Crime & Safety

DA: Man Pleads Guilty in 2012 Watsonville Murder Case

A money dispute was at the root of a double shooting at a Prospect Street home that left one man dead and seriously injured a woman.





A Watsonville man who believed another man owed him money will spend 60 years in prison for killing that man and a injuring a woman in a double shooting a year ago, the District Attorney's Office announced Monday. 

Michael Neal Miller, 35, pleaded guilty to first degree murder, attempted murder and special allegations of using of a gun during the commission of the offenses, according to the D.A.'s Office. 

Miller shot Dominic Mower, 37, of Watsonville and Candy McCullough, 23, of Santa Cruz in Mower's home at 200 Prospect St. early on July 25, 2012. Miller reportedly believed Mower owed him money, so he went to the Prospect Street home under the guise of selling Mower heroin, then shot both Mower and McCullough, the D.A.'s Office said in a prepared statement.

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Mower was shot four times in the face, and McCullough was hit three times, including one shot to the head. Mower then beat them both severely with the butt of the gun. Mower died at the scene. McCullough, who was left for dead, was able to crawl from the house and seek assistance. 

Miller will be sentenced to 60 years to life on October 18, 2013. 

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"The 60 to life sentence will ensure that Mr. Miller will spend the rest of his life behind bars where he belongs" said Assistant District Attorney Johanna Schonfield, who prosecuted the case. 


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