WCDA Secures Guilty Verdict in 1st Degree Murder Case

Shooting Death of Reno Man in December 2021 Results in Conviction

Washoe County District Attorney Chris Hicks has announced that Ladonn Lee, age 30 from Stockton, California, was found guilty of 1^st Degree Murder with the Use of a Deadly Weapon after a two-week jury trial in Washoe County District Court.  Lee was arrested last December by the Reno Police Department’s (RPD) Robbery Homicide Unit (RHU) which worked closely with this office’s Major Violators Unit in the prosecution of the case.

Lee was found guilty by the jury of the December 6, 2021, murder of Taylor Dickins, age 29 from Reno who was shot to death in his vehicle during the early morning hours in West Reno.  The case began when RPD patrol officers responded to a report of a deceased person found in a running vehicle in the area of Commercial Row and West Street.   When officers arrived, they located the deceased victim and detectives were called to the scene to investigate.  Upon review of surveillance footage from the area and analysis of cellular phone data, RHU Detectives were able to identify Lee as the suspect who shot the victim during a drug transaction.  Lee, who had fled the state, was located several days later in Salt Lake City, Utah and extradited back to Washoe County where he was charged with First Degree Murder.  When interviewed by detectives in Salt Lake City, he claimed he hadn’t been to Reno in years.

During trial, Deputy District (DDA) Nate MacLellan argued that Lee made a cold calculated decision to execute Taylor Dickins for nothing more than spare change and a small amount of drugs.  DDA MacLellan added, the case was not about what he stole, it was about what he left behind.  Lee left behind grieving friends and family of the victim and he also left his DNA in a palm print left behind when touching the Driver’s side window of Mr. Dickins vehicle during the robbery and murder. 

Lee will be sentenced by Judge Scott Freeman on October 26, 2022.