Opinion ID: 2519785
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Charges and trial evidence.

Text: An information charged defendant with the premeditated murder of Gloria Andrade. (Pen.Code, §§ 187, subd. (a), 189.) [1] The information further alleged, for purposes of sentence enhancement, that defendant had personally used a deadly and dangerous weapon, a knife (§ 12022, subd. (b)(1)), and that he had previously been convicted of a forcible lewd act upon a child (§ 288, former subd. (b) (now subd. (b)(1)), a serious felony (§§ 667, subds.(a)-(i), 1192.7, subd. (c)). The trial evidence indicated the following: On November 2, 1996, around 7:00 a.m., the body of Andrade, defendant's wife, was found in the brush beside a roadside turnout near Julian, in rural San Diego County. The body exhibited multiple stab wounds to the throat, chest, and back. Around 10:00 p.m. that evening, defendant telephoned the San Diego Police and reported Andrade missing. On November 4, 1996, San Diego County Sheriffs homicide detectives Rowe and Heilig went to defendant's apartment to interview him about the report. Defendant stated he last saw Andrade around 9:00 p.m. on November 1, 1996, awoke the next morning to find her gone, made inquiries to try to find her, and then contacted the police. The detectives noticed personal effects on the dining room table; defendant confirmed they were Andrade's driver's license and rings. He claimed she had left them behind. On November 21, 1996, after Andrade's body had been identified, Detectives Rowe, Moreno, and Jopes returned to defendant's home to interview him about her death. The jury heard a redacted audio recording of this interview, in which defendant claimed he helped Andrade to commit suicide. Defendant's November 21 statement was as follows: He met Andrade while both were living in a recovery hotel for people with drug and alcohol problems. They later married, and he tried to give her the will to live, but she could not control her drinking and fell into a deep depression. In the weeks before her death, she frequently asked him to help her commit suicide. For a time, defendant resisted, and he finally told her it would have to be on the spur of the moment, because he could not think about it in advance. On the evening of November 1, 1996, she announced the time had come. He grabbed a knife from a kitchen drawer, and they departed in her car. After driving around in search of an isolated site, they arrived at the turnout near Julian. There he inflicted the knife wounds that caused her death. As related by defendant on November 21, the sequence of wounds is somewhat unclear. However, defendant appears to have said that as he and Andrade exchanged a final kiss at her request, he sliced her throat. She smiled and guided the knife as he did so. Then he stabbed her in the chest as she sighed in relief. Finally, to make sure she was dead, he rolled her over and inflicted the wound in her back. Defendant said he moved Andrade's body to where it was found because I knew eventually things would come up, and I figured ... if she was found within three to five days I might have a better chance of them not findin' anything. Defendant brought home the knife, the gloves Andrade had been wearing, her jewelry, and, by mistake, her identification, but he knew he might have left behind such traceable evidence as hair samples, fingerprints, and cigarette butts. Defendant declared he had told [Andrade] ... over and over, there's no way I'm gonna get away with this. Indeed, defendant said, though he attempted the missing person coverup, he had no intent of really ever gettin' away with it.... I, I made a, made an effort but I, I r____, I absolutely when the first night you [i.e., the detectives] were here ..., [2] knew, I knew it was over. (Italics added.) Defendant insisted that now my only thing is you know tellin' you the absolute truth and tryin' to convince you. I really felt obligated. (Italics added.) An autopsy suggested that the order of wounds was different than defendant had indicated in his November 21 statement. Based on the medical evidence, the pathologist opined that Andrade was stabbed in the back before she was stabbed in the chest, and that the nonfatal throat wounds were inflicted near the time of death, after the wound to her heart. Of the 12 knives consensually seized from defendant's apartment on November 21, the knife most consistent with Andrade's wounds was the one defendant had indicated to Detective Rowe. The prosecution presented evidence that on November 1, 1996, the day Andrade was killed, she was offered a bookkeeping job. She was scheduled to begin on November 5, 1996, and was happy about starting work. Defendant took the stand and admitted he killed Andrade, but he no longer claimed assisted suicide. He gave the following account: He and Andrade had a volatile relationship; they argued about money, her drinking problem, and their sex life. Andrade was drinking wine heavily during October 1996, and she had bathed only once in the three weeks before her death. However, she had many reasons to live and was pleased about her new job. On November 1, 1996, they decided to celebrate with a nighttime picnic. They departed around 10:00 p.m.; Andrade left her jewelry and identification at home. After arriving at the turnout near Julian, they stargazed and picnicked happily for two hours, but then began to argue. After about 15 minutes, as defendant was packing the food and utensils, Andrade hurled the final insult, screaming that defendant was no good in bed. Defendant, who had a kitchen knife in his hand, snapped and just lost it. He first grabbed Andrade by the collar and stabbed her in the back. As she struggled to push him away, he stabbed her in the chest, and she collapsed. Then he stood over her and began slashing her throat in a frenzy. From beginning to end, the process may have taken a couple of minutes. Defendant did not intend to kill, but was just lashing out with full anger. He dragged Andrade's body down the embankment, put the knife in the picnic basket, and departed. In rebuttal, the prosecution offered evidence that the autopsy showed no food in Andrade's stomach; that the clothing on her body was not suitable for a nighttime outing in cool weather; that she was unlikely to leave her identification and jewelry at home; that she was happy with her marriage and sex life but recently believed defendant was losing interest in her; and that defendant had been violent in his relationship with a former wife. The jury found defendant guilty of premeditated murder and found the knife-use allegation true. Defendant admitted the prior felony conviction. The court sentenced defendant to 25 years to life for the murder, doubled under the Three Strikes law in consequence of the prior forcible lewd conduct conviction. The court imposed an additional consecutive one-year enhancement for the use of a knife, and an additional consecutive five-year serious felony enhancement for the prior forcible lewd conduct conviction.