Three people in court for Dozier including family. Dozier's bail bondsman Steve Payton who is a personal friend was also in court. Even he was not surprised by the verdict.
Six people in court for Mia Felder including her parents, cousin and three friends. DA investigators Greg Hill, Richard Bise and Tim Marsolan were in court as well as Detectives Danielle Vickman and Jennifer Taylor and other HCSO staff who testified and worked on the case. After court, the parents hugged Felder's friends.
I did not see any jurors waiting around to talk to attorneys. They had a few minutes to leave because everyone else was in court discussing Dozier's custody status and sentencing. There were 8 men and 4 women on the jury. Juror #5 one of the men was the foreperson.
Dozier found guilty on all charges. The only difference being that Count 1 was first degree murder and he was found guilty of a lesser charge voluntary manslaughter. The court clerk read not guilty first degree murder, then not guilty of lesser charge of second degree murder and finally guilty on second lesser charge of voluntary manslaughter.
Verdict as read in court by clerk and from court records:
Lesser Count 1 PC 192 (a) voluntary manslaughter guilty
Count 1 special allegation PC 12022.5 (a) personally used glock in the commission of the crime true
Count 2 PC 245 (b) assault with a semi automatic pistol guilty
Count 2 special allegation PC 12022.7 (a) great boldily injury true
Count 3 PC 33410 possession of a silencer guilty
Count 4 PC 23920 possession of a weapon with the serial number removed guilty
Dozier remanded into custody and is on no bail status. The jury had already decided on Count 1 on the first day of deliberations because the verdict form was dated on June 4. Sentencing is on July 8.
Ms. Sullivan is an excellent attorney. If you read my coverage of the preliminary hearing, the writing was on the wall. If Ms. Sullivan was not Dozier's attorney, he would have been found guilty of murder. Dozier should have accepted responsibility and tried to resolve this before preliminary hearing, maybe he could have negotiated a better plea than offers exchanged.
Ms. Sullivan asked that Dozier remain out of custody until sentencing, that he needed 4 to 6 weeks to get his affairs in order and he has a teenage son. Judge Steward denied the defense request "given the seriousness of the offenses which have been proven" and agreed with Mr. Rees about concerns for public safety. Bail bond was exonerated.
While asking for remand and no bail, Mr Rees said, "I don't believe the jury verdict aligns with Dozier's beliefs." Dozier was cuffed and led away by bailiffs as his family, Felder's family, the investigators and law enforcement watched.
Bifurcation was mentioned by Judge Steven Steward, he had a brief discussion with Deputy District Attorney Roger Rees and Ms. Andrea Sullivan. People waived trial on the enhancements because it is prohibited by law. So even though the jury found those special allegations true, they will not be considered for sentencing.
It has to do with Dozier being charged with murder and voluntary manslaughter was not alleged in the information. Even though the jury convicted him of the lesser voluntary manslaughter charge, there are different gun enhancements for murder and voluntary manslaughter.
The voluntary manslaughter "is a big win for the defense" a sentiment expressed by an experienced prosecutor and defense attorney in California and several local attorneys who spoke with me and contacted me after the post.
The defense will argue for probation and if you want to know the arguments, this link has comprehensive information.
https://www.shouselaw.com/ca/defense/penal-code/192/
Charges in e court for Count 2 are not updated properly and do not reflect what was read in court. I will list the verdict by each count. The change is in that one of the special allegations for Count 2 is no longer applied to that count; instead it replaces tge special allegation for Count 1. Court clerks have been very busy and will probably fix it when they have time although it was the same when I checked again on 6/11.
No other media was in court or covered the trial or the case on a regular basis. The DA's press release at 2 p.m. misspells Det. Vickman's first name. It is Danielle not Daniel.
DA Press Release (2:04 p.m.):
Today, a Humboldt County jury found Daniel Forrest Rena-Dozier, age 42, guilty of voluntary manslaughter for killing Mia Felder, age 30, as well as guilty for felony assault with a semiautomatic firearm, felony possession of a silencer, and misdemeanor possession of a weapon with the serial number removed. The jury also found that Mr. Rena-Dozier personally used a firearm, causing Ms. Felder’s death.
The homicide occurred on April 8, 2023, on Windy Road in McKinleyville.
Deputy District Attorney Roger Rees prosecuted the case at trial, with assistance from District Attorney Investigator Gregory Hill and Victim Advocate Caitlyn LaHaie. The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office investigated the case, led by Detective Daniel Vickman with assistance from Det. Jennifer Taylor, among others in the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office. Mr. Rena-Dozier was represented by local attorney Andrea Sullivan. The Honorable Steven Steward, Judge, presided over the three-week jury trial.
Mr. Rena-Dozier, who faces a maximum sentence of 21 years in prison for voluntary manslaughter with use of a firearm, is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Steward on July 8 at 8:30 in the morning.
District Attorney Stacey Eads commented “Thank you to the jurors for their time and thoughtful evaluation in reaching a just verdict in this tragic case. My deepest condolences go out to all of the affected family and other loved ones.”
Previous posts:
https://johnchiv.blogspot.com/2024/06/jury-has-verdict-in-daniel-doziers.html?m=1
https://johnchiv.blogspot.com/2024/05/defense-wins-ruling-regarding-bite.html?m=1
https://johnchiv.blogspot.com/2024/05/will-race-play-role-in-trial-and-verdict.html?m=1
https://johnchiv.blogspot.com/2024/05/alcohol-drug-addiction-and-machismo.html?m=1
https://johnchiv.blogspot.com/2024/05/da-claims-bite-marks-on-mias-arm-are.html?m=1
https://johnchiv.blogspot.com/2023/12/i-am-friend-of-mia-felders-here-in.html?m=1
https://johnchiv.blogspot.com/2023/08/daniel-dozier-in-jail-charge-upped-to.html?m=1
https://johnchiv.blogspot.com/2023/07/dozier-and-current-girlfriend.html?m=1#more
https://johnchiv.blogspot.com/2023/07/my-name-is-daniel-i-just-shot-her.html?m=1
https://johnchiv.blogspot.com/2023/06/defense-to-subpoena-mia-felders-uber.html?m=1
https://johnchiv.blogspot.com/2023/05/da-files-motion-to-continue-daniel.html?m=1
https://johnchiv.blogspot.com/2023/04/tatoo-artist-daniel-rena-dozier-charged.html?m=1
https://johnchiv.blogspot.com/2023/04/daniel-rena-dozier-arrested-for-murder.html?m=1
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