Trial begins for man accused in a killing five years ago

http://www.pe.com/localnews/inland/stories/PE_News_Local_S_hernandez21.451f915.html

10:00 PM PDT on Monday, July 20, 2009

By SONJA BJELLAND
The Press-Enterprise

Love letters, drugs and guns make up much of the prosecution's case against a Riverside man accused in a fatal shooting and of conspiring with a jail deputy to have the witnesses killed.

Five years ago this week, Jorge Ortiz was shot six times outside Jack's Bar in Riverside's Arlanza neighborhood.

In the year that followed, detectives uncovered an illicit relationship between the man accused of killing Ortiz, George Anthony Hernandez Jr., and sheriff's Deputy Angela Carol Parks.

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Deputy District Attorney Michael Hestrin said Monday during opening statements for Hernandez's murder trial that the defendant called Ortiz over to check out his new blue Impala and then shot him between the eyes.

"His life, blood and brains drained away on that dirty pavement in front of Jack's Bar," Hestrin said in his opening statement. The trial is expected to last three months.

Hestrin said a Mexican Mafia elder had ordered the 33-year-old Hernandez to kill Ortiz because he had been an informant.

Hernandez's attorney, Christian Jensen, said he does not believe the prosecution has enough evidence to prove his client was the killer.

"We're going to be questioning all the evidence they're presenting," Jensen said.

Hernandez was arrested three weeks after the shooting when he ran from officers at the Sands Motel in Riverside.

In a room at the hotel, police found the gun believed used in the shooting, six expended shells and drugs for sale, Hestrin said.

Over the course of the investigation, detectives said they uncovered the network Hernandez used to sell drugs and his connections to the Mexican Mafia. They found jail letters with coded messages that Hernandez used to discuss drug sales, Hestrin said.

Letters between Hernandez and Deputy Angela Carol Parks were discovered by Parks' fiancé, whose father was a Riverside police homicide detective.

In one letter, Hernandez referred to Parks as "baby girl," gave instructions about who to call to have witnesses killed and provided the names, addresses and phone numbers of the witnesses.

"Tell him I want both of the people smoked ASAP," the letter said.

Parks is awaiting trial on charges of conspiracy to commit murder.

Hestrin said witnesses continue to be fearful of testifying. One did not show up for court Monday and another requested that her name not be made public.

"The witnesses, more than one, are going to be afraid," Hestrin said.