Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
The Demetrius Coleman case is closed. A Humboldt County, Calif. jury convicted the 40-year-old former New Rockford man of special-circumstance, first-degree murder for fatally shooting Johnny Mack Renfro on the streets of Rio Dell, Calif., in August 2019.
The jury handed down its guilty verdict on Tuesday, Nov. 10 after nearly three days of deliberation, according to the "Lost Coast Outpost." Because Coleman was convicted of the special circumstance of firing from a vehicle, he faces life in prison without the possibility of parole. Sentencing is set for Jan.7.
News of Coleman's charges reached New Rockford in January, when Eddy County Sheriff Paul Lies was notified that he may be in the area. On Sunday, January 26, officers converged at the Bison Lodge in New Rockford, where Coleman was believed to be staying with a woman who also had a warrant for her perceived role in the murder. Both Coleman and his girlfriend Alma Ahumada-Mendoza fled on foot. Deputies were able to surround a small building behind the lodge where they believed Coleman was hiding, but he continually ignored commands to surrender and exit the building. The North Dakota Highway Patrol and Foster County Sheriff's Office assisted in a perimeter while Eddy deputies made entry into the building. Deputies were able to apprehend Coleman without force, and he was transported to the Stutsman County Correctional Center in Jamestown, N.D. for extradition back to California.
Authorities continued to search for Ahumada-Mendoza for the next two days. She somehow made it out of New Rockford and to West Fargo, where she was arrested by the West Fargo Police Department on Tuesday, Jan. 28. In a release to local news media at the time, Rio Dell police chief Jeff Conner was said to be in North Dakota assisting with the investigation and apprehension of Ahumada-Mendoza.
Local media in Humboldt County reported that Coleman had rejected an offer from Deputy District Attorney Carolyn Schaffer to plead guilty to first-degree murder, instead opting for a trial by jury. If he would have agreed to the plea deal, he would have been sentenced to life in prison with a possibility of parole.
"Coleman already has two strikes under the state's 'Three Strikes You're Out' law, and he was warned more than once about the consequences if he was convicted at trial," reported the Lost Coast Outpost.
During the trial, Coleman testified that a Jamaican man named Dread was driving his green Honda coupe and shot Renfro while Coleman hid behind the driver's seat.
The prosecution asserted that Coleman shot Renfro because he believed that Renfro had robbed him of marijuana. Coleman's girlfriend, Alma Ahumada-Mendoza, and a woman named Mariah Acosta followed Coleman in a separate vehicle. Acosta testified at trial that she heard Coleman give Ahumada-Mendoza instructions via phone and later heard gunfire.
Video footage of the incident was recovered by investigators with the help of a local resident. The footage depicted the murder of Renfro as well as Coleman's green Honda. Shortly thereafter, the vehicle used in the homicide was recovered by the city.
At a preliminary hearing, Judge Timothy Canning dismissed charges that Ahumada-Mendoza, 23, was an accessory after the fact. She was released from custody.
Jeff Conner, chief of the Rio Dell Police Department, sent an email of gratitude to Lies for the assistance his department received from North Dakota authorities. "I wanted to let you know that the hard work of you and your department paid off and that Mr. Coleman will be spending the rest of his life behind bars. Thank you once again for the assistance you provided, both in apprehending Coleman and then assisting me while I was there," Conner said.
The Eddy County Sheriff's Office, North Dakota Highway Patrol, West Fargo Police Department and Foster County Sheriff's Office assisted with the investigation and arrests of Coleman and Alhumada-Mendoza.
