Category: Press Releases

In a decision released on April 29, 2019, the California Supreme Court upheld the conviction and death sentence of Juan Sanchez, age 54, for the 1997 first-degree murders of Ermanda Reyes and Lorena Martinez. In the early morning of August 4, 1997, Sanchez entered the Porterville home of Reyes and her 17-year-old daughter, Lorena. Sanchez…
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Today in Department 5 of the Tulare County Superior, Visalia Division, a jury convicted David Bias, age 48, of first-degree residential burglary, commercial burglary, grand theft of a firearm, and unlawful taking of a vehicle. Each count is a felony. Bias possesses a 2015 auto theft conviction and a 2010 identity theft conviction. On January…
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On April 19, 2019, at High Desert State Prison in Susanville, Melvin Watters, age 45, stipulated to a five year California parole board hearing deferral for the 1994 murder of a man at a Visalia apartment complex. Around 2:45 am on February 1, 1994, Watters went to the victim’s apartment and knocked on the door.…
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Yesterday in Department 6 of the Tulare County Superior Court, Visalia Division, Judge Gary Paden sentenced Adrian Vicente Nunez, age 39, of Porterville, to 45 years-to-life in prison for child molestation. Nunez will also be required to register as a sex offender for the remainder of his life. On March 20, 2019, Nunez pleaded no…
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Today in Department 10 of the Tulare County Superior Court, Judge Kathryn Montejano sentenced Apfu See, age 28, to 124 years-to-life in prison. On March 4, 2019, in a court trial, Judge Montejano found See guilty of first-degree murder, attempted murder, and shooting at an occupied vehicle. Each count is enhanced with the special allegation…
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District Attorney Tim Ward has announced criminal charges against Geronmio Sierra, age 69, for sex crimes against minors.   Sierra is charged with seven counts of child molestation. The crimes are alleged to have been committed between March 2002 and October 2002 against a minor victim. In addition, Sierra is charged with one count of…
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The public is invited to observe National Crime Victims’ Rights Week 2019 at the District Attorney’s annual memorial quilt unveiling at 6 pm on Tuesday, April 9th at the Visalia Convention Center Charter Oak Ballroom. Since 1981, National Crime Victims’ Rights Week has brought attention to the millions of Americans impacted by crime and the…
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Yesterday afternoon in Department 6 of the Tulare County Superior Court, Visalia Division, Judge Gary Paden presiding, a jury convicted Hector Gonzalez, age 53, of first-degree murder with the special allegation of use of a sharp stabbing instrument and that he committed the crime while out on bail, one count of sodomy on a child…
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Today in Department 10 of the Tulare County Superior Court, Judge Kathryn Montejano sentenced Paul Castro, age 22, to 82 years-to-life in prison for a 2015 gang shooting at the Foods Co. grocery store in Tulare that seriously wounded two victims. On January 25, 2019, Castro was convicted of three counts of attempted murder with…
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On March 6, 2019, at Corcoran State Prison, a California parole board issued a three-year denial for Raymond Chavez, age 64, for the 1979 murder of a man in north Visalia. Around 3:15 in the morning on August 26, 1979, after an evening of drinking, Chavez and four other males got in to two cars…
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Today in Department 5 of the Tulare County Superior Court, Visalia Division, Judge Joseph Kalashian presiding, a jury convicted Kashmer Bailey, age 24, of one count of first-degree murder with the special allegation that he personally and intentionally discharged a firearm causing death, and one count of attempted murder. Around 1:21 am in the morning…
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Today Governor Gavin Newsom signed an executive order declaring that no death row inmate’s sentence will be carried out as long as he is in office.  He spoke about the death penalty being “inconsistent with our bedrock values and strikes at the very heart of what it means to be a Californian.” As a Californian,…
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Late in the afternoon of March 8, 2019, in Department 17 of the Tulare County Superior Court, South County Justice Center, a jury found Kevin Light, age 34, guilty of forcible rape of a minor as a felony. The crime occurred in 2016 in the Porterville area. Sentencing for Light is scheduled for April 8,…
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Today in Department 6 of the Tulare County Superior Court, Visalia Division, Judge Gary Paden sentenced Joseph Ulloa, age 33, of Porterville, to 25 years-to-life in prison for murder. On October 17, 2018, a jury convicted Ulloa of the second-degree murder and assault on a child resulting in the death of his 3-month-old son Jackson.…
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District Attorney Tim Ward has announced murder charges against Dale William Watson, age 52, in the death of 18-year-old Dynasty Alexander on the morning of March 3, 2019. Watson is charged with first-degree murder with the special allegation of intentional discharge of a firearm causing death, as well as committing the offense while on felony…
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Late on Monday, March 4, 2019, in a court trial in Department 10 of the Tulare County Superior Court, Judge Kathryn Montejano found Apfu See, age 28, guilty of first-degree murder, attempted murder, and shooting at an occupied vehicle. Each count is enhanced with the special allegation that a firearm was used. See was also…
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Today in Department 6 of the Tulare County Superior Court, Visalia Division, Judge Gary Paden sentenced Jessica Murphy, age 27, to 12 years in state prison for financial and drug crimes. On January 29, 2019, Murphy pleaded to 84 counts of identity theft with the special allegation of having been convicted of a prior identity…
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On February 12, 2019, at San Quentin State Prison, a California parole board issued a three-year denial for David Mason, age 74, for his involvement in the 1986 murder of a man outside Porterville. Around 1 am on Sunday, October 26, 1986, a Tulare County Sheriff’s deputy found a manshot to death in his Ford…
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Today in Department 5 of the Tulare County Superior Court, Visalia Division, Judge Joseph Kalashian sentenced Andres Espindola, age 35, to 16 years-to-life in prison for murder. On November 6, 2018, a jury convicted Espindola of second-degree murder with the special allegation that he used a deadly weapon. Espindola also admitted a prior prison term…
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Late yesterday afternoon in Department 5 of the Tulare County Superior Court, Visalia Division, a jury found Allen Horsley, age 26, guilty of premeditated first-degree murder with the special allegation of using a firearm, and assault with a deadly weapon (gun). Just before 1 am on November 3, 2016, Tulare County Sheriff’s deputies responded to ashooting…
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District Attorney Tim Ward is pleased to announce the promotion of Criminal Investigator Jose Benavides to supervisor. Benavides joined the TCDA Bureau of Investigations in 2001 as an Investigator Aide. After graduating from the 100th extended police academy class at the College of the Sequoias, he was promoted to Investigator and has worked in variety…
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Today in Department 22 of the Tulare County Superior Court, South County Justice Center, Judge Walter Gorelick sentenced Steven Elms, age 44, to the California maximum sentence of 5 years and 4 months in prison for his 11th DUI conviction. On January 17, 2019, a jury convicted Elms of felony driving under the influence of alcohol…
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Tulare County District Attorney Tim Ward is pleased to welcome Scott Spielman as theoffice’s newest supervising deputy district attorney. A graduate of California State University, Fresno (BS, Criminology, 1990) and the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law (Juris Doctor, 1993), Spielman beganhis career as a deputy district attorney for the Kern County District…
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Yesterday criminal investigators from the District Attorney’s Bureau of Investigations, as well as officers from the Porterville Police Department, assisted California parole officers in a PC290 sex offender detail to ensure compliance with registrant’s terms of parole. Conducted in southern Tulare County, a total of 24 compliance checks were made. Seventeen registrants were contacted and searched…
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