Crime

County prosecutors dropped murder charges against a Gilroy doctor initially accused with hiring another man to murder his 74-year-old wife. Dr. German Baldeon, 68, emerged from the South County Courthouse in Morgan Hill Oct. 7 a free man, after evidence came to light clearing his name of any involvement in the April 1 stabbing death of Doris Mae Knapp in the couple’s home on the 1400 block of Bristlecone Court.

A fifth-grade teacher at Paradise Valley Elementary School was arrested on suspicion of sexually assaulting a female student inside his classroom, according to Morgan Hill police.John A. Loyd, 52 of Hollister, was arrested Oct. 2 on suspicion of lewd and lascivious acts with a child younger than 14, lewd and lascivious acts upon a child as a caretaker, annoying or molesting a child and preventing or dissuading a witness, police said. Loyd is accused of sexually assaulting a child victim on more than one occasion inside his classroom at the campus located at 1400 LaCrosse Drive, police said. The crime allegedly occurred earlier this month. Police have so far declined to release further information about the victim, including her age or whether or not she was regularly in Loyd’s classroom during instructional hours. Detectives are working with Morgan Hill Unified School District to notify parents and are asking parents to talk to their children to determine if there are anymore victims, according to MHPD Capt. Shane Palsgrove. Parents are encouraged to notify police before attempting a detailed interview with their child, Palsgrove added. Loyd was booked into Santa Clara County Jail following his arrest, and he remains in custody. Anyone with information about this case can contact MHPD Det. Mindy Zen at (408) 779-2101 or the anonymous tip line at (408) 947-7867. 

The Gilroy Police Department recently made arrests for a variety of crimes, including possession of ammunition by a felon, trespassing, vandalism and inflicting bodily damage on a spouse. Arrests were recorded in the GPD blotter between Sept. 22 and 29. All suspects remain innocent until proven guilty.

Police arrested a 38-year-old Gilroy woman Sept. 20 and charged her with attempted murder. Tanika Billie Johnson allegedly stabbed another Gilroy woman multiple times before she was taken into custody, according to a Gilroy Police Department press release.

The Gilroy Police Department recently made a variety of arrests for crimes including prowling, child endangerment, first-degree burglary, driving under the influence and identity theft. Arrests were recorded in the GPD blotter between Sept. 8 and 15.

A San Jose man and Campbell woman were killed in a Saturday morning accident on Highway 152 west of Lover's Lane, according to the California Highway Patrol.

Two Hollister men died in a traffic accident on U.S. 101 in Morgan Hill early Sunday morning, according to authorities. The two men were traveling southbound on the freeway in a 2005 Nissan about 1:30 a.m. Sept. 21, according to the California Highway Patrol. For an unknown reason, the vehicle traveled off the roadway onto the right shoulder just south of the Tennant Avenue exit and collided with a sign post, authorities said. Both occupants of the vehicle suffered fatal injuries as a result of the collision. The Santa Clara County Coroner’s Office identified the driver as Colton Moag, 23, and the passenger as Tyler Raisbeck, 30. Both were Hollister residents. 

The Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office is warning residents about a phone scam that appears to come from the 408 area code. The way the scam works is the scammers will text Verizon customers and tell the potential victims they’ve been locked out of their accounts, according to a press release from the District Attorney’s Office.

Bagpipes played at City Hall Thursday morning as the Gilroy Police Department Honor Guard and Gilroy Fire Department personnel raised the flag to half-mast in remembrance of the lives lost during the September 11 terrorist attacks.