Recap of Mavrick Fisher's preliminary hearing for murder of Grant Whitaker

I will show you video clips of the preliminary hearing at the Lake County Courthouse on October 23.

The case is named People of the State of California vs Mavrick William Fisher.

The purpose of this hearing is for the judge to see what evidence there is for Mavrick’s four criminal counts: premeditated murder of Grant Whitaker, assault with a deadly weapon (a rock) with a special allegation of inflicting great bodily harm, removing and keeping possession a 2011 Chevrolet Impala from a dead body, and grand theft auto.

Thomas Feimer is Mavrick’s public defender. The prosecutor is District Attorney Susan Krones. The judge is Michael S. Lunas.

On Wednesday, there was a lot of new information and evidence that was presented in verbal testimony from Sheriff Wesley Besgrove and Detective Richard Kreutzer. Both are from the Lake County Sheriff’s Office.

I will give you a summary and then show you clips of the testimony.

The murder was on Tuesday, August 20 in the early morning at Richardson Grove State Park in Humboldt County. Grant and Mavrick were camping out at lot #80 in a tent. Mavrick allegedly used a rock to kill Grant, then wrapped his body in a sleeping bag and placed it in a 2011 Chevrolet Impala that Grant borrowed from his grandmother Pam Theirry, then drove to a large ranch owned by Lee McCarrell in Lake County.

He parked the Impala on Lee’s ranch and told him that he would do repairs on the car. The body was apparently in the vehicle without Lee’s knowledge.

Mavrick had a cut on his right hand on his pinky finger. Mavrick told Lee that he got the cut from repairing the car. But later on, he said the cut was from Grant trying to stab him. That was Mavrick’s main statement of self-defense by accusing Grant of trying to stab him, which was the reason why he hit Grant with a rock.

On Friday, August 23, Mavrick asked Lee to borrow his ATV so he could clean out the car. Mavrick then apparently removed Grant’s body from the car, placed it on the ATV, drove it to a remote site, and left it there. After this, Mavrick left Lee’s ranch by driving the Impala to a site near Dollar General in Clearlake Oaks, where he abandoned the car.

Mavrick met with a friend of his named Michael Fucci. They went to a police station to report that Mavrick was stabbed at Humboldt County, but it seems like nothing happened afterwards.

On Saturday, August 24, Mavrick made his way down to Mexico on a Greyhound bus. On that same day, Grant’s grandmother Pam Thierry filed a mission person’s report in Tazewell County, Illinois. She lives there and Grant is from Illinois as well.

TEXT: Grant's car was found by police on Saturday, August 24. On Sunday, August 25, police were told that Grant's body was located on Lee McCarrell's ranch.

On Monday, Mavrick was detained in Mexico. He was brought over to a jail in San Diego. Detective Kreutzer flew there to do his first interview with him.

The next day, on Tuesday, August 27, Mavrick was extradited to Lake County and Kreutzer did a second interview with Mavrick. It was filmed.

TEXT: Deputy Sheriff Wesley Besgrove was one of the first officers to inspect the abandoned 2011 Chevrolet Impala.

He describes what he found on the vehicle to District Attorney Krones.

Besgrove: I saw that on the rear seat’s floor, there was decomposing blood and wet blood. I also saw maggots.

Krones: Did you find any kind of ID belonging to Grant?

Besgrove: Yes. I did find a California ID card for Grant and papers with his name on it.

TEXT: Defense Attorney Feimer asks questions about what was found inside of Grant's car.

Feimer: Did you find a knife in the car?

Besgrove: Yes.

Feimer: Where exactly did you find the knife?

Besgrove: On the door compartment on the driver’s seat.

Feimer: Can you describe what the knife looked like?

Besgrove: It was metallic in color, similar to what you would find in a kitchen.

Feimer: How long was the blade?

Besgrove: Three to four inches.

Feimer: Did the knife have blood on it?

Besgrove: Yes, a small amount.

Feimer: Did the blood on the knife get tested?

Besgrove: I don’t know. That was not a part of my investigation.

TEXT: Detective Kreutzer describes to the D.A. about finding Grant's cellphone in the Impala.

Kreutzer: That time I was focused on getting a cellphone. Someone told me there was one.

Krones: Where did you find the cellphone?

Kreutzer: I found it in the glove compartment.

Krones: Did you figure out who owned the phone?

Kreutzer: No, unfortunately I couldn’t. The iPhone was “locked.” The Sheriff’s Office doesn’t have the technology to bypass Apple’s operating system security.

TEXT: Detective Kreutzer describes to the D.A. about going to Lee McCarrell's ranch on Monday, August 26 to serve a search warrant.

