Monterey County District Attorney's Office
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Speakers Bureau The Speakers Bureau is a community outreach and education program that matches qualified members of the District Attorney’s staff with community groups and organizations wishing to learn more about various aspects of the criminal justice system. The program is free and available to the public. Entities such as neighborhood organizations, educational institutions, faith-based groups, and clubs or organizations should feel free to request a speaker for meeting or gathering. |
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| Multi-Cultural Community Council | |||
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Community Events
25th Annual Victims' Dedication Ceremony
Annual Police Memorial National Night Out - To be announced Public Safety Night - To be announced |
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The Monterey County District Attorney’s Office will serve as a strong voice for the community on important public safety issues. With a focus on legislative issues, the government relations team will take a proactive role in shaping laws that impact public safety. |
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Legislative Issues Assembly Bill 109 Realignment, which shifted thousands of state prison inmates to local jurisdictions. Proposition 47, which dramatically reduced the crime and consequences for drug users and thieves. Proposition 57, which eliminated prosecutors’ ability to directly send a juvenile accused of a serious or violent offense to adult court and created a new criteria for early release of prisoners from state prison. |
Bills Supported |
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Programs and Services A Victim Assistance Advocate will speak with you and determine how we can assist you. Program services are provided free of charge and there is no legal citizenship requirement to receive assistance. |
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Facility Dogs
Family Justice Center
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Upon the request of the jurisdictional law enforcement agency the
Monterey County District Attorney’s Office will investigate and
independently review an officer-involved shooting incident resulting
in injury or death, as well as all other uses of force resulting in
the death of individuals while in custody or under the control of
law enforcement officers. This review addresses whether the
officers involved committed any violation of criminal law. It
does not consider issues of civil liability, police tactics, or
department policies and procedures.
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Our Mission |
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Policies
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Frequently Asked Questions |
| Forms | Brochures | Career Opportunities Public Records Act Requests | Local Agencies/Resources |
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The Monterey County District Attorney’s Office Bureau of
Investigation consists of 32 full time employees and multiple
volunteer interns. The Bureau of Investigation is managed by
Chief Investigator Ryan McGuirk who reports directly to District
Attorney Jeannine M. Pacioni and has overall responsibility for
Bureau operations and resource allocation. Chief McGuirk manages the
Bureau of Investigation with the assistance of two (2) District
Attorney Captains. In addition to these command staff, the
Bureau of Investigation has twenty-four (24) Investigators, six (6)
Investigative Aides and several volunteer investigative interns.
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| Collaborative Courts | Criminal Prosecutions | Specialty Units | Fraud |
|
Speakers Bureau The Speakers Bureau is a community outreach and education program that matches qualified members of the District Attorney’s staff with community groups and organizations wishing to learn more about various aspects of the criminal justice system. The program is free and available to the public. Entities such as neighborhood organizations, educational institutions, faith-based groups, and clubs or organizations should feel free to request a speaker for meeting or gathering. |
|||
| Suggested Topics | |||
|
|
|
|
| Speaker Request Form | |||
| Multi-Cultural Community Council | |||
|
Programs and Services A Victim Assistance Advocate will speak with you and determine how we can assist you. Program services are provided free of charge and there is no legal citizenship requirement to receive assistance. |
|||
|
|
|
Facility Dogs |
|
Upon the request of the jurisdictional law enforcement
agency the Monterey County District Attorney’s Office will
investigate and independently review an officer-involved
shooting incident resulting in injury or death, as well as
all other uses of force resulting in the death of
individuals while in custody or under the control of law
enforcement officers. This review addresses whether
the officers involved committed any violation of criminal
law. It does not consider issues of civil liability,
police tactics, or department policies and procedures.
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| Press Releases |
| Press Release Archives |
| Social Media Links |
| Press Conference Videos |
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Our Mission |
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Policies | Frequently Asked Questions |
| Forms | Brochures | Career Opportunities Public Records Act Requests | Local Agencies/Resources |
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The Monterey County District Attorney’s Office Bureau of
Investigation consists of 32 full time employees and
multiple volunteer interns. The Bureau of
Investigation is managed by Chief Investigator Ryan McGuirk
who reports directly to District Attorney Jeannine M.
Pacioni and has overall responsibility for Bureau operations
and resource allocation. Chief McGuirk manages the Bureau of
Investigation with the assistance of two (2) District
Attorney Captains. In addition to these command staff,
the Bureau of Investigation has twenty-four (24)
Investigators, six (6) Investigative Aides and several
volunteer investigative interns.
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Meet the District Attorney
Ms. Pacioni received her Bachelor of Science degree from Northern Arizona University. After receiving her Juris Doctorate Degree from the University of San Diego, School of Law in 1990, she became licensed to practice law in the states of California and Arizona. In 1990, she worked as a Deputy District Attorney for the Kern County District Attorney’s Office and in 1992 she joined the Monterey County District Attorney’s Office.
