After a five-week trial in Fairfield, a Solano County Superior Court jury on Wednesday convicted a 29-year-old man of a first-degree murder that occurred four years ago in Vallejo.
Merlin Sylvester Jones heard the jury’s verdict in Department 11, Judge William J. Pendergast’s courtroom, where he was convicted of killing Maleek Mitchell on March 31, 2017.
Besides the murder charge, jurors also found Jones guilty of being a felon in possession of a firearm and for personally using the gun to kill Mitchell, Solano County District Attorney Krishna Abrams indicated in a press release issued late Thursday. Additionally, the jury found Jones had suffered a prior “strike” conviction, she added in the prepared statement. The prior strike may lead to additional years in state prison when Jones is sentenced.
According to court records, at approximately 11:09 p.m. March 31, Vallejo police officers responded to the area of Pennsylvania and Marin on a report of shots fired and a body lying in the middle of the street.
Later, video surveillance showed a white Volvo coming down the street with the body of the victim falling out of it. The victim, identified as Mitchell, had been shot in the back
and was tossed from the car. Officers attempted to revive him but were not successful.
In the release, Abrams said Mitchell’s friends indicated that he had gotten into the white Volvo to meet up with the driver, whom they did not know.
“Within a minute of getting in this car, Mitchell was dead and his wallet and money were gone,” she added.
Officers were able to connect Jones to the crime through his smartphone, which was seized by the Santa Clara Police Department. The Santa Clara officers had been working a case that had occurred a few hours before Mitchell was killed. Officers in Santa Clara were able to track down the defendant and arrest him.
They obtained a search warrant for Jones’ phone and worked with the Vallejo investigators to help solve the case. Jones had incriminating content on his phone that showed he arranged to meet with Mitchell shortly before he was killed. Additionally, the defendant’s phone had photographs and video of the murder weapon, noted Abrams.
Ballistics demonstrated that bullets taken from Mitchell’s body matched the weapon seen in the photos.
Senior Deputy District Attorney Julie Underwood led the prosecution. Victim Witness Advocate Susanne Perthes provided victim advocacy.
Jones is scheduled to be sentenced at 8:30 a.m. May 20 in Department 11 in the Justice Center in Fairfield.
At sentencing, Jones likely will face 25 years to life in state prison for the killing, plus additional time for the other charges and the prior strike conviction.
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