Beaumont Man Accused Of Killing Banning Woman Gets Trial Date

BANNING, CA — A Sept. 16 trial date was confirmed Wednesday for a man accused of gunning down a Banning woman in her home.

Devonta Eugene Leonard, 21, of Beaumont is charged with murder and sentence-enhancing gun and great bodily injury allegations in the Feb. 20, 2018, death of 21-year-old Evangelina Ysiano.

He also faces a child endangerment charge involving Ysiano's 4-year- old daughter, who was at the residence at the time, but not in the line of fire.

During a status hearing at the Banning Justice Center, Riverside County Superior Court Judge Becky Dugan conferred with the prosecution and defense as to prospective trial scheduling, and both sides agreed to be prepared to move forward in September.

According to the Banning Police Department, the defendant and victim were involved in a domestic dispute on the morning of Feb. 20, 2018, at her house in the 500 block of North Hathaway Street, near George Street.

During the confrontation, Leonard allegedly pulled a handgun and fatally shot the victim. The circumstances behind the attack were not specified, and investigators did not disclose the nature of the relationship between the defendant and victim.

Leonard, who is being held in lieu of $1 million bail at the Smith Correctional Facility in Banning, has no documented prior felony convictions in Riverside County.

— By City News Service