Activist accused of splashing blood on California lawmakers ordered to stay away from them

Activist Rebecca Lee Dalelio, accused of splashing blood on nearly a dozen lawmakers on the state Senate floor last September, faced a Sacramento judge Monday on felony charges connected to the attack.

Dalelio, dressed in a navy pinstripe suit beside defense attorney Chet Templeton, was silent as Sacramento Superior Court Judge Lawrence Brown read the charges: one felony count each of vandalism and assault on public officials – the 10 lawmakers including state Sen. Richard Pan, D-Sacramento, the pediatrician and vaccination advocate long a target of anger and action from anti-vaccination groups. The Santa Cruz County resident did not enter a plea to the charges and will return to court Feb. 24. She remains free on bail.

As news cameras took in the scene, Brown ordered Dalelio to stay away from the state Capitol. Prosecuting Sacramento County Deputy District Attorney Paris Coleman said similar stay-away orders for the lawmakers’ district offices could be filed.

After Brown ordered the February court date, almost immediately Dalelio hurriedly headed for the doors, leaving behind counsel Templeton and reporters as she rushed out of Sacramento County Courthouse. Templeton later declined comment, as did Coleman.

Dallelio, 43, was among a group protesting vaccination legislation in the balcony of the state Senate chambers Sept. 13, the final day of the legislative session, when she allegedly tossed a menstrual cup onto the senators, reportedly shouting, “That’s for the dead babies,” before her arrest.

Dalelio was arrested by California Highway Patrol officers and led out of the chambers, but not before bringing the proceedings to a sudden halt. The senate’s business was moved into a meeting room to complete the session.

This story was originally published January 13, 2020 at 12:54 PM.