SAN DIEGO (Court TV) — A former Marine accused of killing his girlfriend during “rough sex” is getting a new preliminary hearing after prosecutors failed to turn over evidence to the defense.
Raymond McLeod, 41, is charged in the June 2016 death of 30-year-old Krystal Mitchell. Her body was found inside a friend’s home. Mitchell had been strangled to death. McLeod fled the country immediately after Mitchell’s death. He was captured in El Salvador in August 2022.
Raymond McLeod appears in court Oct. 23, 2024. (Court TV)
McLeod does not dispute that he caused Mitchell’s death; however, his lawyers claim McLeod unintentionally strangled Mitchell to death during rough consensual sex that included erotic asphyxiation, or what’s referred to as sexual choking.
Last year, San Diego Superior Court Judge Kimberlee Lagotta ordered McLeod to stand trial following a three-day preliminary hearing that featured notable figures Dr. David Drew Pinsky and Dr. Michael Baden testifying as experts in support of McLeod’s claim that Mitchell’s death was an accident.
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In April, McLeod’s defense filed a nonstatutory motion to dismiss, claiming prosecutors “failed to disclose over 2,000 pages of discovery which conclusively establish that the couple were deeply in love, and engaged in consensual, rough sex practices on a routine basis which resulted in the tragic but accidental death of Krystal Mitchell.”
According to a June defense filing, prosecutors responded and “acknowledged their failure to provide the cellphone records and admit they were favorable to the defense,” claiming it was an “inadvertent mistake.”
In their filing, the defense detailed text messages from Mitchell’s cellphone that include “their graphic sexual experiences,” “bruising on Ms. Mitchell’s body from rough sex with Mr. McLeod, dominant and submissive sexual memes, and BDSM related imagery.” The defense also argued the contents show “the affectionate nature of the relationship.”
The filing also states, “That evidence not only existed, but it had been in the possession of the district attorney for nearly a decade. It was just not disclosed to the defense.” They argued withholding the evidence hindered the defense experts who testified at McLeod’s preliminary hearing.
On Friday, prosecutors agreed to move to dismiss the case, then immediately filed a new murder charge against McLeod. A new preliminary hearing is scheduled for October 6. McLeod remains in custody without bail.
Court TV Live senior producer Emanuella Grinberg contributed to this report.
