A Carpinteria man faces a lengthy prison term after being found guilty of manslaughter and other charges stemming from an assault that occurred two years ago, according to the Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s Office.
A Superior Court jury returned guilty verdicts Thursday against Scott Robert Fleming, 31, on charges of voluntary manslaughter, assault with force likely to produce great bodily injury, and battery causing serious bodily injury, as well as a special allegation for personally inflicting great bodily injury in the killing of Eric Romero.
Romero, 32, of Carpinteria, suffered critical injuries in the attack in the early morning hours on July 20, 2019, and died three days later at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital.
After various altercations between a group of friends, Fleming turned on Romero, who was trying to de-escalate the situation, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
Fleming knocked Romero unconscious, causing him to fall back and hit his head on the concrete.
Fleming fled the scene, but was apprehended by sheriff’s detectives in Ventura two days after the attack.
He is scheduled to return to court on Oct. 14, and could be sentenced to as much as 27 years in state prison due to prior serious felony convictions, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
Fleming faces a second strike under the state’s “Three Strikes” law for a 2008 felony conviction for assault with a deadly weapon, and a 2009 felony conviction for elder abuse, according to the criminal complaint filed against him.
Court records show he has been criminally charged in additional cases.
Fleming remains in custody at the Santa Barbara County Jail, with bail set at more than $1 million.
“This significant conviction was possible due to exceptional work on the part of our Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office and members of the public who witnessed a terrible crime and called 9-1-1,” said District Attorney Joyce Dudley in a statement. “This successful prosecution was a direct result of the hard and smart work of Detective Travis Henderson and Senior DDA Kevin Weichbrod.”
— Noozhawk executive editor Tom Bolton can be reached at tbolton@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.