Monterey County District Attorney Dean D. Flippo announced on Thursday, December 13 that on Wednesday, December 12, 2018, after a 2 day jury trial, 34-year-old Diego Avalos a resident of Monterey County, was found guilty of battery, possession of a controlled substance, and possession of controlled substance paraphernalia. On August 8, 2018, a 17 year-old girl at the time from Greenfield, boarded a Monterey-Salinas Transit bus in Salinas after school, on her way home to Greenfield. She sat in a seat near the rear portion of the bus, which was relatively secluded from the rest of the passengers. Avalos also boarded the MST bus in Salinas and sat near the girl. During the bus ride, Avalos attempted to converse with the girl while in transit from Salinas to Greenfield, but the girl kept to herself and eventually rested her head against her seat and dozed off. When the bus reached the Greenfield area, Avalos got up from his seat, noticed that the girl was now asleep, and then lunged toward her and wrapped his arms around her. At trial, the girl testified that she was frightened and in shock, and that it felt as if Avalos was trying to “force her down.” Video surveillance from the MST bus which showed the attack was played at trial. When the girl awoke to Avalos’ advances, she shoved him off of her and reported the attack to the bus driver, who called the police. Greenfield Police arrived on the scene and located Avalos who was passed out on a bench at the rear of the bus. Avalos was arrested, and officers discovered that Avalos had methamphetamine and a methamphetamine smoking pipe on him. The case was heard by Monterey County Superior Court Judge Rafael Vazquez. Judge Rafael Vazquez sentenced Avalos to 100 days in the county jail and 3 years of court probation. Greenfield Police Officers Santiago and Lemons investigated the case.
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