The attorney of a man extradited from Mexico to stand trial for killing his wife entered his client's not guilty plea, though his client admitted in open court to be guilty of stabbing the young woman to death after lying in wait for her in a restroom at her college campus, as reported by 10 News from San Diego.
A.P. has been ordered to be held without bail in connection with the October 12, 2010 slaying of D.G., 19.
A.P., arrested in February in Tijuana, is facing a life in prison without parole. U.S. authorities had to agree not to seek the death penalty in exchange for Mexico agreeing to extradite A.P. to the states.
J.G., D.G.'s sister, slung curses in Spanish at the defendant as his public defender entered the not guilty plea.
A.P. questioned the judge as to why he had to enter a plea of not guilty. The judge then had him taken from the court and placed in a holding cell. As A.P. was escorted from the court he said, "I'm guilty alright. Don't tell me not to be guilty."
Teresa Santana, the Deputy District Attorney, told Superior Court Judge Robert F. O'Neill that A.P. had a history of domestic violence in relation to his wife. Santana said that he threatened to kill D.G., or her family, if she dared to leave him.
A.P. went so far as to accompany D.G. to her classes at San Diego City College in the fall of 2010 – though A.G. was not a student.
According to Santana, by September of 2010 A.P. had been arrested, charged and imprisoned for domestic violence against D.G. During that time D.G. took out a restraining order against him.
It was the victim's parents that reported her missing. A man later discovered D.G. – riddled with stab wounds on her neck and body – in one of the men's restrooms on campus.
Santana said that A.P. fled the scene, rode a trolley and ended up hiding in Mexico for over a year.
At A.P.'s arraignment, District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis told reporters, "Law enforcement on both sides of the border never wavered in their efforts to locate the defendant, to track him down, to arrest him, to bring him here to San Diego to hold him accountable for (D.G.'s) brutal murder. This court process is very difficult because it forces the family to relive this whole experience, this tragedy, over and over again as it plays out in the courtroom and in the media."
B.L., D.G.'s cousin said, "We have never wished death to anyone, but what does the person who leaves a 10-month-old baby without her mother deserve? What does the person who snatches a 19-year-old daughter from her parents deserve? Death would be fair, but we have to leave that aspect of human life to the creator."
Facing criminal charges? Whether your are facing one count or several, contact a criminal defense attorney to best represent you. Entering your plea is one of several concerns your attorney can assist you with.
