Ramona Guilty Plea and West Nile Escalation Dominate County News
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Yolanda Marodi, 54, entered a guilty plea Tuesday in El Cajon Superior Court to second-degree murder for the fatal stabbing of her wife, Rebecca 'Becky' Marodi, a Cal Fire captain who was 49 years old. The killing occurred at the couple's home on Rancho Villa Road in Ramona on the night of February 17, 2025. Marodi now faces 36 years to life in prison; she is scheduled to return to court for formal sentencing on September 2.
The case drew sustained attention across San Diego County in part because of Yolanda Marodi's prior manslaughter conviction, which shaped the severe sentencing range under the second-degree murder plea. Becky Marodi's death was also felt beyond Ramona — as a Cal Fire captain, she was part of a firefighting corps that has responded to every major wildland fire in the region. The guilty plea spares the community a lengthy trial while still leaving September 2 as a significant day of reckoning.
Separately, the county's public health team Tuesday confirmed a fourth human West Nile virus case this summer, with one of the four individuals requiring hospitalization. Two of the season's cases were detected not through illness but through routine blood-donation screening — a reminder that West Nile can be entirely asymptomatic or present as a mild flu-like illness in most people. Roughly one in 150 infected individuals, however, develops serious neurological illness.
In response, the county's Vector Control Program launched aerial larvicide drops Wednesday over 54 waterways, including San Elijo Lagoon and San Dieguito Lagoon, with flights continuing Thursday. The treatment targets mosquito larvae in standing and slow-moving water. Beyond the four human cases, the county has recorded 15 positive birds and one positive mosquito batch so far this season — a meaningful early-warning signal. Residents are advised to eliminate standing water around their homes, apply EPA-registered repellent at dawn and dusk, and alert their physician to possible mosquito exposure if unusual symptoms appear after time spent near waterways.