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Murder trial coincides with drug center opening 

BURLINGAME – As prosecutors prepare to make opening statements in Tracey Biletnikoff’s murder trial Monday, a drug treatment center has opened its doors in her name. 

Tracey’s Place of Home is San Mateo’s only all-girl adolescent drug treatment center. 

Biletnikoff’s onetime boyfriend, Mohammad Haroon Ali, is charged with strangling her Feb. 15, 1999. He has admitted to the crime, and prosecutors are seeking a first-degree murder conviction. 

Biletnikoff, 20, had struggled with drug addiction, and in the months prior to her death she shared stories of her addiction and recovery with teen-age girls. She had gone through the Women’s Recovery Association in Burlingame where the new center also is located. It is big enough to house six girls whose expected length of stay is about a year. 

Biletnikoff is the daughter of NFL Hall of Fame receiver Fred Biletnikoff, an assistant coach for the Oakland Raiders. 

Dog owner cited after attack 

ALAMEDA – Police cited a dog owner after the animal bit a man in Alameda. 

Police say the shepherd mix named Lady bit the man’s upper left thigh Saturday. He was treated and released from Alameda Hospital. 

The dog has been taken into custody by animal control until the owner can produce paperwork proving its shots are up to date. The owner was cited for not having the dog on a leash, a dog license or information about the animal’s vaccinations. 

Police did not release the names of the owner or the victim. 

Stanford hosts Holi celebration 

STANFORD – About 1,000 people danced and got filthy while celebrating Holi at Stanford University. 

Holi is the ancient Indian festival of colors that marks the beginning of spring. 

The participants wore bright reds, oranges, greens and blues in their hair, on their clothes and face. The colors were smeared by squirts from water pistols. It’s traditional to get wet and dirty during the festival. 

The event attracted people from all over the Bay area who wanted a taste of spicy curries and samosas. 

Oakland’s Grand Lake Theater honored 

OAKLAND – Mayor Jerry Brown has proclaimed Monday a day of honor to celebrate the Grand Lake Theater’s 75th birthday. 

The Oakland theater will feature free movies all day and an organ concert. The landmark’s Wurlitzer organ was built in 1926 for $50,000. It is still played at the opening of shows on Friday and Saturday nights. 

The theater was designed by Reid Brothers who also created the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco. 

The free movies will feature a look at what the movie-going experience was like when the Grand Lake opened three-quarters of a century ago. 

Funeral home owners to pay $4 million 

WALNUT CREEK – The owners of a defunct Contra Costa funeral home business have agreed to pay $4 million to families whose loved ones’ remains were mishandled. 

The Rogers Family Funeral Home will refund fees to an estimated 2,000 families who are expected to file a class-action lawsuit by May 1. 

Chris and Laurel Rogers, owners of five funeral homes and a crematorium, are accused of losing, mixing up and improperly storing human remains. They allowed bodies to decompose before cremation and abandoned 10 bodies parked outside the funeral homes, according to the state Department of Consumer Affairs. 

State regulators stripped the couple of their operating license in 1998, accusing them of negligence and unprofessional conduct. 

The couple made no admission of guilt or wrongdoing as part of the settlement filed this month in Contra Costa Superior court. 

The couple’s lawyer says the two are broke and Chris Rogers is suffering from mental illness. 

Former teacher convicted of molestation 

SAN JOSE – A former San Jose teacher has been sentenced to 19 years in prison for molesting at least five students. 

Mario Otilio Duarte was a fifth grade teacher at Anne Darling Elementary School when he molested the 10- and 11-year-old girls. 

Duarte had faced a life sentence, but it was reduced after he pleaded guilty to the charges in January. He was sentenced Friday. 

Duarte had evaded San Jose police after a warrant was issued for his arrest in July. He was pulled over in New Mexico a week later after failing to signal before changing lanes.