Winton gang member convicted of murder

A weeklong jury trial ended Friday with a gang member found guilty of murder in the 2012 stabbing death of an Atwater man during a bar fight.

Miguel Rivera, 30, of Winton, was convicted of murder and assault in connection with the death of 23-year-old Ryan Williams, who was killed Oct. 26, 2012, outside a Sycamore Street bar in Atwater, according to the Merced County District Attorney’s Office.

Family members of both the victim and the defendant wiped tears from their eyes Friday afternoon as the jury of eight women and four men handed down their unanimous verdict before Judge David W. Moranda in Merced Superior Court. The victim’s family could not be reached for comment Friday.

Travis Colby, the deputy district attorney who prosecuted the case, said he was “relieved” by the jury’s ruling. “I think it sends a clear and undeniable message that members of the community will not tolerate senseless gang violence,” Colby said.

A friend of Williams, Guadalupe Alvarez, also was stabbed during the bar fight but survived, according to the Atwater Police Department.

Prosecutors said Williams, who was not involved in gangs, fell victim to street violence at the Atwater bar when Rivera accused Williams and Alvarez of being rival gang members and spit at them inside the bar.

Alvarez, who acknowledged throwing the first punch, fought with Rivera. Rivera then pulled a knife and stabbed both men, police said.

Police found Williams lying behind a cash register at a nearby convenience store, where he apparently went for help after the incident. He was taken to a Modesto hospital where he later died, officers said.

The fact Alvarez threw the first punch was a key point for the defense during the trial, Rivera’s attorney Jeffrey Tenenbaum said Friday.

“Mr. Rivera is very disappointed with the verdict,” Tenenbaum said. “He continues to maintain that he was attacked by two larger men in this incident.”

Tenenbaum said it was too early to comment on the possibility of appealing the verdict. He said that decision would likely be made after Rivera’s sentencing hearing. Rivera is due back in court Wednesday to schedule that hearing.

Rivera’s co-defendant, Cindy Maciel, was also on trial this week with Rivera for her role in the homicide. Police said Maciel, 24, tried to help Rivera hide the murder weapon.

Her case, however, ended Thursday afternoon when she pleaded guilty to being an accessory to the crime. She had originally been charged with the more serious offense of aiding and abetting, prosecutors said.

She received the maximum sentence of three years in custody. Maciel, who has been in custody in Merced County since 2012, was given credit for time served and released from custody the same day, Colby said.

Maciel attended Friday’s court proceedings, but declined to comment on the case outside the courtroom.

Atwater police Lt. Samuel Joseph praised the work of lead investigator Detective Daniel Brum and the other officers who worked on the case.

“Our detectives bureau did a very fine investigation, and I congratulate them for that, as well as the officers who first responded to the scene,” Joseph said. “Their work securing the area immediately after the incident meant a lot to this case.”

Rivera, who has a prior violent felony conviction on his record stemming from a 2006 robbery, faces a possible life sentence without the possibility of parole.

He remains in custody in Merced County.

This story was originally published May 15, 2015 at 5:19 PM with the headline "Winton gang member convicted of murder."