Sarsfield considers death penalty for 18-year-old
Hollister – The San Benito County District Attorney’s office is preparing for what could be the first capital murder trial in nearly a decade and the third in the county’s history.
District Attorney John Sarsfield spent most of this week in San Diego attending a conference on capital murder cases. Sarsfield said he was attending the three-day conference to prepare for the upcoming trial of 18-year-old Hollister resident Gonzalo Munguia. He is one of two suspects charged with last month’s death of Daniel Gallegos, 18, who was run over by a car. Sarsfield also has filed a special allegation against Munguia alleging he committed the crime in association with a known criminal street gang. A gang murder is one of 25 special allegations that can make a murder suspect eligible for the death penalty, according to the California Penal Code. Others include murder using a bomb, murder of a peace officer and murder using poison.
The other suspect, a 17-year-old Hollister boy, who has not yet been named, could be tried as an adult on charges of second-degree murder, which does not carry the possibility of the death penalty.
Sarsfield said Thursday that he has not decided if he will seek the death penalty for Munguia, but will file a capital case. If convicted of a capital crime, Munguia would face either life in prison without the possibility of parole or death, according to the California Penal Code.
Sarsfield said he will serve as the lead prosecutor on Munguia’s trial alongside Deputy District Attorney Steven Wagner. A date for Munguia’s trial has not been set and he has not retained or been appointed an attorney as of Thursday.
The last capital case in San Benito County was held in 1999. Harry Damkar, Sarsfield’s predecessor, prosecuted the case against Alejandro Diaz, 43, who was charged with the rape and murder his 6-year-old granddaughter. Diaz pleaded guilty to all charges, avoiding a lengthy trial, and was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. The other known capital murder case in San Benito County, since the death penalty was reinstated in 1978, was the trial of Fred Anderson, who Damkar also convicted.
While Sarsfield prepares for a trial, others in his office are busy investigating Munguia, the prosecutor said Thursday.
