Defendants Convicted of Attempted Murder by Setting Victim on Fire

DATE: February 26, 2026

CASE: Jennifer Hunter & Ron Read (Case #22FE002156)

PROSECUTOR: Deputy District Attorney Miranda Drolet, Domestic Violence Unit

Jennifer Hunter and Ron Read were convicted by a jury of premeditated attempted murder and torture. The jury also found true the allegation that Read inflicted great bodily injury.

The defendants were friends and once in a relationship together. In 2021, Hunter was in a relationship with the victim when she left the victim during a road trip through rural Nevada. Hunter called for Read to pick her up. Read picked Hunter up and drove her back to Sacramento. There, the two conspired to murder the victim. On July 10, 2021, Hunter texted the victim and lured him to a Winco parking lot with promises of reconciliation. When the victim was at the parking lot, Hunter called Read to confirm the victim's location. Read was lying in wait in the parking lot. The victim was sitting in his car with his window open when Read approached the car, doused the victim with a large amount of flammable liquid and ignited the liquid. The victim's entire body was immediately engulfed in flames along with his car. Miraculously, the victim managed to extinguish himself and his car with help from a bystander and drove himself to the hospital. Unable to remove his hands from the burnt steering wheel, the victim finally lost consciousness as medical staff reached for his body at the emergency room. The victim was immediately helicoptered to the UC Davis Medical Center. He spent over four months in the hospital, heavily sedated, as he underwent multiple lifesaving procedures including a permanent tracheotomy and multiple rounds of skin grafts. The victim suffered third-degree burns over 70% of his body. The victim survived but continues to live with life-altering disabilities.

Aggravating factors and the allegation that Hunter has a prior strike conviction for burglary will be determined at the sentencing hearing.

Both defendants face a maximum sentence of life in prison. Sentencing is set for April 10, 2026, at 9:00 a.m. in Department 33 before the Honorable Laurel White.