Judge denies prosecution motion to further delay Modesto murder trial

A Stanislaus County judge on Monday rejected the prosecution’s motion to further delay a murder trial involving a suspected gang-related attack in north Modesto.

Five defendants will stand trial in the death of Erick Gomez. The prosecution says Gomez, 20, was targeted by vengeful Sureño gang members hunting down rival Norteño gang members Feb. 14, 2013.

Chief Deputy District Attorney Marlisa Ferreira had asked the court to postpone the trial again, because she’s the prosecutor in a preliminary hearing for Modesto attorney Frank Carson and five others charged in the slaying of Turlock resident Korey Kauffman. That hearing began in mid-October.

The trial in the Gomez slaying case initially was scheduled to begin Feb. 29. Some of the defendants were asking the judge to dismiss their charges because they said their right to a speedy trial was being violated by the prosecution.

Superior Court Judge Thomas Zeff refused to postpone the trial one more time, forcing the District Attorney’s Office to assign Deputy District Attorney Jeff Laugero to handle the Gomez case. The newly assigned prosecutor and the five defense attorneys met in Zeff’s courtroom Monday afternoon to begin discussing pretrial motions.

The attorneys are expected to argue over pretrial motions for about two weeks. After that’s done, jury selection should take an estimated two to three weeks. Zeff said it’s possible opening statements in the trial will begin June 21, and testimony could conclude in mid-October.

Hung jury

The first trial in the Gomez case, which went on for about three months, ended Jan. 28, 2015, when the jury failed to reach a verdict.

Nine people have been indicted in connection with Gomez’s death: Giovani Barocio, Nancy Rodriguez, Jeanette Robles, Elida Carranza, Jenna Sebourn, Dalia Mendoza, Lisandro Mendoza, Jesse James Sebourn and Michael Terrill Sebourn.

Dalia Mendoza was prosecuted separately after agreeing to a plea deal with prosecutors in exchange for her testimony against her co-defendants. Barocio, suspected of having been the gunman, remains a fugitive.

In December, Carranza and Jenna Sebourn pleaded no contest to being an accessory to murder and admitted to an enhancement of committing the crime for the benefit of a criminal street gang. In exchange, prosecutors agreed to a five-year sentence for each defendant. They were released for jail time already served.

Zeff on Monday asked the attorneys whether there was any chance of a plea deal before the trial starts. Lewis Wentz, Lisandro Mendoza’s attorney, said Ferreira told him that they could come up with a deal for his client before the jury selection ends. “She’s not saying no,” Wentz told the judge.

Possible plea deals

Laugero confirmed for the judge that Ferreira continues to discuss possible plea deals. The other defense attorneys, however, said they have not been approached by the prosecution to discuss plea deals. Dan Johnson, Michael Sebourn’s attorney, said he made an offer to the prosecutor but did not receive a response.

The first trial in the Gomez case was held in a former federal bankruptcy courtroom in downtown Modesto to allow more space for the increased number of defendants, attorneys and bailiffs. That’s where the second trial was supposed to be held, but the Kauffman preliminary hearing is being held there.

Court staffers brought three long tables into Zeff’s courtroom Monday afternoon to try to accommodate everyone in the Gomez trial. The defendants squeezed into their seats next to their attorneys as several bailiffs took their positions inside the courtroom.

The judge said he understands that it’s not as spacious as the former bankruptcy courtroom. “But this is the best we can do under the circumstances,” Zeff said.

This story was originally published May 9, 2016 at 4:34 PM with the headline "Judge denies prosecution motion to further delay Modesto murder trial."