Suspects In Local Murder, Attempted Murder Cases Due In Court

Over the past year, several people have been accused in various local cases involving charges of murder or attempted murder. In the coming weeks, defendants in several of these cases are due in court.

The following is a run down of what’s coming up:

-- Two of the three people accused of killing a man at an abandoned property in Wildomar last year are due in court this week for a preliminary hearing.

Summer Sharmaine Stephens and Anthony Albert Garcia, who were 38 and 32, respectively, at the time of their arrests in September in the 209100 block of Mariposa Road, have each pleaded not guilty to a charge of murder. Bail has not been set for either defendant. A third suspect in the case, a teenage boy, has also denied the murder charge. Click here for more on this case.

--A jury trial is set to begin this week for a man accused of attempting to murder a Lakeland Village teenager last July. Matthew Skyberg, who was 27 at the time of his arrest last year, has pleaded not guilty to an attempted murder charge and is jailed in lieu of $1 million bail. Click here for more on this case.

--Michael Lloyd Economides, 38, is due in court next week for a felony settlement conference.  He has pleaded not guilty to attempted murder, assault with a semi-automatic firearm, and carrying a loaded firearm in public.

He is jailed in lieu of $1 million bail following his arrest in October.

Economides is suspected of shooting another driver in a road rage incident on the Ortega Highway. When the driver and passenger of the other vehicle approached, Economides allegedly shot one of them in the chest. The incident reportedly occurred approximately 2 miles west of Grand Avenue, just outside the Lake Elsinore city limits. Click here for more on this story.

--A preliminary hearing is scheduled April 19 for Jason Lee Schmidt, 36, a parolee accused of killing a 58-year-old Lake Elsinore man and then dumping his remains in Lakeland Village. He has pleaded not guilty to one count of murder, among other charges. He remains in custody. Click here for more on this story.