Zumot's attorney looks to overturn murder conviction Crimes & Incidents, posted by Editor, Palo Alto Online, on Jul 26, 2012 at 11:07 am
The attorney for Paul Zumot, the Palo Alto man convicted last year of strangling his girlfriend and burning down the Addison Avenue cottage they shared, is arguing in an appeal that Zumot did not receive a fair trial and that the conviction should be overturned. Related story:
Posted by Anon., a resident of the Crescent Park neighborhood, on Jul 26, 2012 at 11:41 am
If someone is going to take Zumot's remaining money it should be the victim's family, not some greedy lawyer who knows damn well he is not going to get anywhere.
Posted by Farah, a resident of the College Terrace neighborhood, on Jul 26, 2012 at 11:45 am
Anon....amen on that! The victims family deserves monetary compensation at the very least for this terrible, tragedy. The loss of a daughter it must be devastating.
Posted by ehab, a resident of the Old Palo Alto neighborhood, on Jul 26, 2012 at 5:34 pm
he will be free... the prosecution and the judge were trying to get a convectiion agains him at any cost... they even (judge and the prosecution)violating Zumot's Sixth Amendment right to "confrontation," which prohibits "hearsay" testimony in which the person making accusations cannot be cross-examined by defense attorneys. they got the wrong guy while the real killer still out there free... zumot is an innocent man and should get a chance for a fair trail..
Posted by stretch, a resident of another community, on Jul 26, 2012 at 6:44 pm
Sure, some other abusive boyfriend came after these two argued and killed her and burned down the cottage. What a coincidence, eh? As David Pepperdine said above, "FAT CHANCE!"
First you kill someone, then they use her own words to nail you and you want to confront her? The irony makes me reel.
Posted by Use your Brain, a resident of the Palo Alto Hills neighborhood, on Jul 26, 2012 at 6:50 pm
I am not a lawyer, but I know that when an appeal is submitted it has to rely heavily on the court records of what was said during the trial by the defendant, the witnesses and the judge. If what is written in this article is what is mentioned in the appeal, don’t you think that Paul’s constitutional rights to be found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt was violated? Last time I checked Palo Alto is in America not somewhere in the f*** Middle East . Use your Brain
Posted by Joshua, a resident of the Palo Alto Orchards neighborhood, on Jul 26, 2012 at 6:55 pm
No body is above the law. Not Cena, DA or any other. They abused their power once, but justice finally will prevail. Thats why there is appeal; appeal is an expression of injustice, abuse of power and prejudice . You can hope whatever you like ; you are entitled to wish anything ; whether you rot in your toilet or somewherelse ! but whether you like it, or not, your mama likes it, or not, justice will prevail and Paul will be a free man !
Posted by EPA Mom, a resident of East Palo Alto, on Jul 26, 2012 at 8:44 pm
Even if the appeal goes through, they'd try him again and he still be convicted. There is plenty of evidence that he did it. The murderer must be having a miserable time in that hell hole.
Posted by Hmmm, a resident of East Palo Alto, on Jul 26, 2012 at 9:21 pm
It's interesting that allegedly local commenters have popped up in multipliciy on this subject, but aren't regular commenters. They also appear to know a lot about this particular case, but won't admit how they know or how they're related to Zumot. Interesting. I bet they won't be posting on other subjects!
Posted by musical, a resident of the Palo Verde neighborhood, on Jul 26, 2012 at 10:29 pm
I recall a plethora of spurious Zumot-supporter comments on news stories during the original trial. Wonder whether they all come from the same IP address...
Posted by EPA Mom, a resident of East Palo Alto, on Jul 26, 2012 at 10:32 pm
Agree with you Hmmm. Most likely the same person by some of the punctuation. Maybe the same one who put up the "Free Paul" website that drags the murder victim through the mud (other relationships, medications, plastic surgeries) and makes accusations to everyone but that angel Paul Zumot. The website and the videos that the victim's family pulled down don't even make any sense. Shameful!
Posted by JenniferBelfari, a resident of the College Terrace neighborhood, on Jul 27, 2012 at 12:46 pm
Our court system is an embarrassment to our country. Even in third-world countries hearsay is not allowed to be used in the courtroom, let alone for a first-degree murder. And we dare to call ourselves an "advanced" nation? We are not, we are more backwards than others used to be during the Dark Ages. We should be ashamed of ourselves!
Posted by Hmmm, a resident of East Palo Alto, on Jul 27, 2012 at 1:37 pm
Jennifer exaggerates. Many crimes in 3rd world nations never get a complaint filed on, much less heard in court. Some of these countries legally allow women to be beaten & murdered. I'll take our justice system over one of those, even if it's far from perfect. And speaking of perfect, this murder. Ictim was far from it, but that's not the point - she was still a crime victim & we the people speak FOR her through our prosecutors.
