The defendant in the Salon Meritage shootings, pleaded not guilty to all charges at his Tuesday, Nov. 29 arraignment, according to the Orange County Superior Court Web site occourts.org.
The arraignment hearing was continued from Friday, Oct. 14.
The Orange County District Attorney’s Office has filed 26 counts against Scott Dekraai, 42, including eight counts of murder and one count of attempted murder. Seal Beach Police arrested Dekraai on Wednesday, Oct. 12, approximately 5 and a half minutes after receiving reports about the shootings at the Salon Meritage hair salon in Seal Beach.
The DA’s Office has also added “special circumstances” to the charges. Special circumstances are sentencing “enhancements” that expose a defendant in a murder case to the maximum penalty for murder: death or life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. The DA’s Office is seeking the death penalty for the Salon Meritage shootings, the worst mass murder in Orange County history.
In California, death penalty trials are held in two phases. The first phase is the “guilt phase,” during which the prosecution must convince the jury that the defendant is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. If the jury finds the accused guilty, and if the jury decides the crime was murder in the first degree with special circumstances, then the trial moves into the “penalty phase.” During the second phase, the jury decides if the defendant deserves to live in prison or die by lethal injection.
Dekraai is currently being held without bail. Dekraai is being represented by two attorneys with the Orange County Public Defender’s Office. The DA’s Office has assigned four prosecutors to the case, including Orange County District Attorney Anthony Rackauckas.
Dekraai’s next schedule court appearance will be at his preliminary hearing, which is set for April 24. At that time, a judge will determine if there is enough evidence for the case to go to trial.
