May 10, 2008

Two men held in Hwy. 101 shooting

Hayward suspects will stand trial for Sept. 2007 murder charges

By Caitlin Cassady / Bay City News

Two Hayward men were held to answer Friday in San Mateo County Superior Court for charges of murder in connection with the September 2007 fatal shooting and vehicle crash of a San Mateo man on U.S. Highway 101 in Burlingame.

After a two day preliminary hearing Judge Lisa Novak decided that Doyal Malcolm Webber and Mohammed Rabah, both 18, will stand trial for charges that they are responsible for the death of Lon Dell Wilson, 25. The San Mateo County District Attorney's Office has charged Webber for pulling the trigger of the gun, and Rabah with driving the vehicle from which Webber fired, as well as possessing the gun used.

Numerous witness statements have provided conflicting information as to whether Rabah or his brother was driving the maroon Chevrolet Caprice from which Webber fired.

During the hearing San Mateo County deputy district attorney Joseph Cannon presented six witnesses to prove that his office has enough evidence to proceed to trial. Three of the witnesses were riding in the cars involved in the incident, and the other three were Burlingame police officers who investigated the crash and shooting.

According to Donald Reid, Zena Darwish and Juan Morellos, a group of friends was driving from East Palo Alto to San Francisco the night of the shooting. A group of people were caravanning in three cars; a teal Oldsmobile station wagon, a white Buick Skylark and the Caprice. The three witnesses testified that Wilson pulled his gray Honda Civic alongside the cars as they drove through Burlingame and began staring at the friends, then yelling.

Morellos, who was riding in the passenger seat of the Skylark said that Wilson told him "I stay ready," which Morellos took to mean he had a gun in the car. Darwish said that her sister, who was riding in the car with Morellos told her she heard Wilson yell something about "Frisco" multiple times.

Wilson and the Skylark swerved toward each other a few times in the center lanes of the highway, according to witnesses. Reid, who was riding in the Caprice with Rabah, Webber and Rabah's brother, testified that the occupants in his car noticed the confrontation and Webber got a gun from somewhere on the side of the front passenger's seat, where Rabah was sitting.

Webber then reached outside the car window and fired four rounds at the Civic over the top of the Caprice, Reid testified.

Darwish testified that she heard the sound of gunfire and looked back to see Webber's head and arm outside the Caprice and pointed at the Civic. She also said that one of the bullets struck the Oldsmobile that she was riding in.

After being shot, Wilson veered to the right and crashed. He was transported to San Francisco General Hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.

Morellos told the court that a few days after the shooting he spoke with Rabah, and Rabah told him that he originally produced the gun and cocked it, but decided not to shoot. After he decided not to shoot, Webber grabbed the gun and began firing, Morellos said. The gun used belonged to Morellos, but he told the court today that on Sept. 29 Rabah and Webber borrowed the gun to take to a rims shop in Oakland.

Burlingame police officers located the three cars after a taxi driver who witnessed the event gave descriptions of the vehicles. Images of the station wagon and Skylark were captured by red-light enforcement cameras at Rollins Road in Millbrae where they exited the freeway. Police then tracked down the owners, which led them to Rabah and Webber.

At the end of the hearing Webber's attorney Kevin Nowack asked for the charges to be dropped, and Rabah's attorney Ian Loveseth argued today that his client should not be charged with murder because he did not pull the trigger, nor was he driving the vehicle. Cannon argued that whether Rabah was driving the vehicle or not, he introduced a gun into the situation that left a man dead.

Members of both defendants' families were in attendance, as well as members of Wilson's family. Wilson's father Lawrence said that while there were "no winners in this situation" he was glad that the men are going to be brought to justice. Wilson's sister Linda seconded the idea, saying that while her "brother was not perfect, he was innocent and his life was stopped."

Webber and Rabah will return to court on June 6 at 8:45 a.m. for their superior court arraignment. Both men remain in custody on no-bail status.