Accused Child Molester Slain at Courthouse

A man charged with molesting five boys at a church camp was shot to death during a recess in his preliminary hearing on Friday by a woman who was scheduled to testify against him.

Daniel Driver, 35, was shot in the back of the head and may have been shot up to five times during a recess at the Western District Courthouse, according to Assistant Tuolumne County Sheriff Mike Costa.

Driver was pronounced dead at Tuolumne General Hospital at 1 p.m., less than an hour after the shooting, Costa said.

Costa said the woman, Ellie Nesler, 40, walked up behind Driver during a recess and fired two to six rounds, hitting Driver in the back of the head at least once.

It is unclear whether the woman is the mother of one of Driver’s alleged victims.

Driver was charged with molesting the boys from July, 1986, to September, 1988, while working at a church camp in the high Sierra.

Acting Dist. Atty. Michael Knowles says Driver had been convicted on another charge of child molestation.

He had been held in San Jose lieu of $20,000 bail.

Jamestown is about 120 miles southeast of San Francisco.