Boat Crash Settlement

The I-Team has learned that a civil settlement was reached quietly last month in the fatal boat crash on Clear Lake. As we first reported last summer, Lake County Chief Deputy Sheriff Russell Perdock was driving his speedboat at least 40 miles an hour at night, when it slammed into a sailboat.

Lynn Thornton of Willows died in the crash and Bismarck Dinius, the man who happened to be steering the sailboat at the time, now faces a manslaughter charge. Prosecutors argue the sailboat’s lights were off at the time, so Dinius is responsible for what happened. The defense has experts and witnesses who say the lights were on.

All the parties threatened to sue each other, but we now know how it all turned out. Four insurance policies have been pooled – $300,000 from Bismarck Dinius’ policy; $300,000 from Russell Perdock’s policy; $100,000 from Mark Weber’s policy – he’s the sailboat owner and Thornton’s fiancee’; and $100,000 from James Walker’s policy – the lookout on the power boat. The bulk of the money, $760,000, is going to Lynn Thornton’s son who is now twenty-two years-old. Mark Weber receives $18,000. Bismarck Dinius –
$13,000. Russell Perdock gets nothing.

That highlights the basic point of our reports – didn’t Russell Perdock play a role in what happened? If prosecutors charged Dinius, why didn’t they charge Perdock, as well? Dinius and his attorney accuse prosecutors of protecting one of their own.

By the way, the local paper, the Lake County Record Bee, ran an on-line poll in June: "Should Perdock also be on trial with Dinius?" At the time of this blog, 883 of 1017 respondents answered "yes".

Comments

[mzrobin]

Dear Mr. Noyes,
I appreciate the information you have brought to light on this case. I eagerly await your next story. If possible.. you should go out on the lake on a dark night and see how dangerous and scarey it is with no visibility.
I live in Lake County and have boated on the lake 100s of hours day and night. On the moonless nights it is VERY dark. You can't hardly see anything. Boat lights are running lights (Very small not bright) not like headlights on a car that spotlight your path. (We actually bouhgt a spotlight for our boat to be able to see at night) I am scared even going 20 mph on a dark night. Your eyes play tricks on you with how far away the lights are. Some are on boats, some are on markers or shoals, some are on shore. Anyone who has been on Clear Lake at night would have to agree that going 40 mph is absolutly insane. It is reckless with a disregard for human safety. Perdock should be held accountable for his actions. He was negligent. Light on lights off it doesn’t matter. He should be at least 50 % responsible.
I keep reading about Dinus’s blood alcohol level. The big question is Perdock’s. He wasn’t tested immediately. (The officer who was going to test him was told not to) then when he was tested at the hospital (I don’t remember how many hours had passed) the public was upset of how much time had passed and the LCS blamed a hospital tech on logging the wrong time. Like the test was done immediately. What kind of crap is that?
This whole thing stinks.
I challenge anyone to go out on the lake on a dark night and just try going 40 mph and then with a clear conscience say that Perdock had no fault in this.
Keep up the good work Mr. Noyes. And Thank You!

[JEFF]

here is another cover up story on aug 30th a 40year old man anthony deigo chased 2 20 year old girls on my 83 year old mothers porch with a baseball bat he is yelling im going to kill the f###### cunt i called 911 while on the phone to 911 he tells his wife to go get her. 911 operater told me to get them in the house and lock the doors i did, she came over his wife singing roxanne your going to jail tonight and when she got to the door she broke into my moms house and grabed the one girl by the hair and dragged her out while im on the phone to 911 and started beating her face in while im on the phone to 911 then anthony ran up with his bat and started kicking her in the head i flipped and chased him off the cops came and threatened to take her to jail if he went and refused to do anything. i was mad and insisted they arrest him and they told me to shut up or they would arrest me that was late friday or early satuday then on monday morning he is yelling out in the street again that he wishes he would have killed her and that i helped the wrong person and that i was a rapest child mollester and a faggot and that he was going to kick my ass, then i couldnt take no more i went out we yelled then he ran in his house and said your going to jail he called the cops and i was arrested for assualt he said i spit on him now im dealing with the courts for the next year atleast and the best of it is still to come my 83 year old mother was terrified of this nieghbor that breaks in your house and assualts people so she went to victom witness to get a restraining order and they told her no and she had a heart attack and they operated on her 83 year old heart to put a stent in becouse of blockage of the arteries and said there wasnt enough blockage to need this operation they protected an undercover person instead of an 83 year old lady thanks DIANA at victoms witness you will see us in court you can count on it. i personally called sheriff mitchell he said if a crime was comitted it would be investagated what a joke perkins called me i told him everything he said he can only go on what was in the report and to this day nothing was done and my 83 year old mother has no restraining order what a d.a. we need an honerable D.A. and SHERIFFS dept its been a long time i predict more will happen to me now watch.

