Third Appellate District (Colusa) (Super. Higher wind gusts possible. It will be reassigned in five weeks. Chance of rain 100%. She sued Moore Brothers farm and three Moores - brothers Arlan and Roger and Roger's son Paul - in Colusa County Court. First three fuses, the device had dual triggers and detonators. The forensic evidence, including the indented sheet of paper with Paul's fingerprints on it, the ink and paper from his printer matching the ink and paper mailed to the sheriff, the matching fishing lines, and the presence in the farm shop of many of the materials needed to make the bomb, constitutes substantial evidence to support the inference the jury made that it was Paul who wrote the letters to the sheriff, and it was therefore Paul who planted the bomb that blew up Roberto Ayala, just as he had planned. CR53504) We are not at liberty to second-guess the trial court's careful and reasoned assessment, and because we find there is no abuse of discretion, there was no error in admitting the evidence. "Do I think Paul did this? hkruger@appealdemocrat.com. Arlan "Gus" Richard Moore passed away at the age of 77 at his home in Grimes on March 29, 2015. . Thus, he was suggesting by analogy that the document examiner could not say the papers were a positive match. The trial court rejected the defense claim that the prosecutor improperly had compared paper stock analysis to DNA analysis when there was no DNA analysis in evidence. During tomato harvest, he wrote, he drove the shitty tractor, but pussy Peter was allowed to drive the tractor with an air-conditioned cab because otherwise Peter was a prick to work with. Employees, including Roberto Ayala and Roberto's brother Eduardo, were given liberties he was not, such as drinking on the job, taking farm vehicles and equipment for personal use, and getting paid during the winter. In sum, there is an abundance of circumstantial evidence that either Peter or Paul, or perhaps Peter and Paul together, built and planted the bomb that killed Roberto Ayala. Paul Roger Moore was found guilty today of murdering Roberto Ayala. The fact that the prosecutor chose to highlight the damaging evidence only in response to the defense claims that Peter, not Paul, had killed Roberto Ayala and that he had no motive or nothing to gain from the killing was a strategic choice the prosecutors made. The letter stated: Ayala was actually warned what would happen if he screwed with these people. Again, Paul's critique is the same: that is, the prosecutor grossly exaggerated his fascination with bomb making and extrapolated one incident into a proclivity to create multiple and more advanced explosive devices. Evidence Code section 352 provides the framework: The court in its discretion may exclude evidence if its probative value is substantially outweighed by the probability that its admission will (a) necessitate undue consumption of time or (b) create substantial danger of undue prejudice, of confusing the issues, or of misleading the jury. In other words, the trial court is accorded considerable discretion to carefully balance the competing interests in admitting probative evidence and in excluding evidence that unfairly prejudices a defendant, and an appellate court will overturn the exercise of discretion only when the trial court's assessment appears to exceed the bounds of reason. pic.twitter.com/trQ6iY5jej, Dateline NBC (@DatelineNBC) July 24, 2020. Unfortunately, Arlan passed away, leaving Roger to handle the affairs. This was my first and final job. Rice Subsidies in Colusa County, California, 1995-2020 . There was no direct evidence of who designed, constructed, or placed the explosive device. The first responders believed Roberto's truck had been moved because the broken glass was located about 11 feet away and a piece of glass was in the rear tire tread. Paul was eventually arrested for the murder of Roberto Ayala. COLUSA COUNTY (CBS13) - A man has been convicted of murdering a farmworker by setting a bomb in an electrical panel that was triggered by the victim at irrigation pump. Both suffered physically. Thus the victim, according to the explosive expert, would be injured simultaneously by the explosion and the fire. Sorry, there are no recent results for popular videos. History. The prosecutor characterized Paul's wiretapping of his ex-wife as creepy and really unusual, and stated he taunted his ex-wife's parents by telling them about the wiretapping. "My sister-in-law is friends with the family," he said. Do I think Peter (Paul's cousin) did this? Chance of rain 100%. White Ford, same plate number. Over defense objection, Paul's ex-father-in-law testified that Paul apologized to him for tapping his daughter's telephone when they were going through a divorce, putting some kind of recorder under her modular home so he could monitor conversations. In his view, the admission of such prejudicial evidence rendered the state proceedings fundamentally unfair and violated his right to a fair trial under the Fifth, Sixth, and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution. Roberto's seven-year-old son told the investigators and testified at the preliminary hearing that he did not move or drive the truck after the bomb exploded. The Oxygen-Acetylene Bomb: Similarly, the evidence that Paul had mixed oxygen with acetylene to produce an explosion when he was in his early to mid-twenties also had some probative value about his knowledge, even if primitive, of bomb making. Roger David Hickel passed away on Wednesday, May 25, 2011, at the U. C. Davis Medical