their responsibility in Richardson’s death. – Cece Woods, Editor in Chief

    By Dr. Ronda Hampton

    As we are approaching one of the most seemingly contentious presidential elections in recent times, the nation is faced with making a historic decision.  A vote for Joe Biden is also a vote for the first female in one of the highest offices in this country as well as the first woman of color.  For those in the democratic party who will vote strictly party line, the political record of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris may mean very little in their vote decision (this is also the case for those in the Republican party who vote strictly party line). For those who are influenced by the political backstory of the candidates, this election may be one of the most difficult decisions of a lifetime, at least it is for me.

    In September of 2009 Mitrice Richardson was suffering a mental health crisis at Geoffrey’s restaurant in Malibu, CA when the staff at the restaurant called the local sheriff’s department to come and “pick her up” because she was acting “crazy”.   While the welfare and institution code 5150 required that Mitrice Richardson be evaluated by a mental health professional, the arresting officer decided to take her to the jail instead.  For reasons unknown, she was never provided a psychiatric evaluation for her “unusual” behaviors at the restaurant but instead was released from the Malibu/Lost Hills sheriff’s station in the dead of the night with no money, no car, no means of caring for herself and in a compromised mental state.  Her partially mummified, naked, skeletal remains were discovered approximately 11 months later.  While it is was no surprise that the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s departments own investigation of themselves determined that there was no wrongdoing in the handling of Mitrice Richardson’s death and disappearance, there remained many unanswered questions:

    1.  Why was she arrested?

    2.  Why was she not taken for a psychiatric evaluation even when the arresting officer called her “ditzy”?

    3.  Why were her car keys, phone, and purse not taken with her to the station?

    4.  Why was her car towed?

    5.  Why did the captain of the station lie about the existence of a video?

    6.  Why, more than 10 years later, will the LASD not release the video of her at the station?

    5.  Why did the LASD detectives remove her body from the site where her remains were discovered against the orders of the coroner.

    The remote area where Richardson’s remains were found on August 9th, 2010, just 1.5 miles from her last known location.
    Dr Ronda Hampton (far right in the helmet) and members of Mitrice Richardson’s family at the site where Mitrice’s remains were found.

    It was these and many more question which lead to my request that, then Attorney General Kamala Harris, investigate the case of Mitrice Richardson.  A complaint which was submitted on October 5, 2015 contained over 500 pages of exhibits highlighting potential violation of law enforcement policy and possible criminal acts on the part of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s.  Approximately six weeks later, on November 16, 2015,  a letter received from the office of the Attorney General stated that after careful evaluation, my inquiry warranted no formal action and that  “The records you provided do not create a reasonable inference that the actions of the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department or its employees violated the law”.  That it took a mere six weeks to investigate potential evidence contained in more than 500 pages of documents lead me to conclude that the “investigation” was disingenuous and that Harris’s relationship with former

    Sheriff Jim McDonnell may have impacted her decision to formulate the opinion that no part of the handling of Mitrice Richardson’s case warranted any punitive action.

    Kamala Harris and former Sheriff Jim McDonnell whom Harris endorsed, and who was at the helm of the Sheriff’s Department during the attorney general investigation into the Richardson case. Mc Donnell was also in charge of LASD during the cover-up in the Malibu Creek State Park Shootings that lead to the death of Tristan Beaudette and a $90 million lawsuit against the Sheriff’s Department and the State.

    With the devastating news the office of the Attorney General did not find evidence to support any action be taken against the LASD, I contacted Mitrice Richardson’s father, Michael Richardson, who penned another letter asking for a reconsideration of Mitrice Richardson’s case on December 15, 2015  and in February of 2016, Kamala Harris agreed to reconsider the investigation.  While it was never clear as to why she agreed to reconsider Mitrice Richardson’s case after claiming that her office had carefully evaluated my documents (which were mailed back to me), it is speculated that after local news outlets began to publish news articles about her decision that there was no wrongdoing on the part of any officer, she began to get backlash from communities in Southern California. This backlash was problematic as she was beginning her campaign for the Senate race. The thought that Kamala Harris only agreed to a reconsideration of Mitrice Richardson’s case as a result of her bid for the senate was heightened by the fact that during her bid for senate, she actually touted Mitrice Richardson’s case on her Wikipedia page as one of her accomplishments.  A few weeks prior to her announcement as Joe Biden’s pick for VP, Mitrice Richardson’s case was “scrubbed” from Kamala Harris’s wiki page as if Mitrice Richardson had never existed.

    Mr. Richardson and I had no real confidence that there would be an earnest investigation and joked that most likely she would drag out the “investigation” until after her run for senator was over and then again announce that there was no wrongdoing on the part of the LASD.  On December 16, 2016, ten months after she reconsidered the investigation of Mitrice Richardson’s case and about six weeks after she won her bid for senate November 9, 2016, she cleared the LASD of any wrongdoing and no one was surprised.

