Tuolumne County District Attorney Laura Krieg announced today that John-Paul Schowachert, 34, of Sonora, was convicted by a jury today before the Honorable Judge James Boscoe of the following counts and special allegations: Count One--Attempted Murder with a special allegation that he acted willfully, with deliberation and premeditation, that he personally inflicted great bodily injury on the victim, and that he personally used a knife in the commission of the offense; and Count Two—Assault with a Deadly Weapon, with a special allegation that he personally inflicted great bodily injury on the victim.
District Attorney Laura L. Krieg prosecuted the case for the People.
On August 30, 2016, at approximately 7:00 p.m., deputies from the Tuolumne County Sheriff’s Office were dispatched to a property in the area of Italian Bar Road and Diamond Placer Circle for a reported stabbing. The victim was being driven out of the Jupiter area by friends to meet the deputies and medical personnel. The witnesses reported that 3 unknown males had jumped the victim and accused him of theft. The victim denied taking any items from the suspects. The altercation turned physical and the victim was punched and kicked numerous times in the head. The victim repeatedly pleaded with his attackers to stop. At one point during the altercation, the defendant, John-Paul Schowachert, pulled a knife on the victim and stabbed him multiple times in the chest and stomach area. The defendant then fled the scene with his co-participants. The co-participants later turned themselves in and cooperated with law enforcement. The defendant fled to Nevada and was located four months later and extradited back to Tuolumne County to face the charges.
The District Attorney’s Office would like to thank the members of the jury for their careful attention to the case and their thoughtful deliberations. A special thank you also goes to the Tuolumne County Sheriff’s deputies and detectives for their hard work in investigating the case. Mr. Schowachert is due to be sentenced on August 13, 2019 in Department Two of the Tuolumne County Superior Court. He faces 11 years to life in prison.
For More Information Contact: Laura Krieg, District Attorney, 209-588-5450.
