Ex-fireman accepts vandalism blame

VISALIA — An ex-California Department of Forestry firefighter admitted to spray painting gang graffiti several places in Pixley, according to court records.

Raul Cardona Valdez, 32, pleaded no contest June 25 to two counts of felony vandalism and an allegation that his actions were gang related. He will be sentenced Aug. 13 to felony probation, as opposed to a state-prison term he faced if found guilty at trial.

“I think that the agreement is fair, all parties agreed that he would get punished,” Albert Garcia, Valdez’s attorney, said Tuesday. “There had to be some kind of message to him and the community, whether it be the gang community or the community at large, that says these crimes are serious, and because of the gang allegations involved, they are taken even more serious.”

Neighbors on Dec. 3 caught Valdez, a seasonal fire apparatus engineer, spray painting a garage, telephone pole and backyard fence with Norteno gang graffiti — while in uniform and driving a CDF light engine.

When confronted about the acts by neighbors, Valdez said he was performing a sting operation of sorts to flush out the actual vandals. When neighbors said they would call the Tulare County SheriffÂ’s Department, Valdez told neighbors that he knew all the local deputies and they wouldnÂ’t do anything to him.

SheriffÂ’s deputies arrested Valdez in April after investigating the claims. His arrest subsequently revealed that CDF does not perform background checks on most of its firefighters, a loophole officials said they hope to close.

Garcia said his client pleaded no contest as opposed to going to trial because he knew what he did was wrong. Valdez, who was formerly affiliated with gang members, suffered from a “criminal relapse,” Garcia said.

Prison, Garcia said, would cause irreparable damage to his client.

“He has established himself, and it took him 10 years to do it,” Garcia said. “I don’t want him to go back 10 years, I don’t want him to have his back against the wall and have to resort to his old ways.”

A Tulare County Superior Court Judge will determine in August if Valdez will receive the maximum one-year jail sentence allowable under probation, one year.

“The [district attorney] will likely argue for the maximum, he could easily get the maximum, but we will argue less than that,” Garcia said. “I think the judge agreed that if you strip it down to what really happened, as egregious as it was being on company time, and done in uniform, that it was a vandalism act.”

Deputy District Attorney Kerri Lopez said she believed Valdez would receive the maximum jail term.

“The judge pointed to that being the case, but we just have to wait to see what the probation department recommends,” Lopez said.

Contact Aaron Burgin at 784-5000, Ext. 1046, or aburgin@portervillerecorder.com.