Peter Owen Shea Sr., the last survivor of three engineers who built the construction and homebuilding company J.F. Shea Co., died Monday, Oct. 23, at his Newport Beach home after a “fierce and courageous fight” against Parkinson’s disease. He was 88. (Photo courtesy of J.F. Shea Co.)

Peter Owen Shea Sr., the last survivor of three engineers who built a multibillion-dollar construction and homebuilding business in their grandfather’s name, died Monday, Oct. 23, at his Newport Beach home after a “fierce and courageous fight” against Parkinson’s disease. He was 88.

Shea had served as vice president of Walnut-based J.F. Shea Co., the successor to a plumbing and heavy construction firm his grandfather, John Francis Shea, founded in 1881 in Portland, Oregon.

A company statement said Shea was most comfortable in khaki pants, a buttoned-down blue shirt and muddy boots, which he used to walk construction sites.

“While Peter was a man of few words, he enjoyed connecting with people and deeply valued gathering with family and his loyal community of golfing, bridge-playing, or neighborhood friends,” the company said.

The original company was a leader in the construction industry that worked on the Golden Gate Bridge, the San Francisco Bay Bridge, the Hoover Dam and the Interstate Highway System.

In 1961, Shea joined his cousin John Shea and older brother Edmund Shea Jr. as co-owner of the newly dissolved and reincorporated J.F. Shea Co. Shea later served as president of the conglomerate’s heavy construction subsidiary, J.F. Shea Construction, focusing on tunneling and large infrastructure projects.

In the following years, J.F. Shea Co. branched out into homebuilding, commercial real estate development and venture capital investing.

Founded in 1968, Shea Homes built more than 123,000 homes in 11 states, according to the company. Builder Magazine’s latest ranking listed the Los Angeles County company as the nation’s 27th biggest homebuilder in 2022, with 3,428 homes sold and $2.98 billion in total revenue.

The family’s commercial real estate arm, Shea Properties of Aliso Viejo, owns and operates about 10,000 apartments and 6 million square feet of office, industrial and retail space in California, Colorado, and Washington, the company’s website said.

In 2015, Forbes magazine estimated the Shea family’s combined fortune was $2.5 billion.

Peter Shea outlived his two founding partners. Edmund died at his San Marino home in August 2010 at age 80. John, a Pasadena resident, served as J.F. Shea’s chief executive officer, and then as board chair until he died at age 96 in October 2022.

Shea’s son, Peter O. Shea Jr., succeeded John as company CEO.

Born May 29, 1935, in Los Angeles, Shea was the fourth of five children. His father, Edmund Sr., supervised the construction work on the piers for the Golden Gate Bridge before the family moved to Los Angeles shortly before Shea’s birth.

Shea attended Loyola High School in Los Angeles, then earned a degree in business at UC Berkeley and an engineering degree from the University of Southern California.

He grew up around the family business’s construction sites, spending his summers on dam and tunnel projects, working as a driller’s assistant and miner on several tunnel projects.

J.F. Shea tunneling jobs included work on underground stations and Berkeley Hills tunnels for the Bay Area’s BART system, according to the company. The firm also did tunnel work for the Washington D.C. Metro.

Shea served on various construction industry and community organizations, including the Association of General Contractors board and the board for the Paul Merage School of Business at UC Irvine.

“Peter was a very kind, smart, and humble man,” said Shea Homes President and CEO Bert Selva. “He was also very quiet, but when he did share his thoughts, it was always incredibly valuable insight that was spot on. He was a great man and we will really miss him.”

Shea is survived by his wife, Carolyn; daughters Sarah and Catherine Shea Johnson; son Peter Jr.; sister Mary Elizabeth Callaghan; brother Henry; eight grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Nov. 11 at Our Lady Queen of Angeles Church in Newport Beach.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to Loyola High School of Los Angeles.

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CAPTION INFO: Jøtul’s Newcastle insert fueled by gas can be retrofitted into an existing masonry fireplace. Here it takes on the modern vibe of the room with a matte black overlay and sleek surround. CREDIT: Jøtul

It’s elemental, the attraction to fire, with its dynamic, shape-shifting flames and warmth. This is why homebuyers are so enamored — like moths to a flame, so to speak — to fireplaces, which often rank at or near the top of “must-have” home features.

Fireplace season is upon us, officially designated as the beginning of November to the end of February, and while Southern California isn’t exactly the tundra, we do like to keep the home fires burning inside and on outside patios to warm us up on cool nights.

The mild winters aren’t the only thing that sets this area apart when it comes to fireplaces. Although masonry fireplaces are still found in plenty of homes here, it has been about a decade since regulators banned their installation in any new housing developments because of pollution concerns. Since that time, masonry fireplace inserts and direct-vent gas and electric fireplaces have become increasingly common and offer technological advances, eye-catching designs and placement options.

• CAPTION INFO: The large Clean Face top direct-vent gas fireplace from Travis Industries offers a look that resembles a traditional masonry fireplace and features manufactured birch logs and ember bed lighting. CREDIT: Travis Industries

• CREDIT: Kozy Heat Fireplaces
  CAPTION INFO: A linear Calloway direct-vent gas fireplace from Kozy Heat Fireplaces mixes its modern shape with a more traditional overlay frame and surround.

• CAPTION INFO: Jøtul’s Newcastle insert fueled by gas can be retrofitted into an existing masonry fireplace. Here it takes on the modern vibe of the room with a matte black overlay and sleek surround. CREDIT: Jøtul

Fireplaces — no matter their type or energy source — and their hearths are one of the biggest focal points of a home’s living space and a prime opportunity to express personal aesthetics, from rustic with brick and stone to contemporary with clean, sleek and linear lines.

