An Alameda County judge kept murder and assault charges in place today against Marvelous Simmons, after prosecutors said he fatally shot a man who was burglarizing cars in East Oakland. Police say the victim, identified as Azell Burrell, was found inside a stolen Scion near 43rd Street and Telegraph Avenue with a gunshot wound to the head. Simmons has pleaded not guilty and remains in custody while the case moves forward.
Judge Armando Pastran, who handles general criminal matters at the Alameda County Superior Court, presided over the preliminary hearing. The Alameda County Sheriff's Office operates Santa Rita Jail in Dublin, the county's main detention facility for pretrial inmates.
Prosecutors' account
Prosecutors told the court that Simmons chased the stolen Scion and fired as many as 16 rounds at the fleeing vehicle, and that investigators found a shell casing inside the car, according to The Mercury News. Police say the man discovered in the Scion was wearing a ski mask and gloves when officers arrived, and that he died from the gunshot wound to his head.
Court records cited in the report say a lead Oakland police investigator wrote that he could not disprove that at least one shot was fired at Simmons from the Scion. That detail has already become a flashpoint in how both sides are framing what happened in those seconds around the car.
Defense and witness accounts
Defense attorney Michael Wu told the judge the Scion had started moving toward Simmons as he was getting out of his Nissan, a version of events the defense argues could show Simmons feared for his life, as reported by The Mercury News. During the hearing, Simmons reportedly told the court, "I was terrified," according to the outlet.
An eyewitness testified she was jolted awake by a masked man trying to break into a car. Prosecutors say video shows the deceased allegedly burglarizing several vehicles near 43rd Street and Telegraph Avenue before the shooting. Taken together, those accounts set up a stark contrast between a late-night string of car break-ins and a defendant insisting he reacted out of fear.
What happens next
Pastran's ruling leaves the murder and assault counts intact and pushes the case toward trial, where prosecutors will have to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Simmons' use of force was not legally justified. Whether Simmons reasonably believed he or someone else faced an imminent threat is expected to be a central question for both sides.
The timing and direction of the shots remain key factual disputes that lawyers are likely to pick apart in detail. For now, the case continues through pretrial hearings in Alameda County Superior Court as prosecutors and the defense prepare for the next round of arguments.
