A Yreka man has been convicted of murdering another man 5 years ago because he thought the victim had been flirting with his girlfriend. On Thursday a Siskiyou County jury returned a guilty verdict for first degree murder against 26-year-old Timothy Chase McDonald for the killing of 31-year-old Spencer Hodgson. His body was found riddled with bullets in April of 2019 in a ravine off Yreka Walker Road near the Community of Klamath River northwest of Ureka. Hodgson had a home in the area, where he had recently moved from Santa Cruz. An aerial search led to the discovery of Hodgson’s pickup truck in the woods nearby, where it had been pushed down an embankment. Hodgson’s dog was still alive inside the truck. McDonald’s DNA was found on the truck. He had confided to a friend that he had ambushed Hodgson after finding a flirtatious text from Hodgson on a cell phone belonging to McDonald’s longtime girlfriend, Gabrielle Maddox. The couple had been dating since they were 15-years-old. Prosecutors say McDonald showed up at Hodgson’s door asking for help with a flat tire and Hodgson gave him a ride to where the murder took place.
– Steve Gibson