Ruiz Trial Finally Underway
PASCO - After weeks of appeals and delays the Vicente Ruiz trial finally started Monday.
Graphic evidence was shown to the jury on the first day of the trial and only hour into the day there were already calls for a mistrial.
First, opening arguments it's a chance for lawyers to lay out their case for the jury.
With this KEPR learned a few strategies for both sides. We now know prosecutors plan to call Vicente Ruiz's cousin Pedro Mendez-Reyna as a witness, he's already been convicted for his role in the crime.
At that mention, the defense quickly objected and called for a mistrial.
"To call him a co-defendant is highly prejudicial," said defense attorney Peter Connick.
After a sidebar, the judge denied the motion and so the trial goes on.
For the defense, the argument is simple: cops got the wrong guy.
"This is a case of mistaken identity," said defense attorney Kevin Holt.
The defense plans to discredit witness statements and claims that Ruiz looks like a lot of people because he has a lot of relatives in the community. And they argue -- there's no motive for Ruiz to shoot and kill the five men.
The first witness for the prosecution would end up bringing in some of the most graphic evidence in this case -- a video tape made at the crime scene that night in 1987.
The jury was shown 24 minutes of video, KEPR can only show you bits and pieces because it's just too graphic for TV.
On the tape, the victims laying on the floor -- face up -- dead and around the body blood and bullets.
Ruiz is facing five counts of aggravated first-degree murder and one count of first-degree attempted murder.
The prosecution says they were lined up and Ruiz opened fire -- there was a lone survivor a man who got away to tell police.
The woman who was at police headquarters when a bloodied man walked in that night to report a shooting was called as a witness Monday.
This is the beginning of a trail 23 years in the making.
You may remember Ruiz was captured in 2007. According to the prosecution, when Pasco police asked him if he's innocent why be on the run for all these years.
Ruiz reportedly told cops he left town for a pre-planned vacation to Mexico and decided to stay for 20 years.
Graphic evidence was shown to the jury on the first day of the trial and only hour into the day there were already calls for a mistrial.
First, opening arguments it's a chance for lawyers to lay out their case for the jury.
With this KEPR learned a few strategies for both sides. We now know prosecutors plan to call Vicente Ruiz's cousin Pedro Mendez-Reyna as a witness, he's already been convicted for his role in the crime.
At that mention, the defense quickly objected and called for a mistrial.
"To call him a co-defendant is highly prejudicial," said defense attorney Peter Connick.
After a sidebar, the judge denied the motion and so the trial goes on.
For the defense, the argument is simple: cops got the wrong guy.
"This is a case of mistaken identity," said defense attorney Kevin Holt.
The defense plans to discredit witness statements and claims that Ruiz looks like a lot of people because he has a lot of relatives in the community. And they argue -- there's no motive for Ruiz to shoot and kill the five men.
The first witness for the prosecution would end up bringing in some of the most graphic evidence in this case -- a video tape made at the crime scene that night in 1987.
The jury was shown 24 minutes of video, KEPR can only show you bits and pieces because it's just too graphic for TV.
On the tape, the victims laying on the floor -- face up -- dead and around the body blood and bullets.
Ruiz is facing five counts of aggravated first-degree murder and one count of first-degree attempted murder.
The prosecution says they were lined up and Ruiz opened fire -- there was a lone survivor a man who got away to tell police.
The woman who was at police headquarters when a bloodied man walked in that night to report a shooting was called as a witness Monday.
This is the beginning of a trail 23 years in the making.
You may remember Ruiz was captured in 2007. According to the prosecution, when Pasco police asked him if he's innocent why be on the run for all these years.
Ruiz reportedly told cops he left town for a pre-planned vacation to Mexico and decided to stay for 20 years.
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