Tag: Murder Trial

MALIBU—Anthony Rauda was found guilty of second-degree murder on Friday, May 26, in the case of a father who was shot and killed while he was camping at Malibu Creek State Park with his children. 

On June 22, 2018, Tristan Beaudette was tent-camping with his two-year-old and four-year-old daughters at Malibu Creek State Park. In the early hours, deputies with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department responded to a report of shots fired in the area. They discovered Beaudette endured a fatal gunshot wound to the head inside the tent. He died before reaching a hospital.

According to the prosecution’s witness, Stacey Sebourn, she was camping nearby on the morning of June 22, 2018. She called 911 after she heard the gunshots, a man shouting for help, and a baby crying.

The shouts for help reportedly came from Beaudette’s brother-in-law, who was also camping with his children nearby. He heard the younger of Beaudette’s two daughters crying without being consoled following “popping sounds.” Once he entered the tent, he witnessed the two girls kneeling in a pool of blood near his brother-in-law’s body. 

After a subsequent burglary incident, a scent dog and bootprints lead investigators to Rauda, who was in a makeshift encampment. According to KCAL News, authorities referred to Rauda as a “survivalist” and found that he lived off of stolen food while sleeping outside in the Malibu area. A rifle in his possession was linked through ballistics testing to the one used in Beaudette’s murder.

While prosecutors were seeking first-degree murder charges in the case of Beaudette, the jury found Rauda guilty of second-degree murder, a lesser charge. He pleaded not guilty. Rauda was also charged with the attempted murder of Beaudette’s two daughters and one other person.

In addition, he was charged with five counts of second-degree commercial burglary, which included break-ins at the Calabasas Community Center and Las Virgenes Water District facilities in 2018. 

The Beaudette family were not the only suspected victims of Rauda; according to the Los Angeles Times, Rauda fired at campsites and cars seven times, starting in November 2016, with a man who discovered pellets from a gunshot blast in his arm while sleeping near the Backbone hiking trail. The man was just one of 11 people believed to be victimized by Rauda. The jury found him acquitted on counts of first-degree and attempted murder involving seven other victims due to lack of evidence. 

By Paige Strickland

MALIBU—Opening statements for the Tristan Beaudette, 35, murder case were issued on Monday, May 8. Anthony Rauda, 46, is the suspect who is being accused for the murder of Beaudette while he was camping with his family at Malibu State Creek park back in June of 2018.

A witness by the name of Scott McCurdy, who is the victim’s brother-in-law, told the jury at a downtown Los Angeles courthouse that he heard loud popping the night of the murder. He explained that he was in a nearby tent at the campsite and was awakened by the noise. McCurdy stated that he initially thought the sound might have been fireworks or sounds coming from a nearby fire pit. 

During his testimony he explained that he overheard two girls crying. “I heard the girls crying,” he said, telling jurors that Beaudette’s youngest daughter said, “Wet, wet” and that he didn’t think anything about it at the time. He decided to leave his tent to see what was going on. He saw the older sister talking to the younger sister. The girls were identified as Beaudette’s daughters. 

McCurdy approached the girls and tried to comfort them. He also tried to wake his brother-in-law and turned on his phone which was found to be slippery and wet. After he touched the phone he found that his hand had touched blood. 

When he turned and examined the body he found his brother-in-law was in a pool of blood. McCurdy searched for a pulse and tried to get Beaudette’s daughters out of the tent. “I noticed there was nothing in his eyes,” said McCurdy. “I realized he was gone and I left.” McCurdy also stated that he found a small hole in the tent which was recently purchased.

Beaudette was an Allergan scientist from UC Irvine. Both his daughters were aged 2 and 4 during the time of his murder. They were both uninjured. 

Rauda is facing murder charges along with attempted murder charges involving a series of early morning shootings that have transpired between 3 a.m. and 5 a.m, including one in which a man who had been sleeping in a hammock. He is also facing five counts of second-degree commercial burglary involving a series of break-ins, including two at the Calabasas Community Center and two at the Las Virgenes Water District facility between July 2018 and October 2018, that primarily involved food that was taken from the facilities.   

Another witness spoke earlier in Monday’s trial. Stacey Sebourn stated that she was camping at the same location during the morning of the murder. She was sleeping in her tent when she woke up to gunshots. Sebourn recounted that she called 9-1-1 after she heard crying and a man calling for help. 

During her call she said she whispered into her phone because she didn’t want to bring attention to her tent. Sebourn said she was petrified.

By Christianne