Patricia Rosengren, the executive director of the Hearth, Patio and Barbecue Association’s Pacific region who is based in Pasadena, notes two trends in fireplaces in Southern California: the inclusion of patio fireplaces as part of the outdoor room boom and the addition of multiple fireplaces throughout the home.

“The outdoor room isn’t just a trend, it’s a thing,” Rosengren said. “We are all about living outside and fireplaces are a key part of these spaces,” as they provide heat and create a cozy atmosphere.

As for multiple fireplaces, Rosengren said the wide availability and range of options in direct-vent gas and electric units that do not require chimneys means residents can now “add a fireplace to a bathroom or upstairs bedroom” and other places throughout the home.

Types of fireplaces

There are three top types of fireplaces allowed by law in the Southland:

Masonry fireplacesThe majority of existing single-family homes in California were built in the 1950s, according to Zillow, when masonry, wood-burning fireplaces were the norm. Almost always made out of brick, they are connected to the flue and chimney as one cohesive element.

If strictly burning wood does not appeal to you, your masonry fireplace can be retrofitted with a fireplace insert that burns natural gas, EPA-certified wood or pellets. It connects to the chimney and flue leading outside and is a low-cost retrofit option compared to installing a new direct-vent gas fireplace as a replacement.

Direct-vent gas fireplacesThe leading advantage of a direct-vent fireplace fueled by natural gas is that you don’t need a chimney, so homeowners can get creative with their placement. From linear designs to those that mimic the traditional square fireboxes, advances in the industry have led from basic, trimmed front-facing models to no-trim, tunnel (“see-through”), corner, three-corner and indoor-outdoor models.

Electric fireplacesAn electric fireplace can be installed anywhere, with no venting required, and can be plugged into any standard household electrical outlet. It can be used with or without heat, and most come with an adjustable thermostat.

These too come with various style choices to appeal to a wide range of design aesthetics, from rustic to contemporary. A recent popular option is electric fireplace media consoles that accommodate big-screen televisions and speaker systems.

“Electric fireplaces are especially popular among people who don’t own their homes who want the ambience of a fire,” Rosengren said. “Manufacturers have really done a lot in creating the flame patterns and they are quite realistic.”

She says her organization’s retail members will ensure residents choose products that meet all California regulations and codes.

“Our trusted retail members know all the technical updates to help homeowners select and upgrade fireplaces … so customers can focus on the design elements,” Rosengren said.

Fireplace ‘media’ matters

What is on the inside counts, too. The national Hearth, Patio and Barbecue Association, which tracks consumer trends, notes the growing design move toward more use of rocks and branches as the inside materials (called media) of non-wood-burning fireplaces.

That isn’t to say glass, granite and panel media options aren’t still popular, especially among those looking for a modern aesthetic. But manufacturers of fireplace media have introduced a wide variety of eye-catching products that realistically mimic nature, such as realistic “charred” logs and “embers,” manufactured logs that look like a campfire or beach bonfire, and ceramic stones, rocks and pebbles.

Wood-burning restrictions

Air-quality, health and safety concerns have prompted restrictions on construction and limits on the use of residential indoor and outdoor wood-burning fireplaces in California.

The South Coast Air Quality Management District — which oversees most residences in the South Coast Air Basin, nearly all of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties — adopted strict rules on wood-burning fireplaces in March 2009. Permanent wood-burning devices in any new residential developments are banned, and those with wood-burning fireplaces are subject to mandatory “no-burn” days when high pollution levels are forecast during the season. The rules exclude the Coachella Valley and high desert, residences above 3,000 feet in elevation, low-income households and homes where wood burning is the only source of heat.

Last season’s lack of rain and warmer than average temperatures resulted in a record number of “no-burn” days, with 33 designated compared to eight the year before, the South Coast AQMD reported. You can register online at the district’s AirAlerts.org to get “no-burn” alerts emailed to you on the designated days.

Building a better wood fire

You can still enjoy the warmth and ambiance of your wood-burning fireplace on a typical day. The South Coast Air Quality Management District offers the following tips on its HealthyHearths.org website to help reduce pollution: Start fires with softwood kindling such as pine or fir; always burn “seasoned” or dry wood; have your chimney periodically cleaned by a licensed chimney sweep to rid it of creosote buildup; never burn garbage and other materials, and monitor the chimney for smoke output (it should give off a small wisp of white steam; the thicker and darker the smoke, the more harmful it is).

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This $4.299 million home in Villa Park, center front, is up for grabs. It features an artificial grass field with a batting cage, a basketball court and a large pool area. (Photo courtesy of Estel Hilton of The Beverly Hills Estates)

• The main bathroom. (Photo by Sergii Dolgyi Real Estate Photography)

• The master bedroom. (Photo by Sergii Dolgyi Real Estate Photography)

• The pool area. (Photo by Sergii Dolgyi Real Estate Photography)

• The artificial grass field and the batting cage. (Photo by Sergii Dolgyi Real Estate Photography)

• The fitness center. (Photo by Sergii Dolgyi Real Estate Photography)

• A view of the house and the pool area lit up at night. (Photo by Sergii Dolgyi Real Estate Photography)

• This $4.299 million home in Villa Park, center front, is up for grabs. It features an artificial grass field with a batting cage, a basketball court and a large pool area. (Photo by Sergii Dolgyi Real Estate Photography)

A home in Villa Park with an artificial turf pitch and a batting cage in the backyard has hit the market for $4.299 million.

Described as “an opulent Hollywood Hills architectural style” by co-listing agent Estel Hilton of The Beverly Hills Estates, this modern five-bedroom, six-bathroom home was built in 2022 on nearly two-thirds of an acre lot.

There is a basketball court at the entrance in front of the property.

The house is located in the so-called Hidden Jewel, the smallest town in Orange County. Villa Park has been home to several famous people, including actor Kevin Costner, Yankees manager Aaron Boone, and singer Jose Feliciano.

Redfin data shows that prospective buyers from major cities including San Francisco, Chicago, New York, Washington, DC and Boston searched for homes in Villa Park from April through June. The median selling price per square foot in June was $513, down 8% year-over-year.

Although the square footage of this home is unknown, Redfin estimates its value at $4.315 million.

The front door is at the top of a flight of stairs. Upon opening, a bright and airy living space is revealed.

Accordion doors slide away, extending the great room, breakfast area off the gourmet kitchen, and master suite to the outdoor patio. It features a saltwater pool and spa, Baja pool, three fire pits, sunken seating area and BBQ island with refrigerator and sink.

The master suite has floor-to-ceiling storage and a luxurious bathroom with a glass-enclosed shower and bathtub.

At the rear of the property is a separate structure with a fully equipped gym, office, kitchen and bathroom. The roof of the building is covered with artificial grass.

Additional features include an attached three car garage with a large walk-in safe, additional storage and an electric car charger.

Estel Hilton of The Beverly Hills Estates and Katherine Candelaria of KC Realty Group share the entry.

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Four HOA bills in California have good intentions, but may create more problems than they solve. (iStockphoto)

The Legislature is active on HOAs this year, and eight bills may significantly affect California associations.

Four helpful calculations were discussed in last week’s column. Unfortunately, the four bills discussed here have good intentions, but they can create more problems than they solve.

The worst of the four is Assembly Bill 572, drafted by San Francisco Assembly Member Matt Haney. AB 572 would cap appraisal increases for charter-restricted affordable housing units and limit the HOA board to a maximum increase of 5% for those units.

If the HOA needed to increase ratings for all units by more than 5%, a member vote would be required to make it happen. This law tries to protect owners of affordable housing units, but it’s a terrible idea.

Why? It creates affordable housing as a separate class of homeowners who would pay less of their fair share of HOA expenses than their neighbors. It would arguably override most CC&Rs, which normally specifically allocate the distribution of reviews among owners.

Assembly Bill 1033, authored by San Francisco Assemblymember Phil Ting, proposes making a simple but potentially problematic amendment to Government Code Section 65852.2, specifically the section on municipal approval of secondary housing units.

The bill would authorize local jurisdictions to allow property owners (including owners in proposed developments) to convert their properties into miniature condos, allowing both the primary residence and the ADU on the property to be sold to buyers.

Fortunately, the bill does not say that it would override planned development CC&Rs, because if it did override CC&Rs, it would essentially allow for a rewrite of the subdivision map under which planned developments are made.

In a new mini-condo HOA scenario within a proposed development, would there be additional members of the proposed development association? Additionally, many (if not most) tiny HOAs ignore the Davis-Stirling Act, so it doesn’t help homebuyers create more.

Assembly Bill 1572, authored by Burbank Assembly Member Laura Friedman, proposes the creation of a new Water Code Section 10608.14 that would ban all owners (other than single-family homes) from using potable water on “unserviceable lawns” after early 2029.

For larger HOAs, this could mean huge plumbing and landscaping costs to irrigate green belts or other public areas that are considered “non-functional”. It could also mean major problems and costs for the HOA and for the community in areas where treated water is not currently available.

Senate Bill 403, authored by Senator Aisha Wahab of Fremont, would declare illegal discrimination on the basis of “caste,” defined as “an individual’s perceived position in a system of social stratification based on inherited status.”

In North American culture, caste is not usually recognized. This very broad definition could lead to misunderstandings and misapplication within HOA neighborhoods.

Does someone avoid social interaction because another comes from more humble beginnings or perhaps comes from a more privileged upbringing? Although such behavior is superficial and ignorant, should it be illegal? Taking a practice from another culture and trying to define, understand, and prohibit it in our North American culture seems problematic.

The deadline for bills that must pass through their original house of origin is June 2nd. So you have time to contact your representative and give your opinion. Visit leginfo.legislature.ca.gov to read the bills and leave comments for the author.

Kelly G Richardson, Esq. is a Fellow of the College of Community Association Lawyers and a partner at Richardson Ober LLP, a California law firm known for its expertise in community associations. Submit column questions to Kelly@roattorneys.com.

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If a plumber is called to fix a problem at an HOA, is he now an Assembly Bill 5 employee rather than a contractor? Not necessarily, but there are problems. (iStockphoto)

Traditionally, many companies hire part-time or casual workers and refer to them as “independent contractors.” The IRS and the State Franchise Tax Board had guidelines to determine who is an employee and who can fairly be called an independent contractor. There were many factors that played a role in this characterization.

HOAs often hire what they consider “independent contractors” to perform specific maintenance, repair, or other routine tasks. This avoided wage tax deductions and other legal obligations.

All that began to change in 2018 with a case called Dynamex in the California Supreme Court, which replaced the traditional test of employment versus the independent contractor with a simple three-part test, often referred to as the “ABC” test. That ruling was included in Assembly Bill 5, which Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law after the passage of the legislature.

AB 5 creates a new Labor Code section 2750.3 and affects all hirers, including HOAs, who use “independent contractors” who may be reclassified as “employees”. This new law adopts the “ABC” test, which categorizes an employee as an independent contractor if: A) the hirer does not actually and contractually control or direct the individual in the course of their work; B) The work performed is outside the borrower’s normal business; and C) The worker also normally and independently performs that work for others.

If the hired person meets the three requirements, they can be treated as an independent contractor. As ever, the element of control over how the person does their work is key.

Some HOA service providers are specifically exempt from the law, such as lawyers, architects, engineers and accountants. The more relevant area for clubs are employed people who work on the HOA property and are paid by the HOA.

An example of an independent contractor would be the plumber called in to fix a leak. The plumber is not supervised or instructed on how to perform the repair. The plumber usually works for others as well, and HOA’s business is not plumbing.

On the other hand, a less clear answer might apply to maintenance or janitorial workers paid by the HOA. Such workers are often directed by the manager or board of directors. Since HOA’s job is to maintain the common area, isn’t general property maintenance and cleaning part of HOA’s “business”?

Conversion of employees to employee status may result in sick leave and other obligations for the HOA, including payroll withholding levies. An employee might try to challenge their termination or claim discrimination. In addition, employees are subject to fair employment and wage and hour laws. Associations should consult their insurance broker for workers’ compensation coverage.

There will be public resources to educate HOAs and managers on the difference between employee and independent contractor status. The California Department of Industrial Relations is developing a website, but it is not ready yet. The California Chamber of Commerce provides information at calchamber.com.

Managers and their boards should be aware of the simpler standard and avoid misrepresenting workers as “independent contractors” where the law does not support that status. Also remember that staff (employee) discussions are intended for closed sessions, while independent contractors are vendors and should be discussed in open sessions.

Kelly G. Richardson Esq., CCAL, is a Fellow of the College of Community Association Lawyers and a partner in Richardson|Ober|DeNichilo LLP, a California law firm known for advising community associations. Send questions to Kelly@rodllp.com.

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Hossein Nayeri is testifying in a Superior Court in Santa Ana, California on Monday, March 13, 2023. Nayeri is accused of kidnapping and vehicle theft following his escape from an Orange County jail in 2016. At the time, he was awaiting trial for kidnapping and torturing a marijuana dispensary owner, for which he has since been convicted and sentenced to multiple life sentences. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

The alleged mastermind behind a daring Orange County prison break in 2016 testified Monday that he had intended to immediately fly to Los Angeles International Airport to leave the country, but ended up being stuck with his two fellow escapees on the run, as his original ride has not surfaced.

Hossein Nayeri took the stand in Orange County Superior Court to admit he took part in the headline-grabbing prison escape, but to deny that he and his fellow escapees kidnapped an independent cab driver amid the ensuing manhunt and held him hostage kept or that he was involved in the theft of a van.

Nayeri – along with fellow inmates Bac Tien Duong and Jonathan Tieu – allegedly spent more than six months cutting through half-inch steel bars to gain access to plumbing tunnels at the Santa Ana Central Male Prison. Nayeri used a smuggled cell phone to record her subsequent escape on January 22, 2016, when the fugitives used the tunnels to get to the prison’s roof and abseiled five stories down the side of the building.

Nayeri said an accomplice, whose name he did not give, was to pick him up near the prison.

“My plan was right after LAX, get out of here,” Nayeri testified. “With hand luggage, passport in hand, ticket already bought, straight to Istanbul, Turkey.”

After five or six hours of desperate, unanswered calls to his unnamed accomplice, Nayeri said he decided to join Duong and Tieu, who a friend of Duong’s was waiting to pick them up a few blocks from the jail.

“At that point, I had no choice but to join in for a minute to at least figure out the next step,” Nayeri said.

Over the next few hours, Nayeri testified, Duong’s friend, another unnamed driver and then a relative of Duong’s took the fugitives to a residence in Westminster, a Vietnamese cafe and several other homes. At one point, the three men went with Duong’s relatives to find a car to buy, Nayeri testified. At another point, they dropped Tieu off at friends’, only to be surprised by the same people who later brought him back, with Tieu explaining that his friends felt there was “too much heat”.

Knowing prison officials would soon discover they were missing, Nayeri said Duong decided to call Long Ma, an independent, unlicensed taxi driver who advertised in Vietnamese-language newspapers.

Prosecutors have described Ma as an unsuspecting, unwilling participant who helped the fugitives evade capture amid a week-long manhunt. Ma testified that Duong pointed a gun at him and spent days in fear because he could not leave the fugitives alone as they traveled from Orange County to Rosemead and then to the Bay Area. Ma also claimed Duong ultimately stopped Nayeri from killing him and the driver convinced Duong to travel back to Orange County to turn himself in a day before the manhunt ended and Nayeri and Tieu were arrested in San Francisco .

While the driver testified that he had never met Duong prior to the night he picked up the fugitives, Nayeri claimed the driver and Duong shared a history.

“It was obvious from their interaction,” Nayeri testified. “Warm handshake, kiss on the cheek. After making the first deal, we hugged. It was a warm relationship.”

“Negotiations started in the car,” Nayeri added. “I don’t understand Vietnamese, but it was an intense conversation… We agreed on $500 for the (first) night and still wanted to negotiate a longer-term deal.”

“You heard a statement from Ma that he was arrested at gunpoint – did anyone have a gun?” asked Michael Goldfeder, Nayeri’s attorney.

“No, nobody had a gun,” Nayeri said.

After the first night at a Rosemead motel, Nayeri said the fugitives were still not sure if Ma was “going out” long-term and decided to look for another vehicle. Earlier Monday, a Los Angeles man described how Duong met with him to test drive a van he was selling and then stole the vehicle.

Nayeri said he was already frustrated with Duong, who Nayeri described as constantly wanting to “party and get girls” and couldn’t keep his alcohol down. Nayeri testified that his frustration boiled over when he learned Duong had stolen the van.

“The van was the drop that broke the camel’s back,” Nayeri said. “We argued. He got a little gung-ho and started taunting me a bit. I hit him once. He fell.”

The video shown to the jury, which Nayeri said was taken shortly after the fight, caught Nayeri saying to Duong, “You consider me your true brother, did I save your life?” and Duong replied: “You saved my life.”

