New trial date set for Vaca man, 28, charged with slaying girlfriend

The trial of a 28-year-old Vacaville man charged with the July 2018 murder of his on-again, off-again girlfriend once again has been rescheduled in Solano County Superior Court in Fairfield.

His trial previously set to begin Monday in Department 11, Gage Pontarelli instead appeared for a trial setting and heard Judge William J. Pendergast schedule it for 8:30 a.m. May 16 in the Justice Center.

Pretrial proceedings include a trial readiness conference at 8:30 a.m. April 21 and a trial management conference at 8:30 a.m. May 12.

Pontarelli’s trial date has been pending over the past two years, with delays and proceedings reshuffled frequently, in part because of the pandemic and in part because of scheduling conflicts, including a murder trial Pendergast is presiding over this week.

Redwood City-based attorney Jessica Agnich represents Pontarelli. Senior Deputy District Attorney Julie Underwood leads the prosecution.

Pontarelli is charged with the first-degree murder of Samantha Jack, 22, of Elk Grove, whom police believe he shot and killed in the pre-dawn hours of July 22 in Vacaville.

A Vacaville police report indicated that officers responded to a shots-fired call around 3 a.m. They were directed to a detached garage in the 400 block of Kentucky Street.

Upon arrival, police found Jack on the floor and unresponsive. CPR proved unsuccessful. She was pronounced dead at the scene. Jack is believed to have suffered a single gunshot wound to the upper chest.

Pontarelli, who reportedly lived in the garage, was also at the scene. Officers indicated that he said he had been in a fight with Jack.

Pontarelli was taken to the police station, interviewed again, arrested, then booked into Solano County Jail on suspicion of murder and remains there without bail.

During a court appearance on July 24, 2018, in Judge John B. Ellis’ courtroom in the Hall of Justice in Fairfield, Pontarelli pleaded not guilty.

During a held-to-answer arraignment following a 2019 preliminary hearing, he again pleaded not guilty.

Court records also showed Pontarelli has no history of violence, though he was arrested in 2016 in connection with a vehicular burglary and auto theft in downtown Vacaville.

If found guilty of the murder charge, Pontarelli, under California law, faces 25 years to life in state prison, with the possibility of more time for using a firearm.