Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Judge's ruling in Brittany Killgore murder case

Prosecutor was denied access to papers found in the jail cell of one defendant

The prosecutor in a high-profile murder case was denied access to papers found in one defendant’s jail cell, by a ruling in San Diego’s North County Superior Courthouse today, July 10, 2013.

Judge K. Michael Kirkman ruled in favor of defense attorney Sloan Ostbye, who claimed “attorney-client privilege” on the documents. The public defender told Judge Kirkman that the pages were written in response to a request she made of her client, defendant Jessica Lopez.

The pages were written in “cipher” or code, and were collected from the cell of Lopez, who is one of three persons charged with murdering Brittany Dawn Killgore. The victim was last seen leaving her apartment in April 2012, when she allegedly got into a car with one of the defendants, Louis Perez. The victim’s abused body was found four days later, on April 17, dumped alongside a road in a neighboring county.

This murder caused a stir in San Diego County because the victim was married to a Marine deployed to Afghanistan at the time, and defendant Louis Perez was an active-duty Marine when he was arrested.

Adding to the grotesque interest is prosecutor Patrick Espinoza’s assertions that the beautiful young woman was abducted as part of a sadomasochistic fantasy. The perverse lifestyle of the defendants was exposed during a preliminary hearing four months ago.

Louis Ray Perez, 46, and Dorothy Maraglino, 38, and Jessica Lopez, 26, all plead not guilty to charges of conspiracy and kidnap and torture and murder. The prosecutor is alleging “special circumstance” of murder-during-kidnap, against all three defendants, meaning all three could face the death penalty or life in prison without possibility of parole.

This afternoon the judge set November 14, 2013, as the next court date for all three defendants. It is expected that attorneys will have met with District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis by that time, this as part of the protocol for deciding whether or not to seek the death penalty, here. Meetings could also include other interested parties, such as the family of the victim.

In a separate motion, the attorney for defendant Louis Perez asked that Perez be transported to University of California San Diego for an eye exam. Public defender Jeff Reichert stated that Perez is far-sighted and has need of eye glasses, and that UCSD is contracted to service jail inmates for that need. This produced serious looks on the faces of the bailiffs in the courtroom, who are all San Diego County Sheriff’s deputies.

http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/jul/10/48953/

http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/jul/10/48954/

http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/jul/10/48955/

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all

Previous article

Gonzo Report: Ben Folds takes requests via paper airplane at UCSD

A bunch of folks brought theirs from home

The prosecutor in a high-profile murder case was denied access to papers found in one defendant’s jail cell, by a ruling in San Diego’s North County Superior Courthouse today, July 10, 2013.

Judge K. Michael Kirkman ruled in favor of defense attorney Sloan Ostbye, who claimed “attorney-client privilege” on the documents. The public defender told Judge Kirkman that the pages were written in response to a request she made of her client, defendant Jessica Lopez.

The pages were written in “cipher” or code, and were collected from the cell of Lopez, who is one of three persons charged with murdering Brittany Dawn Killgore. The victim was last seen leaving her apartment in April 2012, when she allegedly got into a car with one of the defendants, Louis Perez. The victim’s abused body was found four days later, on April 17, dumped alongside a road in a neighboring county.

This murder caused a stir in San Diego County because the victim was married to a Marine deployed to Afghanistan at the time, and defendant Louis Perez was an active-duty Marine when he was arrested.

Adding to the grotesque interest is prosecutor Patrick Espinoza’s assertions that the beautiful young woman was abducted as part of a sadomasochistic fantasy. The perverse lifestyle of the defendants was exposed during a preliminary hearing four months ago.

Louis Ray Perez, 46, and Dorothy Maraglino, 38, and Jessica Lopez, 26, all plead not guilty to charges of conspiracy and kidnap and torture and murder. The prosecutor is alleging “special circumstance” of murder-during-kidnap, against all three defendants, meaning all three could face the death penalty or life in prison without possibility of parole.

This afternoon the judge set November 14, 2013, as the next court date for all three defendants. It is expected that attorneys will have met with District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis by that time, this as part of the protocol for deciding whether or not to seek the death penalty, here. Meetings could also include other interested parties, such as the family of the victim.

In a separate motion, the attorney for defendant Louis Perez asked that Perez be transported to University of California San Diego for an eye exam. Public defender Jeff Reichert stated that Perez is far-sighted and has need of eye glasses, and that UCSD is contracted to service jail inmates for that need. This produced serious looks on the faces of the bailiffs in the courtroom, who are all San Diego County Sheriff’s deputies.

http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/jul/10/48953/

http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/jul/10/48954/

http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/jul/10/48955/

Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Defendants in torture-murder case avoid death penalty

Persons accused in Brittany Killgore's death might face life without parole.
Next Article

Louis Perez and two others ordered to trial for killing

Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader