Victim's son speaks out as suspect in Modesto security guard killing enters plea
The son of slain security guard Karl Whitehead said his dad’s kind heart and giving nature is manifested by the dozens of stories friends and coworkers have shared about him in the past few days.
One of those stories came from one of Karl Whitehead’s coworkers at Cypress Security.
“He once brought a card and collected signatures for our manager for no reason, other than to make her feel appreciated. That’s just the kind of guy he was,” Denise Byrd wrote on a Go Fund Me Page Whitehead’s son Jason Whitehead established to help cover funeral expenses.
Byrd said she hadn’t seen Karl Whitehead for a few months but that he came into the office on Thursday. “I never imagined it would be the last time I saw him,” she wrote.
Karl Whitehead was assaulted the next day in the parking garage in which he worked on 11th Street when he intervened in a confrontation between the suspect and a parking attendant.
He was struck at least once and died in the hospital two days later.
Jason Whitehead said his dad enjoyed the outdoors and that he has many fond memories of trips with him to the mountains and lakes and places like Columbia.
“He loved 'Star Trek' and 'Star Wars' ... that kind of stuff and he loved his dog," a white Papillon named Glory Be, Jason Whitehead said.
He said his dad worked many different careers but most often in law enforcement or security, including working as a reserve police officer in Riverbank when the city had its own police department.
“He definitely was someone who believed in the good guy,” Jason Whitehead said.
In the Go Fund Me post Jason Whitehead wrote, "My dad died doing what he loved, helping someone in need, and proudly standing up for for principles that he believed in ... Protecting and Serving!"
Don Lacey, the man charged with killing the 70-year-old security guard pleaded not guilty in Stanislaus County Superior Court on Tuesday.
Lacey , 33, is charged with the murder and enhancements for premeditation and deliberation and infliction of great bodily injury on someone 70 years of age or older.
(Click here for the 2017 Stanislaus County homicide map)
He also has a prior conviction for first-degree burglary, which counts as one strike under California’s Three Strikes law that may be used to double his sentence, said Stanislaus County District Attorney's Office spokesman John Goold.
Lacey's bail was set at $4 million and he is scheduled to return to court Dec. 5 for a pretrial hearing in Department 9. A public defender has been appointed to represent him.
To donate to Karl Whitehead's funeral expenses go to www.gofundme.com/inmemoryofkarlwhitehead.
This story was originally published November 15, 2017 at 11:42 AM with the headline "Victim's son speaks out as suspect in Modesto security guard killing enters plea."