Guilty verdict in ‘brutal’ death; sanity phase of trial to begin later this week

A man accused of beating a Thermal man to death with a bat was found guilty today on the murder charge, starting a sanity phase for his trial to determine if he was mentally fit at the time of the crime.
   Jurors returned Tuesday after deliberating for a week at the Banning
Justice Center to find Saul Mayoral, 53, guilty of the March 23, 2018, death of
a man identified by the Riverside County District Attorney's Office as Hector
Quinones.

Testimony began in the trial about two weeks ago.

   Mayoral contended he was acting in self-defense when the victim came
after him with a pipe, according to a prosecution trial brief. He was convicted
of one felony count of murder along with sentence-enhancing allegations of
using a weapon during the felony.
   He had pleaded not guilty and not guilty by reason of insanity to the
charges, meaning that a second phase of trial will be held to determine if he
was sane at the time of the crime.
   The sanity phase of the trial is scheduled to begin Thursday at the
Banning Justice Center.
   Mayoral's attorney, Alex Hallowell, claimed that evidence provided in
the case does show an altercation occurred between the defendant and the
victim, but little is known about what actually happened during the
confrontation.
   Hallowell claimed that Mayoral's psychosis altered his reality, and
because of that, his client could have truly believed he was defending himself
from Quinones.
   ``He was seeing things that made him believe this was self-defense. He
was mistaken, but he thought it was self-defense,'' Hallowell said.
   Hallowell told jurors that Mayoral should be held responsible for what
happened, but because of his mental condition and the lack of evidence to
show what happened during the altercation, intent to kill could not be proven,
and thus he should not be convicted of murder, but voluntary manslaughter at
most.
   Deputy District Attorney Robert Hightower told jurors that what
occurred was a ``clear, brutal, targeted attack.'' Hightower dismissed the
claim of self-defense by stating that Mayoral went out of his way to retrieve
the bat beforehand and struck Quinones multiple times in the head while the
victim was on the ground.
   Hightower also noted that the defendant discarded his phone after the
killing, indicating he was aware of his actions and of the gravity of them.
   It was only after failing to hide what he did that Mayoral began to
look for ``any excuse to avoid responsibility'' such as claiming self-defense
and insanity, according to Hightower.
   A local resident discovered Quinones' body in a drainage channel near
Mayoral's mobile home at 7:17 a.m. on March 23, 2018, in the 87800 block of
Avenue 52 and flagged down deputies, according to Sgt. Wallace Clear of the
Riverside County Sheriff's Department.
   Mayoral approached authorities later that day with what appeared to be
blood on him, telling officers that they know how that blood got on him,
according to a prosecution trial brief.
   When questioned by authorities, Mayoral admitted to striking Quinones
with the bat, but claimed it was in self-defense, saying the victim came at him
with a pipe, according to the trial brief.
   Prosecutors said Mayoral admitted what he did was ``a mistake.'' A bat
and a pipe were found at the scene.
   At the time of his arrest, Mayoral was on probation for battery
committed against a custodial officer, according to court records.