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Recently released Hollister police records show Hollister Councilmember Rolan Resendiz was the subject of a 2004 investigation into alleged forcible sexual penetration and sexual battery of a then-19-year-old woman.
Resendiz was also investigated for allegedly having a romantic relationship with a 17-year-old boy in 2005 and for domestic violence in 2016.
None of the investigations resulted in a conviction.
The police records, which redact the majority of witness and victim names, are part of a 2024 public records request filed by Hollister mayoral candidate and former City Council member Tim Burns after Resendiz attacked fellow former council member Rick Perez for his criminal history.
According to San Benito County District Attorney Joel Buckingham, Resendiz was only charged in the domestic violence case but the charge was later dropped. Buckingham said the district attorney record system does not include details as to why the charge was dropped.
According to the police report into the sexual battery investigation, the woman accused Resendiz of touching her breasts and penetrating her with his hand despite her saying “no” repeatedly. According to the victim, Resendiz had done so multiple times, though she could not specify when those instances occurred.
In a police report, a witness corroborated the woman’s allegations for an encounter that happened in April of that year.
Police records said an Officer Dorman, whose first name is not included in the report, spoke to Resendiz more than two months after taking the victim’s statement. Records state that Resendiz declined to comment on whether he had a sexual relationship with the victim.
The report says Resendiz claimed the victim filed a false report “to get back at him” for revealing the victim was cheating on her boyfriend, and he disclosed that he was gay and did not want any contact with her.
The case was closed 10 years later “due to the lack of follow up investigation and/or evidence obtained, [and] the statute of limitations has expired for prosecution,” according to a report by an Officer Wells, whose first name was not included in the report, as part of his review of the case in 2014.
A year after Resendiz was accused of sexual battery, he was the subject of an investigation into allegations he had a romantic relationship with a 17-year-old boy.
Though the police report said the case was forwarded to the district attorney’s office for review, Buckingham said charges were not filed because of insufficient evidence, citing records available to him.
According to the police report, the boy’s foster parent saw Resendiz, who was 25 years old at that time, kiss the teenager on the lips when Resendiz gave the boy a ride home. The foster parent described the kiss as a “‘peck’ on the lips’” and that both leaned toward each other.
The boy denied being “touched” by Resendiz “in any way” or of dating him, according to the police report.
Resendiz told an Officer Lamonica, whose first name was not included in the report, that he met the boy through the social media platform My Space and that the boy said he was 18 years old.
The report says the police officer reported Resendiz “wanted to consult with an attorney prior to saying anything else to me.”
In 2016, the same year he was recognized with the California Peace Award by then- state Assemblyman Luis Alejo, Resendiz was arrested following a domestic violence investigation.
Though he faced charges of willfully inflicting injury upon his partner, Buckingham said the charges were dismissed. He said there are no details in the records as to why the charges were dropped, noting there is minimal information because the record predates the existing filing system.
According to the police report, Resendiz’s partner was found with injuries to his lip and a bloody nose, which were a result, according to the partner, of Resendiz “pushing me around.”
The partner told investigators the confrontation stemmed from Resendiz confronting him after Resendiz’s daughter accused him of pushing her. The partner admitted biting Resendiz on his arm when they were “struggling.”
The partner also told police that Resendiz had punched him before and wanted to press charges.
According to the report, after Resendiz was arrested, the partner declined an emergency protective restraining order and then changed his statements saying “he wanted to ‘wait until after talking to Rolan’ whether he wanted to press criminal charges against him or not.”
The 97-pages of reports also includes two separate reports into complaints on Resendiz’s alleged behavior. In 2020, police investigated an altercation between Resendiz and fellow former councilmember Honor Spencer, Gavilan College Trustee Irma Gonzalez and Aromas resident Leslie Austin at Mechanics Bank.
According to the police report, Gonzalez reported feeling her safety was compromised because Resendiz followed her to the bank and video recorded the three women inside. She also accused Resendiz of flipping her off.
The police report further states that Gonzalez walked to Resendiz and had a “short” engagement before walking back near a table where she was previously located.
Resendiz told BenitoLink following the incident he took a picture of them because he felt “uncomfortable” when they were around him. Spencer and Resendiz were constantly at odds over issues on the dais. Gonzalez often spoke out about how Resendiz spoke against community members who had different political views than him and accused him of stealing her artwork and using it in his Facebook account.
The other complaint was made in August 2023 by a council member for possible threats and stalking by Resendiz. Though the report redacts the name of the council member, in 2024 the City Council discussed an independent investigation that found Resendiz harassed Council member Dolores Morales by invading her personal space, blocking her movement and yelling at her in a “confrontational manner.”
At the meeting, Resendiz denied the allegations saying Morales “collaborated with two other people on the dais and lied.”
According to the police report, multiple council members whose names were redacted corroborated instances in which Resendiz appeared to be aggressive toward Morales. One council member called Resendiz “antagonist” and that he “pushes the boundaries” to create drama.
Resendiz was not always the subject of an investigation. In 2019, a year into his first four-year term on the City Council, he reported to police receiving harassing messages for several months.
According to the police report, Resendiz received messages such as “basura,” (trash) “hahahahahahahahaha,” and a derogatory term for a gay man
Officer Leland (whose first name is not included in the report) tracked the phone number and it was associated with a political rival. Though the name is mostly redacted, the name ends in z.
The report also includes a phone number that is associated with Pinnacle Strategy, owned by local lobbyist Victor Gomez.
According to the report, Gomez acknowledged having “fake accounts,” though he did not admit to sending the messages to Resendiz but took “full responsibility for these text messages.”
According to the report, Gomez uses the phone numbers for political activities such as phone banking.
Gomez confirmed that he spoke to an officer regarding the case but said nothing came out of it.
“It was never brought to my attention that my number was used,” he said. “I did check all my phone records, we did an internal investigation and we didn’t find anything.”
Resendiz did not respond to a request for comment. Before the records were released, he told BenitoLink he wanted to make it clear he was never convicted on any criminal charges in connection to the investigations outlined in the police reports and claimed the police records release was a political move against him.
The records were sought by Burns, who previously served on the City Council alongside Resendiz.
It took almost two years for Hollister to release the police records because Resendiz sued the city in an attempt to keep the records from being disclosed.
Burns did not respond to a request for comment but previously told BenitoLink he requested the records while he was serving on the dais because he was concerned about Resendiz regularly violating the code of conduct of the council and how he addressed other council members.
Resendiz is not running for reelection.
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