Judge Imposes the Maximum Sentence for Man Convicted of Kidnapping, Rape, Burglary, and Assault    May 31, 2024 OAKLAND, CA— Today, Alameda County District Attorney Price Pamela Price announced the sentencing of Keith Kenard Asberry Jr. (39), who was convicted last month after a jury trial on the charges. Mr. Asberry Jr. was sentenced to 75 years to life by Honorable Judge Thomas Reardon in Alameda County Superior Court after being found guilty of kidnapping, rape, burglary, and assault. During the trial, the prosecution presented compelling evidence showing that in 2008, Mr. Asberry Jr. approached a teenager as she was getting in her car on Alston Way near Berkeley High School. The evidence also showed that Mr. Asberry Jr. used a gun to force the victim to drive to a dead-end street where the sexual assault occurred and then further forced the victim to use her…

Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price Sues Farmers Insurance and Other Home Insurance Companies Alleging Widespread Scheme to Underinsure Homes in California  May 21, 2024 OAKLAND, CA – Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price announces that her Consumer Justice Bureau has sued multiple home insurance carriers comprising 15% of the home insurance market in California, including Farmers Insurance Exchange, alleging they operate a widespread scheme that knowingly and systematically underinsures homes in California. The complaint alleges that these home insurance carriers provide consumers with inaccurately low replacement cost estimates, far less than the amount needed to rebuild their homes in the event of a disaster. This violates insurance regulations requiring any such communication to “include the expenses that would reasonably be incurred to rebuild the insured structure(s) in its entirety.” To generate replacement cost estimates, these home insurance carriers utilize third-party software that considers very little…

Fugitive Double Murder Suspect Extradited Back to Alameda County and Charged with the Shooting Deaths of Two San Lorenzo Women May 17, 2024 OAKLAND, CA—Today, DA Pamela Price announced Howard Reed (31), has been charged with the murder of Jingwei “Melanie” Zhang (32), and the murder of Dorothy Mak (38). Both victims were found deceased on May 4, 2024, in a residence that they shared with the defendant in San Lorenzo. According to the investigative report, deputies from the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office conducted a welfare check at the residence in San Lorenzo after receiving calls from concerned family and friends who reported they had not heard from the two victims since late April 2024. Upon entering the residence, the deputies found evidence of a shooting and the bodies of Ms. Zhang and Ms. Mak. The deputies did not find the defendant at the scene.…

May 13, 2024 OAKLAND, CA — Today, Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price announced that prosecutors obtained a conviction against Joseph Roberts, 43, for the murder of Rachel Elizabeth Imani Buckner. The jury deliberated for less than a day and found Defendant Roberts guilty of second-degree murder for murdering Ms. Buckner, whose dismembered body was found along a waterfront trial in Alameda. The testimony and evidence presented at trial showed that on July 20, 2023, the Alameda Police Department responded to a suspicious circumstance report. When officers arrived on the scene, they found a woman’s dismembered body inside a black garbage bag near the Harbor Bay Club on Bay Farm Island. On August 29, 2023, the female was identified as 27-year-old Rachel Buckner. The jury also heard evidence that Mr. Roberts’ DNA was found on the duct tape used to seal the garbage bag. Mr. Roberts…

Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price Announces Lawsuit Against Automobile Insurance and Software Companies, Alleging Scheme Underpaying California Residents for Totaled Vehicles to Maximize Insurance Profits May 9, 2024 OAKLAND, CA — Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price announces that her Consumer Justice Bureau has sued multiple automobile insurance companies and their affiliated software developers, alleging they worked together to create and use automobile valuation software to systematically undervalue “totaled” vehicles and pay California insurance consumers less than the actual value owed under the policies. The civil consumer protection Complaint alleges this automobile undervaluation scheme violates numerous California laws, including California’s Insurance Code, Unfair Competition Law, and False Advertising Law. The Complaint demands civil penalties, restitution for California consumers, injunctive relief, and associated fees and costs. “A vehicle is the lynchpin to life in California. Many residents live paycheck to paycheck and go deeply into…