Center in Sacramento, at the age of 76. Paul Moore was arrested five months after the explosion after a search warrant was executed at his home by the Colusa County Sherrif's Office assisted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco,. One of the investigators described the diagram of the bomb as follows: It's a diagram that has writing around the diagram and on the diagram. Roger Moore was believed to be worth 80 million when he died in May 2017 The 007 actor had 30m in property including a luxury Monaco apartment His fourth wife Kristina, 77, was placed into . The case is a classic whodunit. On top of that, Roger surely had the resources to ensure everyone was looked after. He said Paul Moore is the "sole inheritor of the Moore family fortune." They seized this sheet but not the sheets of paper below it. But the document provided strong circumstantial evidence he secretly envied the position to which Roberto had ascended and the discomfort Roberto's presence continued to cause him. Published: Jun 17, 2016 Total records: 5,262. The settlement awarded the family $20 million as well as $44,800 in workers compensation payment. 107 5th Street, Colusa, CA 95932 Half of the amount will go to. On July 16, 2011, he was killed in front of his son. The boy witnessed the explosion that killed his father. Rogers exact whereabouts as of 2020 remain unknown. Paul's son Gunner testified that when Paul was young, he rewired the light switch in his bedroom so he could turn off the light from his bed, but if a person did not flip the switch in a particular way, he or she would be shocked. David Moore's birthday is 01/17/1944 and is 78 years old. He is also survived by his brother, Roger Moore. Roger encouraged Roberto to seek a restraining order against Peter, but Roberto declined. He ran to help him, but his father was unresponsive. (People v. Kipp (1998) 18 Cal.4th 349, 369. Most significantly, they shared their animosity toward Roberto Ayala. But abused and ostracized by his father Gus, whom family members called Grumpy, Peter was not allowed to farm and instead spent 21 years earning a living in a landscape business he apparently loathed at times. Paul is Roger's son. Name, age, vehicle I.D. Roberto was Peter's nemesis, and it was Peter, not Paul, who stood to gain the most once he was removed. We agree with the trial court. A jury convicted defendant Paul Roger Moore of first degree murder based exclusively on circumstantial evidence that he built and planted a victim-activated bomb in an irrigation pump he knew the farm foreman and eventual victim, Roberto Ayala, would activate. He described how the booby trap would detonate, as follows: So imagine you take a metal box, typical control panel, electrical, that has the lip that goes around, and you have that little washer pin in there so that the lip of the box, I imagine, the door to the box and the box itself has this little washer sandwiched in between them so that it can't fall down. He learned that a bell rang every time a verdict was made. And it is particularly challenging because, as Paul argues on appeal, there are no witnesses, no fingerprints on any of the bomb parts, no DNA, no confessions, and no admissions. "It was owned by Moore farms, but was only driven by Roberto," Gingery said. But apparently they had little difficulty reaching their verdict. Roberto was not an impediment to his ambitions. Trig two, drop weight activated upon door opening. The washers were consistent with washers used on the spikes that had been laid on the road leading away from the explosion site. He was the farm foreman. When asked if his temper had caused problems for him in the community, he testified, I'm not the easiest guy to get along with. By his own account, his father not only physically abused him, but from the time he was eight or nine years old made him fight with other boys to resolve their conflicts. Cloudflare Ray ID: 7a2e78bba8bccfb8 Periods of rain. The evidence will show that the explosive device in this case was housed inside a 480-volt high amperage pump control panel. An explosive enforcement officer testified that booby trap devices are victim-operated. He explained that just above the pipe bomb was a mouse-trap assembly that was used as a trigger. The prosecution argued that Paul was attempting to taunt the police. Again, the limited scope of appellate review presents an insurmountable obstacle. Paul was well represented at trial, and his lawyer effectively lodged these arguments, and many more, to the jurors. Considering the ability to spring the money for such luxuries, Roger is definitely quite loaded. (CALCRIM No. We concur with the trial court's analysis that [t]his comment can, in the context of a case where the prosecution presented dozens of witnesses over several weeks, only fairly be understood as a comment that witnesses can be called by either side. A document examiner from the United States Secret Service compared the ink from the documents sent to the sheriff's department with the ink on documents from the printer confiscated at Paul's house. Winds S at 20 to 30 mph. Half of the amount will go to Jesus, Maria and Paola Ayala, while the other half will be placed in an annuity for Roberto's now 12-year-old son. The evidence demonstrates that Paul had, on at least one occasion, experimented with explosive substances. Marysville woman celebrates 100th birthday, Livestock auction returns to Colusa fairgrounds. He was fired as the director of a duck club because he offended some of the members. Although none of the individual