BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) — In July, a Bakersfield man stabbed his grandmother in the head, inflicting a fatal wound.
There’s no argument Juan Andres Valdez killed her — he said he stabbed her in a 911 call, and also admitted to it in an interview with police — but as his trial began Tuesday, attorneys disagreed on his level of culpability.
The prosecution is seeking a murder conviction, saying Valdez made the decision to grab the knife and stab his grandmother in the head as she slept.
Valdez’s attorney, however, told the jury his client suffers from mental illness, and, once all the evidence is presented, said he’ll be asking for a verdict of not guilty.
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Juan Andres Valdez, 32, is charged with first-degree murder in the death of 70-year-old Maria Magdalena Valdez. She had two stab wounds to her head when police arrived at her Flower Street home late July 13, according to court documents.
She was taken to Kern Medical, where she died nine days later.