Posted by logic, a resident of the Old Palo Alto neighborhood, on Jul 27, 2012 at 1:59 pm
When someone states they are innocent I always wonder why they don't want to take the lie detector test to clear their name. If I were accused of something I didn't do I would want to take the test to prove it. When an innocent person refuses the lie detector test I have to wonder. You also have to wonder who would strangle a person- this is a crime of passion. So someone slipped in after Zumot left in the morning and strangled her before she went to work. Hmmmm. I think beyond a reasonable doubt was proved. My suggestion for Zumot is to take the lie detector and spend his money finding the real killer to prove his innocence if he truly loved this woman he would want to find the killer. If he doesn't want to do these things then the guilty verdict stands.
Posted by musical, a resident of the Palo Verde neighborhood, on Jul 27, 2012 at 3:30 pm
Lie detector tests are no more useful at determining innocence than throwing someone in the lake to see if they float. What if that neuroscience grad student guy in Colorado passed a lie detector test saying he didn't do it? You keep trying new polygraphers until you get the answer you want.
Posted by musical, a resident of the Palo Verde neighborhood, on Jul 27, 2012 at 5:06 pm
I doubt that I could pass if the police arrested me and claimed my fingerprints and other evidence were all over the scene of the crime and I knew they were determined to convict me. On the other hand if I were guilty I'd be mentally prepared and would have nothing to lose. Various miscreants and transnational spies are very good at defeating the test. Jorge Hernandez wouldn't have had a chance.
Posted by Hulkamania, a resident of the Duveneck/St. Francis neighborhood, on Jul 27, 2012 at 9:08 pm
I just looked up Calipatria State Prison on Google Earth. It's just east of the Salton Sea, a huge bowl of toxic soup, and not to far from the Mexico border. Having been through that area a few times on my way to San Felipe, I can say the location in just down the road from Hell.
Posted by Hulkamania, a resident of the Duveneck/St. Francis neighborhood, on Jul 27, 2012 at 9:16 pm
From Wikipedia:
Highlights:
...it had a design capacity of 2,308 but a total institution population of 4,180, for an occupancy rate of 181.1 percent.
As of 1995, CAL's problems included "double-celling" (placing two inmates in bunk beds in a cell designed for one), psychological stress, a drastic shortage of work for prisoners, chronic understaffing among prison employees, and gang violence.
...very hot in summer-- up to 118 degrees Fahrenheit.
The smell of cow manure pervades the prison and the entire area due to large cattle feed lots neaby.
Facilities
Although located about 3 miles (4.8 km) from the center of Calipatria, the prison is within the city limits. Called the lowest prison in the Western Hemisphere, it lies 184 feet (56 m) below sea level. As of Fiscal Year 2005/2006, CAL had a total of 1,143 staff and an annual operating budget of $123 million.
The facility covers a total of 1,227.5 acres (496.8 ha) (with the prison on 300 acres (120 ha)). As of September 2007, it had a design capacity of 2,308 but a total institution population of 4,180, for an occupancy rate of 181.1 percent. Over 2,000 of its housing units are maximum-security Level IV ("Cells, fenced or walled perimeters, electronic security, more staff and armed officers both inside and outside the installation"); the remainder are minimum-security Level I ("Open dormitories without a secure perimeter").
History
CAL opened in January 1992, approximately 22 months before California State Prison, Centinela (the other state prison in Imperial County). A $1.5 million electrified fence, which could cause instantaneous death for escaping inmates and which was the first of its kind among California state prisons, was installed in November 1993. After a number of birds had died by electrocution, an ornithologist was hired to help redesign the fence and eliminate the problem.
As of 1995, CAL's problems included "double-celling" (placing two inmates in bunk beds in a cell designed for one), psychological stress, a drastic shortage of work for prisoners, chronic understaffing among prison employees, and gang violence. A May 1995 incident in which five inmates stabbed and assaulted eight officers"was described in 1997 as the worst inmate attack on staff in California state prisons in recent years.[7]
The weather in the area is desert-like, cold in winter and very hot in summer-- up to 118 degrees Fahrenheit. The smell of cow manure pervades the prison and the entire area due to large cattle feed lots neaby.
Angelo Buono, Jr. (also known as the Hillside Strangler) died at CAL in September 2002 of a "massive heart attack."
An August 2005 riot at CAL was the most violent uprising at the prison. The event left 25 inmates and 25 prison staff members wounded. A guard shot and killed an inmate with a Mini-14 semiautomatic rifle, which was believed to have contributed to ending the violence. A spokesman for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation stated that the disturbance involved Hispanic gang members."
Posted by daniel, a resident of the Embarcadero Oaks/Leland neighborhood, on Jul 28, 2012 at 5:49 am
In most Middle Eastern countries women are considered the property of their fathers/husbands/brothers. "Honor" killing, when women are murdered for "violating: the family honor are common and not punished. The murderer will usually be a brother, father or husband. Violating family honor is not confined to having an affair with another man. It can occur even if the woman only smiles at another man or touches him innocently. From what I read about the relationship of that couple, Zumult had considered her as his property and beat her up frequently. If this had happened in his native Jordan he would very likely be free and never even charged.
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