Fifteen months after the shooting death of Cesar Alvarado, one of the parties suspected of his murder, Ofelia Murillo, appeared in District Court on Tuesday, November 30.
Murillo, who is in custody at the Churchill County Jail, is Alvarado’s former wife. Along with her attorney, Ken Lyon and Court Certified Interpreter Maria Davis, Murillo was present in the Tenth Judicial District Court before Judge Thomas Stockard this week after lengthy delays.
According to the allegations, on September 25, 2020, at or near Sprig Lane, Ofelia Murillo did, “willfully, unlawfully, and with express or implied malice aforethought, deliberation, and premeditation, kill and murder Cesar Alvarado, and did use a deadly weapon or firearm in the commission of this offense and indirectly counsel, encourage, hire, command, induce, or otherwise procure another to commit this offense.” According to court documents, Murillo “did lie in wait with the intent to kill and did shoot Cesar Alvarado with a 9mm handgun and/or acted as a principal to Fabian Caballero by driving him to the vicinity to lie in wait and to shoot and kill Cesar Alvarado with a 9mm handgun resulting in his death.”
Murillo was initially charged with one count of Principal Voluntary Manslaughter, with the Use of a Deadly Weapon or Firearm (November 8, 2020). In January, the Criminal Complaint was amended changing the offense for the first count to “Open Murder with the Use of a Deadly Weapon or Firearm.” Open Murder, defined as a deliberate and premeditated killing, is a Class A Felony, potentially punishable by the death penalty, life in prison, or life with the possibility of parole after 20 years when mitigating circumstances occur. In Nevada, using a deadly weapon in the commission of a crime potentially doubles a criminal sentence adding 1-20 years in prison, but cannot exceed the term in the primary offense. She was also charged with Grand Larceny of a motor vehicle, a Category C Felony punishable by 1-5 years in prison.
The January Amended Criminal Complaint also added the following charges: (1) Conspiracy to Commit Murder, a Class B Felony, in which penalties depend on the felony to which defendants are party and range from 2-20 years and, (2) Principal to Destroying Evidence to Conceal the Commission of a Crime, a gross misdemeanor punishable by up to 364 days in jail. Allegedly, Murillo intended to "conceal the commission of the crime by protecting or concealing the identity of the person committing the same to delay or hinder the administration of the law. It was alleged that she did willfully destroy, alter, erase, obliterate, or conceal evidence by hiding the firearm" used in the killing.
The death penalty was a consideration at the onset of Murillo’s court proceedings. The Nevada Supreme Court requires that capital defendants are represented by an attorney who has tried at least five felony trials to completion, including one murder trial. Additionally, he or she must have acted as defense co-counsel in one death penalty trial, also tried to completion (Rule 250 - Procedure in Capital Proceedings, Nev. Sup. Ct. R. 250). Open murder is punishable by death, thus making this case subject to the ruling. As such, David Houston Esq., of Reno, was appointed to defend Murillo as there are no death penalty qualified attorneys within Churchill County.
In February, Murillo appeared before Justice Court Judge Benjamin Trotter for a status hearing he ordered a competency evaluation. On April 27, Murillo appeared in District Court after having been returned to custody from Lakes Crossing forensic psychiatric hospital and found competent to stand trial. A Stipulation and Order for Remand to Justice Court was filed, placing the case back into the hands of Judge Trotter. In early November of this year, Murillo appeared for a preliminary hearing in Justice Court. However, before the proceeding commenced, Murillo exercised her right to have the case heard in District Court, as is commonplace in high-profile cases where serious felony charges exist.
Pursuant to a negotiated plea agreement entered into with the State on November 30, Murillo pled guilty to (1) Principal Voluntary Manslaughter, with the Use of a Deadly Weapon, a Category B Felony, which is punishable by 4-10 years in prison. Both the District Attorney’s Office and defense counsel stipulated the 4-10 years term, with the firearms enhancement adding an additional 4-10 years, for a total of 8-20 years on the first count. As the charge was reduced to principal to manslaughter, the death penalty was taken off the table and Reno attorney Ken Lyon, Esq. appeared with Murillo as defense counsel for David Houston, Esq. Murillo also pled guilty to first offense Grand Larceny of a Motor Vehicle. The plea memo stipulates that this 2–5-year term will run concurrently with the first term, thus no additional time will be served on the charge.
Upon accepting Murillo’s plea, Judge Stockard recused himself from further proceedings citing a conflict of interest and disclosing that three of Murillo’s family members are employed at a family business. Both parties agreed that Stockard handling the arraignment posed no potential conflict.
The factual basis read in court on Tuesday, stated that Murillo drove the alleged shooter to Alvarado’s house. “She knew something bad was going to happen,” said Lyon, “but she didn’t know what.” Additionally, according to the criminal complaint, Murillo and Caballero took a vehicle owned by the victim, without his permission, from Churchill County and drove across the border into Mexico. According to Lyon, the plea reflects his client’s involvement and the plea she entered into was a well-negotiated agreement.
The Court scheduled sentencing for Monday, February 28, 2022, at which time Judge Jim C. Shirley, District Judge of the Eleventh Judicial District Court of the State of Nevada, will preside.
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