William Carl Gardner III's booking photo in Clark County, Nev. Courtesy photo

The suspect in a Winters homicide was due to appear in a Clark County, Nev., courtroom this morning to answer to charges of being a fugitive, and to begin the process of extraditing him back to Yolo County.

William Carl Gardner III, 30, has been in custody at the Clark County Detention Center since his arrest early Tuesday morning in connection with the Nov. 18 murder of his former girlfriend, Leslie Pinkston, who was fatally shot while sitting in her parked vehicle outside her downtown Winters workplace.

Information about the outcome of this morning’s court hearing was not immediately available.

Yolo County prosecutors say the timing of Gardner’s return to California depends upon whether he agrees to the extradition process. If he does, he could appear in Yolo Superior Court as soon as next week. If not, the Yolo County District Attorney’s Office must seek a warrant from the governor’s office ordering Gardner’s transfer.

Officials with the U.S. Marshals Service said Tuesday they apprehended Gardner at a Las Vegas apartment complex after the Winters Police Department received a tip about his whereabouts and relayed it to the federal law-enforcement agency.

It was the first time Gardner had surfaced during his three-week run from the law, U.S. Marshal Albert Najera said.

After several hours of surveillance, the Marshals Service tracked Gardner to the Camden Pointe Apartments in the city’s southeast area, where according to a police report provided by the Clark County District Attorney’s Office, Gardner was spotted near one of the apartment buildings at about 6:30 p.m. Monday.

“Deputies approached Gardner, causing him to flee into apartment 1082,” the report says. A six-hour standoff ensued, after which Gardner surrendered and was taken into custody.

In addition to Gardner, police arrested a resident of the apartment, 24-year-old Brittany Ulmer, on a misdemeanor charge of obstructing a police officer, according to Clark County DA spokeswoman Tess Driver.

Further details about the alleged conduct that led to the obstruction charge were not available Wednesday, and Driver said her office has not yet received police reports in her case. However, Driver did say Ulmer is no longer in custody and has an April 8 court date.

Authorities said a man and a 3-year-old child also were inside the apartment during the standoff, though the man had left the dwelling prior to Gardner’s surrender. Najera has described the people as friends of Gardner’s.

— Reach Lauren Keene at [email protected] or 530-747-8048. Follow her on Twitter at @laurenkeene

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