Grand Jury ‘Declines’ to Indict Anyone for Stabbing Death of David Josiah Lawson
David Josiah Lawson and Kyle Zoellner
For nearly two years, Humboldt County has been divided over what should happen in the stabbing death of David Josiah Lawson on April 15 of 2017. At one point, Kyle Zoellner was arrested and charged with Lawson’s death but the judge eventually ruled there was insufficient evidence to hod Zoellner. Today, a criminal Grand Jury declined to indict anyone for Lawson’s death.
Below is the Press release from the Humboldt County District Attorney’s Office:
A Criminal Grand Jury was convened on February 28, 2019, to address the stabbing death of David Josiah Lawson. The jury received testimony from 25 witnesses, including experts in forensics and DNA. By law, the process included the opportunity for the Grand Jury to subpoena evidence and witnesses.
On March 13, the Grand Jury declined to indict any person in the stabbing death of David Josiah Lawson. Therefore, no charges will be filed in the case. The District Attorney has notified Mr. Lawson’s family of this outcome.
UPDATE 5:53 p.m.: Humboldt State University President Lisa Rossbacher issued the following statement,
I join you in feeling an immense sadness for Josiah’s mother Charmaine and other family members, his friends, and our entire community. Josiah was a positive and beloved member of our University and community. His loss was incredibly painful, and we continue to mourn him.
Members of our University community will be available to offer support in Jolly Giant Commons from 7 to 11 p.m. this evening.
Additional support and assistance are available for those who may need it. Students may contact Counseling & Psychological Services at 707.826.3236 or the Dean of Students Office at 707.826.3504. Counselors at Counseling & Psychological Services may also be reached after-hours at 707.826.3236, and the office has increased their hours for walk-in assistance during the coming days. Staff and faculty may utilize the Employee Assistance Program at 707.443.7358.
UPDATE 9:14 p.m.: Arcata Police Say They Will ‘Work to Identify the Suspect who Murdered David Josiah Lawson’ After Grand Jury Declines to Indict Anyone
Earlier Stories about David Josiah Lawson:
- 19-Year-Old HSU Student Dies After Stabbing in Arcata Early This Morning
- 23-Year-Old McKinleyville Resident Arrested in Connection with HSU Student’s Stabbing Death
- HSU Offers Students Who Witnessed Stabbing Death Amnesty for Breaking School Rules; Asks Cooperation With Police
- Arcata Police Not Releasing Photo of Suspect in Stabbing Death for Now
- APD Received Anonymous Email About Fatal Stabbing; Pleads With Writer to Come Forward
- Celebration of the Life of Stabbing Victim Will be Held at Humboldt State University Today; Racial Bias Alleged to Have Led to Death
- Hundreds Mourn Slain HSU Student at Thursday Vigil
- Uncle of Fatal Stabbing Suspect Writes Letter to the Editor Urging Community Re-examine Public Statements Made in the Case
- Family of Arcata Stabbing Suspect Claims the Real Killer Has Not Been Caught (Includes Timeline of Events as Presented in Public Statements by Those at the Party)
- HSU and Arcata Police Issue Statements Following Release of Kyle Zoellner in the Stabbing Death of David Josiah Lawson
- District Attorney’s Office Issues Statement as Defendant in Racially Charged Case Released
- Family of Kyle Zoellner Who Was Released Today in Stabbing Death Issues Statement to Family and Friends of Victim
- Justice for Josiah Gathering Keeps Arcata Lively Tonight; Another Protest Called for Tomorrow
- Letter to the Community of Arcata from Kyle Zoellner’s Uncle
- Chanting “‘Justice for Josiah,’ Protesters Gather at the Courthouse
- Family Announces $10,000 Reward for Information Leading to Conviction of Killer of David Josiah Lawson
- APD Chief and Victim’s Mother Offer Updates on the Stabbing Death of David Josiah Lawson
- Letter From Family Member Questions Testimony of Witnesses in Hearing About Kyle Zoellner’s Possible Role in the Death of David Josiah Lawson
- ‘Reckless Statements’ Were Made by Tom Parker, and Lawson Attorney, Shelley Mack, Writes Uncle of Kyle Zoellner in Letter to the Editor
- Protestors Take Over Arcata City Council Meeting Demanding Justice for Josiah
- A Deeper Look at Last Thursday’s Disruption of the Arcata City Council by Protesters Demanding That Tom Parker Be Asked Back to Help in the Josiah Lawson Case
- Mother of Josiah Lawson Claims DNA on Knife Identifies her Son’s ‘Murderer’, Calls for Justice
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?Hmmmmmm.
Let the cries of racism rage.
the Humboldt County Grand Jury declined to indict anyone for the Indian Island Massacre so I guess par for the coarse.
So you wanted them to just pick any random white guy as revenge for the Indians?
a known meth user raised by a convicted meth user that had a hatchback full of cutlery would probably work, what do you think? no one stabs someone mistakenly several times.
A known class of citizens whos parents taught them that white people are to blam and are all drunk single out the only white kid to beat his ass and one of them end up dead but no one remembers what happened because they were drunk… what do you think?
His handprints were not on the murder weapon [edit]! The fact that someone uses meth and owns cutlery hardly makes them a murderer. Hopefully you never serve on a jury.
they only tested for fingerprints.
Wrong. They tested for DNA from blood. It was determined to be a mixture of Lawson’s and someone else’s, whose identity we do not know and may never know. Review of the DNA evidence found it insufficient to tie to any one suspect. Given that Lawson was the only Caucasian in the melee, he should have had the easiest genetic profile to identify had it been on the knife. He was an outlier among other possible suspects who had more similarity in genetic profile.
