For a Fort Bragg extended family, what started as a fun birthday trip to a ballgame has become a terrible education in broadcast news, the justice system and the meaning of real friends.
Fort Bragg resident Jonathan Denver was stabbed and died early last Thursday, while enjoying birthday drinks with his dad after a Wednesday Giants-Dodgers game at AT&T Park in San Francisco. His group from Fort Bragg and Los Angeles ran into a group of Giants fans at a nearby pub and a fatal confrontation ensued.
About 10:30 p.m. Thursday night, a Bay Area television news crew showed up at his mom”s residence, looking for an interview. They were asked to leave.
The nightmare has deepened for the slain man”s family. National news has made the homicide into a major sports rivalry story. Trucks from three different networks were circling Fort Bragg on Friday night. Channel 5”s reporter was inside the Tip Top Lounge on North Franklin Street, seeking comments from people who might have enjoyed drinks with Denver.
The family, already in shock from the death of their 24-year-old brother, son, nephew and cousin, quickly became sick of the barrage of major media attention. Both mom Diana Denver, from Fort Bragg, and his dad, Robert Preece, a Dodgers security man who was with Denver at his death, decided not to talk to any news media after being confronted by aggressive people from television.
Grandparents Robert Sr. and Anne Marie Preece of Willits issued a statement which asked the media to allow the family some privacy.
“Jonathan was a gentle, kind-hearted soul who loved his brother and his family very much. He was just starting his adult life. Jon was our grandson, a son to Robert, a nephew to our five daughters, a cousin to many, and an uncle,” the statement said. “We all loved him very much. Jon was always smiling, and that is how we will forever remember him ? Our family sincerely appreciates all the kind expressions of sympathy, especially from the Stow family, and again would ask for your respect of our family”s time of sorrow.”
Bryan Stow is a Giants fan who was badly beaten outside a Dodgers-Game in Los Angeles, leaving him disabled.
Denver lived with Robert “Tank” Preece, his brother, who also made the trip down with Denver for that fateful Giants game. Also along were Shannon Locke and Joey House.
Friends were asked by the family not to do any more interviews about Jon Denver.
“No I”m sorry his mother asked for no one to do anymore interviews,” said Clara Harbour, one of his many Facebook friends.
Denver has a lot of friends and family, an online petition and Facebook show. More than 600 people had signed a petition at Moveon.org by Sunday night that calls for justice for Denver. The family of the man accused of stabbing Denver has told TV news that it was an act of self-defense.
Denver”s family got another shock when the alleged stabber, Michael Montgomery, 21, of Lodi, was released from custody Friday night. San Francisco District Attorney George Gascon said police had insufficient evidence to charge him. The statement said no independent witnesses had been found.
The family speaks
At that point, the family decided to break the media silence. About 30 people went from the Fort Bragg area to gather outside AT&T Park Sunday. More came from Southern California. Dad Robert Preece and other family members spoke to the media while others handed out flyers seeking leads. They asked for help from anyone who might have witnessed the event, especially someone who recorded it.
Robert Preece said Sunday that he saw bystanders with mobile devices and believes they were recording the incident. One friend said there were some leads.
“The Montgomery family is likely suffering as well,” Preece said to broadcasters. “I am making a plea to the public asking that anyone who may have witnessed the incident come forth so that both families can have some measure of closure. I believe that someone may have videotaped the incident so we can discover the truth.”
Denver”s mother, Diana Denver, said in a prepared statement that she was angered by Montgomery”s release and what she called “the negligence of our justice system.”
Friends say Denver was not a fanatic fan, nor was he known to resort to violence of any kind. Many of his Facebook friends are hard-core Giants fans, including one who uses the Giants logo as his Facebook page. Denver”s Facebook page includes him as a fan of an about-to-be released book by a young woman author. Denver grew up going to Dodger games with his father and brother.
His father”s Facebook page has little about the Dodgers but a heart that says “put this on your page if you love your son.”
A 2007 graduate of Fort Bragg High School, Denver was known for friends, fun and outdoor activities. His high school yearbook has no extracurricular activities listed.
North Coast Plumbing & Heating, where Denver worked as an apprentice plumber, established a memorial fund for his family. Donations can be made to the Jonathon Denver Memorial Fund, Mendo Lake Credit Union, 120 N. Franklin St., Fort Bragg, CA 95437.
