Dinius Trial Postponed Till May

Lake County News is reporting that the trial of Bismarck Dinius, which was slated to begin this month, has been pushed back to May. The postponement was requested by Deputy District Attorney John Langan and was not opposed by Dinius’s attorney Victor Haltom.

As you’ll undoubtedly recall, Bismarck Dinius happened to be holding the tiller of a drifting sailboat on Clear Lake on the night of April 29, 2006, when Lake County Deputy Sheriff Russ Perdock slammed into it at a high rate of speed, killing Lynn Thornton. In what we see as a flagrant slap in the face to Lady Justice, Dinius was charged with manslaughter while Perdock was cleared of all wrongdoing. Haltom maintains that certain aspects of the initial investigation — done by Perdock’s co-workers — may not have been handled correctly.

Dinius told us last month that two articles in Boat U.S.’s Seaworthy magazine have drawn national attention to his case, and consequently more donations to his legal defense fund, for which he was very grateful. "From this point on, everything is coming out of my pocket, so anything helps." To aid in his defense, send a check made out to Bismarck Dinius, writing "Bismarck Dinius Defense Fund" in the memo section, and mail it to Sierra Central Credit Union, Attn: Brian Foxworthy, Branch Manager, 306 N. Sunrise Ave., Roseville, CA 95661.