Keith Kenard Asberry, Jr. has history of arrests and crimes dating to 2005 including for murder

Alameda County-wide backlog in rape kits and failure of Berkeley PD sending in Asberry’s DNA for testing delayed his identification as suspect in 2008 case

By Alameda County District Attorney’s Office

OAKLAND, CA— On Friday, May 31, 2024, Alameda County District Attorney Price Pamela Price announced the sentencing of Keith Kenard Asberry, Jr. (39) of Antioch, who was convicted last month after a jury trial on the charges of kidnapping, rape, burglary, and assault. Asberry was sentenced to 75 years to life by Honorable Judge Thomas Reardon in Alameda County Superior Court after being found guilty.

During the trial, the prosecution presented compelling evidence showing that in 2008, Asberry approached a teenager as she was getting in her car on Alston Way near Berkeley High School. The evidence also showed that Asberry 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 ATM card to withdraw $200 from her bank account.

In the 2015 incident, Asberry walked into the home of the victim, who had just finished unloading her car from a shopping trip. A short, violent struggle ensued as the victim fought off the attack, prompting Mr. Asberry to run out the front door.

The jury found Asberry guilty of kidnapping to commit sex crime with true findings of an allegation of use of a firearm, kidnapping to commit robbery with true findings of an allegation of use of a firearm, forcible penetration with findings of allegations of use of a firearm, aggravated kidnapping, and tying and binding, forcible oral copulation with true findings of allegations of use of a firearm, aggravated kidnapping, and tying and binding, forcible rape with true findings of allegations of use of a firearm and aggravated kidnapping, all felonies. Mr. Asberry was also found guilty of first-degree burglary with a true allegation of a person being present and misdemeanor assault.

“Today’s sentencing is a testament to our commitment to seeking justice for victims of sexual violence,” said DA Price. “Keith Asberry’s actions were vile, and this sentence reflects the severity of the crime and its impact on the victim. I commend the work of the prosecutorial team, the inspector assigned to the case, and the victim-witness advocates for the services and support provided to the victims.”

Judge Reardon imposed the maximum sentence allowed under the law for these convicted charges, which is 75 years to life plus 36 years.

According to localcrimenews.com, the six-foot-four, 180-pound Asberry was arrested once in 2014 by Antioch PD on a warrants or hold only and four times in 2015 by Emeryville PD, U.C. Berkeley PD and by Alameda County Sheriff’s Deputies for the aforementioned crimes, plus false imprisonment by violence, burglary, conspiracy to commit a crime, addict in possession of firearm and violation of probation. In 2018 he was arrested by the Alameda County Sheriff’s Department for murder.

A 2018 report by Berkeleyside provides details of the various other crimes including when Asberry was “charged with the murder of an Albany dental student in her Kains Avenue apartment three years” before. “The Albany Police Department…announced the break in the fatal shooting investigation from 2015. Randhir Kaur, 37, was found dead in her apartment…on March 9, 2015.”

In addition, “DNA testing of Asberry’s blood tied him to…a 2005 sexual assault and home-invasion case in El Cerrito.”

A 2016 report by the San Francisco Chronicle “focused on the county-wide backlog of rape kits at that time, but also highlighted how the Berkeley Police Department’s failure to send in Asberry’s DNA for testing delayed the discovery of the alleged culprit in the 2008 case. Police said the rape kit had ‘fallen through the cracks,’ the Chronicle reported, but said they could not explain why.”

According to the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office, Asberry is Black, was born on Aug. 24, 1984, used multiple aliases including “Joey”, and being held in the Santa Rita Jail.

The Alameda County District Attorney’s Office (DAO) is one of California’s largest prosecutors’ offices and is led by Alameda County’s first Black woman District Attorney who is facing recall on the November ballot.

Allen D. Payton contributed to this report.

Come see scholars from the city of Antioch shine in this amazing production for three shows only!

Set during the last years of New York City’s celebrated High School for the Performing Arts in the early 1980s, Fame JR. is the bittersweet, but ultimately inspiring, story of a diverse group of students who commit to four years of grueling artistic and academic work.

In the theater at the Nick Rodriguez Community Center, 213 F Street in Antioch’s historic downtown Rivertown. Presented by Aspire Youth Programs in partnership with the City of Antioch. Follow Aspire Youth Programs on Facebook.

Admission is free. To reserve your seat, visit Fame Jr Tickets, Multiple Dates | Eventbrite.

Yosemite ranked #1, Sequoia #8 & Kings Canyon #10

On this National Trails Day see how all 63 national parks rank for hiking, most trails, most miles of trails & most visitors

By KURU Footwear Media Team

National parks are a national treasure—and Americans know it.

