A Temecula man who pointed a shotgun at a 7-year-old Girl Scout selling cookies door-to-door pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of brandishing a firearm Monday, Jan. 25.

John Michael Dodrill, who had previously pleaded guilty to possessing an illegal assault weapon, now faces up to three years in custody when he is sentenced for both convictions in March, said Riverside County District Attorney’s Office spokesman John Hall.

Hall said Dodrill accepted a plea deal ahead of a retrial that was scheduled to begin soon. In his first trial in March 2015, the jury deadlocked, 9-3 in favor of guilt, and the judge declared a mistrial.

On Feb. 2, 2014, Dodrill pointed a loaded Mossberg shotgun at the Girl Scout after she knocked on the door of his Strawberry Tree Lane condominium.

“He said, ‘You might not want to do that again’ in, like, a mean voice,” the girl, identified in court as Jane Doe, testified during the original trial.

Dodrill at that time said he heard a loud knock on his door and thought gang members were trying to rush his home.

He pleaded guilty to the weapon possession charge before his first trial began.

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