incidents when taken alone would have demonstrated the type of knowledge necessary to make and install a bomb in an electrical panel device, the jury was entitled to hear how cumulatively they were relevant to whether Paul had the requisite knowledge to install a victim-activated bomb. The bomb exploded, injuring Paul and his friend. His reputation in the community would make Peter the more likely suspect than Paul. Given the brevity of the comment, we believe Paul grossly overstates its potential danger and conclude there was no prosecutorial error. "I said, 'Pete, the jury now knows it was not Peter Moore, it was Paul Moore," Poyner said. C075231 (Super. His son, Fabian, who was 7 at the time, witnessed the explosion and ran two miles through fields to find help. He acknowledges, as he must, that our task is to review the whole record in the light most favorable to the jury verdict to determine whether it discloses substantial evidenceevidence that is reasonable, credible, and of solid valuesuch that a reasonable trier of fact could find the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. The delivery and return addresses were printed label strips made with a label maker. A trace evidence examiner testified that the chemical composition of the fishing line found in Paul's boat was indistinguishable from the fishing line wrapped around a bolt found at the scene of the explosion. In addition, he had a violent disposition and leveled threats to harm not only Roberto, but his father, his uncle, and many others who upset him. A document examiner expert testified at trial that the paper used in the second letter sent to the sheriff, the diagram, and the indented paper were chemically indistinguishable. Peter threatened both his uncle and his father. Paul, through his own words, told that story from his perspective, and his perspective provided the jury invaluable insight into his motive for committing such an atrocious act. Installing a device inside such a panel is a highly dangerous activity. Defendant does not quarrel with the limited scope of appellate review of an insufficiency claim. Roger, along with his brother, Arlan, used to own Moore Brothers Farm in Colusa, California. 2023 Cinemaholic Inc. All rights reserved. Clearly, over the years he earned the trust and respect of Roger and Gus. Nothing precluded defense counsel from confronting that evidence in her closing argument. In fact, after Roberto injured his shoulder, Paul accompanied him on occasion to the irrigation pumps to adjust water levels. A jury convicted defendant Paul Roger Moore of first degree murder based exclusively on circumstantial evidence that he built and planted a victim-activated bomb in an irrigation pump he knew the farm foreman and eventual victim, Roberto Ayala, would activate. The target is brother of target one and drives Chevy. It's a very rapid event. And we do not accept the proposition that a document that was either written or transferred a mere year and a half before the blast was too remote in time. Eight stamps were attached for postage. In December 2016, a Colusa County judge approved a wrongful death lawsuit filed in 2013 by Ayalas family against Moore Brothers, Arlan Moore, Paul Moore and Roger Moore. Moore was cuffed and booked at the Colusa County Jail at the age of 47. Affirmed. Rainfall near a quarter of an inch. He felt mistreated by everyone, including Peter. Most damning, they found a sheet of paper with indentations that appeared to match the diagram of the bomb sent to the sheriff. Most of the indented impressions found on the sheet of paper matched the lines in the bomb diagram. The writing is comprised in a similar fashion as the letters themselves. We agree with the trial court that the document was therefore relevant to prove motive. The prosecutor did not rely on any evidence outside the record, nor did he raise any new theory. Colusa Cemetery District is owned and maintained by Colusa Cemetery District. From this evidence, the jury could reasonably infer that Paul had both the aptitude and unique skill set needed to build the type of explosive device that killed Roberto Ayala. The trial court agreed with the prosecutor's position that the defense argument put in issue virtually all evidence that tended to show Paul's motive, technical skills, and past related actions and opened the door to fair comment on any and all evidence tending to link him to the crime. Although the trial was lengthy, they took less than a day to deliberate. He explained that the indented sheet appeared to have been placed beneath the document that was actually written even though some of the lines did not align perfectly. There is no question, however, that the evidence was remote in time. Another expert will do this job. The 3rd District Court of Appeals said it found no reason to overturn the guilty verdict in Paul Moore's 2013 trial. On appeal, Paul challenges the court's denial of her request. Offer condolences/tributes, send flowers or create an online memorial for free. In early July, Paul was asked to drive out to the rice field to turn on the water pump without Roberto. The straightedge drawing is -- the diagram depicts -- what we're led to believe is that the diagram depicts the electrical box. Records published here were acquired from Colusa . The trial court sustained the defense objection to the prosecution's characterizations, thereby limiting the prejudicial effect of the alleged prosecutorial error. Roger is Pauls father. Code, 1101, subd. However, the 3rd District Court of Appeals did not