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Saturday, Nov. 14, 2009
Homicide suspect said to be insane when he killed aunt
Both prosecutors and defense lawyers recommend hospitalization, not prison.
An Atwater man who beat his 73-year-old aunt to death with a cordless phone in 2008 admitted to the homicide but pleaded not guilty for reasons of insanity, said Deputy District Attorney Rob Carroll who prosecuted the case.
"He was clearly insane at the time this offense was committed," said the defendant's attorney Eric Dumars, chief deputy public defender.
Orlando Becerra, 25, pleaded guilty to second-degree homicide in Merced County Superior Court on Friday. The issue of sanity was submitted to Judge Ronald Hansen for the court to decide, said Carroll.
Merced Sun-Star - Orlando Becerra
The court reviewed the three doctors' reports and found the defendant to be insane at the time of the offense, said Dumars. Three different psychiatrists concluded Becerra was insane at the time of the crime, said Carroll.
Both the prosecution and the defense agreed that Becerra should be in a hospital.
"The victim's family, my heart goes out to them. I trust the system to keep him locked up in a hospital because of the brutality of the murder," said Carroll.
People who have mental illness and commit brutal acts are not usually ever released from the hospital, said Carroll.
"Our prisons are not good mental illness health institutions and prisons are not for the mentally ill," said Dumars.
On April 19, 2008, Atwater police received a 911 call from a man who said he had killed his aunt.
When investigators arrived at the apartment, according to a Sun-Star story, they found a gruesome scene. Maria Branco, Becerra's aunt, was in a pool of blood on her kitchen floor and was "barely recognizable," said Atwater Assistant Police Chief Frank Pietro.
Police also found Becerra covered in blood. The article quoted Atwater detective Armando Echevarria at the time saying that Becerra showed no remorse and seemed "mellow."
Becerra had a history of mental illness, according to police statements from the time of the crime.
Dumars said his client was calm and sedated in court Friday. To attend his own trial Becerra took psychotropic drugs, said Dumars.
Becerra's sentencing is scheduled for Dec. 11.
VIDEO
April 21, 2008: Police say man beat 73-year-old woman to death with phone
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