Politics & Government

Update: Hayashi Case Delayed; She Is Again Excused From Appearing

Case continued until Jan. 6. Hayashi is excused from appearing in court for the third time.

A court hearing in San Francisco to consider felony shoplifting charges against Assemblywoman Mary Hayashi (D-Hayward) ended Wednesday with a postponement until Jan. 6.

The 45-year-old assemblywoman was about $2,500 worth of clothing from the Neiman Marcus store in San Francisco.

She did not appear at Wednesday’s hearing nor at her first court date on Nov. 15.

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Wednesday she was excused from appearing at the hearing in January as well.

Prosecutor Paul Brennan objected, saying she had already been excused twice before. But he was overruled by Superior Court Judge Gerardo Sandoval.

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The case was delayed until Jan. 6 because defense attorney Douglas Rappaport said he had not yet received all the evidence he has requested from the Neiman Marcus store in San Francisco.

What that evidence might be was not specified, but it has been widely speculated that there may be surveillance video with a bearing on the charges.

An attorney representing Neiman Marcus, Ori Edelstein of the law firm Bryan Cave, was in court Wednesday, but he declined to comment on the case.

Hayashi's spokesman Sam Singer has called the arrest "a mistake and misunderstanding.         

Singer said Hayashi carries two cellphones and was texting and talking on the phone with a bag in her hands and inadvertently stepped outside the store. 

Hayashi's representatives have said that she a previously scheduled Dec. 15 fundraiser for the Alameda County Food Bank.      

Hayashi was elected in 2006 to represent the 18th Assembly District, which includes San Leandro, Hayward, Castro Valley, Dublin and Pleasanton.

She is a member of the leadership team for Assembly Speaker John Perez, serving as chair of the Assembly Committee on Business, Professions and Consumer Protection.

(This story is based on reporting by Bay City News Service.)


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