Lemon Grove Murder Suspect Due in Court Friday

A man suspected of gunning down a woman on a Lemon Grove street is due in court Friday, according to jail records.

32-year-old Casey Michael Tschida is slated to appear for a trial readiness conference at 9 a.m. in El Cajon, according to jail records and district attorney officials.

Tschida last appeared on Feb. 20, when he pleaded not guilty to a murder charge in the Jan. 3 death of Jennifer Krajnak.  Since that time, he's remained locked up in the Vista Detention Facility on $5 million bail, records indicate.

Prosecutors accuse Tschida of ambushing Krajnak, a female acquaintance, as she walked home from a Lemon Grove bar where they had spent the evening together.

Deputy District Attorney Gordon Paul Davis said the defendant and the victim were together for about three hours at Dirk's Niteclub on Broadway, beginning around 10:30 p.m. on Jan. 2. Tschida left the bar at 1:30 in the morning, then returned 15 minutes later with his car's headlights off and shot Krajnak in the head as she crossed the street toward her apartment nearby, the prosecutor alleged.

She died about 30 minutes later.

According to police, the murder suspect fled to his mother's house in Oregon, where he was arrested two days later.  He was extradited to San Diego in February.

According to sheriff's investigators, there was no relationship between the defendant and the victim other than being acquaintances.

"Apparently, they had seen each other socially once, but there was no ongoing relationship," the prosecutor told reporters outside the courtroom on Feb. 20. "From all I know, they were together from 10:30 to 1:30 in the morning on January 3rd."     A 9mm handgun believed to be used in the murder was recovered in Oregon after Tschida allegedly threw it out of his vehicle, Davis said.

Tschida faces 50 years to life in prison if convicted. He will be back in court March 29 for a readiness conference and April 24 for a preliminary hearing.

Related News:

• Suspect in Lemon Grove Murder Pleads Not Guilty
• Suspect in Lemon Grove Murder Awaiting Extradition
• Suspect Collared in Woman's Lemon Grove Murder

—City News Service contributed to this report.