In 2001, she left to raise her family, returning after an 8-year sabbatical during which time she also served as a Grand Juror of the Monterey County Civil Grand Jury, and as President of the Junior League of Monterey County. In 2012, she joined the National Charity League of Monterey Bay, of which she has served as a member of their Board of Directors. Currently, Ms. Pacioni is a Board Member of the Monterey Rape Crisis Center, Monterey County Children’s Council and the Child Abuse Prevention Council. She is also a member of the Monterey County Bar Association and the California District Attorneys Association and the Monterey County Chief Law Enforcement Officers Association.
Ms. Pacioni has devoted her entire legal career to the pursuit of justice while handling virtually every type of criminal case prosecuted in Monterey County. For 20 years as a prosecutor, she has tenaciously represented victims of crime in numerous high-profile cases involving murder, gang crimes, vehicular manslaughter, assault, robbery, child molestation, adult sexual assault, and elder abuse. On November 21, 2019, Ms. Pacioni was recognized by the Monterey County Women's Lawyers Association as the 2019 recipient of the Lady Justice Lifetime Achievement Award for Legal Advocacy and Community Service.
In 2018, she was elected and became the first female District Attorney in Monterey County.
JOB OPPORTUNITIES
Press Releases
JURY CONVICTS MAN OF ASSAULTING POLICE OFFICER WITH A SEMIAUTOMATIC FIREARM AND OTHER CHARGES FOR ACTS LEADING UP TO THE 2019 OFFICER INVOLVED SHOOTING IN TORO PARK
Monterey County District Attorney Jeannine M. Pacioni announced today that yesterday a Monterey County jury found Ari Gold, age 27 and a resident of Salinas, guilty of assault with a semiautomatic firearm on a peace officer (a felony) brandishing a firearm in the presence of a peace officer (a felony) driving under the influence of a drug (a misdemeanor), and hit-and-run (a misdemeanor). Prior to the trial, Gold pled no contest to a felony violation of vehicle theft. The jury also found that Gold personally used a firearm when he assaulted the peace officer.
On July 23, 2019, Gold was in Monterey and smoked a substantial amount of marijuana and methamphetamine. Early that evening, Gold stole a truck from Monterey and drove it, while under the influence of methamphetamine, to his grandmother’s house on Estoque Place, in the Toro Park neighborhood of Monterey County. While on the way to his grandmother’s house, Gold was observed driving dangerously on and off the road. At one point, Gold nearly collided with another occupied vehicle on the road. Gold then crashed into a parked car while swerving to avoid the occupied one. Gold fled the scene without stopping and went to his grandmother’s house, in violation of a condition of his misdemeanor probation, which prohibited him from going to that house without his grandmother’s explicit permission.
California Highway Patrol officers Kristi Cho and Chris Weaver responded to 911 calls for the reckless driving and the collision. Neighbors identified the house Gold fled to for the officers. When the CHP officers ran a background check on the stolen truck and the home, CHP dispatch incorrectly informed the officers that the truck was not stolen, and the house did not have any prior calls for service. During that time, Gold’s grandmother and the owner of the house arrived. She informed the officers that no one was supposed to be home, and that she did not recognize the vehicle in her driveway. Gold’s grandmother then asked the officers to clear the house and make sure it was safe for her.
The officers requested a K9 unit but were told there were none available or in the immediate area. As a result, the two officers went into the Estoque Place house at the homeowner’s request. During a search of the home, Officer Cho found Gold hiding behind a shower curtain in the master bathroom, while Officer Weaver was just outside of the bathroom. Officer Cho ordered Gold repeatedly to get down on the ground, and Officer Weaver did so as well. Without any warning, Gold quickly reached behind the shower curtain, outside of Officer Cho’s view, grabbed a loaded semiautomatic .45 caliber model 1911 handgun, and pointed it at Officer Cho. The handgun had a live round in the chamber. The thumb safety was off, and the hammer was cocked. Had Gold pulled the trigger, the firearm would have fired a round at Officer Cho who was standing 6 feet away.
In response, Officer Cho began firing at Gold while she backed out of the bathroom entrance and fell to the ground. Officer Weaver, hearing the shots and seeing Officer Cho fall to the ground, began firing through the wall of the bathroom, believing that Officer Cho had been shot. Officer Cho continued to fire her weapon as she backed away to cover while still on the floor. Officer Weaver fired rounds into the bathroom from different angles through the wall. Once behind cover, Officer Cho stood up and reloaded her weapon while Officer Weaver repositioned to the side of the bathroom door exit. After a brief period of time, without warning or announcement, Gold rushed
out of the bathroom, still armed with the firearm, and was fired at by Officer Weaver. The first few shots missed Gold, so he then rushed back into the bathroom. However, as Gold rushed back into the bathroom, Officer Weaver shot Gold in the upper spine which instantly paralyzed Gold below the neck.
