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Damon Nicholson, known as the "peacemaker" amongst family and friends for his kind and caring ways, was found bludgeoned to death inside his Orange County home in October 2009. One of his co-workers found Nicholson's body while checking on him after he failed to show up at work. The back of his skull was completely fractured.
Two men, namely Jacob Anthony Quintanilla and Matthew Thomas Dragna, were arrested in connection with Nicholson's killing after a witness testified taking the latter to the victim's house the night before the murder.
Authorities alleged Dragna broke into the victim's house the night after with Quintanilla, struck him multiple times using a baseball bat, and fled the scene after robbing him of a computer, a cell phone, and other software. Both men were brought to justice years later as they accepted respective plea deals.
Season 3 of Real Murders of Orange County premieres on Oxygen this Friday, May 26, with Damon Nicholson's murder case. The episode, titled Nightmare in Laguna, will air on the channel at 9 pm ET.
The synopsis states:
"After a beloved party planner at an iconic Laguna Beach, Calif., hotel is found murdered at home, investigators use high-tech tools and old-fashioned shoe leather to capture two killers and restore calm to the tight-knit beachside community."
Damon Nicholson was attacked with a baseball bat by two men who snuck into his house via an unlocked door
Damon Nicholson, popular for his Fourth of July parties, was an event planner and manager at Hotel Laguna and often organized social events, including parties, and other celebrations. He was well-known both professionally and socially, mainly for being a longtime resident and a prominent gay businessman in Laguna Beach, California.
According to Oxygen, in the early morning hours of October 23, 2009, two men, later identified as Jacob Anthony Quintanilla and Matthew Thomas Dragna, snuck into Nicholson's house through an unlocked sliding glass door while the 40-year-old was asleep on his couch and fatally struck him at least five times using a baseball bat before robbing him.
Authorities investigating the crime alleged that Quintanilla and Dragna fatally struck the victim with a baseball bat in the back of the skull and torso, thereby killing him. Both men then stole Nicholson's laptop computer, a cell phone, and other electronics from the house before fleeing the crime scene.
Reports state that authorities were only able to connect Quintanilla and Dragna to the crime after interrogating contacts from a gay dating website. Officers from the Long Beach Police department carried out multiple interviews that ultimately resulted in Dragna's arrest.
Police also discovered Damon Nicholson's stolen possessions at Dragna's residence and more stolen belongings in a garbage can two blocks from the latter's house. Moreover, DNA evidence found at the scene also connected them to the crime.
The night before the murder, Damon Nicholson had engaged in a threesome with one of his attackers
A witness later revealed that they took then-19-year-old high school dropout, Matthew Thomas Dragna, to Damon Nicholson's house for a threesome on the night before the attack on October 23. Then Dragna returned to his house a day later with his 20-year-old lover, Jacob Anthony Quintanilla.
Dragna was arrested in November 2009 and charged with murder committed during a robbery. Quintanilla was arrested in December.
As per a Laguna Beach Independent report, in 2013, Dragna was convicted of killing Nicholson. However, three years later, an appeals court mandated Dragna's retrial, concluding that Laguna Beach police had violated his right to counsel by questioning him further.
Finally, a dozen years later in October 2021, both Dragna and Quintanilla accepted respective plea deals. The former pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter, burglary, three counts of assault with a deadly weapon, and also agreed to a sentencing enhancement. As per Oxygen, he was sentenced to 30 years in prison.
Meanwhile, Quintanilla pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and burglary. He was sentenced to seven years and four months in prison. His previously served 11 years behind bars were considered and thus, he did not have to serve any more time.
Oxygen's Real Murders of Orange County will further delve into Damon Nicholson's murder this Friday.