“I wanted to remind him that I’m not his enemy,” Nayeri testified. “You took care of me. I shouldn’t have been there in the first place. So I didn’t want him to feel unappreciated.”

Testimony ended for the day before Nayeri was asked about the fugitives’ journey to the Bay Area or their eventual break with Duong and Ma and their eventual capture. Nayeri is expected to return to the stands on Tuesday morning.

Duong had previously been convicted for his role in the prison escape. Tieu is tried separately

Since the escape, Nayeri has been convicted of kidnapping and brutally torturing a marijuana dispensary owner, which landed him in prison in the first place. Nayeri is already serving multiple life sentences for this case, regardless of the outcome of the prison escape trial.

• Judge Larry Yellen speaks with attorneys in Hossein Nayeri’s trial in Superior Court in Santa Ana, California on Monday, March 13, 2023. Nayeri is accused of kidnapping and vehicle theft after escaping an Orange County jail in 2016. For a time, he awaited trial for kidnapping and torturing a marijuana dispensary owner, for which he has since been convicted and sentenced to multiple life sentences. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

• Hossein Nayeri listens to Judge Larry Yellin during his testimony in Superior Court in Santa Ana, California on Monday, March 13, 2023. Nayeri is accused of kidnapping and vehicle theft following his escape from an Orange County jail in 2016. At the time he was awaiting trial for kidnapping and torturing a marijuana dispensary owner, for which he has since been convicted and sentenced to multiple life sentences. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

• Hossein Nayeri is testifying in a Superior Court in Santa Ana, California on Monday, March 13, 2023. Nayeri is accused of kidnapping and vehicle theft following his escape from an Orange County jail in 2016. At the time, he was awaiting trial for kidnapping and torturing a marijuana dispensary owner, for which he has since been convicted and sentenced to multiple life sentences. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

• Hossein Nayeri is testifying in a Superior Court in Santa Ana, California on Monday, March 13, 2023. Nayeri is accused of kidnapping and vehicle theft following his escape from an Orange County jail in 2016. At the time, he was awaiting trial for kidnapping and torturing a marijuana dispensary owner, for which he has since been convicted and sentenced to multiple life sentences. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

• Hossein Nayeri’s attorney Michael Goldfeder questions his client Monday, March 13, 2023 in a Superior Court in Santa Ana, California. Nayeri is accused of kidnapping and vehicle theft following his escape from an Orange County jail in 2016. At the time, he was awaiting trial for the kidnapping and torture of a marijuana dispensary owner, for which he has since been convicted and sentenced to multiple life terms. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

• Hossein Nayeri is testifying in a Superior Court in Santa Ana, California on Monday, March 13, 2023. Nayeri is accused of kidnapping and vehicle theft following his escape from an Orange County jail in 2016. At the time, he was awaiting trial for kidnapping and torturing a marijuana dispensary owner, for which he has since been convicted and sentenced to multiple life sentences. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

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Long Ma recounts his 5-day ordeal when he was kidnapped by three inmates who escaped from the Santa Ana Central Men’s Prison in 2016. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)

From an abrupt kidnapping at gunpoint to forced pictures on the beach to motel room brawls, an independent taxi driver has testified this week that he endured a week of terror in 2016 while being held captive by three inmates who attempted a massive Manhunt for a daring escape to escape from an Orange County jail.

Long Ma — the Garden Grove driver who says he’s become an unwitting driver for three increasingly fractious fugitives — took a stand this week in the jailbreak trial of Hossein Nayeri, the alleged mastermind of the headline-grabbing escape from the Central Jail Complex Santa Ana.

Ma’s testimony — which took place in an Orange County Superior Courtroom less than a block from the scene of the prison break — came after Nayeri’s defense attorneys argued early in the trial that Ma was not the victim of a kidnapping but someone who had consented to be around to get the fugitives to safety for a big cash payout. Nayeri has admitted to escaping prison but has denied kidnapping Ma or being involved in any related auto theft.

The taxi driver – who testified through a Vietnamese-speaking interpreter – flatly denied willingly spending a week with Nayeri and the other refugees – Bac Tien Duong and Jonathan Tieu – and described the defense allegations as “absolutely fabricated”.

Nayeri, Duong and Tieu allegedly spent months cutting half-inch steel bars to gain access to the installation tunnels at the Central Men’s Prison. On January 22, 2016, the three men allegedly climbed rungs in the tunnels to get to the roof of the prison, where they abseiled five stories down the side of the building using a makeshift rope made of bed sheets. A friend of Duong’s said he picked up the fugitives not far from the prison and drove them to a house in Westminster.

Ma – who advertised his independent, unlicensed taxi service on the pages of local Vietnamese-language newspapers – received a call from one of the men and picked her up outside a restaurant on McFadden Avenue. Ma said he first drove them to a Walmart in Rosemead before they changed their minds and asked to go to a Target. After waiting nearly two hours for Nayeri to shop at the store, Ma said he followed the men’s directions to a parking lot next to a then-closed cafe and laundromat.

After a quiet chat with Nayeri, Ma said Duong told him the men needed his car.

“I said my car is for work,” Ma said. “And he pulled out a gun and pointed it at me.”

Ma said he was placed in the back seat of his car as the men drove to the first of a row of motel rooms, where they checked in using his ID and name.

“He took everything, my phone, my money. I wasn’t allowed to say anything to anyone,” Ma said. “I knew I was taken. I was very afraid.”

“I couldn’t sleep at all all night,” Ma added. “Because I was scared.”

The prison break quickly became national news as the manhunt for the escaped inmates escalated. Nayeri’s escape – who at the time was awaiting trial for kidnapping and brutally torturing a marijuana dispensary owner – was particularly alarming to authorities, given that he had fled to his native Iran in the past to avoid legal exposure .