find any reason to overturn the verdict. To the contrary, the prosecutor did nothing more than marshal validly admitted evidence to counter defense argument: that is, the prosecutor referred to wiretapping evidence to demonstrate that Paul had superior technical skills to Peter and to his My Life entries to demonstrate he had a motive to kill Roberto, based on a lifetime of indignities and slights he felt on the farm. On that same day, Paul cast aspersions on Peter. Find Dr. Moore's phone number, address, hospital affiliations and more. Becoming windy overnight. He denied involvement in the explosion, declaring it was a chicken shit way for somebody to do it. As mentioned earlier, he claimed he had little experience with electrical devices and no experience with the irrigation pumps. We accept for purposes of this issue the trial court's characterization of the defense closing argument. Of Paul Moore, Poyner said, "the guy is evil. A jury convicted defendant Paul Roger Moore of first degree murder based exclusively on circumstantial evidence that he built and planted a victim-activated bomb in an irrigation pump he knew the farm foreman and eventual victim, Roberto Ayala, would activate. The evidence is all circumstantial. The freehand drawing has some arrows on it. According to the testimony offered by his father, his son, and his ex-father-in-law, that was a lie. He claimed Roberto was a good person but admitted he became upset when he saw Roberto drinking and driving on the farm. 3 Crim. I finally found the Ford, and now it is driven by some young guy, not the brother. Thus, we do not address the theoretical question as to whether there is some line a prosecutor may not cross during rebuttal argument. Although he had used the irrigation pump years earlier when he was shooting ducks, the mechanism had been changed and he testified he did not know how to use the new apparatus. God [sic] luck. He faces life in prison without parole Colusa County District Attorney John Poyner announced early on he would not seek the death penalty. He was born on August 14, 1948, to Leonard and Lona Beauchamp. Whoever drew the diagram, he believed, was intimately familiar with the construction of that device.. It is true that the prosecution did not elicit testimony from the ex-father-in-law or from anyone else about what electrical knowledge was necessary to wiretap a telephone. Since I will not take this job, it will soon be reassigned. ROBERTO'S DEATH AND THE MOORE FAMILY TRAGEDY. And it is particularly challenging because, as Paul argues on appeal, there are no witnesses, no fingerprints on any of the bomb parts, no DNA, no confessions, and no admissions But it is the jurys prerogative, not ours, to weigh the evidence., They also stated that there was an abundance of circumstantial evidence that either Peter or Paul, or perhaps Peter and Paul together, built and planted the bomb that killed Roberto Ayala.. The text of the letter was a photocopy of the original; it too contained printed label strips made with a label maker. He showed them copies of text messages he had received from Peter in which Peter expressed his displeasure with the condition of the fields and suggested the field manager (Roberto Ayala) should be fired. He also threatened his Uncle Roger, despite the fact he believed Roger would be more fair to him than his father. In addition, Gingery said, Moore Brothers signed over to the Ayala family the pickup Roberto was driving on the day he was killed. We disagree. They will find him. But 12 jurors of Pauls peers found that the circumstantial evidence proved beyond a reasonable doubt that he murdered Roberto Ayala, and we must respect their verdict., The appeals court also said that Paul complained bitterly about his life growing up on the farm and felt mistreated by everyone., The Sun Herald article states that the appeals court said the murder case was a classic whodunit. The trial court cannot be said to have abused its discretion by admitting highly relevant evidence when the only prejudice is the fact the story Paul himself told was a damaging one. "The bells of justice have finally rung for us," Ayala said. Diane Nichols, under appointment by . Gunner also reported that, according to his dad soon after the explosion, his grandfather feared that there was a booby trap in the switch and stated that someone must have been a genius to be able to do that, some type of electrical genius.. (People v. Morris (1988) 46 Cal.3d 1, 21.). To be sure, Paul had demonstrated an advanced mechanical aptitude and an understanding of electrical currents. Ayala died instantly from the explosive device, and fire and law enforcement officials originally believed the explosion was an accident. The circumstantial evidence against Paul Moore included opportunity to plant the bomb and familiarity with the farms, a unique skill set to fix electrical and pump problems, and Pauls bringing investigators a piece of metal he found near the explosion. The wiretapping occurred in 1995 or 1996. Location and meter number for panel. Peter had his stomach removed and lost almost 50 pounds. The bomb is set off.. During his apprenticeship, Paul worked alongside Roberto. In those instances, a defendant's prior bad acts are admissible. Paul, not Peter, used abbreviations such as u and 4 in his text messages. He assumed Peter was trying to get him fired. The court summarized what it perceived was a two-part argument: first, that Paul had no part in the killing and had no motive to kill Roberto because everything was rosy for him at the