News briefs from across Marin County.
NOVATO
A Marin County judge has denied a request to have an assault suspect undergo mental health treatment rather than a criminal trial.
David Jonathan Margoliash, 48, of San Rafael allegedly fired pepper spray at a member of the Islamic Center of North Marin in March. The incident happened at the Novato center during the Ramadan holiday.
A witness confronted Margoliash when he saw what he believed was a gun in his backpack. Margoliash threatened and assaulted the witness before he fled, Novato police said.
After Margoliash was arrested, he was temporarily released from jail to help investigators find a pellet gun that he buried after the incident.
Margoliash is charged with the felony use of tear gas and the misdemeanor of displaying an imitation firearm in public. Police said there was not enough evidence to allege a hate crime.
Margoliash is out of custody. During a hearing on Monday, he had his public defender, Meredith McGuire, ask Judge Kelly Simmons for a mental health diversion. He previously received diversions for a 2019 vandalism case and a 2021 case where he allegedly threatened to harm two joggers in Mill Valley, according to court records.
Simmons, after hearing from the prosecution and a representative of the Islamic center, denied the request. Simmons set the next hearing for Aug. 16.
SAN RAFAEL
A two-alarm fire damaged a hilltop home in San Rafael, and two occupants escaped without injury, San Rafael Deputy Chief Robert Sinnott said.
The fire was reported at 2:25 p.m. Monday at 100 Oakmont Ave., which is west of Lincoln Avenue. Sinnott said the fire burned the garage and living areas. He said firefighters contained it within 40 minutes and prevented it from spreading to neighboring buildings.
Investigators suspect the fire originated in a parked vehicle’s engine at the garage.
San Rafael firefighters extinguished a structure fire that broke out at a shuttered school. No injuries were reported.
The fire was reported at about 4 p.m. Monday at the former Timothy Murphy School at 1 St. Vincent Drive. San Rafael Deputy Chief Robert Sinnott said crews contained the flames to a ceiling fan and an attic. Damages were minor, he said. The cause of the fire was likely an overheated fan motor.
The school at the St. Vincent’s property closed in 2019.
San Rafael police are requesting the public’s help in identifying an arsonist who started a trash can fire outside the Target store.
Security cameras recorded the arsonist at the store on Shoreline Parkway late Monday night. He used a “flammable accelerant” to burn a small bag of garbage and a cardboard box in a bin outside an exit door, San Rafael police Sgt. Justin Graham said.
The fire caused an estimated $2,500 in damage to the building, Graham said. The arsonist might have been injured by the flames.
The Police Department said anyone with potential information for investigators can call 415-485-3000 or submit it online at SRPD.org/tips.
“The suspect is considered dangerous and should not be approached,” the department said in an announcement about the fire.
