Opinion ID: 1127405
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The Bocanegra Murders

Text: On the afternoon of February 3, 1987, the police found the bodies of Juan and Juanita Bocanegra in their home. Juanita was found in her sewing room, and Juan was found in the kitchen. Both had sustained extensive stab wounds and head injuries. A piece of fabric was tied loosely around Juanita's neck, and another piece of cloth was found on her right wrist. Kern County Sheriff's criminalist Gregory Laskowski analyzed the blood found at the scene and concluded that both victims were killed where their bodies were found. The blood splatter evidence showed that the attack began in the hallway near the bathroom. The fight then moved to the kitchen where large amounts of blood indicated that a struggle took place throughout the room. The evidence indicated a fierce struggle occurred throughout the house. Small amounts of diluted blood in the bathroom suggested that someone cleaned up after the attack. Laskowski also found evidence of two types of shoe tracks on the floor of the Bocanegra kitchen; one print had a chevron pattern and another, partial print, contained a wavy sole design. A full wavy design shoe track in the bathroom was consistent with the print found in the kitchen. Both victims were found without shoes; Juanita's bloodstained slippers were found in the hallway. Police found a knife block with four empty spaces in the kitchen. Two knives, without bloodstains, were in the kitchen sink. There were slash marks on the cabinets directly above the knife holder. That same evening, the police recovered a knife and sharpening stone that appeared to have blood on them. No fingerprints were found on these items. But police did find a bloody palm print belonging to defendant's accomplice Robert Reyes on the doorknob inside the Bocanegra front door. Autopsies performed on both Juan and Juanita revealed that they died as a result of massive hemorrhaging due to multiple stab wounds, although the type of instrument that inflicted the wounds could not be conclusively determined. On February 4, 1987, the Bocanegras' Dodge Colt station wagon was found abandoned. There were extensive bloodstains on both the interior and exterior of the car. Fingerprints belonging to Joey Bocanegra were found on the interior driver's and right rear door windows and on the right rear door handle. Two items of evidence linked defendant to the crimes. The missing Bocanegra television set was found in the same room at the Bakersfield Inn where defendant stayed at the time of the murders, and defendant sold the Bocanegras' vacuum cleaner to Maria Rodriguez, a clerk employed by the inn. The remaining evidence used to convict defendant was based primarily on the circumstances of the crime, and incriminating statements made by defendant to police investigator Bob Stratton, jailhouse informant Rufus Hernandez, and newspaper reporter Michael Trihey.