Suspect in Soquel teen’s murder appears in court
The suspect in the murder of Jessica Sheridan appeared in court Friday morning.
Miguel Loza was in court for a violation hearing, but that was postponed. His preliminary examination date is set for August 26.
Loza was extradited from Mexico in June in connection to the murder of a Soquel teen in 2003. He pleaded not guilty to charges of murder, burglary and sexual assault.
The Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office says he killed 17-year-old Jessica Sheridan and raped one of Sheridan’s friends at a vacant preschool on Soquel Drive. The Sheriff’s Office says shortly after she was killed in February 2003, Loza fled to Mexico.