Krones: What did he (Lee) say to you about how he knew Grant and Mavrick?

Kreutzer: He said he knew both from prior experiences where Grant and Mavrick went on the property to do varying work for Mr. McCarrell.

Krones: Did he say that he had any problems with either Mr. Whitaker or Mr. Fisher?

Kreutzer: Yes. He did. He said previously he had some concerns about Mr. Whitaker, who he… I can’t quote him exactly, but I got the impression that he had a hot temper. He was asked to not come back on (Lee)’s property, I believe, in May 2019 of this year.

Krones: Did Mr. McCarrell say he recently saw Mr. Fisher?

Kreutzer: Yes, he did.

Krones: When did he see Mr. Fisher?

Kreutzer: He saw him on August 20th and he told me he saw him again for the next few days up to Friday evening of that week.

TEXT: Detective Kreutzer tells the D.A. about what Lee McCarrell said about Mavrick's three-day stay on his ranch.

Krones: Did Mr. Fisher arrive on the 20th?

Kreutzer: Yes.

Krones: How he get there?

Kreutzer: Lee said he drove and then left the car near the temporary building I talked about before. (Lee said) Mavrick was working on the car and got a cut during the week, I think on the 20th to the 23rd. He told me that this information changed later, that Mavrick said he was with Grant and there was a fight in Humboldt County. He told me the fight became very physical and that’s how Mavrick got the cut, from the incident.

Krones: Where was the cut?

Kreutzer: On his right hand on his pinky finger.

Krones: Did Mavrick tell McCarrell whether Grant was dead or alive? Did he tell him this?

Kreutzer: Oh yes, thank you. As far as I understand, Mr. McCarrell got a text from Mavrick on where Grant’s body was left behind, but that he was not informed until Saturday morning, when Mavrick had already left.

TEXT: Detective Kreutzer describes how Mavrick borrowed Lee McCarrell's ATV.

Kreutzer: I believe he borrowed the ATV on Friday afternoon.

Krones: Did Mavrick tell McCarrell why he wanted to borrow the ATV?

Kreutzer: He told him that he wanted the ATV to drive to the car and clean it up for some unknown reason.

Krones: Did McCarrell say whether he went with Mavrick to help with the ATV?

Kreutzer: He said he did not go with him to help him with the ATV.

TEXT: Detective Kreutzer describes what Mavrick told Lee McCarrell about the location of Grant's body.

Krones: You said you got information from Mavrick on where Grant’s body was left behind?

Kreutzer: Yes, that’s right.

Krones: Did he say when he got this information?

Kreutzer: He was informed on Saturday morning.

Krones: Was Mavrick still around at that time?

Kreutzer: No. The text said, “First, open the gate when you go in Lee’s ranch. Go past the yellow gate. Then go to the fork in the road to Lee’s ranch. Go to the blue gate and follow the road to the blue gate but don’t go through it. You will see a hill behind it. Look at the blue gate, go up the hill, and you will see branches on the floor. Keep on driving until you see a hill on the right side. You have to use the 4x4. The body is 10 meters on the left side.

TEXT: Detective Kreutzer describes to the D.A. how he found Grant's remains on Lee's property.

Krones: Did you search Mr. McCarrell’s property to find Grant’s body?

Kreutzer: Yes. I followed the directions I got from the text. I followed it and went through the yellow gate, then to the blue gate, and we were able to find the hill that the text spoke about. We did have to use a 4x4 and we were ultimately able to find a human body approximately 9:41 that morning.

Krones: Was his body wrapped up?

Kreutzer: Yes. It was wrapped in a blue sleeping bag.

TEXT: Detective Kreutzer describes the findings of the autopsy on Grant's body.

Krones: According to the doctor, what was his physical findings?

Kreutzer: It was determined that the cause of death was homicide using blunt force to the head and face. Based on what I remember from observing the autopsy, it was on the left temporal lobe. (The doctor) said that excessive force was used to the point that the strikes went through his skull to the base of his brain.

TEXT: Detective Kreutzer describes to the D.A. his first interview with Mavrick in San Diego after he was detained in Mexico.

The interview was on Tuesday, August 27. There was an interpreter with Mavrick and Kreutzer.

Kreutzer: Mavrick said on the tent, there was one side with a zipper. Mavrick he was on the side near the zipper. Grant’s sleeping bag was on the opposite side.

Krones: Did Mavrick say anything about preventing the tent from blowing away?

Kreutzer: Yes, Mavrick said they used four rocks that were placed on four corners to keep it down.

