3 Arrested in Alleged Murder-for-Hire Plot Against Judge, 2 Officers

Santa Barbara County sheriff's officials said Monday they have arrested three people in an alleged plot to kill a Santa Barbara municipal judge and two local law enforcement officers.

Officials said a man serving a sentence for a drunk driving conviction offered $150,000 for the murders of Judge Harry Loberg, Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Deputy Todd Graham and California Highway Patrol Officer Shawn Snyder. All three apparently played a role in the man's arrest and conviction.

Detectives uncovered the plot on Nov. 7, apparently after inmates in the County Jail overheard the man planning the crime, officials said.

Three people were arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit murder. Each was being held on $750,000 bail. They are Ralph Dalton, 45, of Santa Barbara, believed to be the main suspect; his girlfriend, Tracy Levine, 30, who lives in Chula Vista and was arrested there, and Wilhelm Fichtl, no age given, a Santa Barbara homeless person.