A Temecula man accused of pointing a shotgun at a 7-year-old Girl Scout selling cookies door-to-door pleaded not guilty to assault with a deadly weapon Wednesday, Feb. 5.
John Michael Dodrill, 59, didn’t speak during his brief arraignment at the Southwest Justice Center in French Valley. A deputy public defender entered not guilty pleas on his behalf.
Dodrill, who is being held with bail set at $25,000, sat on a bench with other inmates, wearing orange jail clothes and shackles.
Judge Judith Clark approved a criminal protective order for Dodrill to stay away from the girl and her father.
The father was in court for the hearing but declined to comment afterward.
The father reported the run-in with Dodrill late Sunday morning on Strawberry Tree Lane in a gated condominium complex on the southern end of town, Riverside County sheriff’s officials said.
The girl, pulling a wagon filled with cookies, had walked up to Dodrill’s front door and rung the bell while her father waited nearby, said John Hall, a spokesman for the Riverside County district attorney’s office. When no one answered, she tried knocking.
Hall said Dodrill opened the door while holding a shotgun at his side, then raised it toward the child as her father looked on.
“He said something to the effect of, ‘You should know better than to knock on my door,’” Hall said.
Dodrill then slammed the door shut, Hall said.
The stunned father called his daughter over to him and dialed 911.
Sheriff’s Lt. Matt Aveling said it was unclear why Dodrill had such an extreme reaction. Dodrill and the family don’t know each other, Aveling said, and deputies had never been called to that address for any complaints in the past.
“It’s definitely a shocker,” he said.
Sheriff’s officials have said they seized several guns from Dodrill’s home.
Contact Sarah Burge at 951-368-9694 or sburge@pe.com
John Michael Dodrill, 59, didn’t speak during his brief arraignment at the Southwest Justice Center in French Valley. A deputy public defender entered not guilty pleas on his behalf.
Dodrill, who is being held with bail set at $25,000, sat on a bench with other inmates, wearing orange jail clothes and shackles.
Judge Judith Clark approved a criminal protective order for Dodrill to stay away from the girl and her father.
The father was in court for the hearing but declined to comment afterward.
The father reported the run-in with Dodrill late Sunday morning on Strawberry Tree Lane in a gated condominium complex on the southern end of town, Riverside County sheriff’s officials said.
The girl, pulling a wagon filled with cookies, had walked up to Dodrill’s front door and rung the bell while her father waited nearby, said John Hall, a spokesman for the Riverside County district attorney’s office. When no one answered, she tried knocking.
Hall said Dodrill opened the door while holding a shotgun at his side, then raised it toward the child as her father looked on.
“He said something to the effect of, ‘You should know better than to knock on my door,’” Hall said.
Dodrill then slammed the door shut, Hall said.
The stunned father called his daughter over to him and dialed 911.
Sheriff’s Lt. Matt Aveling said it was unclear why Dodrill had such an extreme reaction. Dodrill and the family don’t know each other, Aveling said, and deputies had never been called to that address for any complaints in the past.
“It’s definitely a shocker,” he said.
Sheriff’s officials have said they seized several guns from Dodrill’s home.
Contact Sarah Burge at 951-368-9694 or sburge@pe.com
No comments:
Post a Comment