"He is a monster": Stoner family calls for justice in 1987 killing as Fred Cain makes second court appearance
FAIRFIELD -- An accused child killer made his second appearance in Solano County court Thursday afternoon after DNA evidence cracked a decades-old cold case wide open.
Fred Cain III, 69, is facing charges of kidnapping, raping and murdering 6-year-old Jeremy Stoner of Vallejo in 1987.
Thursday's arraignment lasted just a few minutes as the judge continued it to October 27. Cain entered the courtroom in a wheelchair and did not speak a word. No plea was entered.
The only action taken by the judge was to reschedule, giving Cain's public defender, Oscar Bobrow, two more weeks to sift through the more than 1,000 pages of evidence.
Bobrow told the judge his office had only been able to get through about half of the evidence and they were not prepared to enter a plea on Cain's behalf.
Nearly a dozen of Jeremy Stoner's family members sat in the courtroom gallery to show their unified front in calling for justice for the child. Even a short time face-to-face with Cain was emotional for Jeremy's parents.
"I want to just climb over there and snap his neck. He is a monster," said Jon Stoner, Jeremy's father.
Karen Tabler, Jeremy's mother, told CBS13 that four decades after the crime, she is still haunted by what happened to her youngest child – a boy she described as full of happiness and love.
"I'll never forget that Saturday. It's embedded in my head. He didn't get to live," said Tabler. She was too emotional to speak further after Thursday's hearing.
Jeremy's family has only had a few weeks to wrap their heads around the shocking news from Solano County cold case investigators. In late September, the Solano County District Attorney's Office announced that newly tested DNA evidence gathered in Jeremy's original autopsy linked Cain to the crime.
He was extradited from his home in Oregon to finally face charges in Solano County.
The news hit the Stoner family hard.
"I thought for 36 years, I believed that Melton, Shawn Melton was the one who did it because the Vallejo police were 100% sure. They said they were 100% sure," Jon Stoner said.
Melton was wrongfully accused of killing Jeremy after offering Vallejo police his help in the investigation. Police at the time felt he knew too much.
Cain was originally interviewed as a suspect in Jeremy's death back in 1987 but slipped through the cracks as police zeroed in on Melton. He went to jail and two trials, both ending in hung juries before his charges were dismissed.
"I'm thankful that the truth will be coming out and that Shawn Melton wasn't convicted. If he was, we would never find out the truth," said Shari Totten-Walch, Jeremy's aunt.
The decades of emotional turmoil weigh heavily on the Stoner family to this day. Still, they feel they must represent Jeremy in court before his accused killer.
"I can be no place but here," said Totten-Walch through tears. "I want him to rot in jail and I want him to spend eternity in hell, and even that's too good for him."
The same DNA evidence that landed Cain behind bars is what exonerated Melton. He never lived to see his name cleared. He passed away from lifelong complications with severe asthma in 2000.
Chris Melton told CBS13 that his older brother would have cried tears of joy upon hearing the news of his exoneration. Even on his deathbed, Chris said Shawn described immense regret and sorrow that the Stoner family would never learn Jeremy's true killer.
"But no matter how happy he would be that he was cleared, he'd want them to have peace. I know him. To this day, over his joy, he would want them to have peace," Chris Melton said.
The Stoner family will not give up on fighting for justice for Jeremy in this new battle that is only just beginning nearly 40 years later.
In court Thursday, Chief Deputy District Attorney Paul Sequeira told the judge that their office had questions about a possible conflict of interest with Bobrow representing Cain as his public defender. The DA's office says years ago, Bobrow represented Shawn Melton.
No action was taken to replace Bobrow in court Thursday.
Cain's arraignment will officially continue on October 27 on the official charges of murder, kidnapping, sodomy and lewd acts with a child under the age of 14.