Ma said he learned who the men were and why they were on the run after watching a televised press conference by an Orange County sheriff after his first night at the motel.

“Bac called me, pointed to the TV and said, ‘This is us, this is us.’ I saw the three guys clearly,” Ma said. “When they pointed the gun at me, I already knew what kind of people they were.”

After several days and nights in motels in the Rosemead area — during which time prosecutors allege the fugitives stole a van in Los Angeles — the three men and Ma drove to Northern California in two vehicles, Ma and the stolen van. Before they left, Ma said he convinced Duong to drive him back to his house to get medicine, a trip he had hoped would give him an opportunity to escape. Instead, Ma testified, Duong never left his side and his attempt to leave a message for roommates explaining his plight was unsuccessful.

At some point during their stay in the Bay Area, Ma said, Nayeri and Tieu took him to the beach. Photos of a smiling Ma standing next to Tieu on a pier have been cited by the defense as evidence Ma was a willing participant in their escape, but the driver said he had no choice but to appear cheerful.

“To be honest, I was forced to do it,” Ma testified. “I never felt like taking pictures with these people.”

Meanwhile, Ma testified, the bonds between the refugees seemed to be crumbling as the days went by. Ma said he was afraid of trying to escape because he thought he would be “shot in the head.”

“They really agreed for the first few days,” Ma said. “Then three or four days later, they were kind of cool, distant from each other.”

Disputes between Nayeri and Duong — which prosecutors say were about whether or not to kill Ma — eventually led to a fight between the two men in a motel room. Ma described how she helped clean up a bloody Duong after the altercation, and when Nayeri and Tieu left Ma and Duong alone at the motel the next day, the two men decided to return to Southern California.

Duong asked Ma to help him report to authorities, the driver said. As the only one of the refugees who spoke fluent Vietnamese, Duong had apparently bonded with Ma.

“Bac asked me if he could be my adoptive son,” Ma described part of their conversation on the way back to Orange County.

“Did you say something in reply?” asked Assistant District Attorney David McMurrin.

“Yes, I agreed,” Ma replied

Duong turned himself in to authorities, while Nayeri and Tieu were found in San Francisco a day later, ending the week-long manhunt.

When questioned directly by the prosecutor, Ma occasionally expressed anger at being asked to provide a step-by-step description of what happened to him. Nayeri watched the testimony dispassionately, often glancing down to take notes.

When Nayeri’s attorney, Michael Goldfeder, took over the questioning, Ma quickly became frustrated and angry, often challenging or refusing to answer the defense attorney’s questions.

Ma was particularly upset by questions about his relationship with an ex-wife, which apparently ended with him being accused of sexually harassing her and posting nude photos of her online. During prosecution questioning on Tuesday, Ma had denied his ex-wife’s allegations but declined to address them when defense attorneys brought them up on Wednesday, saying he “don’t remember.”

“Yesterday I said that my memory is very good. But today I forgot everything,” Ma said to Goldfeder. “It has nothing to do with the fact that I was kidnapped. I do not remember. ask no more.”

Orange County Superior Court Justice Larry Yellin repeatedly pardoned the jury to explain to Ma that he had no choice but to answer the attorneys’ questions whether he agreed with them or not.

“I would like to ask you to trust me that, as a judge in this case, I know how court proceedings work,” Yellin once told Ma.

Despite the judge’s warnings, Ma continued to complain when defense attorneys questioned him about alleged discrepancies between his current statement and his comments in police interrogations and previous statements. These alleged discrepancies included descriptions of a weapon the fugitives had and the exact actions of Nayeri, Duong, and Tieu.

“Not only do I refuse to answer your question, but I also beg you not to ask me anything further,” Ma told the defense attorney during a particularly combative conversation.

Duong – whom Ma credited with saving his life – has already been convicted for his role in the escape and kidnapping. Tieu is tried separately.

Nayeri – who since the escape has been convicted of kidnapping and torturing the owner of the marijuana dispensary that first landed him in jail – is already serving two consecutive life sentences regardless of the outcome of the prison escape trial.

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Hossein Nayeri listens to opening statements in the Supreme Court in Santa Ana, California on Monday, March 6, 2023. Nayeri is accused of kidnapping and vehicle theft following his escape from an Orange County jail in 2016. At the time, he was awaiting trial for the kidnapping and torture of a marijuana dispensary owner, for which he has since been convicted and sentenced to multiple life sentences. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

More than six years after three men brazenly escaped from an Orange County jail, the trial of the accused mastermind of the prison break, a Newport Beach marijuana grower and former international fugitive who has since been sentenced to life in prison for kidnapping and torture, began Monday became .

Hossein Nayeri, 44, has previously publicly admitted taking part in the 2016 escape from Santa Ana’s Central Jail Complex, even recording the escape on a contraband cell phone. An intensive week-long manhunt ended with Nayeri and his fellow fugitives being re-arrested.

On Monday, as Nayeri’s final trial began in a Santa Ana courtroom less than a block from the scene of the prison break, his defense attorney dismissed prosecutor’s claims that Nayeri was also involved in kidnapping a taxi driver or stealing a van, according to the headline-grabbing Escape.

