Woman Held in Boyfriend’s Killing

A 28-year-old woman who authorities said fatally shot a teenager in her home Monday, later telling them he was a burglar, was arrested on suspicion of murdering her live-in boyfriend.

Nicole Sweitzer called police about 2:20 a.m. to report that “she had shot someone who was an intruder in her home” in the 14800 block of Wilson Street, Sheriff’s Department Lt. Ron Wilkerson said. Sweitzer told investigators she was home alone when she discovered the burglar and shot him, apparently with a shotgun, Wilkerson said.

Authorities identified the man as William Hildebrand, a known gang member who turned 19 last month.

“At this time, it appears to be a domestic dispute of some sort that culminated in the death of the boyfriend,” Wilkerson said.

Sweitzer, dressed in blue jeans and a red blouse, ran out of the house “screaming hysterically,” neighbor Frank LaRussa said. She collapsed on the sidewalk, sobbing in the dark, he said.

Sheriff’s Sgt. Stan Jacquot said Sweitzer “was pretty shaken up. She didn’t want to be in the house . . . she volunteered to go down to the station” for questioning.

Wilkerson said several weapons were in the home, but investigators have “not determined which had been used.”

On Monday morning, as news of the death spread through the neighborhood, friends of the couple placed flowers and candles in the front yard in an impromptu memorial to Hildebrand.

Officials at Ocean View High School said Hildebrand had attended school there in 1995, but didn’t graduate. Court records show that he had a few brushes with the law, mostly traffic violations.

Sarah Beck, a friend of Hildebrand, said he met Sweitzer through mutual friends and had been sharing the one-story rental home with her and her 3-year-old daughter for the past few months. The daughter was visiting a grandmother on Monday, detectives said.

Neighbors and friends said Sweitzer’s life has been difficult. Her husband, Steve, committed suicide two years ago shortly after being convicted of drug possession with intent to sell, according to court records and friends who knew the couple.

After his death, Sweitzer began renting rooms out and “started hanging around the wrong people,” said an 80-year-old neighbor who asked that her name not be used.

“She’s a real sweet girl, and a good mother,” the neighbor said.

In the past year, sheriff’s deputies were summoned to the house several times, said Toby Madrid, a 26-year-old neighbor.

Tony Salzer, 32, a friend of Sweitzer and her late husband, said that despite her personal problems, Sweitzer is “a pretty good mommy.”

“I respect her for that,” Salzer said. “She really takes care of her kid. . . . She makes sure that Natasha gets enough to eat and puts her in preschool.”

In the backyard, a trampoline, a miniature playhouse and various toys were strewn about a fenced area.

“She is very protective of the kid and always tried to keep her from being exposed to what’s going on,” Salzer said. “I’m very concerned about her and at the same time, I’m kind of angry. . . . I had tried to warn her.”

Sweitzer was questioned Monday morning and booked into the Orange County Jail on Monday afternoon in lieu of $250,000 bail. Investigators declined to detail the evidence leading them to arrest her.