Woman attacked at victim's memorial

Alameda County prosecutors have filed felony charges against a man who allegedly participated in the group beating of a woman who suffered a broken jaw as she visited the memorial of a January homicide victim, court records show.

The defendant, a 37-yearold Alameda County resident, was charged March 9 with battery involving serious bodily injury. He also was charged in connection with a November 2022 armed carjacking, court records show. On March 10, he pleaded not guilty to all charges and remains out of custody while the case is pending.

The victim was assaulted Feb. 2 as she visited a memorial for Lamar Converse, 35, of Ashland. Just days earlier, Converse had been fatally shot near East 14th Street and 166th Avenue in Ashland, an unincorporated area of Alameda County.

According to police, as the woman stood next to Converse's memorial, she was accosted by a group of women and one man who blamed her for the fatal shooting. Several of them identified themselves as relatives of Converse, and one of them allegedly threatened to kill her.

The woman was beaten and struck with a glass bottle. She suffered a concussion and a broken jaw, police said.

The 37-year-old man was dating one of Converse's relatives and allegedly struck her head from behind. Police identified him from eyewitness statements and evidence on social media, according to authorities.

On Feb. 25, Alameda County sheriff's investigators announced they had arrested a 17-year-old boy in connection with Converse's killing, describing it as a robbery attempt that ended in a homicide. The suspect's name was not released because he's a minor.