A state appeals court has affirmed most of the sentence for a man convicted of murdering one Novato teen and maiming another in 2016.
Juan Carlos Martinez Henriquez, 26, was one of eight suspects charged in connection with the attack. Martinez Henriquez and the victims were students at Novato High School.
The crimes happened at the waterfall near the end of Fairway Drive in Novato. Martinez Henriquez, who was 17 at the time, lured the victims into an ambush to gain favor with the MS-13 gang, authorities alleged.
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Edwin Josue Guerra, 17, died after being hacked with a machete and hit with rocks. The other teen suffered gunshot wounds and pretended to be dead until the attackers left. He told investigators that one of the attackers was “Juan Carlos from school,” according to a court filing.
Martinez Henriquez was tried as an adult on charges of murder, attempted murder and mayhem, which the law defines as dismemberment or permanent disfigurement. The first trial in 2020 ended in a jury deadlock. After a retrial the following year, a jury convicted Martinez Henriquez of all the charges.
Judge Kelly Simmons sentenced Martinez Henriquez to life in prison without the possibility of parole. She also ordered a consecutive term of 40 years to life for the attempted murder conviction.
The case was assigned to an appellate lawyer. The attorney filed a challenge with the 1st District Court of Appeal in San Francisco, arguing that the mayhem convictions should be reversed. The appeal said the prosecution lacked the evidence to prove Martinez Henriquez had the specific intent to maim.
In a ruling released Wednesday, a three-judge panel rejected the argument. It said that under the circumstances of the case, a juror could “reasonably conclude” that Martinez Henriquez intended to kill the victims, or failing that, to disable or disfigure them.
“The evidence shows defendant planned a violent attack and coordinated with many others; he attacked … in concert with two other armed gang members; he used a gun and machete and his confederates used a machete, a knife, and rocks; he laughed at Josué as he killed him and bragged and laughed about the crimes later with his confederates; and his motivation for the crimes was to gain status in his gang,” Associate Justice Marla Miller wrote.
However, the court agreed to reverse some penalty enhancements for gang crimes because of changes in the law in 2022. The prosecution can hold another trial on those allegations.
Candace Hale, the appellate lawyer for Martinez Henriquez, declined to comment on the ruling.
One of the codefendants, Edenilson Misael Alfaro, an alleged MS-13 leader, was convicted of one count of murder, one count of attempted murder and two counts of aggravated mayhem. Three other defendants pleaded guilty to being accessories, one defendant pleaded guilty to a gang recruitment felony and two defendants have not been captured.