Jurors called for Kilgore trial

Alleged child molester Dwayne Kilgore will have spent almost 18 months in the Sonoma County Jail by the time his case goes to trial.|

The trial of former Sonoma Valley Boys and Girls Club athletic director Paul “Dwayne” Kilgore is scheduled to get underway today in Courtroom 2 in the Sonoma County Superior Court in Santa Rosa. Supervising Criminal Judge Robert LaForge will preside over the felony trial.

Kilgore, 69, worked for the Sonoma Valley club for a decade before voluntarily resigning in 2013. He’s accused of molesting three boys, all under 14, during trips to swimming pools, a popular arcade and his Sonoma Valley home.

Kilgore was arrested in September 2016, at his Academy Lane residence where he lived with a sister and elderly father, after a member of Parkpoint Health Club in Healdsburg reported seeing him in a hot tub and showering with two boys, ages 11 and 12.

A series of preliminary hearings found that there was sufficient evidence to bring him to trial, most specifically, the testimony of three Sonoma Valley boys. He is charged with five counts of lewd or lacivious acts with a child and two counts of continued sexual abuse of a child.

Last February, the three took the stand and described an alleged pattern of abuse over a five-year period. Some instances they described took place during Kilgore’s employment at the Boys & Girls Club, and some after his resignation. None was described as having taken place at Club facilities.

The investigation uncovered evidence that Kilgore may have used his long career with youth centers in Sonoma County and the South Bay to establish relationships with adolescent boys and sexually abuse them, according to Healdsburg police officials.

Healdsburg police officer Craig Smith led the investigation after Kilgore’s arrest and he executed the search warrant of Kilgore’s house, car and storage locker at the time of Kilgore’s arrest.

Smith said that about two dozen people came forward with information involving Kilgore in Sonoma County and San Mateo County. Before moving to Sonoma County, Kilgore worked for the city of San Bruno at a community center

Kilgore worked for the Boys & Girls Club after-school program in Petaluma for three months in 2014 after leaving the Sonoma Valley club. Police and Petaluma club officials they were not aware of any allegations stemming from children who attended the Petaluma club.

Kilgore’s jury trial will focus on seven felony counts carrying 25 years to life in prison.

The case is being prosecuted by Sonoma County Deputy District Attorney Javier Vaca.

Kilgore will have spent almost 18 months in the Sonoma County Jail, unable to post the $1 million bail, by the time his case goes to trial.

Representatives from the district attorney’s office said Thursday that they expect that the court will focus on trial scheduling on Friday, motions on Monday and that jury selection will begin on Tuesday.

Contact Lorna at lorna.sheridan@sonomanews.com.

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