Merced County judge to hear evidence against man charged in woman’s D Street killing

Editor’s Note: The Merced County District Attorney’s Office on Jan. 31 refiled homicide charges against Daniel Valencia-Pulido in the death of Bettyann Choates. As of Tuesday, Feb. 1 his preliminary hearing had not been held.

A man charged in last year’s shooting death of a 22-year-old woman at a Merced apartment complex is set to appear Monday in Merced County Superior Court, where a judge will decide whether there is ample evidence to try him for murder.

Defendant Daniel Valencia-Pulido, 24, is accused of fatally injuring Bettyann Choates on June 16 in the parking lot of the Sunnyside Apartments complex in southeast Merced.

He has pleaded not guilty to charges of murder and intentional discharge of a firearm causing great bodily injury. He is also facing an attempted murder charge for allegedly firing at Choates’ boyfriend, who was with her when the shooting happened.

Valencia-Pulido’s preliminary hearing had been scheduled for Thursday morning. But a gang expert who was scheduled to testify is sick with COVID-19, prompting Judge Ronald Hansen to continue the preliminary hearing until Monday, according to Deputy District Attorney Thane Nored.

The court is up against a tight deadline. State law mandates a preliminary hearing in a criminal case must be held within 60 days of the arraignment. If that doesn’t happen, the charges must be dismissed.

Chris Loethen, defense attorney for Valencia-Pulido, brought up in court on Thursday his concerns that Valencia-Pulido’s case would not be handled in the time frame set by law, saying the 60th day falls on Sunday.

“I’m just stating for the record that I’m not in agreement to setting it on Monday. I’m ready today,” Loethen told the court.

If Judge Hansen did dismiss the case due to the 60-day rule, prosecutors can refile charges and re-arrest Valencia-Pulido. “The case wouldn’t be over,” Loethen told the Sun-Star.

Nored told the Sun-Star he expects the prosecution would likely re-file the charges, should the 60-day rule result in a dismissal. Still, Nored said he’s hopeful the preliminary hearing will proceed as scheduled Monday.

Valencia-Pulido, who police say is a well-known gang member, allegedly shot Choates to death after he and Choates’ boyfriend exchanged words outside the Sunnyside Apartments.

Valencia-Pulido was arrested by a task force that included U.S. Marshals in November, and remains at the Merced County Jail in lieu of $550,000 bail.

This story was originally published January 28, 2022 at 5:00 AM.