Crime & Safety

Charges Dropped In Moraga Rape Case

An Alameda County sheriff's deputy accused of raping a woman in Moraga last year had all charges against him dropped Tuesday in Contra Costa County Superior Court.

The Contra Costa County District Attorney's Office Tuesday dismissed all charges against an Alameda County sheriff's deputy accused of raping a woman in Moraga last year.

David Reta, a 28-year-old Union City man who has worked for the Sheriff's  Department for three and a half years, was charged in December with
rape and attempted forcible copulation for an alleged incident on Sept. 9.

A preliminary hearing on those charges was scheduled to begin in Contra Costa County Superior Court today, Tuesday, but Senior Deputy District Attorney
Nancy Georgiou announced that her office was dropping the charges because her office couldn't prove his guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

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Superior Court Judge Diana Becton-Smith then formally dismissed the charges against Reta.

Reta's attorney, Daniel Russo, said, "We're very pleased."

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Russo said, "We did a massive investigation and interviewed about 100 people and we didn't find anything that supported the charges against him."

Reta always wanted to be a police officer and the charges "destroyed him," Russo said. He is now "happy to have his life back," he said.

Russo said Reta, who worked at the Santa Rita Jail in Dublin, "is the nicest guy in the world and is universally well-liked by everyone, even the inmates."

Reta appeared in court Tuesday with several family members and friends as well as about five other deputies who supported him.

Becton-Smith dismissed the case without prejudice, which means that the  District Attorney's Office could re-file the charges in the future, but Russo said "We're pretty confident that won't happen."

He said Reta will now focus on getting his job back.

Bay City News Service


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