Krones: Did he say whether the rocks were inside or outside of the tent?

Kreutzer: Mavrick said the rocks were on the outside of the tent. Mavrick said that approximately 1:00 in the morning on Tuesday, August 20th, he couldn’t sleep and was watching Grant outside. He was still upset because they had an argument on that day. Mavrick told me that Grant came in the tent and for about 30 seconds he was staring intensely at Mavrick as he was lying down to sleep near the zipper.

Krones: Did Mavrick say it was dark in the tent?

Kreutzer: Yes, he said it was dark, but he could see a figure of a body and he knew it was Grant’s body shape that was standing there. Grant was staring at him and he was holding a knife and raised it near him. Mavrick said with his right hand, he grabbed on Grant’s hand with the knife and realized that he was cut. Mavrick said he wrestled Grant’s hand away and both fell on the floor, then Mavrick grabbed a rock, and that it happened so fast, he used the rock to strike Grant and he was knocked out. Then Mavrick struck him about two more times.

Krones: Did he say anything about his emotions?

Kreutzer: I don’t remember if he said anything about his emotions or feelings at that time.

He put Grant’s body in Mavrick’s sleeping bag. That bag was a mummy bag that you could tie at the top above the head. Grant did not have that kind of sleeping bag, so Mavrick used his bag to put Grant’s body and closed it. He then gathered everything and took down the tent and everything and put it in the 2011 Chevrolet Impala and drove straight to Mr. Lee McCarrell’s ranch.

Mavrick said when he grabbed Grant’s hand, he did not see a knife, but felt the cut and realized Grant had a knife. And he did not see it until he was cleaning up the area and car and found the knife on the tent floor.

He said after he grabbed Grant’s hand and wrestled it down, Mavrick was halfway inside and outside of the tent. He said he was able to grab a rock from outside and used it to strike Grant.

Krones: Did Mavrick say anything about how he was stronger compared to Grant?

Kreutzer: Yes. (He said) because Grant was weak, I was able to overpower him.

Krones: What did Mavrick say happened when he got to McCarrell’s property?

Kreutzer: He said when he got to the property, he went to the front gates about 4 in the morning. He slept for five hours until about 9 in the morning when the gates were opened.

Krones: Did Mavrick explain about dumping Grant’s body?

Kreutzer: To me?

Krones: Yes. What did he say?

Kreutzer: When I showed him the printout of his texts with the information and Mavrick confirmed that he typed the message. I told him that we found Grant’s body and we also found the car. Mavrick responded by saying, “Oh! Already?”

Mavrick told me that he dumped the body by himself, that nobody helped him.

TEXT: Detective Kreutzer describes what Mavrick did after he left Lee McCarrell's ranch on Friday evening.

Kreutzer: He was with Michael Fucci and left Lake County on Friday evening to go to Mr. Fucci’s home somewhere in Sacramento, I’m not sure. Later on, Mavrick left from Fucci’s home and the U.S. to go to Mexico, in Tijuana.

Krones: Did Mavrick say why he went to Mexico?

Kreutzer: Yes he did. Through our investigation of text messages that I got from a man named Scotty Jackson, those text messages showed Mavrick taking a selfie in front of a sign that said, “Mexico.” I brought the picture with me and other things for our interview in San Diego. It seemed like from that picture that Mavrick was smiling. He said he knew what I was talking about, that he did take a selfie. I asked him why he was smiling. He replied that he felt he was in a safe zone, that he felt secure. That’s why he was smiling.

Krones: Did he share what he felt secure from?

Kreutzer: His response was specifically about the incident with Mr. Whitaker. He said during the interview that he knew there were prior instances of some innocent people going to jail and he was concerned that it would happen to him.

Krones: Did Mavrick say he had conversations with other people while in Mexico by texting or other social media?

Kreutzer: Yes. He confirmed that he had texts with Scotty Jackson and communication with his girlfriend, Emily.

TEXT: Detective Kreutzer describes to the D.A. about his second interview with Mavrick in Lake County after his extradition.

There was no interpreter this time; both communicated by typing on laptop back and forth.

Krones: Did he say anything about where the rocks were in the tent?

Kreutzer: Yes.

Krones: What was his response in the second interview?

Kreutzer: He explained that the rocks were at the four corners, but inside of the tent.

Krones: Did he say anything else about what was different from his first statements in Southern California?

Kreutzer: I can’t remember if there was anything different at this point, however we had an unique opportunity during the second interview, we were able to film our session.

Krones: Did he say anything about how he felt, about his emotions after the first rock strike?

Kreutzer: Yes, he did respond. He was angry. I’m trying to remember his exact words, he said “I saw red.”

