Opinion ID: 3189192
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Events on the night of the murders

Text: On October 7, 1995, Richard Diaz attended a barbecue at defendant‟s house. Little Pete and Rafael Avila, who was married to defendant‟s stepdaughter Endora 3 To avoid confusion, we refer to some Rangel family members by their first names. 3 Avila, also were there. Defendant was angry about his son “getting shot in the head” and spoke about “getting back” at Juan Uribe. Defendant said “he wasn‟t going to let anybody get away with shooting his son in the head,” and wanted to go look for Uribe. Defendant asked to borrow Avila‟s car but Avila told defendant he would drive because defendant “was too drunk.” Defendant, Diaz, Little Pete, and Avila got into Avila‟s car. They drove to Uribe‟s house but did not see his car there. As they drove to a different location, they noticed Uribe‟s car parked across the street from victim Durbin‟s home on East Central Avenue in Madera. Durbin lived with his wife Cindy and three children, who were seven, six, and three years old. The Durbins also had three visitors that night, Juan Uribe, Alvin Areizaga, and Richard Fitzsimmons. Diaz saw people in the house and noticed that two children were watching television in the front room. Defendant, Little Pete, and Diaz got out of the car, and Avila drove away slowly. About 10:00 p.m., Diaz stood across the street while defendant, armed with a .380-caliber weapon, and Little Pete, armed with a .22-caliber rifle, entered the house through an unlocked screen door. Little Pete asked where Juan Uribe was. When Uribe appeared, Little Pete asked him: “What‟s up, Juan Uribe? What‟s up now?” He then shot and killed Uribe. Durbin ran through the living room but defendant grabbed him and shot him. From across the street, Diaz fired two shots through the living room window to encourage defendant and Little Pete to leave. Defendant and Little Pete ran out of the house, and Diaz stopped Avila, who was driving by. The men got into the car and drove off. Little Pete said that he “got Juan Uribe” and thought he had killed him. Defendant said that he had shot Durbin because he thought he was “running to get a gun.” Defendant accidentally fired two shots in the car while trying to unload his weapon. 4 Cindy Durbin, Chuck Durbin‟s wife, testified she heard a big bang and walked into the living room to check on her children. She saw two armed Hispanic men with dark hair and wearing baseball caps standing in the house; she was “80 to 90 percent sure” one of the men was defendant. The men began shooting and one or both “scream[ed]” they were “going to get” Juan and said “Juan was a traitor” and “now he was dead” or “going to die.” Cindy ran into the kitchen where Chuck told her to hide. Chuck ran into the living room. When the shooting stopped, Uribe‟s bullet-ridden body was on top of Cindy. Cindy had been shot in the abdomen, and bullets had grazed her legs. She found Chuck with bullet holes in his head and neck on the living room floor. He raised his hands to his face and tried to speak but she could not understand him. She took their children into a bedroom and asked Areizaga to call 911.