Alameda County pays $36M following murder of Dublin couple by deputy

OAKLAND, Calif. - The Alameda County board of supervisors will pay $36 million to surviving family members of a murdered couple in Dublin, the county counsel announced Tuesday night, after a suit alleged the deaths were preventable because the former sheriff's deputy who killed them failed a psychological test but was hired anyway.

The settlement also reveals new allegations against the sheriff's office: That deputies doctored a 911 call, turned off their body camera and advised the victim not to file a restraining order against the deputy, which could have likely meant his gun would have been taken away. 

It is the highest public settlement the county has paid stemming from the sheriff's office. 

"I think people should not look at the money, but look at the tragedy, and then they'll have a better understanding of really how this doesn't compensate people for what they've been through," the plaintiff's attorney, Chris Dolan said on Wednesday, adding that a husband and wife were "assassinated" in front of their entire family by a sheriff's deputy. "So if people focus on money, they're missing the bigger picture here, which is the tragedy these folks suffered."

$36 million 

What we know:

The East Bay Insiders first reported the amount, which interim County Counsel Andrea Weddle announced after closed session. 

"Our hearts go out to the entire family for the tragic loss of Maria and Benison Tran on September 7, 2022," Alameda County said in a statement sent to KTVU. "This settlement ends the legal chapter, and we hope it will bring a moment of peace to the family and the community. The County fully supports the Sheriff’s efforts to improve oversight and take corrective action in the hiring of sworn personnel."

In a separate statement, Alameda County Sheriff Yesenia Sanchez, who was not in charge of the office at the time, said she extends her deepest condolences to the Tran family, recognizing that their "tragic passing will continue to have a profound and life-altering impact on their entire family and the community."

She did say that her office has strengthened hiring practices by improving background investigations and increasing supervisory oversight and accountability over the entire process.

But her statement did not specifically address allegations that deputies falsified a 911 report and turned off their body cameras, or dissuaded Maria Tran from filing a restraining order.

Greg Ahern was sheriff at the time. 

Double murder

The backstory:

The settlement stems from the tragedy that occurred on Sept. 7, 2022, when former deputy Devin Williams Jr. drove to Dublin and killed Maria Tran, 42, a nurse, and her husband, Benison Tran, 57. He used his government-issued gun to kill them. 

Williams had been in a romantic relationship with Maria Tran.

The $36 million will go to theTran's son, Brandon Tran, now 18; Maria Tran's brother, Dalton Tran; Maria Tran's mother, Kimanh Le; and Maria Tran's cousin, Thi Le – all of whom were home at the time and saw the crime. 

What the public didn't know, explained Dolan, is that Williams showed up to the Tran's home on Aug. 8, 2022, ringing "the doorbell incessantly" and scaring Maria Tran, who had said she didn't want to have a relationship with him anymore at some earlier point. 

Maria Tran asked police to help her get a restraining order against him because she thought Williams would hurt her and her family, but was told by Dublin police that wasn't possible – which wasn't true. 

"What's even worse is they falsified the 911 CAD report and said that there was an unfounded call and there was no suspect identified," Dolan said, meaning there was no record of Williams showing up at her house that night.

According to Dolan, if Maria Tran had been able to get a three-day restraining order, Williams' gun would have been taken away. 

Dolan also said the video shows the deputies saying they were going to "go blue," which is code for turning off their body camera, during some of the house call visit in August 2022, and is not allowed by sheriff's policy. 

"The Alameda County Sheriff's Office hasn't shared that information," Dolan said. "It's information that we discovered during hours and hours and days of depositions and demanding and pushing for documents." 
 

Not Suitable

Why you should care:

An investigation by KTVU revealed that Williams had been deemed "D. Not Suited" during his psychological exam, meaning he wasn't fit for the job. But he was hired anyway in 2021.

That disclosure prompted an audit that found 47 Alameda County sheriff's deputies hired between 2016 and 2022 had also received a not suitable rating, but were hired anyway. 

Dolan said that Williams actually failed his psychological exam, especially in the category of "impulse control."

"I guess the sheriff was in desperate need of recruits," Dolan said "And so they were accepting people who were unsuitable. And that is reprehensible."

In October 2024, Williams was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder and later sentenced to 50 years to life in prison.

Other payouts

A review of Alameda County payouts from the sheriff's office shows some other high dollar amounts, though none come close to $36 million.

In 2023, a jury awarded $8.25 million to a Black mother and daughter whose civil rights were violated outside a Castro Valley Starbucks. 

The same year, the county awarded $7 million to the family of Maurice Monk, who was left languishing in his jail cell for days at Santa Rita Jail before anyone noticed he was dead. 

At the time, Monk's settlement was the highest wrongful death settlement in county history, according to a KTVU analysis of police payouts. 

The question of liability

Regarding the $36 million settlement, Alameda County said the funds will come from both the general fund and its risk-sharing pool that provides insurance. The county also said it approved this settlement because it thought it more cost-effective than continuing to litigate it.

The county, which was represented by Oakland attorney Greg B. Thomas, added that this amount does not include an admission of liability. 

Dolan, however, said that, in his opinion, it's clear who is liable.

"This is a direct result of the failures of the Alameda County Sheriff's Office, not once in just hiring a fellow who failed a psychological exam, but twice when they did not make a record of his coming to the house and Maria Tran requesting a restraining order to protect her and her family," Dolan said. "They covered it up to protect one of their own. And their cover-up cost the lives of Benison Tran and Maria Tran. Had they acted, had they made a report, Williams would have been called in, his gun may have been taken from him, he would have sent for further psychological evaluation, and he wouldn't have been a police officer who had a gun." 
 

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