Store Manager’s Killer Gets Death

SANTA ANA — An Orange County Superior Court jury took about two hours Wednesday to grant a 34-year-old convicted murderer’s request to be executed for killing a store manager during a botched robbery.

Daniel Carl Frederickson, who is acting as his own attorney, showed no emotion as the verdict was read but afterward appeared slightly buoyant, even wishing Judge William R. Froeberg a “Merry Christmas” as he was led back to his jail cell.

On Tuesday, Frederickson had asked jurors to recommend that he receive the death penalty. But during his closing argument Wednesday, he backed away from his death wish.

Instead, he argued that his mental problems, which he said have plagued him since childhood, were a factor in the June 13, 1996, killing of Scott Wilson of Costa Mesa. Frederickson told jurors that during his earlier prison stints for a variety of crimes, including burglary, he educated himself and others. He offered this as a reason why he could still lead a productive life if given the chance.

“If you sentence me to life in prison, I’ll be able to [continue to] do that,” said Frederickson, who wore a suit and tie and appeared nervous while speaking. “If you sentence me to death, well, I’m ambivalent about it.”

Frederickson is due in court Jan. 9 for formal sentencing.

The same jury found Frederickson guilty of murder last month for shooting Wilson, 30, in the temple after the store manager refused to hand over cash during a foiled robbery at HomeBase in Santa Ana. Because the murder occurred during an attempted robbery, Frederickson became eligible for the death penalty.

Frederickson had argued at trial that the murder stemmed from his “explosive personality disorder,” but jurors rejected that argument and found he was sane when he pulled the trigger. On Wednesday, many of the jurors stared Frederickson in the eye as the death-penalty verdict was read.

Most jurors declined to comment afterward, but they did stop to talk to Wilson’s relatives as they left the courtroom. One juror even handed a cigar to Kirk Wilson, the victim’s 41-year-old brother, who said he was grateful for their decision.

“For a year and a half, I’ve been waiting to hear the word ‘death,’ ” said Wilson, of Costa Mesa.

“If the jury gave him life without parole, basically, they would have been rewarding him for the murder of my brother,” he said.