OC Register, "Woman travels to oppose parole of man who killed father, sister"

By LARRY WELBORN / THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

Lynette Duncan waits in the visitors area at R.J. Donovan Correctional Facility near San Diego in December 2010 before giving a statement for the denial of parole for Brett Thomas, one of two teenagers who murdered her father and sister 33 years ago. Thomas did not show up for the hearing in 2010, but he is scheduled again on Tuesday. FILE PHOTO: MICHAEL GOULDING, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTERLynette Duncan is going to prison on Tuesday, and she can hardly wait.

She is traveling from her East Coast home to the Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego to oppose parole for one of the men convicted of murdering her father and her sister during an Orange County killing spree in 1977.

"Nothing could keep me away," Duncan said.

For more than 30 years she lived with a deep-seated fear that the killers who blasted her father Aubrey Duncan, a billiards parlor owner, with a shotgun on the front doorstep of his Anaheim home on Jan. 26, 1977, would somehow return to harm her or her family.

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OC Register, "Broadcom co-founder Henry T. Nicholas and retired judge Jack Mandel get keys to Santa Ana"

Henry T. Nicholas, III and Jack K. Mandel received the keys to the city of Santa Ana for their work on behalf of young people through the Nicholas Academic Centers. And Nicholas steps forward with a donation to a fund for a grief-stricken family.

By RON GONZALES / THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

Published: July 6, 2012 Updated: July 7, 2012 8:07 a.m.

Former Broadcom CEO Henry T. Nicholas, III, left, and retired Superior Court Judge Jack Mandel talk universities in this 2010 photo. The two partnered to create the Nicholas Academy Centers, both of which are in Santa Ana. CINDY YAMANAKA, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTERSANTA ANA – Henry T. Nicholas, III, co-founder of Broadcom, and retired judge Jack K. Mandel received keys to the city for their contributions to Santa Ana and the Nicholas Academic Centers.

The rare presentation came at the beginning of the City Council meeting on Monday, July 2.

Mayor Miguel Pulido honored them for their commitment to the youth of Santa Ana and their work with the Nicholas Academic Centers. He said it had been at least 10 years since the last key was bestowed.

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OC Register, "Her words brought a courtroom to tears"

AJ Egan's husband was killed in 2007 in a botched robbery at the Home Depot in Tustin where he was the manager. Nearly five years later, Egan says she found closure in delivering a victim-impact statement that the prosecutor called one of the most eloquent and articulate ever in Orange County. After hearing her speak, the judge agreed with jurors and sentenced Jason Richardson to death in the murder of Tom Egan. AJ Egan was exercising her right under Marsy's Law to speak during sentencing.  "That chapter of my life is finished and I hope to move forward into a new chapter," she said. - HTN Foundation

Her words brought a courtroom to tears

By LARRY WELBORN / THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

AJ Egan, the widow of Thomas Egan, talks to the media after the sentencing of Jason Russell Richardson in Santa Ana on Nov. 28. Richardson was convicted of the special circumstances murder of Tustin Home Depot manager Thomas Egan. Richardson received the death penalty. PAUL BERSEBACH, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTERAJ Egan worked on her victim-impact statement for years.

When she was done telling Superior Court Judge William Froeberg about the enormity of the impact her husband's murder in 2007 had on herself and her family, spectators were crying.

It was one of the most eloquent and articulate victim statements in an Orange County courtroom, Deputy District Attorney Cameron Talley said. To read her remarks, click here.

She was entitled to give her remarks under Marsy's Law, which guarantees victims and their families the right to speak during sentencings and at other appropriate times during the legal proceedings.

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OC Register, "She went from gang area to D.C"

The Nicholas Academic Centers held their third annual Thanksgiving dinner celebration Nov. 23 at Valley High School for more than 200 students, NAC staff and community leaders. NAC co-founders Judge Jack Mandel and Dr. Henry Nicholas were joined by Santa Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido in congratulating students on their academic success, while challenging them to succeed in college and become leaders in their chosen careers. Among the speakers was Ana Rodriguez, a NAC alumna and freshmen at Georgetown University, who told the audience that, “The NAC prepared me for leadership and today I stand as a leader. I’ve become an example of the fruits that can be borne from a city like Santa Ana.” Also sharing her experiences was Marylinda Bustamante, who attends Valley High School.  “Since I don’t have Internet access at home or even a computer, it’s really hard to get my work done,” she said. “But I know I can really count on the NAC. I know I couldn’t have been a straight A student last year without the NAC.”

Below is a Q&A that Orange County Register columnist Frank Mickadeit conducted with Rodriguez as she enjoyed her turkey dinner. - HTN Foundation

She went from gang area to D.C

By FRANK MICKADEIT COLUMNIST / THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

Ana Rodriguez, left, talks to Rocio Chavez-Bonilla, director of social services for the Nicholas Academic Centers in Santa Ana during the annual Thanksgiving party Henry Nicholas hosts for the students and center alumni. After spending her childhood in a gang area of Santa Ana, Rodriquez graduated from high school last year and is now at Georgetown University. She credits the SAT prep she did at the afterschool center with helping her get into college. FRANK MICKADEIT, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

In what appears to have become a Thanksgiving tradition for me, I spent the evening before at the little soiree Henry Nicholas hosts for the kids and staff at the academic tutoring centers he funds in Santa Ana. About 150 Nicholas Academic Center students have gone on to college in the last three years.

This party is a time for some of those who've gone off to college to come back and inspire the kids who are still putting in the hours at the tutoring centers. One alum back in town over the weekend was Ana Rodriguez. She grew up on Chestnut Avenue in Santa Ana, the oldest of three. Her father is a roofer and her mother is a housekeeper. Ana graduated from Godinez High School last year and is now at Georgetown. As she ate a plate of turkey and fixings, I got her to do a Q&A.

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OC Register, "Governor revokes parole for prom night killer"

Gov. Jerry Brown has reversed a ruling last year to grant parole to Paul Crowder, who is serving a 15-years-to-life sentence for the second-degree murder of Berlyn Cosman, then 17, as she celebrated her prom night in Anaheim. Brown said in a letter that Crowder does not "understand or accept responsibility for his actions" and "poses a danger to society if released." The Orange County DA and Cosman's sister, Morgan Cosman Kelly, said they will petition the governor to reverse a separate finding by a second parole board that Crowder is suitable for parole. Kelly is represented under Marsy's Law by attorney and former Asst. DA Todd Spitzer. - HTN Foundation

By LARRY WELBORN / THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTERPaul Crowder's prison mug shot. COURTESY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS AND REHABILITATION

Gov. Jerry Brown has reversed a state board's decision last year granting parole to a La Crescenta man who shot and killed a 17-year girl in 1991 as she celebrated her prom night in Anaheim.

Paul Crowder, now 39, has been serving a 15-years-to-life term for the second-degree murder of Beryln Cosman, a straight-A student who had earned a college basketball scholarship.

In a four-page letter dated Nov, 4, Brown contended that Crowder "does not genuinely understand or accept responsibility for his actions... (and) currently poses a danger to society if released."

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