Man will stand trial for fatal shooting at abandoned Goodwill in Oxnard

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Updated ·2 min read
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The former Goodwill store on Saviers Road in Oxnard, seen on Tuesday, was the site of a fatal shooting in March 2022. The alleged shooter has been ordered to stand trial for murder.
The former Goodwill store on Saviers Road in Oxnard, seen on Tuesday, was the site of a fatal shooting in March 2022. The alleged shooter has been ordered to stand trial for murder.

An Oxnard man has been ordered to stand trial for murder in a 2022 shooting at an underground party in an abandoned Goodwill store. He will also stand trial for a 2021 Christmas Eve shooting outside the Target store in Riverpark.

Willis Nichols, 20, will be tried for one count of murder and four counts of assault with a semiautomatic firearm along with several special allegations, according to the Ventura County District Attorney's Office. The two-day preliminary hearing wrapped up Friday in Ventura County Superior Court, court records show.

The fatal shooting took place on the night of March 12, 2022, at the empty Goodwill building at 3075 Saviers Road in Oxnard. Adrian Sandoval, 21, of Oxnard, was killed. Two other men were hospitalized. Authorities have said about 100 youths and young adults were at the party and the property owners were unaware of the event. Oxnard police arrested Nichols, then 19, in July that year after a months-long search during which they issued a public request for help.

Willis Nichols
Willis Nichols

The building still stood empty Tuesday, with little trace of the former thrift store except an old sign on the exterior wall warning people not to loiter or trespass. The site is in a strip mall south of the junction with Channel Islands Boulevard.

Nichols has also been charged in connection with a shooting at The Collection shopping center in Oxnard's Riverpark neighborhood.

On the afternoon of Dec. 24, 2021, Nichols allegedly fired at a vehicle in the parking lot outside the Target store. An Oxnard man, 31, was struck several times and suffered serious injuries, prosecutors said. Rounds almost hit another person in the vehicle.

Nichols has pleaded not guilty to all charges and has denied all special allegations. His next court appearance is set for the morning of Oct. 4 in courtroom 12. He remains in Ventura County jail custody and is not eligible for bail.

The former Goodwill store on Saviers Road in Oxnard. A defendant has been ordered to stand trial for a 2022 fatal shooting during an underground party in the abandoned store.
The former Goodwill store on Saviers Road in Oxnard. A defendant has been ordered to stand trial for a 2022 fatal shooting during an underground party in the abandoned store.

This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Man will stand trial for fatal shooting at former Goodwill in Oxnard