farm and he had worked his way into a happy partnership with his father; but second, his cousin Peter, who was bitter and estranged from the farm he loved, was a plausible bomb builder because he was capable of constructing the simple explosive device in question, particularly with the assistance of the YouTube video found on his computer. McNary-Moore Funeral Service in Colusa, CA. There was no undue consumption of time since Paul's ex-father-in-law explained what he knew about Paul's involvement in creating an explosion in a paragraph or two. We will review that evidence in two steps: first, we will outline the evidence of solid, credible value the jury could have reasonably relied upon in finding Paul guilty of murder beyond a reasonable doubt. (People v. Ochoa (1993) 6 Cal.4th 1199, 1206.) Peter had difficulty with reading comprehension. In describing his life, he pondered what he had done to be treated so poorly by his own family. Roberto Ayala had worked for the Moore brothers for 19 years, and brothers Paul and Peter Moore reportedly shared animosity toward Ayala. Having reviewed the evidence offered by the prosecution, we now turn to the evidence presented by the defense that Peter, not Paul, planted the bomb that killed Roberto Ayala, for he too appeared to disdain the man, he too had the opportunity and familiarity with the irrigation pump, he too had access to the area in which the bomb was planted, and he too had incriminating evidence on his computer hard drive. 13.56.206.54 Simply put, the jury concluded beyond a reasonable doubt that based on this evidence, Paul was guilty of first degree murder. Becoming windy late. She thereafter requested the opportunity to offer a surrebuttal. Code, 1101, subd. The jury reasonably could have concluded that his conduct following the explosion was incriminatorymanufacturing spikes that were found in the road and taunting the police in a dramatic chase. and plate number. You have permission to edit this article. Believe me and have time to do something to help these guys.. On several occasions, he physically threatened to harm, among others, his father, his uncle, and Roberto Ayala. Someone will take it. READ NEXT: Susan Susie Caseys Murder: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know, Paul Moore, Roberto Ayalas Convicted Killer, is Serving Life in Prison, Please review our privacy policy here: https://heavy.com/privacy-policy/, Copyright 2023 Heavy, Inc. All rights reserved. He remained so bitter toward his father he begged his grandmother to disinherit him. On August 22 the investigators searched the farm shop with Roger's permission. Most significantly, Peter broadcast his contempt for Roberto. I will come peacefully or detonate all the devices.. Instead, he agreed that the saying, Don't let your bulldog mouth let your mockingbird ass get in trouble applied to Peter. Why am I helping u? According to the Colusa County Sun Herald, Paul Moores sentencing and conviction was upheld in 2016. He needs to be careful. You have permission to edit this article. Paul's voice was powerful circumstantial evidence the prosecution had every right to exploit. A forensic document examiner compared the sheet of paper with the indentations that had been seized from Paul's residence to the diagram of the bomb mailed to the Colusa County Sheriff's Department. Two-inch gallon pipe and quart of gasoline in plastic bottle. There is also freehand drawing on the diagram, and there's also straightedge drawing on the diagram. February 7, 2023 (78 years old) View obituary. We cannot say the trial court's denial of defense counsel's request for surrebuttal constituted an abuse of discretion under these circumstances, and we also cannot say that additional argument on the same themes already argued would have changed the jurors' finding that Paul was guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. The investigators did not desire to have personal contact with Paul at the time, so when he saw them driving by his house, the investigators drove away from the area. Paul and his young friend were burned in the explosion they caused, but their injuries paled by comparison to the injuries suffered by Roberto when the bomb he activated set him on fire and electrocuted him. He discovered what the prosecution experts had all missedthat the user of Peter's computer had visited a YouTube rat trap video. All rights reserved. As they were driving, they noticed Paul's truck behind them. Are you concerned about the rising tensions with North Korea? Paul said the evidence was no big deal; he said the sheet was found in his house by the window, and he probably leaned on it and opened the window.. Performance & security by Cloudflare. Their hopes had not materialized. There were talks of Moore being reappointed to supervise the Sacramento River Fire Protection District, from November 16, 2019, to November 15, 2023. A state appeals court this week upheld Paul Moore's murder conviction. I would decline anyway because I saw target two with his girls and that I can't deal with. District Attorney John Poyner said Parisi was the best defense attorney he has ever gone up against. On August 17 Paul went to the police station voluntarily. They gave me two months 4 this job. Roberto Ayala was killed by a victim-triggered bomb when he. On July 17 Roger gave the investigators two voice mail messages he had received from Peter. Chance of rain 100%. Unconfirmed reports suggest that Fabian is studying at a high school in Arbuckle.
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