Man Held in Lieu of $1 Million Bond for Allegedly Beating His Brother to Death
By Jim Emerson
RICHMOND — One brother is dead. His younger brother remains in custody in lieu of $1 million bond
at the Martinez Detention Facility on suspicion of murder.
Victor D. Blacknell, 62, of Richmond, was arrested less than two hours after his older brother died on June 16.
Police responded to a Richmond residence located on the 4500 block of Potrero Avenue, shortly after
9 p.m. The victim found there, Jerome Timmons, 68, of Richmond, was pronounced dead at the
scene, despite efforts by paramedics to save his life.
Evidently, a dispute between the two brothers escalated to extreme violence. Blacknell is accused of
fatally beating his brother, before fleeing from the area.
Paramedics were the first to respond to the scene. They contacted the police after examining the
victim, and determining the victim’s fatal injuries were consistent with a violent assault.
Richmond detectives assumed responsibility for the Timmons homicide investigation, and Richmond
officers followed-up on information regarding Blacknell’s whereabouts.
Following a brief manhunt, Blacknell was apprehended about 2 miles away. Officers tracked Blacknell
to a residence on the 1500 block of Maine Avenue. He was placed under arrest at 10:45 p.m., without
any further incident. Blacknell was booked on suspicion of murder, PC 187(A).
Preliminary investigation indicates an argument escalated to an assault. The investigation remains in
the early stages, and detectives are trying to determine what led to the altercation. Anyone with
information about this
