Carpinteria man found guilty of voluntary manslaughter, assault after 2019 killing
SANTA BARBARA COUNTY, Calif. - Santa Barbara County District Attorney Joyce E. Dudley announced Thursday that a jury found a Carpinteria man guilty of manslaughter, assault and battery following the killing of another man in 2019.
The incident happened during the early morning hours of July 20, 2019, after a group of friends got into several fights.
The DA's Office said 32-year-old Eric Romero attempted to de-escalate the situation when Scott Robert Fleming turned on him, assaulting Romero and knocking him unconscious, causing him to fall back and hit his head on the concrete.
Romero reportedly died from his injuries several hours later at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital. A memorial was set up for Romero later that week.
The DA said Fleming ran from the scene shortly after the assault. He was located by Santa Barbara County Sheriff's detectives several days later in Ventura.
Fleming has been charged with voluntary manslaughter, assault with force likely to produce great bodily injury, battery causing serious bodily injury as well as a special allegation for personally inflicting great bodily injury.
“This significant conviction was possible due to exceptional work on the part of our Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office and members of the public who witnessed a terrible crime and called 911," said DA Dudley. "This successful prosecution was a direct result of the hard and smart work of Detective Travis Henderson and Senior DDA Kevin Weichbrod.”
Fleming will be sentenced in Department 1 of the Santa Barbara County Superior Court on Oct. 14, 2021, and faces a possible 27 years in State Prison due to a prior serious felony conviction.
