Witnesses called in Kilgore case

After almost a half dozen continuances over the past three months, the sexual abuse case against Paul Dwayne Kilgore is now moving forward.

Kilgore, the former athletic director of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Sonoma Valley, was arrested in September at his Sonoma Valley home and has since been charged with seven counts of sexual abuse of a child.

The witnesses who will be testifying in the case if it goes to trial were ushered Thursday morning into Judge Jamie Thistlethwaite's wood-paneled courtroom in the Sonoma County Courthouse for a preliminary hearing.

Public defender Lynette Brown sat with Kilgore as Thistlethwaite called the court to order. Kilgore sat quietly and listened intently, wearing dark navy prison garb with MADF (Main Adult Detention Facility) printed in block letters on the back of his shirt.

Assistant District Attorney Javier Vaca called Nick Egan as his first witness. Egan, who is head of the Healdsburg School, was the Healdsburg Parkpoint Health Club member who on Aug. 27 called police after observing what he believed to be inappropriate behavior between Kilgore and two male Sonoma Valley youths at the health club.

Egan was on the stand for 40 minutes, answering detailed questions from the prosecution about what he heard and saw in the health club's shower area, hot tub and locker room that day. He said that he found the conversation he overheard between Kilgore and the two young boys, all of whom were naked, to be at first 'odd' and later 'completely inappropriate,' and that he was concerned for the safety of the boys.

The prosecution entered 10 exhibits into evidence – photos of the inside and outside of the health club locker room, the outside of Kilgore's Sonoma Valley house and the inside of his bedroom.

Called next to the witness stand was one the two Sonoma Valley boys who was with Kilgore that day. The boy, 12, stated that he had known 'Dwayne' his whole life, both through his older brother and because he went to the Boys & Girls Clubs after school five days a week.

He testified that Kilgore took him swimming at various pools, to the movies, to a water park and that he thought he had been to the bedroom in Kilgore's house 10 times.

The boy testified that Kilgore had fondled him 'with both hands' other times prior to the incident at Parkpoint, and told him not to tell his parents.

A second boy, age 14, was also interviewed. He was not present at Parkpoint with the younger victim on Aug. 27, but detailed several instances in which he says he was touched by Kilgore at the same Parkpoint Club as well as at Kilgore's home and other locations.

He described his relationship with Kilgore by saying, 'He was someone I trusted until things got out of hand.' When pressed by the prosecutor to explain, the victim stated that he meant Kilgore 'was doing things he shouldn't be doing.'

In detailed testimony, he described repeated instances of Kilgore touching his penis with his hands, for a minute or two at a time, and that Kilgore told him not to tell his parents.

Court had been in session reviewing the case for four hours when Thistlethwaite noted that prosecutor Vaca's second witness had grown tired by the time he was released. She suggested that the third young witness be brought back to testify on Feb. 6.

Beyond the two boys who took the stand on Feb. 2, several other potential victim's names were mentioned, and prosecutor Vaca in court said that he was still determining who else he will bring in to testify during the pretrial hearing.

Kilgore is being held on $1 million bail. He has pleaded not guilty to the child molestation charges, and faces 15 years to life in prison if convicted.