Drive by shooter who caused victim partial loss of vision will be sentenced to state prison

A defendant who committed a drive-by shooting in Gualala in January 2013 was convicted by plea today in the Mendocino County Superior Court. The defendant's jury trial had been scheduled to begin this coming Monday.



Christopher John Ochoa, age 26, of Rohnert Park, plead guilty to assault with a shotgun, a felony, and admitted he was the person who personally handled and fired the shotgun. A victim was hit by the shotgun blast fired by the defendant resulting in the partial loss of her vision.

By agreement, the defendant will be sentenced to state prison but the term of that commitment -- from a low of five (5) years up to the maximum of fourteen (14) years -- shall be decided by the sentencing judge on June 13th at 9 o'clock in the morning in Department H of the Ukiah courthouse. Any person interested in this case and/or this defendant is welcome to attend that sentencing hearing.

The lengthy delay in bringing this case to resolution was caused by the defendant's flight from justice. Fleeing just days before his case was to be presented to a jury, the defendant was a fugitive from justice from May 2013 until November 2017.

The prosecutor who is handling this matter is Deputy District Attorney Luke Oakley. The investigating law enforcement agencies were the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office and the California Department of Justice crime laboratory.  The sentencing judge on June 13th will be Mendocino County Superior Court Judge John Behnke.