Lawson had only two stab wounds. He was a very unlucky chap to die from them.
Please explain how somebody stabs someone when they’re beaten unconscious.
If Zoellner’s alleged meth use is relevant, so is Lawson’s alleged cocaine dealing.
In the end we’ll probably find out one of his buddies accidentally stabbed him and everything will quiet down.
Pretty much my thoughts too. Maybe trying to stab Zoellner and stuck the wrong guy in the confusion?
It seems unlikely that ‘one of his friends’ would have stabbed him over a dozen times, potentially 18 times… but I guess that’s why the community was waiting for the GJ to hear evidence. So, it is yet another unsolved murder in Humboldt County.
Your claim that he was stabbed over a dozen times is a blatant lie.
Given the small number of wounds, which by extreme misfortune turned out to be lethally placed, it does look accidental. But we will find out nothing now that the case is not going to trial. So we’re probably stuck with the never-ending drama of accusations and recriminations for the foreseeable future.
I imagined a learned university president like Lisa Rossbacher would have figured out to keep her statements to herself.
Shes pathetic.I bet she didnt know a thing about the deceased at the time of the incident.
Seriously disgusting. Where’s the new evidence they had that guaranteed they could solve the case? Did Maggie have the decency to bring Charmaine into her office to tell her they weren’t doing a thing or did she do they typical impersonal phone call. Maggie Fleming is a lame DA. I can tell you all some stories some day. Prayers to Charmaine and her family. This isn’t right.
That was APD’s opinion when they forwarded the case to the DA. The DA wasn’t so sure and had expert review conducted on the forensics. The Grand Jury had the forensic and witness evidence presented to them and concluded that it was insufficient to make a case.
The DA did meet with Charmaine in her office, and Charmaine stopped riding the DA after that. Given that the meeting calmed Charmaine down, it’s a fair guess that she was told who the suspect was not.
Traces of DNA from mixed blood traces don’t always pan out.
It was a grand jury that declined to indict.
What actual evidence makes you think, “This isn’t right.”?
No justice.
Wow, grand jury finds nothing…? Hmm I have no words at this time ?
Where do they say that? Not enough to indict anybody. Apparently that is the issue. Should they just indict somebody, anybody in the room, just for “closure?” I don’t Like it either, but this is where we are.
In other words… the grand jury found nothing not even enough to indict ANYBODY. If they had found anything there would be an arrest. That was the sole purpose.
Although and nothing are two different things. If the DA brought a case that an attorney could reasonably raise questions, then the accused would never be retried even if they subsequently were clearly guilty. Moving to trial is a commitment to either win the case or forever hold your peace.
I have been saying all along, barring a confession this will remain unsolved.
Too many errors by law enforcement at the scene. Evidence contaminated, many witnesses unquestioned. Grandstanding from the DA
Too bad, but inevitable.
H.S.U. Is to blame for bringing not “ like minds” together.
Cultural diversity only works for yuppies with money.
Every one else brawls to establish dominance, sorry hippies, your mythology is fraudulent..
Guess removing the McKinley statue didnt cure the worlds ignorant pawns(everybody) of the curse of ”rascist” identity.. .
id Say it’s the person who through the party. HSU was closed for the nite. Nice try tho
Those are elitist sentiments, to say the least.
More McKinley statue B.S.??? Get a life already. You lost two overwhelming democratic elections (with the 2nd one being a complete waste of taxpayer dollars thanks personally to that moron Michael Winkler), and there won’t be a 3rd election no matter how much you racists cry ? and complain online about it!???. If you want to be mad ? at anyone, give Michael Winkler a call. ☎️ ?. Winkler is the wackjob who singlehandedly sabotaged the argument for the statue status quo.
P.S. – As a person who is happy to see that silly fugly messed up statue of McKinley moved, I would like to send out my thanks and gratitude to Michael Winkler for a job well done on removing the McKinley statue. You made it happen, Michael! ?? (Even if it wasn’t your intention.) Now if you can oppose Trump’s Impeachment…
No one said the case is closed.
Not officially, but given that the best available evidence was deemed insufficient to prosecute with, the chances of it moving forward are very small.
I think there is no statute of limitations on homicide cases, but my guess is that this is now a cold case unless somehow something shows up. It’s essentially over, sad to say,
You folks wanting a body when no one can produce one , and your to ignorant to accept it was a lawson groupie, you can all leave our peaceful community now,kyle should suing the lawson family.
Such a disgrace! The could have done better.. This is a real disappointment, not only for the family and friends, and the community, but also for Humboldt. Seriously this is another stain on our community.. people outside of the community talk about this.. and it’s not reflecting well on HSU.. I know HSU isn’t “responsible” per say.. but if Humboldt has a reputation of being a dodgy racist place, people are not going to want to send thier kids to college here.. I feel like the city could have done better.. I feel like his family deserved better.. serious let down…
If people in the southland are willing to talk shit and accuse Humboldt of being “racist” without any real reason, they are welcome to stay away.
Next thing you will ask for is a wall around the redwood curtain.
What do you expect from a publicly funded institute of education taking over by leftists calling themselves “progressive” with regressive degrees in Critical Race, Gender & Sexuality Studies. Further, this intolerant racist institution allows student to self identify into divisive tribes based upon race, sex, or politics. They can have a Black Student Union but an Irish Heritage Union would be racist. Don’t get me wrong, there’s a Jewish Student Union, but being an American of Irish and Jewish descent I couldn’t partake in that cause I’m not party of the tribe. What I’m getting at is basically this so called diversity program that well off leftists in admin positions allow actually cause division while causing students to not mix and learn from each other’s worldview. That’s why this HSU grad no longer supports the college and give the student begging me for money over the phone for the programs an education.