Man Gets Prison In Fatal Stabbing Of Acquaintance In Bay Area: DA

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — A man convicted of stabbing two acquaintances, killing one, in the Bay Area in 2023 has been sentenced to 100 years to life in prison, prosecutors said.

Dennis Duree, 41, was convicted by a jury in December 2025 of first-degree murder in the fatal stabbing of Brandon Mitchell on Dec. 28, 2023, along Mission Street, according to the San Francisco District Attorney's Office.

The jury also found Duree guilty of assault with a deadly weapon and found the allegation that the 41-year-old personally used a deadly weapon in the commission of the murder true, prosecutors said.

"Justice has been served for the victim who was killed and the victim who survived," District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said on Thursday. "Although nothing can undo his crimes and the subsequent pain and anguish the family and friends of the victims have endured, I hope this sentence brings them some comfort as they work to heal from this trauma."

Prosecutors say Duree had been roaming around the 1300 block of Mission Street when Mitchell and a woman arrived to set up an encampment on the sidewalk.

Duree, who knew Mitchell and the woman, joined them on a mattress they had set up on the sidewalk, prosecutors said.

Duree began smoking "dope" while on the mattress and dozing off, prosecutors said.

Each time he'd fall asleep, Duree would drop his drugs and then accuse Mitchell and the woman of taking them from him, prosecutors said.

At some point, Duree got up from the mattress and walked toward a nearby alley where he spoke with an "unidentified suspect," prosecutors said.

Duree then returned to Mission Street, where he stabbed Mitchell and the woman, prosecutors said.

"This sentence holds the defendant accountable for his heinous and senseless acts of violence,” Assistant District Attorney Ryan King said. "The victims’ families showed great strength and patience during this process. We hope the verdict and sentence brings them a sense of closure and peace."