Farmersville Man Denied Parole for 1990 Murder of Wife

On May 5, 2020, at the California Institution for Men in Chino, a California parole board issued a 5-year parole denial for Juan Lopez, age 64, for the 1990 murder of his wife.

On November 24, 1990, Lopez’s wife was found dead in a motel room in Lindsay. She had been struck with a liquor bottle and strangled with a towel. During the investigation, law enforcement found two notes allegedly written by the victim: one at her home stating that she left the family for another man, and a second in the motel room where she was found. Prior to her body being discovered, Lopez had reported his wife and car missing. In 2003, further examination of the evidence, including DNA from the motel room, showed that Lopez was present in the room when his wife was killed. Evidence further showed it was he, not the victim, who wrote the notes.

In 2007, Lopez was convicted of first-degree murder and that a deadly weapon was used. He was sentenced to life in prison.

This was Lopez’s initial parole hearing. Due to COVID-19 health precautions, the prosecutor argued against the inmate’s release by video conference.

Media inquiries can be directed to the Office of the District Attorney, County of Tulare Assistant District Attorney Dave Alavezos (559) 636-5494