A state appeals court panel has upheld a man’s second-degree murder conviction for shooting his roommate who was sitting inside a vehicle at the Covina mobile home park where they lived.
The three-justice panel rejected the defense’s contention that there errors were made in the trial of Michael Irving Ness, who is serving a 40-year-to-life state prison sentence for the Feb. 22, 2018, killing of Ray Bonilla.
Ness, now 73, was convicted of second-degree murder, with the jury rejecting the defense’s request to find him guilty of the lesser offense of voluntary manslaughter.
The justices noted that Ness admitted firing his gun “a few times’ through the car window.
The appellate court panel found in its ruling Wednesday that Ness’s own trial testimony indicated that he was under the influence of alcohol, but remained aware of his actions at the time of the shooting.
The justices noted that Ness recalled in detail at his trial the events that took place in the moments leading up to a fight with his roommate, which preceded the shooting by roughly 10 minutes.
“… The evidence does not demonstrate Ness was unconscious due to voluntary intoxication when he shot Bonilla,” according to the appellate court panel’s opinion. “To the contrary, It shows he was unaware of his actions and understood their consequences, as demonstrated by his detailed description of the surrounding events, his recollection of the shooting itself and his thoughts at the time, and his attempt to flee immediately thereafter by driving away in his truck.”
Ness was arrested hours after the shooting. Police said he was tracked down at a local bar and had a firearm.