Treatment of victim’s family inappropriate
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Editor,
'On July 9, 2013, my parents, Wayne and Helen Gryde, were killed in a car accident. The following is how their deaths were handled in the Lake County court system.
Five months went by with no news. I called the county attorney Mitch Young to find out about the ticket the boy responsible had received. I was told there was a conflict of interest and the case had been sent to the state Attorney General who ruled no charges would be filed. I clarified this asking if he would not be given any traffic ticket? Mitch said yes and if I had an issue with it talk to the Attorney General. I was in shock. The letter from the attorney general stated there would be no felony charges. After speaking to the Attorney General I learned there would be no felony and it was up to the county to file a misdemeanor. I assumed Mitch would take it from there. He didn’t.
Mitch was unprofessional, demeaning and unsympathetic. He made me feel as if I was a nuisance. I believe he intentionally misled me to believe there was nothing we could do, and the boy would not be given a citation. In his words it was a done deal. He was going to brush this under the carpet.
Unfortunately throughout this process Rick Schoening’s attorney communicated that we were pursuing this for political reasons only. This statement is offensive and repulsive. I have forgiven this boy, but the behavior of his parents is sickening. I don’t care who is running for sheriff — my parents are dead. This isn’t about politics, this is about doing the right thing, and to say it is anything else is appalling and insensitive to the enormity of the loss of these two people.
After the hearing, Rick Schoening’s wife was shouting profanities in the courthouse at Kim Leibenguth for attending the hearing. We asked Kim to attend. I think my family may be the only ones who have the right to scream and yell about the way we have been treated by several prominent people in Lake County government.
Darcy Canestro
Castro Valley, Calif.
