California man jailed pending trial in conspiracy to kill Army veteran near Taos

TAOS — An 8th Judicial District Court judge ruled on Monday that a California man accused of luring an Army veteran to be killed and dismembered near Taos will remain behind bars until trial.

During a preliminary hearing, Chief District Court Judge Emilio Chavez determined that prosecutors had presented sufficient probable cause for the three charges filed against 22-year-old David Degroat: first-degree murder, tampering with evidence and conspiracy.

Degroat is accused of conspiring with a co-defendant, Rainor Joiner, 23, of Georgia, to murder Army veteran Matthew McLaughlin, 25, at the home the trio shared in Tres Piedras, 31 miles northwest of Taos.

On Sept. 2, Chavez ruled that Joiner would be held in jail pending trial.

Chavez determined during a pretrial detention hearing Monday that Degroat’s alleged role in the slaying, his purported desertion from the military and apparent access to numerous firearms and ammunition made him a significant danger and flight risk if released before trial.

According to evidence presented by the state, Degroat lured McLaughlin on July 25 to the Tres Piedras home, where Joiner wounded him with a rifle and then shot him twice in the head using Degroat’s Beretta 92 pistol.

Kevin McCarty, a deputy with the Taos County Sheriff’s Office, told the court that Degroat was in possession of the murder weapon when officers arrested him and Joiner on Aug. 17.

During a search of the property deputies found numerous firearms and armor-piercing rifle rounds, which McCarty noted are illegal for civilians to possess. Prosecutors said the pair had stolen the weapons and ammo from the military.

McCarty, a former member of the New Mexico National Guard, said the sheriff’s office confirmed that the Army listed Degroat and Joiner under “deserter” status this spring. Joiner, Degroat and McLaughlin had served in the same unit together at Fort Benning, Georgia, before relocating to New Mexico earlier this year.

While Joiner is accused of dismembering McLaughlin’s body after his death, Degroat is charged with assisting him in the disposal of the veteran’s remains and burning McLaughlin’s belongings. Prosecutor Jonathan Gardner showed photographs to the court of the charred remains of some of McLaughlin’s personal possessions.

Gardner presented evidence of confessions Joiner and Degroat provided to investigators regarding their roles in McLaughlin’s death, statements that depict Joiner as the mastermind behind the murder plot.

In Joiner’s video confessions shown Monday, Joiner indicated he coerced Degroat to take part in the murder after developing a grudge against McLaughlin.

Aleksandar Kostich and Travis Weiner of the Taos Public Defender’s Office argued at Monday’s hearings that Degroat had acted under duress. The attorneys noted that Joiner told deputies he wanted Degroat to “keep his (expletive) mouth shut” about the alleged crimes.

Kostich said a charge of second-degree murder might be more appropriate based on the evidence Gardner presented on Monday.

“There is no evidence before this court that ... supports the notion that Mr. Degroat in any way shared the intent of (Joiner) in terms of a charge of first-degree murder willful and deliberate,” Kostich said. “Not one piece of evidence presented by the state suggests that Mr. Degroat shared the intent of (Joiner).”

However, in his ruling Chavez said New Mexico law does not require prosecutors to prove “that an accessory is equally culpable as the principal in a willful homicide” when establishing probable cause.

The judge also pointed to evidence suggesting Degroat had inflamed animosity between Joiner and McLaughlin by informing his co-defendant that McLaughlin was allegedly using drugs and alcohol at the residence and making disparaging comments about Joiner.

“The defendant was on clear notice for weeks that the co-defendant harbored an intent to kill the victim,” the judge wrote in his decision. “During this time, the defendant continued to provide the co-defendant with information about the victim’s activities, specifically drug and alcohol use and disparaging remarks, knowing full well that such information was fueling the co-defendant’s homicidal mindset.”