Rohnert Park Man Guilty Of Manslaughter In Death Of Romantic Rival
SAN RAFAEL (CBS SF) – A Sonoma County Superior Court jury on Friday convicted a Rohnert Park man of voluntary manslaughter of a romantic rival last year.
The jurors found Daniel Dieters not guilty of first- and second- degree murder of Roy 'R.J.' Kauwe and of first-degree burglary at Kauwe's Rohnert Park apartment on March 20, 2014.
Jurors relied on the theory of imperfect self-defense to find Dieters, 27, guilty of voluntary manslaughter, juror Gigi McDonald of Windsor said after the verdicts were returned late this morning.
An imperfect self-defense means a person reasonably and honestly believes they are in imminent danger of death or great bodily injury and that the use of deadly force was necessary to defend against the danger, but at least one of those beliefs was unreasonable.
Attorney Joseph Bisbiglia argued Dieters acted in self-defense when he stabbed Kauwe, who had an arsenal of guns and knives in his Laguna Drive apartment.
"We still believe this is a self-defense case, but we respect the jury's verdict," Bisbiglia said.
"The case presented obstacles to both parties," Bisbiglia said. "We believe the case was overcharged based on unique factors and the weapons arsenal," Bisbiglia said.
Deputy District Attorneys Tashawn Sanders and Mark Urioste sought a first-degree murder conviction. The prosecution argued Dieters intended to kill his friend Kauwe, who had begun a relationship with his girlfriend, Kayla Lindsay.
Lindsay sent a text to Kauwe that night warning him Dieters was either going to kill him in his apartment or kill her where she lived, according to trial testimony. Kauwe was stabbed several times in the neck and died at the scene.
Dieters testified he went to the apartment to talk to Kauwe that night, but became frightened because the apartment was dark and Kauwe had a knife in his hand and was acting strangely. He said he stabbed Kauwe to prevent him from going into the bedroom where Kauwe kept a gun and other weapons.
"We felt first- and second-degree murder were not proven," said juror Gigi McDonald, of Windsor. "We were stuck on the reasonable use of force. We had to really discuss if he used reasonable force or exceeded it and concluded it was excessive force and an imperfect self-defense," McDonald said.
McDonald said Dieters' testimony was helpful.
"We were sympathetic to both sides and felt that both were put in a position of extreme emotional intensity. We kept asking 'could it have been stopped,' and determined it probably could have been stopped," McDonald said.
Debbie Hurst, of Sebastopol, who was the mother of Kauwe's first girlfriend, said Dieters should have been convicted of first- or second-degree murder.
"He went to his house to kill him, not play video games. R.J. was gentle. We felt we were let down," Hurst said.
Bisbiglia said Dieters, who is much larger than Kauwe, was "a gentle giant" who did not have a criminal record.
"This guy is no gentle giant," Hurst said.
Dieters' parents sat alone outside the courtroom after the verdict, and his mother could be heard moaning as the jurors conversed with Bisbiglia and Urioste at the other end of the hallway.
Dieters faces a maximum of 12 years in prison for the manslaughter and use of a knife. A sentencing date will be selected on Nov. 16.
Before the jury returned the verdict, Judge Jamie Thistlethwaite told the crowded courtroom, "Nothing that happens today will make this any less than a tragedy."
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