TEXT: The hearing stopped for a lunch break. Mavrick was taken out of the courtroom and brought back in when the hearing resumed.

The Defense Attorney Feimer then asked Detective Kreutzer questions.

Feimer: Did you know if Mavrick, during the second interview, indicated if he preferred using a laptop over an interpreter?

Kreutzer: Yes, I remember him saying that.

Feimer: Do you remember Mavrick saying the interpreter in San Diego was not a “five-star interpreter?”

Kreutzer: Yes, that is right.

Feimer: Do you feel that she (the interpreter) struggled to understand him during the interview?

Kreutzer: A few, or a couple times. I don’t remember.

TEXT: Defense Attorney Feimer asks Detective Kreutzer to confirm that Mavrick made two attempts to reach out to law enforcement after the murder.

Feimer: Mr. Fucci and Mavrick made some type of report to the Lake County Sheriff’s Department?

Kreutzer: I found out from Mavrick and the Lakeport Police that someone did go to the police department that Friday night to tell them that there was an altercation on Friday night in Humboldt County.

Feimer: Is it true that it was not reported as a murder, right?

Kreutzer: Can you repeat that?

Feimer: It is true that there was no murder that night, right?

Kreutzer: That’s right.

Feimer: Mr. Fucci was told to report it to the Humboldt County?

Kreutzer: Yes, the Lakeport Police Department told him to do that.

Feimer: When Mavrick had his first encounter with Mexican authorities, he was the one who first approached them, right?

Kreutzer: That’s what he told me.

Feimer: When he was talking with them (Mexican police), they found out that he was “WANTED” in the U.S., right?

Kreutzer: I believe that is right.

Feimer: Then the Mexican police detained him and brought him to American authorities right?

Kreutzer: That’s right.

TEXT: Defense Attorney Feimer asks about what caused the conflict between Mavrick and Grant.

Kreutzer: What I found out from my interview with Mavrick was that there was an argument because they couldn’t work together to develop a farming community that they wanted to develop.

Feimer: Did Mavrick tell you that the altercation became physical in any way?

Kreutzer: I can’t remember that, no.

Feimer: However, he did tell you that on that day, the incident, that he was suspicious of Grant’s behavior, is that right?

Kreutzer: Yes, that is right.

Feimer: Also, Mavrick was sleeping with one eye open to keep watch, right?

Kreutzer: Yes, that is right.

Feimer: I have no more questions.

TEXT: District Attorney Krones asks about what Mavrick said regarding his strength over Grant.

Krones: Did Mavrick tell you at some point on how much stronger he was than Grant?

Kreutzer: Yes, he said that Grant was weak and it was easy for him to overpower him.

Krones: I have no more questions.

TEXT: Defense Attorney Feimer and District Attorney Krones makes their final arguments to the judge.

Feimer argues that Mavrick was acting out of self-defense.

Feimer: For first degree homicide, which is willful, deliberate, and premeditated murder, I would argue that there is no evidence within the record to support that idea. What we have is statements where two people were alone when it happened. Related to the second count, the assault, again I would argue that it’s the same as the first count, it seems to be out of self-defense.

TEXT: District Attorney Krones says the murder was not self-defense but premeditated.

Krones: The fact that the defendant acted after the death is not consistent with self-defense. Because he did not seek for any help for Grant. He fled with the body.

There is nothing to show for his statements that Grant came up to him with a knife. There is no evidence to support that. The evidence is consistent with Grant coming in to his sleeping bag while Mavrick was angry from the argument, then Mavrick struck a rock on him several times. With the force he used, it would be hard for him to maintain his balance while hitting him with that much force if Grant was standing up. I think you can use your common sense.

TEXT: Judge Lunas considers their arguments and decides to only accept the first, second, and fourth counts.

Judge Lunas: The court finds that there is sufficient evidence for counts one, two, and four. Not the third one. We’ll have to hold on the third one.

Okay, we’re finished.

———

Alex: The judge said that the third count of taking a valuable object from a dead body would not be included because it was not clear based on the evidence that Mavrick intended to use the car for his personal use and benefit. So the third one did not go forward.

The judge ordered a trial. It is not known exactly when it will start.

Mavrick will have a second arraignment hearing on November 5. In California, there are two arraignment hearings. The first must happen shortly after a person is arrested. The second is after the preliminary hearing if the defendant is ordered to stand trial.

It appears that Mavrick and his attorney will plead not guilty again on November 5th. The prosecutor, District Attorney Krones, has indicated she will seek to convict Mavrick with premeditated murder.