FELIX TRIAL DAY 8: Alleged cop-killer’s sister takes stand

Defense testimony began today in the trial of an ex-con accused of killing two Palm Springs police officers who responded to a domestic disturbance call at his family’s home.

Family of the suspect, surviving officers and investigators have all taken the stand so far as prosecution witnesses in the trial of John Hernandez Felix, who is accused of firing an AR-15 rifle at veteran officer Gilbert Vega, 63, and rookie Officer Lesley Zerebny, 27, from inside the Felix family home in the 2700 block of Cypress Avenue on Oct. 8, 2016, killing both.

Today, defense attorney John Dolan is expected to argue that his 28-year-old client’s history of family neglect, low educational achievements, drug abuse and an intellectual disability prove he did not possess a pre-meditated intent to kill in October 2016.

Maria Felix, the defendant’s sister, took the stand during today’s proceedings, being cross-examined by prosecution.

Felix’ attorneys stated at the beginning of Wednesday’s testimony that he was in a state of methamphetamine psychosis during the shooting.

Jake Ingrassia is in court today covering the seventh day of the trial – follow his notes from court below:

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“If acts were the only consideration for you as a jury, this case is indefensible,” Dolan said during his opening statement two weeks ago. “But, in criminal law — in this case as in any criminal case — there are two parts to any crime that is alleged. There’s an act and there’s an intent.”

Special Section: Justice for the Fallen

Instead of premeditated murder, Dolan said that the surrounding circumstances show that “factually, this is immature, angry, emotional, impulsive behavior.”

But Deputy District Attorney Manny Bustamante said there is clear evidence of premeditation and intent. He pointed to the initial 911 call made by Felix’s mother, saying the call includes audio of the defendant helping his mother give the dispatcher the family’s address, “so she could tell 911 where the officers should go to.”
Two weeks ago, the suspect’s mother Margarita Felix broke down in tears at times when Deputy District Attorney Michelle Paradise questioned her memories of not only the shooting, but the 911 call that prompted officers to respond to the scene. The woman, speaking through an interpreter, appeared particularly hesitant to say whether she knew her son had a gun when the 911 call was made.

After a several-minute exchange, Paradise finally asked Margarita Felix if she was worried about public backlash for knowing about the gun when summoning police, and the woman responded, “Could be. And, they would have their reasons.”

Special Section: In the Line of Duty

Margarita Felix said she did not say anything to officers about a gun, but did tell them “there’s some danger.”

Felix is facing a possible death sentence if convicted. He is charged with two counts of murder and six counts of attempted murder, with special circumstance allegations of killing police officers and committing multiple murders.

Last week, multiple officers who survived the shooting attack also took the stand, explaining in great detail the bloody scene at Felix’s home.

One of the surviving officers, Mario Serrano, who retired from the force following the shooting, testified early last week.

“When Sgt. (Shawn) Flinn yelled `cover fire,’ I got up and was looking for a position to return cover fire,” Serrano said. “That’s when I saw Sgt. Flinn trying to pull Officer Vega.”

When they got to the patrol car, Serrano got inside and pulled Vega on top of him.

“He was on top of me, so his back was on my chest,” Serrano said. “I was letting him know that we were here and we were getting him help… It felt like hours. It felt like forever.”

Another officer drove the car away from the scene, and Vega stopped responding when firefighters pulled him from the vehicle, Serrano said. The officer was later pronounced dead at Desert Regional Hospital.

Officer Dave Etchason, who drove Vega and Serrano away from Felix’s home, also testified that he returned to the scene to retrieve Zerebny.

“I pulled my car up into the driveway in the front lawn,” Etchason said. “As I’m getting out, that’s when there was a rupture of gunfire that occurred.”

Etchason said he got out of the car and “yelled out her name,” but the officer was unresponsive with her face up to the sky.

“Her eyes were open. Her skin was pale,” Etchason said. “And, I knew, she was dead. But, I didn’t want to leave her there.”

Vega and Zerebny were the first Palm Springs police officers killed in the line of duty since Jan. 1, 1962, when Officer Lyle Wayne Larrabee died during a vehicle pursuit. The only other death in the department was that of Officer Gale Gene Eldridge, who was fatally shot on Jan. 18, 1961, while investigating an armed robbery.

Vega had been with the department 35 years — five years past his retirement eligibility — and had planned to retire in 2018. He had eight children, 11 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. Zerebny had been with the department for 18 months and had just returned to duty following maternity leave, having given birth to a daughter, Cora, four months before her death.

Felix has a prior conviction for assault with a deadly weapon, for which he served time in state prison.