• Assistant District Attorney David McMurrin delivers his opening statement at Hossein Nayeri’s trial in Superior Court in Santa Ana, California on Monday, March 6, 2023. Nayeri is accused of kidnapping and vehicle theft following his escape from an Orange County jail in 2016, following Bac Duong and Jonathan Tieu. Also pictured is her accomplice Loc Nguyen, below. At the time, he was awaiting trial for kidnapping and torturing a marijuana dispensary owner, for which he has since been convicted and sentenced to multiple life sentences. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

• Hossein Nayeri’s attorney, Michael Goldfeder, shows the jury a photo during opening remarks in the Supreme Court on Monday, March 6, 2023 in Santa Ana, California. Nayeri is accused of kidnapping and vehicle theft after escaping an Orange County jail in 2016. For a time, he awaited trial for kidnapping and torturing a marijuana dispensary owner, for which he has since been convicted and sentenced to multiple life sentences. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

• Hossein Nayeri appears before the Supreme Court on Monday, March 6, 2023 in Santa Ana, CA. Nayeri is accused of kidnapping and vehicle theft following his escape from an Orange County jail in 2016. At that point, he was awaiting trial for kidnapping and torturing a marijuana pharmacist, for which he has since been convicted and sentenced to multiple life sentences. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

• Judge Larry Yellin addresses the jury Monday, March 6, 2023 before the trial for Hossein Nayeri in the Superior Court in Santa Ana, California. Nayeri is accused of kidnapping and vehicle theft following his escape from an Orange County jail in 2016. At the time he was awaiting trial for kidnapping and torturing a marijuana dispensary owner, for which he has since been convicted and sentenced to multiple life sentences. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

• Hossein Nayeri listens to opening statements in the Supreme Court in Santa Ana, California on Monday, March 6, 2023. Nayeri is accused of kidnapping and vehicle theft following his escape from an Orange County jail in 2016. At the time, he was awaiting trial for the kidnapping and torture of a marijuana dispensary owner, for which he has since been convicted and sentenced to multiple life sentences. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)

At the time of the escape, Nayeri — whom prosecutors had previously likened to the fictional Hannibal Lecter and described as a “psychopath” and a “truly diabolical criminal” — was already accused of orchestrating one of Orange County’s most violent and shocking crimes in recent memory.

In 2012, Nayeri and two high school friends kidnapped and tortured a marijuana dispensary owner who they mistakenly believed had a non-existent million dollars buried in the Mojave Desert. The pharmacy’s owner was beaten with plastic tubing, shocked with a taser and burned with a blowtorch before his penis was cut off and he was left tied up in the desert.

A woman who was kidnapped along with the owner of the pharmacy managed to escape and waved for help. The missing body part was never found.

Nayeri quickly fled the country and traveled to his native Iran before being identified as a suspect in the kidnapping and torture.

Unbeknownst to Nayeri, his then-wife agreed to work with law enforcement to persuade him to travel to another country, where he was arrested and extradited to the United States.

While at the local jail, Nayeri reportedly teamed up with two other inmates — Bac Tien Duong and Jonathan Tieu — and spent months cutting half-inch steel bars to gain access to plumbing tunnels inside the central prison complex.

During a visit to the prison, Duong Loc provided Nguyen, an old friend, with a list of items needed for the escape, including cell phones, rope, a utility knife, and civilian clothes.

During Monday’s testimony, Nguyen said he agreed to bring the items “out of fear.” He described walking out of the prison twice in the early hours of the morning, where he attached backpacks filled with the items to ropes with hooks, which inmates apparently used to pull the bags onto the prison roof.

“What did you think the items would be used for?” Assistant District Attorney David McMurrin asked Nguyen.

“Definitely wanted to use it to try to escape from prison,” Nguyen replied, adding that Duong once mentioned meeting another inmate who had “this fantastic plan” for a prison break.

On January 22, 2016, Nayeri, Duong and Tieu allegedly climbed rungs in the installation tunnels to get to the roof of the prison, where they rappeled five stories down the side of the building using a makeshift rope made of bed sheets. Nguyen admitted picking up the three men not far away and driving them to a residence in Westminster.

Prosecutors said the three men were in high spirits after their escape.

“They laughed, they said they were famous that Mr. Nayeri planned this for seven and a half months,” McMurrin told jurors.

According to prosecutors, the men then contacted Long Ma, an allegedly unsuspecting independent taxi driver who advertised in local Vietnamese newspapers. Ma picked the men up and drove them to Rosemead, where he said they had a gun pointed at him.

“He didn’t want to be there,” McMurrin said of the cab driver. “He was afraid for his life”

The three fugitives and Ma – who said he was being held against his will – spent several nights in hotels around Rosemead while a massive law enforcement trawl searched for them. The fugitives then stole a van in Los Angeles and drove to San Jose, according to prosecutors.

Prosecutors have previously claimed that the “honeymoon phase” between the Bay Area fugitives had gone “sour,” culminating in Nayeri and Duong falling out during a heated argument in a hotel room over what to do with the cab driver, bumped into each other. Nayeri wanted to kill Ma, prosecutors claim, while the taxi driver said Duong fought to keep him alive.

Nayeri and Tieu eventually left the hotel room, McMurrin told jurors, and Duong decided to go with Ma and drive back to Santa Ana, where Duong turned himself in to authorities. Nayeri and Tieu were found in San Francisco a day later, ending the week-long manhunt.

During a previous trial, Duong’s lawyer framed Nayeri as the mastermind behind the escape, arguing that Duong simply wanted to get out of prison, meet some women, and then flee to Vietnam. The taxi driver credited Duong with saving his life and asked a judge for clemency. Duong was sentenced to 20 years in prison last year for both escaping prison and the attempted murder case that landed him behind bars in the first place.

Nayeri, in his own testimony during the 2019 torture and kidnapping trial, admitted to escaping prison and stated that he felt he was being followed by law enforcement.

“Mr. Nayeri accepts responsibility for the escape,” defense attorney Michael Goldfeder told the jury Monday.

Goldfeder described Duong, not Nayeri, as the actual mastermind behind the escape and said Nayeri was not present when Duong stole the van in Los Angeles.

