"This man, now sentenced to 20 years in prison, is a violent gang member whose sentence was essentially doubled due to the work of Napa State Hospital police officers who successfully investigated and pursued gang enhancement charges." - Alan Barcelona, CSLEA President
NAPA - Jason Soletti, 43, a violent gang member is going to prison for attacking a man inside Napa State Hospital. Soletti was a patient, so was his victim.
"Soletti is a perfect example of the growing patient population at our state hospitals," said Luis Jimenez, president of the Hospital Police Association of California (HPAC). "He is a violent gang member who has a history of hurting people. If you can believe it, he attacked an inmate in court yesterday prior to a judge sentencing him to 20 years in prison for assaulting a patient at Napa State Hospital last July."
Jimenez points out, this is the type of "patient" that is often put into a state hospital police car by an unarmed hospital police officer and taken into the community for appointments with doctors or to attend funeral services. This type of transport happens as many as 10 to 12 times a day at Napa State Hospital.
In July, according to court records, Soletti pushed a Napa State Hospital patient to the ground, climbed on top of him, wrapped a rope braided from a bed sheet around his neck and pulled tightly. In court, December 3, Soletti reportedly stabbed an inmate with a pen and bit him. Soletti was removed from court only to return a short time later for sentencing. He pleaded no contest to assault with a deadly weapon in the July attack and was sentenced to 20 years in prison.
"Ten of those 20 years are thanks to the Napa State Hospital Police Gang Unit, that is now documenting known gang members criminally committed to the hospital and tracking their activity," said Alan Barcelona, president of the California Statewide Law Enforcement Association (CSLEA). "It's unfortunate that state hospitals are more like state prisons now, which is why it is so imperative that the state provide state hospital police officers with firearms so they can adequately protect the patients, community and staff while transporting these often violent and dangerous people into the community."
Due to the gang enhancement, Soletti must register as a criminal street gang member with the appropriate local law enforcement agency upon his release.
He pleaded no contest to and was sentenced for:
- Assault with a deadly weapon other than a firearm - 6 years
- Inflicting great bodily injury in the commission of a felony - 3 years
- Special allegation - criminal street gang - 10 years
- Non-violent felony prison prior - 1 year
