Crime & Safety

Preliminary Hearing Begins for Lomita Man Charged With Killing Wife

The preliminary hearing for David Viens, charged with killing his wife Dawn in 2009, began Wednesday and is expected to continue today.

The preliminary hearing opened Wednesday for a man who jumped from Rancho Palos Verdes cliffs in February of last year and is now charged with murdering his missing wife.

David Viens, of Lomita, charged with murdering his wife Dawn in October 2009, took notes from his wheelchair in the downtown Los Angeles courtroom, the Daily Breeze reported. Viens to the charges in late March.

His missing wife's body still has not been found.

Find out what's happening in Palos Verdeswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Viens owned a Lomita restaurant his wife's body might have been hidden. The search in the finding of Dawn's remains.

Viens to investigators and his girlfriend he killed his wife, who has been missing for about 17 months.

Find out what's happening in Palos Verdeswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

"He did make statements implicating himself in the murder of Dawn," sheriff's homicide Lt. Dave Coleman said in a previous interview.

Viens near the 31500 block of Palos Verdes Drive West about 9:15 a.m. Feb. 23.

Authorities said they saw Viens and his girlfriend in an altercation near Point Vicente. When police ordered Viens to stop what they believed was an act of domestic violence, Viens released his girlfriend, ran, and jumped off of a nearby cliff, according to sheriff's officials.

Charged March 3 with murder, Viens' court appearance had been delayed by his injuries. If convicted, he faces up to life in prison, according to the District Attorney's Office.

The preliminary hearing is expected to continue today, according to the Daily Breeze report. Read the full report here.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

To request removal of your name from an arrest report, submit these required items to arrestreports@patch.com.