In fact, the National Park Service saw 325.5 million recreation visits in 2023 (that’s up more than 13 million visitors from the previous year!), and almost half of Americans (48%) say visiting the national parks is on their bucket list.

National parks help preserve and protect many of our nation’s stunning natural landscapes, so we can behold the beauty for years to come—often through one of thousands of breathtaking hikes.

With summer coming up and kicking off (unofficially) with Memorial Day weekend in May, we wanted to dig into data and find the top 10 best national parks for hiking to help Americans discover their next adventure.

Which National Parks are the Best for Hiking?

With so many show-stopping trails in the U.S. National Park System (over 44,000 combined miles of them!), we knew we needed to narrow it down.

To find our top national parks for hiking, we looked at several metrics: high number of trails, miles of trails, and a high average trail rating score. We also found the crowd density in each park by comparing the average number of daily visitors with the acreage of the park.

Here’s what we found!

Yosemite National Park takes our #1 slot with 278 trails, 4,729 miles of trail, and a 4.56 average trail rating. Located in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California, Yosemite is known for its iconic and striking Half Dome, tall waterfalls, and giant Sequoia trees.

Let’s dig into a more detailed breakdown of parks ranked by number of trails, miles of trails, and annual visitors!
Every National Park Ranked for Hiking

Here are our rankings of all 63 national parks based on our metrics. Total mileage was rounded up to the nearest whole mile for the purposes of the table.

As a note, our rankings are based on specific metrics, but everyone’s priorities are unique! So, when it comes time for your national parks trip, feel free to reference this list while ultimately choosing the parks that most inspire you. We feel every national park is worth a visit!

Which National Parks Have the Most Trails?

The national park system offers a tremendous total of 4,155 trails. Even if you ambitiously decided to hike one each day with no days off, you’d need a whopping 11 years to do it!

But if you’re looking for hiking options for the whole family, choosing a park with a high number of trails is a smart way to ensure there’s something for everyone.

Which National Parks Have the Most Miles of Trails?

When mileage matters most (or you’re just hoping to get your steps in!) choosing a park with plenty of miles of trails might be your best bet.

With an impressive 44,370 combined miles of trails within national parks, you certainly won’t be short of options. The longest trail in the National Park System is the North Country Trail—spanning 4,600 miles across eight states!

Which National Parks Get the Most Visitors?

Great Smoky Mountains National Park topped our list as the most visited, receiving almost 3 times as many visitors as the second most-visited national park, Grand Canyon National Park!

As you plan your next national park adventure, you may or may not want a lot of people around for the party. Here are the parks with the most visitors in 2023.

Final Thoughts & Tips for Hiking in the National Parks

Now that you’ve discovered more info about some of our nation’s top national parks, here are a few tips on how to prepare for a visit to your bucket-list destination!

• Do your research. Before you leave, we recommend planning your trip in advance by researching weather, trails you want to prioritize, trail difficulty, length, bathroom stops, and finding any needed lodging.
• Wear supportive footwear. Bring a pair or two of comfortable, supportive shoes with plenty of traction, as you could walk many miles per day as you explore.
• Stay hydrated. Bring plenty of water to get you through long days. It’s smart for each person to wear a hydration pack along with additional bottles of water if needed.
• Use sun protection. When in the sun, apply sunscreen every two hours, wear a hat and sunglasses, and wear moisture-wicking clothing with as much coverage as possible.
• Bring a first-aid kit. On the trail, you might not have immediate access to medical care, so bring a kit with you that includes the basics (think disinfectant, bandaids, ace bandage, etc.) until you can get more help.

Whichever park you decide on, we hope you have a spectacular visit!

About the National Parks

Since 1916, the National Park Service has been entrusted with the care of our national parks. With the help of volunteers and partners, we safeguard these special places and share their stories with more than 318 million visitors every year. But our work doesn’t stop there.

We are proud that tribes, local governments, nonprofit organizations, businesses, and individual citizens ask for our help in revitalizing their communities, preserving local history, celebrating local heritage, and creating close-to-home opportunities for kids and families to get outside, be active, and have fun.

Taking care of the national parks and helping Americans take care of their communities is a job we love, and we need—and welcome—your help and support. Learn more on the National Park Service website.

Methodology and Sources

Methodology

We used data from the National Park Service and AllTrails to find the number of available trails in all 63 National Parks in the United States, then ranked each on a scale of best to worst based on number of trails, miles of trails, average trail rating, and park crowd levels.