    There are those who are not pleased with me speaking out about Mrs. Harris and her actions while she was the Attorney General of California for fear that it may cause a loss of votes. I have been speaking out against Mrs. Harris and her actions on since 2015 and it is not going to change now.  I have no power over anyone’s vote, I am not a person of any influence, I do not have a national platform with which to share Mitrice Richardson’s story but what I am is one individual impacted by a tragedy that Kamala Harris had the opportunity to correct and she chose otherwise.

  • Finding Mitrice: The 10 Year Anniversary Of The Day We Learned Her Fate

    Finding Mitrice: The 10 Year Anniversary Of The Day We Learned Her Fate

    Editor’s Note: It was a long agonizing 11 months before family, friends and the Malibu community, ultimately learned the fate of Mitrice Richardson, who had gone missing after the Malibu/Lost Hills Station released her shortly after midnight on September 17th, 2009. Richardson had no car, cash, cell phone, or any other means to get her to safety.

    The troubling details surrounding her arrest, her time at the station and her subsequent disappearance, are the subject of a clue-driven, on-going investigation.

    On August 9th, 2010, Mitrice Richardson’s body was discovered by State Parks Rangers on a creek bed in Dark Canyon, just a mere 1.5 miles where she was allegedly last seen. Activist Ronda Hampton, who was close to Richardson, has spearheaded the decade long journey for justice and finding those responsible for Mitrice’s death. Hampton, a contributor with The Local Malibu, reminisced about the day Mitrice was found, and the extraordinary efforts by individuals to usher those close to her to the very remote spot where her body was found to honor and memorialize her.

    An aerial map showing the remote location where Richardson’s body was found August 9th, 2010.
    “It was August 9th, 2010 and I was just leaving a lunch date with my husband and daughter when I received a text message from Tashaka Starwell who was a volunteer with the Los Angeles County REACT (Radio Emergency Associated Team).  The REACT  Team is a volunteer organization that provides public service communications to individuals, organizations and governmental agencies in an effort to protect and save lives.  In the message Tashaka stated that rangers had discovered partially mummified human skeletal remains in the Monte Nido area. Concerned that it might be Mitrice Richardson, he met myself, Latice Sutton (Mitrice’s mother) and Lauren Sutton (Mitrice’s aunt) at the area which was used as staging for the media who was there to cover the story.
    We met Tashaka Starwell early on in our search for Mitrice as he and his team had been very helpful in setting up searches and teaching us the ins and outs of mountainous searches, so it was rather serendipitous that he was monitoring the radio on the day her remains were discovered. When we arrived at the location at approximately 3pm,Tashaka was already there to greet us and explain what was going on. Tashaka ensured that we understood all that was occurring at the site and served as a liaison between us and law enforcement.

    “I can still remember the anxiety of that day 10 years ago and I will never forget how overwhelming it was knowing that the body that was discovered on August 9th, 2010 was that of  Mitrice Richardson.”

    Chip Croft was also there at site on the day Mitrice Richardson’s remains were discovered.  Chip had already volunteered hundreds of hours in searching for Mitrice, talking to community members, speaking at council meetings and often times offering comfort during the long endless searchers and flyer distributions. When it became clear that we needed more media coverage to encourage more searchers to volunteer, Chip began video taping our efforts and uploading them on social media to inform the public of the circumstances of her missing status. Eventually that video footage was compiled into a documentary, Lost Compassion, which chronicled our search for Mitrice.

    I can still remember the anxiety of that day 10 years ago and I will never forget how overwhelming it was knowing that the body that was discovered on August 9th, 2010 was that of  Mitrice Richardson.  While there was some relief in knowing that she was no longer alone in the canyon, the pain that she was gone was almost unbearable.  My memories of the pain of that day are often softened by knowing that complete strangers like Tashaka and Chip were so concerned about the life of someone they did not even know that they would devote endless hours in an effort to bring her home.
    As efforts continue to fight for justice for Mitrice and find those responsible for her death, I have to remember that there are good people in the world like Tashaka, Chip and countless others who devoted so much time and energy in seeking justice for Mitrice. I have to remember that Mitrice’s life touched many people in the most positive of ways and that her life had and has meaning.  I have to remember these things so that my view of human nature is not tainted by the instances of negativity of the situation but focused on the overwhelming amount love that has been shown to Mitrice, even now, ten years later.”
    Memorial outside the Malibu/Lost Hills Station remembering the 10-year anniversary of Mitrice Richardson’s disappearance.

     

  • Mitrice Richardson Investigation: Former Lost Hills Captain Who Hid Video Accused of Sexual Assault

    Mitrice Richardson Investigation: Former Lost Hills Captain Who Hid Video Accused of Sexual Assault

    The 10-year anniversary of Mitrice Richardson’s disappearance, and the press conference at the Lost Hills Sheriff’s Department on September 17th, proved to be a pivotal time in the relationship between family and friends of Richardson, Malibu and surrounding communities, and the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department.

