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The woman accused of crashing her car through a security gate, then attacking sheriff’s deputies, will remain behind bars while her criminal cases are pending.
Katherine Virginia Zacevich
Today Visiting Judge Bruce Watson denied supervised release for Katherine Virginia Zacevich, arrested after she allegedly smashed her car through the security gate at Pacific Gas and Electric Co. on Aug. 5. When the first deputy arrived, he reportedly found Zacevich wearing only pants and appearing to be under the influence. She allegedly attacked the deputy, then jumped into a nearby slough and swam for awhile before being taken into custody.
Deputy District Attorney Whitney Barnes opposed Zacevich’s release, saying she is a transient who has admitted she partakes daily of marijuana and alcohol and has used cocaine in the past. The 24-year-old “has an extensive criminal history” in several states, Barnes said.
Barnes said when officers tried to arrest Zacevich “she fought them, biting and kicking.”
Deputy Conflict Counsel Hugh Gallagher, representing Zacevich, argued that her charges (vandalism and battery on an officer) aren’t that serious. He said she’s not a transient but has an address on I Street in Eureka. Gallagher said that if released, Zacevich would agree to drug-testing and counseling.
And Zacevich wanted the judge to know, Gallagher said, that “she has never used cocaine.”
Watson, in denying the release, pointed out that Zacevich has a recent DUI case pending, and that she used force on the officers. She was arrested for DUI just a few weeks before the alleged gate-crashing incident.
The judge also noted that Zacevich has criminal records in Nebraska, Washington and Wyoming.
Zacevich, when she first came into the courtroom, smiled broadly and waved at a woman in the courtroom audience. The bailiff had to admonish them to stop communicating.
The preliminary hearing is scheduled for later this month. In the meantime Zacevich is being held on $25,000 bail.
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