The other victims in the illegal camps in the Parkway, besides the adjacent communities who have not been able to safely recreate in the Parkway for years, are the homeless campers who are subject to the predators that move freely among them.
He ran to the aid of a fellow homeless man who was under attack
By Jocelyn Wiener - jwiener@sacbee.com
Published 12:00 am PDT Friday, May 2, 2008
They called him "Gremlin" because he looked like a leprechaun, with his shock of red hair and his elfin spirit. Michael Tinius was a fighter in life, championing the rights of men and women who dwelled – as he did – in clearings along the American River Parkway.
Friends say Tinius died as he lived – trying to look out for someone else.
Tinius, 47, was stabbed to death Wednesday evening when he intervened to protect a fellow homeless man who was being pursued by two men, according to friends, police officers and officials at the Loaves & Fishes homeless services complex.
Tinius and the other homeless man were rushed to UC Davis Medical Center, police said. Tinius – who police also identified as Michael Wentworth – was pronounced dead; the other man suffered stab wounds but was expected to recover. Authorities did not release his name.
Police arrested J. Douglas Halford, 65, and Mark Hernandez, 43, later that night. They each were booked into the Sacramento County Jail on charges of murder and attempted murder.
Patrick Hill, 42, a longtime friend of Tinius, said Thursday that he and Tinius had been drinking a few beers that afternoon near the bike trail behind the Blue Diamond Growers building. Hill had gone to urinate when he heard shouting and saw two men wielding a large stick and chasing a third man, whom Tinius seemed to know.
Tinius and Hill ran to assist the man. After a few shoves, Hill said the two suspects pulled out knives. They stabbed Tinius in the arm, Hill said, and then in the chest.