    The outcome of the press conference prompted The Local Malibu to release new information to the public (already in the hands of the Sheriff’s Department), of alleged crimes committed under the color of authority that occurred at the time of Richardson’s disappearance.

    Crimes of Opportunity

    A large ominous cloud has been hanging over the Lost Hills Sheriff’s Department since Mitrice Richardson disappeared in 2009, and the clouds only became darker when her body was found 11 months later, approximately 6 miles from where she was released from custody, minutes after midnight on September 17th, 2009.

    Last summer, shortly after the body of Tristan Beaudette was found murdered at Malibu Creek State Park, one of our readers following The Local Malibu social media posts on the shootings came across the link to the Mitrice Richardson documentary, Lost Compassion. One of our followers posted the link to the documentary because of the close proximity of the crimes, and their potential involvement in Richardson’s death, which still remains undetermined according to the L.A. County Coroner’s office.

    After watching the documentary, our reader contacted her friend, who used to live in the area at the time of Richardson’s disappearance, and prompted her to watch “Lost Compassion”. Shortly after, Dr. Ronda Hampton, a clinical psychologist and friend and mentor to Richardson, received a phone call from a woman who disclosed she was a victim of sexual assault by a man she saw in the video, Captain Tom Martin of the Lost Hills Sheriff’s Department. The same man who admitted to lying about the existence of, and hiding the video of Mitrice Richardson while she was in custody.

    Above: A screen shot of former Lost Hills Captain Tom Martin from the “Lost Compassion” documentary sent from the victim to Dr. Ronda Hampton.

    The victim was in her early 20s at the time, and called Dr. Hampton to offer support in the fight for justice in the Richardson case. While the victim felt there was nothing that could be done in her alleged sexual assault case against Martin, she insisted on telling Dr. Hampton her story feeling there could be a potential connection to the Richardson case. The victim’s alleged rape by Captain Martin occurred just 2 months before Richardson’s disappearance.

    Dr. Hampton encouraged the victim to file a report with the Sheriff’s Department, and assisted filing a criminal Internal Affairs complaint that was investigated from late 2018, into early 2019.

    Investigators deemed the report by the victim reliable enough to where it reached a higher level of investigation prompting investigators to travel out of state to interview the victim in person.

    The victim of Martin’s alleged sexual assault was living in a sober living home at the time of the incident ,and attended a group therapy session that night.

    Her alleged attacker, Captain Martin, routinely drove an unmarked vehicle (as he explained in this interview shortly after being promoted although he admitted to suppressing evidence), and followed the victim two nights in a row, as she left the group therapy session.

    The first night the victim was pulled over by Martin, he noticed there was someone else present in the vehicle. Martin began talking to the two women inappropriately, and cited them both for “littering” ( Martin claimed they threw cigarettes out the window which both women maintained they did not) and released them.

    The second night, Martin allegedly followed the victim leaving the group therapy session, and pulled her over again, on Kanan Rd., after midnight.

    Martin allegedly asked the victim to get out of the vehicle, walk around the car, and pushed her into the back seat where he allegedly raped her. Martin warned his victim if she told anyone about the attack that “nobody is going to believe you because you’re a drug addict, and if you say anything it will ruin your sobriety”.

    The Sheriff’s Department could not proceed with the charges because of lack of physical evidence (due to the amount of time that elapsed since the alleged crime), however the investigator said the victim could re-open the case at any time and expressed a need more victims to come forward. 

    Smoke and Mirrors

    Under Baca’s administration, in order to overshadow any wrongdoing by the Sheriff’s Department, and instead of disciplinary action for suppressing and the potential destruction of evidence (the Richardson video), Baca’s protocol was to “promote” Martin, with a pay increase.

    Martin’s “promotion”to commander at LASD headquarters put him in charge of the detectives division, including the Special Victims Unit, which handles sexual assault cases including Mitrice Richardson’s.

    When questioned by reporters at the September 17th press conference about Martin’s actions in the Richardson case, which include denying the video existed and suppressing vital evidence, Sheriff Villanueva said:

    “That information…again…that’s 10 years ago, I can’t account for something that happened when I was literally a Sgt. on the department… If there was something I could do with that administratively and I had the legs to do it , I could… act on that. Most of the people involved at that level have since retired, I don’t have the teeth to do it…”

    By “lacking the teeth to do it” Villanueva could be referring to the Truth and Reconciliation Panel, which was dismantled by the Board of Supervisors recently, and was vital to Villanueva’s on-going efforts to uncover the corruption in the department. Under the new regime at LASD, the Richardson case was supposed to be the first civilian case to be reviewed. 

    Me Too in Malibu?

    Sources believe more victims of sexual assault under the color of authority occurred in our community during the time Mitrice Richardson disappeared, and authorities want the victims to come forward as there may be vital information linking these cases.

    If you have information you believe may be connected to or directly related to the Mitrice Richardson case, call the anonymous tip line at 310.906.0435.  All calls will remain anonymous.