Pleasanton Double Homicide: New Details Emerge, Special Allegations Filed

PLEASANTON, CA — Allen Swadley, a 32-year-old man from San Jose, was charged with two counts of murder and a number of enhancements in connection to the fatal shootings of Lori and Evan Simonds, a mother and son from Pleasanton. Swadley, who was arrested last Thursday, is currently being held without bail at Santa Rita Jail.

Both counts include several enhancements for each of the counts, according to charging documents from Alameda Superior Court:

• Intentional discharge of a firearm
• Felony murder in the course of a burglary: Charging documents allege that Swadley killed Lori Simonds while committing a burglary. PPD Lt. Nicholas Albert told Pleasanton Weekly that California law defines “burglary” as entering a home with the intention of committing a felony, regardless of whether any items are taken. A separate burglary was reported at the Simonds residence, though Albert said it is unrelated to the homicide investigation.
• Defendant was armed and using a weapon
• Planning and sophistication of crime
• In a position of trust
• Violent conduct

If proven, the special enhancements would make Swadley ineligible for parole.

Court documents also reveal new details about the circumstances of the double homicide. According to a sworn statement from PPD Detective Nickolas Skaggs, a man cleaning a swimming pool in the backyard of the Simonds’ home called 911 and reported hearing four gunshots, a female voice screaming, followed by two more gunshots coming from inside the home.

Seven minutes later at 10:11 a.m. on Feb. 18, police arrived to find Lori and Evan dead with multiple gunshot wounds. No firearm was located.

Detectives interviewed Lori’s daughter Melissa, who initially told officers that there was no one she thought would harm her family. She advised that her ex-boyfriend Allen Swadley was the only person she knew who had guns, and knew where the family hid their house key because he often stayed at the home overnight before they broke up in December.

Pleasanton police found a 2025 Toyota Camry registered to Swadley. Flock automated license plate cameras showed that Swadley’s Camry was captured traveling southbound on Hopyard Road at Stoneridge Drive at 9:01 a.m., about an hour before the shooting, according to Skaggs’s statement. Residential surveillance cameras also captured Swadley’s car driving on Parkside Drive towards the Simonds household before the homicide.

Swadley was supposed to report to work at 3 p.m. that day, but called his work about one hour before his shift to say that he wouldn’t come in because his mother was sick, according to the statement. He did not report to work the following day.

Police issued an arrest warrant. On Friday, the San Jose Police Department located Swadley’s car and placed him under arrest. He was transported to the Pleasanton Police Department, where he admitted to being at the victim’s house at the time of the murders.

Swadley had no prior criminal record, according to police.

The Pleasanton community has mourned Lori, 67, and Evan, 28, as kind and well-liked. A vigil was held in their memory at Ken Mercer Sports Park Saturday evening, and a GoFundMe to help 26-year-old Melissa has raised $79,988 out of a $110,000 goal as of Wednesday.

SEE ALSO:

• Candlelight Vigil Held In Pleasanton In Memory Of Mother & Son Killed Last Week
• Arrest Made In Pleasanton Mother-Son Double Homicide; Victims Identified
• Mother, Son Fatally Shot In Pleasanton
• 2 Dead In Pleasanton Shooting: Police