[JEFF]

CAN ANYONE BEAT THAT AND WHAT CAN WE DO ABOUT THE LEGAL SYSTEM IN LAKE COUNTY THE FEDS LET THEM GET AWAY WITH MURDER OVER AND OVER AGAIN.

[lynn]

I had a discussion with a person who knows Russ Perdock and saw him just prior to his launching of the outlaw. He said Russ Perdock had been drinking then.

Please keep up the good work in keeping us informed.

[lynn]

a couple of days after this boat accident I had a conversation with someone who knows Russ Perdock and said they had seen him, that day, prior to launching the outlaw and said Russ had been drinking.

[Chesapeake Boater]

Has there been any new official news about this story?

[concerned citizen]

Perdock and Mitchell are protecting Anthony could it be Mitchells son they look alike

[bill]

It seams weird that the DA says that people who saw the sail boat lights from shore can't be beleived because it was 300 to 500 yards off shore. However they site the two girls as reliable for not seeing the lights from shore. So if you see them your too far but if you don't your not. Bill

[Another concerned citizen]

Bill,
Name one witness who actually saw the collison, from 300 or 500 yards offshore or anywhere else, who saw any lights on, RUNNING or cabin lights. There are no witnesses I am aware of, who actually witnessed the collision and saw any lights what so ever. There are witnesses who saw lights on the sailboat approximately 2 hours prior to the collision, but were in bed at the actual time of the collision. The witness I am speaking of is Doug Jones. By his own testimony, he was in bed at the time of the collision. It has been discussed elsewhere on these blogs that the sailboat went for a "star cruise" that evening. I believe that someone, perhaps Weber, turned the running lights off on the sailboat to make the stars more visable.

[lynn]

Anyone who operates a boat in an unsafe manner, unsafe conditions should be held accountable for their actions.

Officer Beland who was instructed that night not to breath test Russ Perdock and was fired in Dec.08.
The DA could still charge Russ Perdock up to Apr 29.

[Concerned Citizen]

Lynn,
You are correct. Anyone operating a boat drunk with no running lights on, (unsafe manner, unsafe conditions), should be held accountable. Perdock was held accountable in the civil case and the Thornton estate received $300,000.00 from Perdock's insurance. Coincidentally, the same amount Dinius' insurance paid in the civil case. Interesting that some of the Thornton family now claim they believe Dinius had no fault in the collision. Are they going to give back the insurance money from Dinius' insurance, or for that matter, from Walker's insurance, as he was merely a passenger??? I don't think so.

Your comment on officer Beland being "instructed not to breath test Perdock" is not the truth according to Beland's own testimony in court. He testified that he was instructed to take Perdock to the hospital for a blood test. The same as what was done with both Dinius and Weber. Any testimony indicating that Dinius or Weber were breathalyzed at the scene??? If they were, I would sure like to know what their breathalized alcohol level was, considering the levels they were, 2 and 1/2 hours after the collision. If you were in the courtroom, surely you heard Beland testify that he was, in fact, not ordered to not breathylize Perdock. The question was asked of him very specifically and he denied being ordered in that manner. He was merely instructed to take Perdock to the hospital for a blood alcohol which is the legally binding method of testing.

[Juan Dominguez]

let us all get together on this and write to the attorney general.
Lets have some justice here.
Mr Purduck are you trying to protect someone else driving your boat????? is so, you are trying to have an inocent men take the fall???
Nice scout leader you are

[Boater on clear lake]

Lake county sherifs and the da there work on a buddy sytem. If your a good old boy you get both of there support. But if your not they prosecute and strive for the stifist punishents availiable. This allows them to sweep whatever they want under the rug.These are corupt people and the coruption extends all the way to the public defenders and private lawyers. I am a local who has personaly seen this in action. In other words I know the cop was drunk. Also his statments are coached. Third the harshest punishmen is being saught for the inocent. Finaly this cover up goes well beond the sherifs department all the way to the private good old boy club. These are facts not questions.

[Brian]

I live on the lake across from the accident site. Have been power boating on clearlake for forty years. The only reason this happened is due to excessive speed for the conditions. Period. I had a dock that broke free from my pier in a storm in 2004. What would have happened if it was at night, lights are not required on a dock. Perdock was going too fast for the conditions. Being a Sherrif, and a boater he knew better. Where was he going that night, so fast, no moon. That's why I don't typically go out at night on Clearlake. I don't want to get hit by another boat, lights on or not. It's still a high risk. I sit on my deck on most busy weekend nights and watch many boats late at night speeding around. Perdock would have seen the claimed darkened sailboat if he was traveling at a safe speed for the conditions. At least one of the sailboaters would have heard Perdock approaching and been able to signal, or move.

[Jim]

Looks to me like that judge will be facing felony charges himself. What does THAT tell you?
As far as speeding in the dark on ANY lake, that is pure stupidity.Drunk is even worse than that.That county is steeped in corruption from the top on down, and is one reason I don't live there. I am very pleased that a crack has finally appeared in the armor.
I hope they rot in hell.