Muro, who was born in the United States, prefers to speak in Spanish, according to pretrial hearings. He speaks to his attorneys in Spanish and uses the services of court translators in the trial…

Prosecutor: Woman raped, stabbed over deal for beer
A.J. FLICK
Tucson Citizen


Defendant Jesus Rafael Muro-Monge (right) sits with attorney Sean Bruner during opening statements in Superior Court Judge John E. Davis' courtroom Wednesday afternoon. Muro is accused of setting a woman on fire while she was still alive.

Jurors on Wednesday heard the brutal details about the kidnapping and stabbing of a Tucson woman who authorities believe was set on fire while still alive.

Jesus Rafael Muro-Monge, 21, is charged with first-degree murder in the October 2004 death of Patricia "Patsy" Rubalcaba, 27. If he is convicted, prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.

Deputy County Attorney Rick Unklesbay told jurors in his opening statement that Rubalcaba's death "was one of the most violent, brutal and horrific deaths you can imagine."

Defense attorney Sean Bruner said Muro's co-defendant, Antonio Carrillo, killed Rubalcaba. Carrillo pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in exchange for a 22-year sentence. He will testify against Muro on Friday morning.

"Carrillo concocted his story piece by piece," Bruner said. "I don't know why the state made a deal with the devil."
Muro isn't expected to testify.

Unklesbay told jurors that Rubalcaba was with her boyfriend and another man when their car broke down on the Southwest Side.
According to Unklesbay, Muro and Carrillo agreed to jump-start the car in exchange for some beer. Unklesbay said Muro and Carrillo became "incensed" when they weren't offered enough beer and began slashing the tires of the car with a knife.
Rubalcaba's companions were able to run away, but Muro and Carrillo forced her into their car and drove off, Unklesbay said.

Carrillo will testify, Unklesbay said, that as the trio neared an apartment complex, Rubalcaba jumped out of the car and ran to the second story of the complex, frantically knocking on doors for help.
"No one would open their doors," Unklesbay said. "Patsy, the evidence shows, was so scared that she actually broke through the living room window of one apartment."
A resident of the apartment, not knowing Rubalcaba was in danger, shoved her out into the arms of Carrillo, who dragged Rubalcaba down the stairs by her hair, Unklesbay said.

Mary Valdez, another resident of the complex, testified Wednesday that she saw a man drag Rubalcaba down the stairs. Rubalcaba briefly escaped and ran away, but the man grabbed her, held a knife to her ribs and threatened to stab her if she didn't get in the car, Valdez said.
The man who held a knife to Rubalcaba spoke English, said Valdez, who doesn't speak Spanish.

Muro, who was born in the United States, prefers to speak in Spanish, according to pretrial hearings. He speaks to his attorneys in Spanish and uses the services of court translators in the trial.
Rubalcaba was driven to a house where Muro had sex with her in the car, Unklesbay said. Carrillo tried to have sex with her, but was unsuccessful, Unklesbay said.

Afterward, Rubalcaba was driven to a desert area known for late-night parties, Unklesbay said. When the car stopped, Rubalcaba again escaped, running into a wash. Muro pursued her, caught her and stabbed her four times in the back, Unklesbay said. Muro also cut himself.

Muro and Carrillo "became concerned that things might be found on the body that connected them to the (crime)," Unklesbay said. They decided to drive to Carrillo's house, where they got a gas can and filled it.
Unklesbay said a woman who lives near the wash where Rubalcaba's body was found was awoken around 4:10 a.m. by a scream and an explosion.

Investigators believe she was alive when the fire was set.
Unklesbay said Muro left behind a "mountain of evidence" that shows he killed Rubalcaba, including his blood and fingerprint on a paper bag near Rubalcaba's body and his semen inside her.

"I'm sure you've all heard there are two sides to a story," Bruner told jurors in his opening statement. "But in this case, there are so many sides to the story I can barely even begin to count."

Carrillo is "enamored" with knives, Bruner told jurors. There was only one knife in someone's possession the night Rubalcaba died and that was Carrillo's, Bruner said.

When police began questioning Carrillo about Rubalcaba's death, "he cooked up a plan, an explanation to implicate Muro as the killer," Bruner said.
"He said he had sex with her. He said he was the one who had the knife that night," Bruner said. "All of a sudden, it was Mr. Muro. Muro was the one that killed her."

Carrillo asked a detective what Muro had told police about him. When the detective wouldn't say what Muro said, Carrillo said, "Whatever he said I did, he did," Bruner said.
"He kept changing his story and adding things," Bruner said. "But in the end, the story came up was it was with his knife, he was the one who dragged her out of the apartment, he was the one who locked her in the back of the car, he bought the gas. It was his gas can at his house that they used. But it was Muro who stabbed her, Muro who set her on fire.
"In the end, I guess, I am asking you to have reasonable doubt about who killed Patsy Rubalcaba," Bruner said.

In 2002, the U.S. Supreme Court ordered that juries must decide whether a defendant should be sentenced to death.

However, Muro has waived his right to have a jury decide whether he is eligible for the death penalty. If Muro is convicted, Superior Court Judge John E. Davis will preside over a hearing in which the state will argue that factors exist that justify a death sentence and the defense will present evidence that he should be given a life sentence.

Unklesbay told Davis he expects to rest the state's case sometime Friday. The defense would open its case Tuesday.
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