Rafael Casas accused of attempted murder of a ‘Good
Samaritan’
San Martin – A Gilroy man charged with attempted murder testified in court Friday that he was feeling weak from a three or four day methamphetamine binge at the time of the incident, and had not eaten or slept in several days.
Rafael Casas, who took the stand in his own defense Friday afternoon, is charged with the attempted murder of a 26-year-old at a Gilroy gas station May 7, 2005.
Casas agreed to forego a jury trial and instead Superior Court Judge Kenneth Shapero will render a verdict. The proceeding was continued until June 2, when Shapero is expected to tell Casas if he will serve time and if so, how much.
Casas, dressed in a white dress shirt, black slacks and a somber tie, argued with Deputy District Attorney Stuart Scott in court about several issues and had to be repeatedly reminded by Shapero to answer the questions from attorneys.
When answering questions, Casas sometimes mumbled, often saying, “Yeah, I guess,” to which Scott would ask him to clarify whether his answer was “yes” or “no.” Sometimes his answers were strong, almost mocking, often asking Scott, “what would you do?”
According to court documents, witnesses told police that Casas was assaulting a female outside a restroom at Rotten Robbie May 7 when the 26-year-old victim attempted to intervene.
Casas, 25, allegedly responded by saying, “You [expletive] with the wrong Norteño,” and fought with the victim in the parking lot, stabbing him several times.
A witness identified Casas to police as the person responsible for stabbing John Sablan during the fight shortly before midnight.
Scott said Friday that pictures of Sablan showed stab wounds on his arms and abdomen, including in the “kill zone.”
Pictures of Casas when he was arrested May 14, 2005, showed scratches and scrapes on the left side of his face. He told Scott he didn’t remember when he got them, but it could have been during the fight at the gas station when he was knocked down to the asphalt.
Casas’ ex-girlfriend, Blanca Velasquez, testified during the second day of trial Wednesday that he frequently beat her and was attacking her at a Gilroy gas station when Sablan intervened. That was after she testified Casas didn’t put his hands on her and wasn’t fighting with her at the gas station.
She testified that she is still, one year after the incident, afraid of Casas.
On Thursday, however, she testified that she had lied, and that she had written letters to Casas in jail, one as recently as a couple of weeks ago. When Casas took the stand, after the court heard extensive testimony from Anti-Crime Team Sgt. Greg Flippo about gang behavior, he evaded questions about the red clothing, belt and hat he has been known to wear. He replied that he liked red, that wearing the color red did not mean someone is a Norteño. He also disclaimed any relationship between wearing the number 14 -said to represent the 14th letter of the alphabet, which is “N” – and gang membership.
Defense attorney James Leininger argued that clothing Casas wore does not make him a gang member, nor does his association with known gang members. He told the court that the area Casas lives in is an area that makes some gang association desirable. He also argued that though Casas has had trouble with the law before, his problems have been of a “personal” nature, not gang crimes such as burglary, rape or murder.
