A Washington man has been charged in Santa Maria Superior Court with murder in connection with a fatal shooting late Saturday night in Santa Maria.
Ron Dolph Tutay, 27, was taken into custody shortly after the shooting that killed Gerald Williams, 56, of Texas, in front of Louie B’s bar, Santa Maria police said.
At 9:24 p.m. Saturday, personnel from the Santa Maria police and fire departments and a American Medical Response ambulance were dispatched to the 200 block of East Main Street.
They found one person with life-threatening injuries, who was transported to a local hospital and later died, according to police.
When officers arrived on scene, they noticed man sitting on the sidewalk a short distance away from the victim.
Officers began to question the individual and found cause to arrest him for drug-related violations, police said.
Additional information gathered during the investigative process and physical evidence located at the scene led police to arrest Tutay in connection to the shooting, police said.
A criminal complaint filed Wednesday charged Tutay with murder plus several sentencing enhancements including use of a firearm.
If convicted, this would be Tutay’s second strike under the California Three Strikes Sentencing Law.
Washington court records in Pierce County show that Tutay was convicted for armed robbery in 2017.
The case will return to court on July 12, with the preliminary hearing tentatively set for the following day.
Tutay remains in the custody of the Northern Branch Jail with bail set at $3 million.
Anyone who may have information regarding the homicide investigation can contact Detective Oscar Corral at 805.928.3781, ext. 2243.
— Noozhawk North County editor Janene Scully can be reached at jscully@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.