Special Circumstances Murder Charge Filed In Deadly Dublin Home Invasion
DUBLIN (CBS SF) -- A Vallejo man has been charged with special circumstances murder for the shooting death of his female accomplice in what authorities allege was a plot to conduct a home invasion robbery at the home of her ex-boyfriend in Dublin last week.
Rickey Tyrone White Jr., 28, was charged Monday with murder and the special circumstance of murder during an attempted robbery for the fatal shooting of 28-year-old Adrianna Marie Navarro of Vallejo in the 3400 block of Monaghan Street in Dublin at about 11:30 p.m. last Wednesday.
White, who has prior convictions in Clark County in Nevada for attempted burglary and attempted grand larceny of a person over 65 years old, was also charged with attempted murder for allegedly firing shots at Navarro's ex-boyfriend, who wasn't injured.
In addition, White was charged with attempted first-degree residential robbery, first-degree residential robbery and being an ex-felon in possession of a firearm.
"If you are engaged in a felony and someone is killed. It can be a co-defendant, it can be a suspect, it can be a witness, it can be someone else--you are still culpable for that murder, that homicide, that unlawful killing," said KPIX legal analyst Paul Henderson.
Henderson said the felony began right when the burglary started.
"You are responsible for whatver happened right when you are engaged in that crime and that includes conspiring to engage in a crime," he said.
Navarro's ex-boyfriend told police that at 11:30 p.m. last Wednesday he was asleep at his condominium when he was awakened by someone banging on his front door, Dublin police Sgt. John White wrote in a probable cause statement.
Based on the time of night and the loud banging the man grabbed his 9mm Glock pistol.
The man looked out his door's peephole, only saw Navarro and cracked his door open slightly but it was forced open by a man in all black clothing who was later determined to be Rickey White, according to the probable cause statement.
An investigation after the shooting indicates that Rickey White allegedly waited in the shadows while Navarro knocked on the man's door.
Rickey White was armed with a black handgun with an extended magazine that was pointed at Navarro's ex-boyfriend so the ex-boyfriend, who feared for his life, started shooting while running out of his condo away from White.
White ran further into the man's condo and up the stairs away from the man's gunshots and the man told police that he heard additional gunshots as he ran away, Sgt. White wrote.
The man called 911 and officers who responded to the scene initially detained him because they didn't know what had occurred, although the man was visibly distraught.
Officers heard screaming coming from the ex-boyfriend's condo and found Rickey White, who was suffering from a gunshot wound to his right leg.
As White was being detained he asked officers to help Navarro, who was unresponsive in the entryway with a gunshot wound to her chest.'
Paramedics responded to the condo but Navarro was pronounced dead at the scene. Rickey White was transported to Eden Medical Center in Castro Valley to be treated for his wound but he was later released.
Sgt. White wrote that the investigation into the shooting indicates that Navarro and Rickey White conspired to commit a home invasion robbery at her ex-boyfriend's home because she knew that he had "numerous high-valuable items, including designer valuables."
Navarro was struck in her chest when her ex-boyfriend and Rickey White exchanged gunfire but at this point police don't know whether she was shot by White or her ex-boyfriend.
"Even though he's not the one that pulled the trigger, he's not the one that shot the woman that ultimately died who was his co-defendant, he is still liable for her murder and it is under that theory and under that principal that he is being charged," Henderson explained.
The ex-boyfriend was released and wasn't charged because the evidence in the case, including a search of his cellphone.
© Copyright 2020 CBS Broadcasting Inc. and Bay City News Service. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. KPIX 5's Andria Borba contributed to this report.