Glendale : Charge Changed to Murder
A Glendale man accused of fatally shooting his 4-year-old son while under the influence of PCP has been arraigned on a murder charge, despite an earlier court ruling that he should be tried only for voluntary manslaughter.
On Oct. 31, Glendale Municipal Judge Joseph De Vanon ordered Harold Dean Estrada, 32, to stand trial on the lesser charge, which carries a maximum prison sentence of 11 years. Police said Estrada, a newspaper delivery driver, shot his son, Timothy Flores, on Aug. 23 in the family’s apartment.
But on Friday in Pasadena Superior Court, Deputy Dist. Atty. Jeanne Behling submitted new documents seeking a second-degree murder charge, which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison. She said the charge was more appropriate because Estrada knowingly engaged in a life-threatening act when he ingested PCP, a hallucinogenic, in an apartment where he kept a loaded gun.
Estrada’s attorney, Deputy Public Defender Christopher Apostal, said he opposes the change and will file a motion forcing Behling to argue grounds for the more serious charge before a judge.
A pretrial conference is scheduled for Dec. 16.
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