Gang member sent to prison for life for 2012 Atwater homicide

A Winton gang member was sentenced Thursday to life in prison without parole plus 32 years for the 2012 slaying of an Atwater man during a bar fight.

Miguel Rivera, 30, sat motionless during the morning hearing in Merced Superior Court, his head tilted slightly to his right while he listened to a stream of family members describing the life and personality of Ryan Williams, the man Rivera was convicted of killing.

Williams, 23, was stabbed to death Oct. 26, 2012, outside a Sycamore Avenue bar in Atwater. Prosecutors said Rivera, a gang member, confronted a group of people, including Williams, who was not involved in gangs. Rivera was convicted of murder and assault in May by a Merced County jury.

Williams’ family members described Rivera as a “twisted” and “wicked” gangster whose “insane lifestyle” claimed the life of their loved one.

Linda Montoya addressed Rivera directly in a statement she read in open court Thursday. She noted Rivera’s family attended every hearing during the nearly three-year court process.

“And how sad for them and for you that you’ve shown your true character – a murderer,” Montoya said.

Travis Colby, the deputy district attorney who prosecuted the case, said he was pleased Judge David W. Moranda handed down a life sentence without parole.

“The defendant has shown himself to be a cancer on our society who needs to be removed,” Colby told the judge.

Atwater police investigators said Rivera confronted the group of people at the bar, accused Williams and another man of rival gang involvement and spit on them. The other man with Williams, Guadalupe Alvarez, was also stabbed during the incident.

Alvarez acknowledged he threw the first punch during the brawl. Rivera stabbed both men with a knife. Williams, suffering from stab wounds, ran to a nearby convenience store seeking help. He was found lying behind the cash register. He died shortly after he was flown to a Modesto hospital.

Family members described Williams as a warm, caring and funny young man who worked hard and cared for his mother and girlfriend. Williams’ mother, Staci Banks, said her son would literally give people the shirt off his back.

“There was a friend he went to visit before school who was looking everywhere for a shirt. He couldn’t find one anywhere in his apartment. He was panicking that he wouldn’t get to school and Ryan was wearing a nice, brand-new shirt,” Banks said Thursday. “He took it and just gave it to his friend.”

Williams’ younger sister, Alyssa, also recalled a time when she was hit in the face with a ball and her nose bled. “He gave me his shirt to stop it (from bleeding,)” she said.

Rivera’s attorney, Jeffrey Tenenbaum, said his client was “disappointed” with the jury’s verdict and sentence.

That Alvarez threw the first punch was a key argument in Rivera’s defense. Rivera maintained he was attacked by two larger men and, essentially, defended himself. An appeal is planned, Tenenbaum said.

“He’s hoping for a new trial,” the attorney said outside the courthouse Thursday.

Tenenbaum said his client believes there are some “legal issues that need to be addressed in the case,” but declined to elaborate Thursday.

Prosecutors praised the investigation conducted by Atwater police Detective Daniel Brum and said the case should serve as a warning to other gang members.

“It should send a clear message to those that engage in gang violence in our county that they will receive no quarter,” Colby said. “They can expect the same verdict if they chose to go down this path.”

This story was originally published August 27, 2015 at 5:57 PM with the headline "Gang member sent to prison for life for 2012 Atwater homicide."