x
Breaking News
More () »

Freeway shooter convicted on four counts

A man who opened fire on vehicles on State Route 163 during the morning commute more than two years ago, wounding a college student and damaging the car of another motorist, was convicted Thursday

SAN DIEGO (CNS/CBS 8) - A man who opened fire on vehicles on State Route 163 during the morning commute more than two years ago, wounding a college student and damaging the car of another motorist, was convicted Thursday of four counts.

Jurors deadlocked, however, on an attempted murder charge against Stephen Dragasits, 60.

He was convicted of two counts each of shooting at an occupied vehicle and assault with a firearm.

A separate jury deadlocked on all charges in the defendant's first trial in April 2012.

In her closing argument in the earlier trial, prosecutor Chandelle Konstanzer said Dragasits deliberately fired from his motor home, which was parked along the freeway, wounding University of San Diego student Ashley Simmons and hitting the car of Jeffrey Lloyd-Jones the morning of April 5, 2011.

Simmons, 23, says she rarely thinks about the day Dragasits shot her anymore but hoped he would be convicted of attempted murder.

"I've come to a point of a relief after what happened today," said Simmons, "but I was disappointed he wasn't convicted on all counts, just four of them."

Defense attorney Euketa Oliver countered that no one saw Dragasits shoot at anyone.

Konstanzer said Dragasits lived in his RV and liked to hang out in the vicinity of Kearny Mesa Road near the Clairemont Mesa exit.

About a month before the shootings, Dragasits was convicted of throwing large rocks at cars in the same area, the prosecutor said.

Simmons says she will be at Dadaists's sentencing on July 15 and hopes it's the last time she has to re-live her nightmare.

"It's just hard to believe that someone would just sit on the side of the road and shoot at innocent people who are just trying to be productive every day," Simmons said.

Before You Leave, Check This Out