Bail set at $3 million in fatal Turlock shooting

A judge on Thursday set bail at $3 million for a man charged with murder in the shooting of a 37-year-old father in Turlock.

The prosecutor had sought $5 million bail for Devenae Price of Ceres, who is accused of shooting to death Falane Jones. Deputy District Attorney Meghan Anderson said Price had been on parole for two months when he killed Jones.

“He cannot stay out in the streets without getting into trouble, without committing horrific crimes,” Anderson told the judge.

Jones was gunned down April 23 at an apartment complex near Donnelly Park.

The fatal shooting occurred about 9:45 p.m. at the Villas Parkside apartments in the 300 block of West Hawkeye Avenue. Turlock police said Jones had just arrived with his uncle to visit another relative when he was shot four times as he stood next to his car.

The prosecutor told the judge that Price was on parole for a conviction in a home-invasion robbery in which he used a gun. Anderson argued that the defendant would be a substantial threat if he posted bail and was released.

Michael Scheid, Price’s attorney, argued that his client couldn’t afford to post bail if it was at $3 million or $5 million. He had told the judge that setting bail would benefit Price in terms of his housing situation at the Stanislaus County jail.

Price has been held at the jail without bail since his arrest April 26 in Alameda County after sheriff’s deputies in San Leandro spotted Price, along with three others who also were arrested.

The prosecutor said Thursday that the defendant was driving a car that fled from authorities. A pursuit ensued and ended when Price crashed the vehicle into a home, she told the judge.

All four people ran from the crashed vehicle. The deputies captured three of them, including Price, Kelley Trezvant of Modesto and Deanadranae Campbell of Livingston. Kevin Barnes of Modesto was arrested May 1 in San Francisco. Each faces a charge of being an accessory.

Stanislaus Superior Court Judge Marie Silveira said $3 million was an appropriate amount because it was $1 million more than the typical amount set for such a charge. She scheduled Price to return to court June 7.

This story was originally published May 26, 2016 at 1:44 PM with the headline "Bail set at $3 million in fatal Turlock shooting."