Hearing further delayed for man accused of killing Newman cop. Here’s new start date

A Stanislaus County judge on Friday again postponed a preliminary hearing for the man accused of killing Newman Police Cpl. Ronil Singh after the defense asked for more time to review evidence gathered by federal authorities.

Paulo Virgen Mendoza has been charged with murder in Singh’s death. Stephen Foley, Mendoza’s attorney, has entered a not guilty plea on behalf of Mendoza.

The preliminary hearing to determine whether there’s enough evidence for Mendoza to stand trial initially was scheduled to begin Dec. 10. But the judge in late November postponed the hearing until March 10, because Foley had received the voluminous amount of evidence from federal authorities.

That evidence was gathered by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in its case against several people, including Mendoza’s brothers and his girlfriend, who have been convicted in federal court. Authorities accused them of helping Mendoza avoid capture during a 55-hour manhunt.

Mendoza is accused of shooting Singh during a Dec. 26, 2018, traffic stop in Newman. Authorities say Mendoza shot Singh shortly after the police corporal pulled Mendoza over near the intersection of Merced Street and Eucalyptus Avenue on suspicion of driving under the influence.

In the early hours of Dec. 26, 2018, Mendoza returned home after the shooting, authorities say. Mendoza’s friends and relatives conspired to help him try to escape to Mexico, according to federal prosecutors.

Two days after the fatal shooting, SWAT team officers went to a home near Bakersfield after authorities were told Mendoza was there. Mendoza and the others were then taken into custody. One of Mendoza’s brothers later directed investigators to a dumpster, where the gun had been dumped.

On Friday, Foley told the judge that the Stanislaus County District Attorney’s Office has suggested there were about 22,000 pages of documented evidence from the federal investigation. After an initial review of the evidence, Foley said it’s more like 60,000 to 80,000 pages of evidence.

Chief Deputy District Attorney Jeff Mangar, who is prosecuting Mendoza, told the judge that most of the documents the feds handed over has redundant information.

If that is accurate, Foley said he still needs to review every page of the federal evidence as he prepares for the preliminary hearing, so he needs more time.

“I’m still obligated to make sure that is not something I need or something I need to refer to,” the defense attorney told the judge.

The prosecutor told the judge that he was ready to proceed with the hearing now, but his hands were tied on this issue. Mangar assured the judge that he has handed the defense all evidence he has in this murder case.

“We’d like to go with this hearing as soon as possible,” Mangar told the judge.

The prosecutor has told the judge the evidence from federal authorities is mostly raw data, including phone records that involved text messages, calls and GPS information after the deadly shooting occurred.

The defense attorney has said there were 81 transcripts of Mendoza and the defendants in the federal case that will be important to his client’s defense, especially conversations involving Mendoza, his girlfriend, his brothers and a co-worker the defendant was with immediately after the shooting was reported.

Foley on Friday also was asking for the postponement because of scheduling conflicts for his co-counsel. The preliminary hearing is estimated to be completed in about four days.

The attorneys asked for a postponement until late March, but the judge is presiding over a murder trial beginning March 17. But Superior Court Judge Ricardo Córdova said he can get that murder trial done by early April. So he rescheduled Mendoza’s preliminary hearing to begin April 7.

The attorneys and the defendant were scheduled to return to court Feb. 4 for a pretrial hearing. Mendoza remains in custody at the Stanislaus County Jail.

This story was originally published January 3, 2020 at 11:50 AM.