Charles “Chase” Merritt, a close friend and business associate of the McStay family, was convicted of the four murders in June 2019. San Bernardino County Superior Court Judge Michael Smith then sentenced him to death the following January. Merritt is currently serving time on death row at the San Quentin State Prison in California, per CBS News.
The McStay family including Joseph, 40, Summer 43, and their sons Gianni, 4, and Joseph Jr., 3, – disappeared in early 2010. Three years later, an off-road motorcyclist stumbled upon their remains buried in shallow graves in the Mojave Desert.
Merritt’s arrest came in 2013 followed by a trial in 2019 when prosecutors alleged he bludgeoned the family of four to death. They claimed he murdered them after learning that Joseph McStay was cutting him out of their fountain business.
Is Charles “Chase” Merritt still in prison?
Charles “Chase” Merritt, convicted of the McStay family murders, is currently on death row at California’s San Quentin Prison until execution. The convict received the death penalty on January 21, 2020. The outlet also states that California has not executed death row inmates since 2006, per CBS.
According to KNBC, a jury convicted Merritt of the McStay family murders. All four family members disappeared without a trace in February 2010. The conviction came after nearly a decade-long wait for justice.
The killer was a good friend of 40-year-old Joseph McStay and his business associate. Prosecutors reportedly alleged Merritt killed the family after learning that Joseph was cutting him out of his business. They made and sold custom water fountains.
CBS’ report mentioned that the prosecution further claimed Joseph told friends about Merritt’s shoddy work. The latter was allegedly pilfering money from the victim. They also found that the accused cashed thousands of dollars using checks his business associate wrote to him around the time the whole family vanished. Detectives even traced the suspect’s phone to the location where the family’s remains were unearthed.