Defense attorneys also claimed that Ma was not kidnapped, arguing that the cab driver would be paid $10,000 for his role in escaping the manhunt. The defense attorney said Ma took remittances for the fugitives and checked them into motel rooms. He also showed the jury pictures of a smiling Ma and Tieu standing on a Northern California pier amid the manhunt.

“Mr. Ma is a willing, consenting participant in moving these people around,” Goldfeder said. “It’s just four people working together in unison.”

Tieu will be tried separately for his alleged role in the escape.

Nayeri is already serving two consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole for the kidnapping and torture case, regardless of the outcome of the prison escape trial.

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A Nevada handyman convicted of strangling to death an 81-year-old man in the bedroom of a Newport Beach home was sentenced Monday, May 23, to 25 years to life in prison.

Anthony Thomas Garcia, 63, continued to profess his innocence during his sentencing hearing in a Santa Ana courtroom, a little more than a year after an Orange County Superior Court jury found him guilty of first-degree murder for the April 11, 2015, slaying of Abelardo Lopez Station.

Garcia’s conviction came at the end of his second trial; an earlier jury did not reach a verdict. The second jury found the killing was not carried out for financial gain, which had been alleged by prosecutors and could have led to a sentence of life without the possibility of parole.

On Monday, Garcia told Orange County Superior Court Judge Sheila Hanson that his conviction was a “failure of the justice system. …

“I have been wrongly convicted of a crime I did not commit,” Garcia said. “I am an innocent man. I have always been an innocent man.”

Estacion’s killing came in the midst of an ugly fight over the estate of Dortha Lamb, Estacion’s dying wife who has since died. Garcia is the former boyfriend of Lamb’s granddaughter and two of Garcia’s daughters are Lamb’s great-granddaughters.

Lamb was a self-made woman who owned valuable real estate in Newport Beach, San Clemente and Costa Mesa. She had been with Estacion for more than 20 years, marrying him shortly before his death. At the time, Lamb was dying from terminal cancer and suffering from dementia.

Garcia and some of Lamb’s relatives apparently believed Estacion was abusing Lamb and taking advantage of her health issues to siphon money from her accounts. According to testimony during the trials, Garcia had told others he wanted to kill Estacion.

Lamb’s family got her out of the Newport Beach home she shared with Estacion, and went to court to try to get Estacion kicked out of the residence.

A judge delayed a decision on whether to approve a temporary restraining order against Estacion. Hours later, someone entered the Newport Beach home, cut the power and smothered, struck and strangled Estacion.

Prosecutors accused Garcia of driving from Carson City to Newport Beach to kill Estacion, alleging he then immediately drove back to Nevada. They also alleged he left his cell phone with his adult daughter, Samantha Garcia, to make it look like he had stayed in Nevada.

Samantha Garcia initially told investigators she had her father’s cell phone the night of the killing and sent fake text conversations between his cell phone and hers. But during both trials the daughter recanted those earlier claims, alleging detectives pressured her to lie about having the cell phone.

During the trials, Garcia’s attorney, Alisha Montoro, described him as a non-violent, devoted family man who lived a simple life. The defense attorney denied the allegations by prosecutors that Garcia believed his daughter’s were entitled to Lamb’s money. She said Garcia wasn’t even in California the night of the killings.

During the sentencing, Clara Sanchez, Garcia’s sister, described him as funny, kind and unselfish, adding that he is “generous and giving to a fault.” She denied that he has ever been “a violent or aggressive human being. …

“We are all so proud that he has been able to survive in an unfair and prejudiced judicial system,” Sanchez told the judge.

The defense attorney unsuccessfully requested a new trial, alleging, among other things, that some jurors had fallen asleep during the second trial and that a juror had cited their own medical experience to claim the death could only have been a homicide.

The judge described the allegations of jurors falling asleep as “not credible” and said the discussion about the cause of death appears to have been based on opinions formed from courtroom testimony, not outside evidence

“Nothing I say will make this feel better for Mr Garcia or Mr Garcia’s family,” Judge Hanson said. “But make no mistake, I would not proceed with sentencing if in the court’s view Mr. Garcia was an innocent man.”

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Q. How much does chimney cleaning cost?

A. Chimney cleaning costs depend on several factors.

What type of chimney do you need a chimney sweep to inspect? Hiring someone to clean a boiler chimney can cost as little as $40. Full-size chimneys stemming from a wood-burning fireplace, however, typically cost at least $100 to $150.

Certain situations can also drive up the cost. If your roof provides limited accessibility, if the chimney sweep needs to use special tools or if the sweep needs to remove animals (living or dead) from the chimney, expect to pay up to about $350.

However, don’t let a potentially high price tag stop you from hiring someone to complete the job. Neglecting your fireplace could prove much more costly.

IMPORTANCE OF CHIMNEY CLEANING

Chimney fires commonly result from creosote buildup. Creosote, which is extremely combustible, populates in most chimneys when wood burns. Regular chimney cleanings remove creosote, eliminating that as a cause of chimney fires.

According to a report released by the National Fire Protection Association in 2016, home heating equipment accounted for 16 percent of home fires and 19 percent of home fire deaths from 2009 to 2013.

Thirty percent of those fires resulted from failure to clean equipment, including chimneys.

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM A CHIMNEY SWEEP AND INSPECTION

Prior to a cleaning, a sweep may want to inspect your chimney for any damage. Expect the inspection to include a thorough examination of the chimney liners, smoke chamber, chimney exterior and firebox. An inspection can usually identify structural problems and water damage.

During the cleaning, a sweep uses a chimney brush or vacuum to clear out soot and creosote. Chimney sweeps should also lay down floor coverings before starting to minimize the mess caused by the cleaning.

Staff writer Kaley Belakovich contributed to this report.

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