Oregon murder conviction overturned by appeals court
By WILLIAM McCALL
Associated Press
Thursday, July 29, 2010 10:21 AM PDT
PORTLAND — The Oregon Court of Appeals has overturned an aggravated murder conviction for a Washington County man found guilty of helping his father kidnap and kill another man.
The court ruled Wednesday that jury instructions misstated the law on accomplice responsibility and could have influenced the murder verdict against Petronilo Lopez Minjarez.
But the ruling affirmed his conviction for kidnapping, burglary and assault in the November 2004 death of Darvin Lopez Jovel, 18, of Aloha.
The Minjarez family believed Lopez Jovel’s father was having an affair with the mother of Petronilo Lopez Minjarez.
According to the opinion, Lopez Minjarez and his father went to the home of Lopez Jovel’s father but he was not home. Instead, Lopez Minjarez and his father found Lopez Jovel.
Lopez Minjarez testified that his father shot and wounded Lopez Jovel with a .38-caliber handgun. They dragged the victim to a pickup truck but were confronted by a neighbor before they drove off.
The neighbor called police, who later arrested Lopez Minjarez at his home. But his father had fled and the court noted he has not been seen since.
Lopez Minjarez claimed at his trial that his father dropped him off at a fast food restaurant and returned without the victim.
Prosecutors, however, argued that Lopez Minjarez and his father took the victim to a wooded rural area west of Portland commonly used for target shooting and killed Lopez Jovel.
Skeletal remains were found months later by bowhunters.
Prosecutors argued that Lopez Minjarez could be convicted of murder even though they lacked evidence about whether the vicim was killed by Lopez Minjarez, his father, or both.
Lopez Minjarez was sentenced to life in prison.
Huh wrote on Aug 8, 2010 6:57 PM:
I needed a scorecard badly. "