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Merced Sun Star ||
13-Dec-2011
MERCED - Three people convicted of killing a 40-year-old man to reap benefits from a nearly $1 million life insurance policy were sentenced to prison Tuesday in Merced County Superior Court. Laura Hernandez, 38; son Erick Camarillo, 21; and Edgar Garcia, 18, pleaded no contest in August to killing Alberto Rodriguez Macias, 40, on March 14, 2010, near Dos Palos. Hernandez, the ringleader and the ...
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Merced Sun Star ||
15-Oct-2011
MERCED - A drunkard with a taste for violence — or a desperate slave to the sins of the bottle? Jurors are facing those conflicting perspectives in the trial of Jose Paz, a farmworker who pumped three bullets into his boss, but then dropped the victim off at Mercy Medical Center. Attorneys on both sides presented opening statements Friday. The victim in the shooting, 60-year-old Edward ...
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Merced Sun Star ||
6-Oct-2011
MERCED - A heartless robber bent on revenge or the target of a set-up by a drug-addled ex-girlfriend? Those opposing viewpoints were offered by attorneys Wednesday during closing arguments in the trial of Joey Cardoza, who’s accused of committing a brutal April 27 home invasion at the home of a 56-year-old Atwater woman. If convicted, Cardoza faces 20 years in prison. Jurors will continue ...
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Merced Sun Star ||
29-Sep-2011
J. Marchini Farms clerk faces 7 to 10 years in prison. LE GRAND - A 58-year-old woman accused of stealing nearly $1 million from Le Grand-based J. Marchini Farms will soon be headed to state prison after pleading no contest to two counts of embezzlement and check fraud. Beverly Roan reached an agreement with prosecutors last Thursday and faces seven to 10 years in prison. She’ll also be ...
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Merced Sun Star ||
28-Sep-2011
Girlfriend of defendant is a key witness for the prosecution. MERCED - The jury trial of a man accused of beating a 56-year-old Atwater woman during a brutal home invasion is scheduled to begin today in Merced County Superior Court. Prosecutors say Joey Edward Cardoza, 34, committed the robbery with girlfriend Kimberly Suzanne Grace, 31, during the early morning hours of April 27 at a residence in ...
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Merced Sun Star ||
28-May-2011
MERCED - A man, who didn’t give a “tinker’s damn” about a court restraining order, determined to commit murder over a failed relationship. That’s how Merced County District Attorney Larry Morse II characterized the case of 41-year-old James White, on trial on accusations of firing two bullets into 33-year-old Stephen Jackson, killing him. Attorneys on both sides ...
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Merced Sun Star ||
27-May-2011
MERCED - The trial of accused killer James White was rocked by a seismic development Thursday, as a key witness who had gone missing appeared in court, giving testimony that could be a deciding factor in the case’s outcome. Benito Aguirre told jurors his version of what happened March 8, 2007, the day Stephen Jackson was fatally shot at G Street and Cone Avenue. White, who is accused of ...
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Merced Sun Star ||
18-May-2011
MERCED - A deliberate and vicious murder, fueled by jealousy and rage. That’s how Merced County District Attorney Larry Morse II described the case of James Evertt White, who stands accused of gunning down 33-year-old Stephen Antoine Jackson on March 8, 2007, because of a feud over a woman. Testimony in White’s trial kicked off Tuesday, and attorneys on both sides gave opening ...
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Merced Sun Star ||
10-May-2011
Trial delayed while defendant goes to state mental hospital MERCED - A 42-year-old man accused of stabbing his schoolteacher wife to death will be sent to a state mental hospital before his trial can move forward, a Merced County judge ruled Monday. Judge Marc Garcia determined defendant Rudy Romero is mentally incompetent to stand trial. He’s accused of killing 44-year-old Diane Romero at ...
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