Hoopa Man Sentenced to 32 Years to Life in Witness Intimidation Case

On Thursday, May 12, 2011, Juan Pedro Guevara, 49, of Hoopa, was sentenced to 32 years to life by the Honorable Superior Court Judge Marilyn Miles.
In February 2010, Guevara, accompanied by Casey Richard Reddick and Cliffton Melvin Stanbridge, violently attacked another Hoopa resident in an apparent attempt to dissuade him from testifying against Rodney Allen Donahue. Donahue was accused of killing Nicholas Montoya in 2009 and the victim is considered a key witness in that case.
 Guevara briefly shared a cell with Donahue at the Humboldt County Correctional Facility a few weeks prior to the attack.In January 2011, a Humboldt County jury found Guevara guilty of multiple charges involving the assault. This was Guevara’s third strike under California’s three strikes law.In February 2011, Reddick and Stanbridge pled guilty to assault with a deadly weapon among other charges. 
Reddick was sentenced to two years in prison and Stanbridge was sentenced to 18 months in jail and three years formal probation. 

“I am happy about the judgment considering the very serious conduct demonstrated by Mr. Guevara,” noted Prosecuting Deputy District Attorney Ben McLaughlin. “More troubling, though, is that this attack occurred against a witness in an on-going murder investigation.”

“Hopefully this sends a message to anyone thinking about intimidating or threatening a witness,” added Humboldt County District Attorney Paul Gallegos. “The consequences to such actions will be severe.”