SALT LAKE CITY — Both sides admit that Harlin Argelio Ramos fatally stabbed another man.

But what a jury decided after more than four hours of deliberation Thursday is that Ramos, 32, intentionally stabbed and killed 33-year-old Joaquin Gonzalez in the course of attempting to rob him.

In a verdict returned shortly after 9 p.m. and finding Ramos guilty of murder, jurors rejected the argument of Ramos' defense team that the killing was a case of mistaken identity that resulted in an unfortunate and horrific set of events in which Ramos was forced to act in self-defense.

Ramos, now convicted of fatally stabbing Gonzalez, who had just finished watching a movie at The Gateway shopping center in 2014, will be sentenced January 6 before 3rd District Judge James Blanch in Salt Lake City.

"It is clear from the evidence that this defendant took a knife and plunged it into the heart of Joaquin Gonzalez," Salt Lake County deputy district attorney Matthew Janzen said during closing arguments Thursday. "It was intentional. He wanted the death of Joaquin."

But defense attorney Edwin Wall contended in his closing arguments that two worlds "came crashing together" that early morning, and a "moment of inadvertence" resulted in the death of Gonzalez because Ramos was forced to defend himself.

April 19, 2014

About 1 a.m. on April 19, 2014, Gonzalez had just finished watching a movie with Megan Sellers. They had walked to her car at 515 W. 100 South and were in the vehicle saying goodbye, when Ramos opened the door of the car. Gonzalez got out of the car to confront Ramos. He was stabbed multiple times and killed. Ramos was later charged with murder, a first-degree felony.

Jurors had the option of finding Ramos either guilty of murder or manslaughter, or acquitting him. The case was turned over to them at about 4:45 p.m.

Prosecutors and Ramos' defense attorneys have painted very different pictures of what happened that night.

Janzen said Sellers saw Ramos and his brother-in-law walk past her car prior to the attack. She said there was something about them that raised her suspicions.

"There was something wrong with these people glaring at her," Janzen said was Sellers' reaction.

Moments later, Janzen said the two men "circled around and came in for a back attack," opening a car door and reaching inside apparently in an effort to either rob Gonzalez and Sellers or carjack them.

A 'false confession'

Janzen contended that Ramos later admitted to police that he was in the area that night selling drugs. Wall, however, claimed his client made a false confession after hours of interrogation by police.

The defense argued that Ramos opened the white car door by mistake and had confused it with another white vehicle that was waiting to give him a ride.

Furthermore, Wall told jurors they shouldn't be asked by prosecutors to speculate why Ramos opened the door; they should only make a decision based on facts.

"The government hasn't proven anything beyond a reasonable doubt. They're asking you to speculate," he said. "This idea that there was a felony (crime) is completely unsupported by the facts in the case."

After Gonzalez stepped out of the car to find out what Ramos was doing, he was attacked.

At some point, the words, "Please don't kill me. I have kids," were heard by Sellers in English. At no time did Sellers hear any words in Spanish, Janzen said.

Language barrier

But Wall contended there was a language barrier that contributed to the confusion. Ramos wore headphones during the trial this week as a Spanish interpreter translated everything that was being said into a microphone that only Ramos could hear.

Another point of contention was who was assaulting whom. Janzen said injuries to Gonzalez's knees due to gravel showed he was on the ground being beaten. Wall, however, argued that his client was being strangled by Gonzalez, who weighed 70 pounds more than Ramos, forcing Ramos to act in self-defense.

"Help me. He's killing me," Wall said Ramos said at one point. "He was in a fight for his life. … It was a fight that was going to end either with Mr. Ramos being strangled or as it did."

Self defense or murder?

But Janzen told jurors that the self-defense argument doesn't work in this case because Ramos was intending to commit a felony when he opened the car door and was the aggressor in the situation.

"This was no mistake of opening a door. He knew who was in that vehicle," he said. "He started it. He started it by opening the door."

Janzen also noted to jurors that there were nine stab or slicing wounds on Gonzalez's body.

"That is not acting in self-defense," he said.

Wall said his client was the one who was in fear, not Gonzalez, and became desperate while he was being strangled.

But Janzen argued there was no evidence to show Ramos was strangled. The only injury to his neck was when Sellers dry-stunned him there with a Taser to try to get him to leave.

After the confrontation, Janzen said Ramos ran off, threw away his weapon, changed his clothes and didn't call police.

"(That) is not self-defense," he said.

Contributing: Ben Lockhart

Related topics