We used Alltrails to find all of the available trails in each of the 63 National Parks, and analyzed them based on the following metrics:
Number of Trails (Total)
Total Distance of Trails (in Miles)
Average Trail Rating (1-5 Scale)
Number of Annual Visitors (2023)
Acreage of the National Park (Public Areas Only)
These variables were weighted as follows to achieve our final scores and subsequent rankings:
(40%) Number of Trails
(35%) Miles of Trail
(20%) Average Trail Rating
(5%) Park Crowd Levels
Each metric was normalized on a 0-1 scale with 1 corresponding to the measurement that would most positively affect the final score. These adjusted measurements were then added together with the weights mentioned above to get a score of 100.
Sources
1. AllTrails.com
2. National Park Service – Reports (General)
3. National Park Service – 2023 Recreation Visitors
4. National Park Service – Trails & Hiking
5. National Park Service – Acreage by Park
About KURU
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Suspected of killing Pittsburg resident Santiago Jacobo; all former co-workers

One woman, a former Deer Valley High student is his ex-girlfriend; 3rd suspect, a Concord man, being held on immigration warrant

GoFundMe account for victim’s family surpasses goal

By Captain Matt Kristic, Pleasant Hill Police Department

Crime/Incident: Homicide – Penal Code 187

Date/Time Reported: February 10, 2024

Location: Pleasant Hill Park, 147 Gregory Lane, Pleasant Hill

Victim: Santiago Jacobo, 37-year-old resident of Pittsburg, CA

Suspects: Suspect #1 Pablo Gutierrez-Morales, 31-year-old resident of Concord, CA (In-custody)

Suspect #2 Vanessa Vera-Aguilar, 24-year-old resident of Antioch, CA (In-custody)

Suspect #3 Jazmin Ruiz, 25-year-old resident of Antioch, CA (In-custody)

Case Number: 24-411

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On Friday, May 31, 2024, Pleasant Hill Police Investigators arrested three people in connection with the February 10, 2024, stabbing death of park employee Santiago Jacobo of Pittsburg.

Pablo Jose Gutierrez-Morales, 31 of Concord; Vanessa Vera-Aguilar, 24 of Antioch and Jazmin Ruiz, 25 of Antioch have been booked into the Contra Costa County Jail in Martinez under the charges of Murder and Conspiracy to Commit Murder.

During a three month-long investigation, Pleasant Hill Police detectives obtained evidence indicating the victim and suspects knew each other as they all worked together at The Watermark at San Ramon, an assisted living facility.

The evidence shows that the arrested suspects planned, coordinated, and carried out the attack on Jacobo on the night of February 10, 2024, after Jacobo had finished his shift working as a custodian at Pleasant Hill Park. (See related article)

Detectives determined that prior to Jacobo’s murder, he had been in a relationship with suspect Vera-Aguilar while another suspect, Gutierrez-Morales, was pursuing a new relationship with her.

Police detectives are asking anyone with information regarding Jacobo’s death and the involved suspects to contact the Pleasant Hill Police Investigations Bureau at (925) 288-4630.

Our thoughts and condolences remain with the Jacobo family.

The Pleasant Hill Police Department would like to thank the San Ramon Police Department for their assistance. We would also like to thank the Pleasant Hill Recreation and Parks District for their ongoing assistance throughout this homicide investigation.

According to the Contra Costa Sheriff’s Office, the five-feet, 10-inch tall, 180-pound Gutierrez-Morales (born 5/8/1993) is being held in the Martinez Detention Facility without bail and his arrest type is listed as Immigration. The five-foot tall, 105-pound Ruiz is being held in the West County Detention Facility on a no bail Ramey Warrant. No information about Vera-Aguilar was available in an online search from the Contra Contra Sheriff’s Office. However, according to her Facebook page, she attended Deer Valley High School and left in 2018. Efforts to reach Vera-Aguilar and Captain Kristic for additional details were unsuccessful prior to publication time.

UPDATE: When asked to explain why Vera-Aguilar is not listed as in custody, Captain Kristic said, “All three are in custody being held on no-bail. Vera-Aguilar is also being held in the West County Detention Center. The Aquarius system the Sheriff’s Office uses was having trouble updating, today.”

Regarding Gutierrez-Morales’ arrest being listed as Immigration he said, “An external document was sent to MDF from ICE (Immigration & Customs Enforcement). But all three suspects were booked on charges of murder and conspiracy to commit murder.”

“The suspects’ photos are being released due to the violent felonies associated with this case,” Kristic added.

A GoFundMe account for Jacobo, set up by his sister-in-law Maria Jacobo on behalf of his wife, Alejandra Jacobo, has raised $42,109 as of Saturday, June 1st, surpassing the goal of $35,000. According to the account, “He leaves behind a wife and 2 kids, son Santiago and daughter Mikaela. It feels so unreal how his life was taken in such a violent and cowardly way. Santiago was a kind hardworking man and will be missed by many loved ones.” The donations are intended “to cover funeral costs or any expenses Alejandra and her kids may have during this hard time.”

Allen D. Payton contributed to this report.