SLO County DA Dan Dow explains reasoning on Tianna Arata charges — but only to his base
District Attorney Dan Dow has taken heat from both sides over the Tianna Arata case.
Some conservatives say he should have filed felonies against the young Black protester who led a July 21 civil rights march onto the freeway — and now faces 13 misdemeanors as a result.
On the flip side, many liberals believe Arata should not have been charged at all, especially since dozens of white protesters who blocked the highway that day were not charged with a single crime.
While there’s been strong criticism from the left and right, so far Dow has responded to only one side in this debate — an unusual move for an office that’s normally tight-lipped about cases making their way through the system.
Yet on Sept. 4, Dow posted a lengthy response to criticism of his decision to file only misdemeanors against Arata — despite the San Luis Obispo Police Department recommending filing five felonies.
Dow made his comments in a lengthy post on Protect Paso, a private Facebook group self-described as a “network of patriots that are willing to stand up to protect men and women in Blue, our property, and its citizens. This is a ANTI-LOOTING, ANTI-VIOLENCE, ANTI-HATE AND ANTI-RACIST group.”
For the benefit of San Luis Obispo County residents who don’t have access to the private Facebook group, here are some of the most relevant passages in a post in which Dow defends himself from criticism, heaps blame on the state Legislature for being too lax on crime and wraps it up by asking critics to become fully educated about the case.
Dow’s explanation
“I did not cave on anything. I am seeking accountability and justice by charging appropriate crimes for what evidence was submitted to my office. We have filed a complaint charging 13 separate counts.
“The law does not support felonies being prosecuted for the conduct in this case — even though that may seem hard to believe to someone who has seen the publicly available video. However, please remember … our laws are written by the super majority in Sacramento. They have been decriminalizing everything since 2011 beginning with AB 109 realignment. And, ‘we the voters’ passed Prop. 47 and Prop. 57 and since then, the Legislature has continued to water down all of our criminal law.
“Please know that there is a very different legal standard for an arrest vs. the standard for filing charges in court and obtaining a conviction. Law enforcement only needs ‘probable cause’ to make an arrest. However, the DA is required to have proof ‘beyond a reasonable doubt’ for EVERY element of the offense before we can charge it.
“For anyone to pass judgment on my decision without reading the specific laws, the jury instructions, and the entire case file is not fair. I believe that my track record demonstrates that I am the strongest advocate for public safety and I work tirelessly for our community’s safety. It is my duty and my passion. I do not waver and I will not waver. And I will not be bullied by anyone — left or right.
“Prosecutors cannot charge what we cannot prove, that would be unethical and would be seen by any jury as undermining the case that we can prove. Also, please know that I am prohibited from publicly discussing the facts of a pending case.
“Please know that misdemeanors are significant as criminal behavior. Other serious crimes also classified as misdemeanors include: DUI (first, second, and even third), theft, vandalism, hit and run, battery, battery on a peace officer, domestic violence, ID theft, criminal threats, etc. ... It’s not like a misdemeanor is a speeding ticket. Each misdemeanor can carry up to 3 years of probation and up to 6 months or 1 year in the County Jail. It is not at all what you are calling ‘a slap on the wrist.’
“If things don’t make sense to you, please do what you can to learn more about the specific laws, charges, jury instructions, all the elements of the crime that must be proved beyond a reasonable doubt before concluding that I caved or sold out or discounted the case. It’s easy for people on social media to be armchair lawyers and make assumptions that a case is easily proved. If you want to read some of the jury instructions that give the specific law that we and the jury are bound by, you can do so here: https://www.courts.ca.gov/partners/312.htm.
“We can’t charge what we cannot prove. And we can’t just make a misdemeanor a felony because we feel like the facts warrant it. We are doing everything we can. If you read my press release, the investigation for the events of July 21st is ongoing and we expect additional individuals will be charged in the near future.”
Open invitation
For the record, we invited the district attorney to write an opinion piece for The Tribune that would speak to all county residents — including those who believe Arata should not be prosecuted at all.
Dow respectfully declined, “primarily due to a lack of bandwidth and time to devote to it.”
The Tribune responded with an open invitation to address our readers at any time, and on any topic.
We do so because countywide leaders — including the district attorney and the sheriff — are accountable to all residents, not just the supporters who put them in office, and if their actions require further explanation, it should be accessible to everyone.
Yet in this increasingly partisan environment, they appear to be sharing opinions — and even news — with only a select group of people.
We saw that when Sheriff Ian Parkinson downplayed the importance of face masks during the coronavirus pandemic and questioned the Black Lives Matter movement in front of a Tea Party audience, and when Dan Dow announced to a crowd of supporters that he’s declaring San Luis Obispo a “sanctuary county” for worship during COVID-19. He later repeated that on his county webpage — but his supporters heard it first.
There is already more than enough partisan antagonism in our purple county.
Leaders elected to what are ostensibly nonpartisan positions only deepen that divide when they lavish love and attention on one “side” and freeze out the other — especially when it comes to communicating information of interest to all, such as the rationale behind the criminal charges in the Tianna Arata case.
Elected officials at every level have numerous ways to reach out to all their constituents — through news releases and news conferences, government websites and Facebook pages, and public events, to name just some of the options. There is no need for them to communicate via private Facebook pages or highly partisan meetings.
The next time the sheriff or district attorney has a message to share, we strongly urge them to speak to all of their constituents — not just those who share their politics and can be counted on to vote for them in the next election.
This story was originally published September 20, 2020 at 5:05 AM.