Handyman guilty of murder

The verdict came in Tuesday afternoon, less than two days after the jury resumed deliberations. The jury was on hiatus the entire previous week and had deliberated roughly two days previously. The jury acquitted Mataele of attempted robbery of the passenger.

In finding Mataele guilty, the jury rejected the defense argument that Mataele was actually unaware during the shooting of driver Davinder Singh, 21, because of an epileptic disorder.

"I’m glad the 21st century version of the Twinkie defense did not win out,” prosecutor Joe Cannon said.

Defense attorney Gerritt Rutgers could not be reached for comment on the verdict. During the trial he also argued Mataele did not attempt to rob Singh and passenger Jaime Torres because items like money and cell phones were left in the cab when he fled.

Cannon had countered that Mataele knowingly climbed into a cab with Jaime Torres, a fellow bar patron with whom he drank that night, with plans to rob him and Singh. Torres, who survived with a bullet graze, testified during the trial and endured grilling by Rutgers on what he could actually remember in his intoxicated state.

Cannon credited physical evidence to corroborate Torres’ testimony and said it is not surprising he was shaky on some details considered he had survived an attempt on his life.

Neither side debated that Torres and Mataele drank together on Sept. 13, 2003 at Sodini’s bar on El Camino Real or later went to the home of Torres’ friend. They even agree the pair both climbed into Singh’s cab — but that is where the versions diverged.

Torres testified that Mataele pulled out his gun, pointed it at the driver and told him "break yourself” — street slang indicating a robbery — before firing twice into Singh’s head. Mataele then reportedly demanded Torres’ cell phone and gold teeth before firing at him. The cab crashed into a parked Taurus at Elena Street and Oak Avenue. Mataele fled but was found at a nearby bus stop with a backpack carrying the gun and unused bullets.

Rutgers called Mataele’s mother to testify that when he lived with her he spoke with "ghosts.” Psychologist/neurologist Dr. Howard Friedman testified that testing showed his intelligence is equivalent to a 10-year-old. Other witnesses addressed possible links between alcohol and blackouts and neurological conditions uncovered when Mataele was hospitalized as incompetent for three years prior to trial. Rutgers told jurors the fatal shooting was not a murder but "something else” because his client was essentially unconscious.

Mataele returns to court June 4 for formal sentencing and remains in custody on no-bail status.

Michelle Durand can be reached by e-mail: michelle@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: (650) 344-5200 ext. 102.