Both officers then saw the model 1911 handgun at the location where Gold rushed out of the bathroom and was shot at by Officer Weaver. The officers found Gold lying just inside of the entrance to the bathroom, on his back, with an air soft rifle on his lap. The model 1911 handgun was just a couple feet away from Gold’s feet. Upon realizing Gold was injured, the officers then began to render aid and called for an ambulance. Over the course of the shooting, CHP officers fired 44 rounds and Gold did not fire any in response. Gold received two gunshot wounds, one to the hip and one to the spine. Crime scene evidence showed that Gold had been shot in the hip by a bullet that went through the wall of bathroom while Gold was still inside the bathroom. Scene evidence showed that Gold was still walking around the bathroom until the very end of the shooting.
A sample of Gold’s blood was obtained eight hours after the incident. His blood was tested by the California Department of Justice for drug levels. Even after that period of time, Gold’s methamphetamine and amphetamine blood levels were still substantially elevated and consistent with chronic methamphetamine abuse and a high level of intoxication.
Gold’s defense team hired retired police officer and psychology professor, William Harmening, to offer speculative testimony based on unscientific interpretations of crime scene evidence, many of which were later contradicted by independent evidence. During the preliminary hearing in this case, Harmening opined that Officer Cho shot and paralyzed Gold at the start of the shooting. However, subsequent forensic testing of the bullets taken from Gold’s body conclusively determined that Officer Weaver’s weapon fired both bullets that struck Gold. Additionally, during a pre-trial hearing, Harmening falsely claimed that he has repeatedly qualified as an expert and had testified to crime scene evidence opinions around the country. After being presented with over half a dozen instances where Harmening’s expert opinions were excluded for lack of reliability and/or lack of crime scene evidence expertise, Judge Mark Hood found that Harmening lied about his background as an expert. Judge Hood also ruled that Harmening’s opinions lacked scientific reliability and amounted to “pure unadulterated speculation.”
Harmening was only allowed to testify to very limited areas regarding CHP policy, the effects of stress on witness memory, and bullet trajectory evidence. Harmening shared with the jury what he thought was contained in CHP’s use-of-force policy in 2019 at the time of this officer involved shooting. However, subsequent evidence showed Harmening had not actually read the policy which was in place in 2019 and he was simply summarizing amendments to CHP policy that were made in 2020 after the shooting.
The Defense team also hired forensic pathologist Dr. Werner Spitz to testify as an expert. Dr. Spitz was originally called to testify solely to the medical effect of being shot in the spine. However, during the trial, the Defense asked Dr. Spitz to offer crime scene reconstruction opinions, even though Dr. Spitz had reviewed virtually none of the evidence in this case and had no background in crime scene reconstruction. After providing some crime scene reconstruction opinions, Dr. Spitz was confronted with photographs of the scene that made some of his opinions impossible. Upon being confronted with these photographs, Dr. Spitz told the jury: this was not his field of expertise,
they shouldn’t rely on his reconstruction opinions, he did not vouch for the accuracy of his opinions, and that he relies on the police for those types of opinions.
Gold testified in his own defense and alleged that he was sitting on the toilet of the bathroom when Officer Cho opened the bathroom door. Gold stated that upon seeing the officer, he immediately threw his firearm to her, and the officers started shooting at him. He testified he was paralyzed early in the shooting. He denied ever walking to the part of the bathroom where Officer Cho said she found him. However, upon being confronted with multiple crime scene photographs which showed his version of events was not possible, Gold at one point admitted that the events may not have happened as he remembered. Additionally, near the end of his testimony, Gold testified to a fact that directly contradicted his earlier testimony. When asked to explain the discrepancy, Gold admitted that he simply answered “yes” to a suggestive question from his attorney which he didn’t know the answer to, solely because it was his attorney making the suggestion.
The jury deliberated for two and half days and found Gold guilty of all charges and enhancements which were alleged. Judge Mark Hood will preside over the sentencing on December 6, 2022. Gold’s maximum possible sentence is 10 years, 8 months in state prison. The case was primarily investigated by DA Investigator Alicia Cox and former DA Investigator Jorge Gutierrez.
Contact Us
Main Office
142 W. Alisal Street, Suite A, Salinas, California 93901
Monterey Office
1200 Aguajito Rd. Room 301, Monterey, California 93940
King City Office
250 Franciscan Way, King City, California 93960
Phone: (831) 755-5070
Fax: (831) 755-5068
Email: publicinformation@co.monterey.ca.us