A Douglas man will have a chance later this summer to argue why he should go to prison for only 20 years after pleading guilty to second-degree murder in a case in which the victim was found by his mother at the kitchen table with two gunshot wounds to the head and covered in cleaning powder.
Raul Peralta Navalles entered his plea Thursday in connection with the Aug. 15, 2021, death of Ruperto Morales. It will be up to Judge Joel Larson of the Cochise County Superior Court to decide on Sept. 9 whether the 21-year-old will serve the minimum 20 years in prison, the maximum 25 years, or an amount in between.
Navalles’ murder conviction is not eligible for early release, although he will be credited for the nearly two years he has spent in the Cochise County jail since his arrest.
As previously reported by Arizona Daily Independent, Navalles was taken into custody at the Port of Entry in Douglas in October 2021 following his capture in Agua Prieta, Sonora in a multi-agency manhunt that involved the FBI. He has remained in the Cochise County jail since his arrest in lieu of $1 million bail.
Questions were raised by Cochise County court insiders about Navalles’ case after he spent less than 20 minutes in front of judges in all of 2022.
Defendant In Murder Case Saw A Judge Less Than 20 Minutes In All Of 2022
Even the July 13 hearing was the result of another continuance ordered July 10 when Navalles’ defense attorney, Rodrigo Andrade, was unable to be at the courthouse in person to find out whether Navalles was going to stand trial starting Oct. 3 or if he decided to accept a plea offer put forth by the prosecutor, Kristina Guerrero.
Andrade was able to participate by telephone for that hearing but could not engage in private communication with Navalles. As a result, Larson was left with no choice but to reschedule the hearing over the objection of Guerrero, who noted the victim’s mother would have to make yet another trip to court.
The rescheduled hearing on Thursday at 10 a.m. also got off to a rocky start when Navalles was brought to the courthouse by jail staff about 15 minutes late. Then Andrade made a verbal motion to withdraw from the case.
Andrade was careful to not divulge any attorney-client privileged conversations about the situation, telling Larson simply, “my client has lost faith in me.” Navalles also addressed the judge despite warnings that anything he said could be used against Navalles.
“I do not feel (Andrade) is suitable for this case,” he told Larson, reading from a prepared statement that emphasized the lack of confidence Navalles has in his court-appointed attorney. .
The judge also heard comments about Navalles’ family having an interest in retaining a private attorney who was present at the hearing. But that attorney conceded he would not be prepared by October for what was expected to be a three-week trial, even if the Navalles family could afford to hire him.
Larson denied Andrade’s motion to withdraw as well as a motion to reset the trial for a later date. Navalles then suggested he might reject the plea offer put forth by Guerrero several days earlier.
This prompted Larson to conduct a Donald Hearing, at which the parties put on the record the details of the plea agreement as well as the liability Navalles faced if the case went to trial.
According to public records, Navalles told police he shot Morales in self-defense after a small group of friends took part in a drug- and alcohol-fueled evening. Douglas police detectives later seized a .40 caliber handgun from the apartment where Navalles was staying. They also found several items at the apartment which Morales’ mother reported missing from her home.
The autopsy, ballistics, and other forensics reports provide no indication that Morales was involved in a physical struggle prior to being shot nor was there any sign of a struggle inside the home.
During the Donald Hearing, Guerrero noted Navalles faced a mandatory life sentence with no possibility of release if convicted at trial of premeditated first-degree murder. Even if jurors rejected premeditation, Navalles still faced the
possibility of life in prison if jurors believed he committed the murder during the commission of another felony such as robbery or burglary.
Navalles, who was previously notified of the plea offer, then asked Larson for “a little more time” to make his decision. The judge set a deadline of noon.
Shortly before the deadline, court staff were advised Navalles wished to accept the offer for second-degree murder. Larson then set the Sept. 9 hearing at which Andrade and Guerrero can present mitigating or aggravating arguments regarding the 20 to 25 year sentencing range.
Navalles will also be placed on probation for five years upon release from prison as his sentences for one count of burglary and one count of tampering with evidence. And the plea deal requires a restitution order for nearly $8,000 to cover the cost of Morales’ funeral and other expenses incurred by the victim’s mother.