A 23-year-old man facing charges for shooting his girlfriend after an argument in 2017 was sentenced to seven years in state prison after he pleaded no contest to felony assault with a firearm and possession of cocaine Friday, according to the San Mateo County District Attorney’s Office.
San Bruno resident Jorge Valiente also admitted to causing great bodily injury in an act of domestic violence and was ordered to have no contact with the victim for 10 years, according to prosecutors.
Valiente, who had been known to sell drugs for money, had allegedly been dating his 19-year-old girlfriend for some six months and stayed at her Belmont residence on the 1100 block of Elmer Street several nights a week prior to the incident March 12, 2017. An encounter with the victim’s ex-boyfriend while they were at church in Half Moon Bay allegedly angered Valiente and sparked an argument between the two on their way back to Belmont, according to prosecutors.
Valiente allegedly left the victim’s home to buy cigarettes and returned just before 1 p.m. when he walked into the bedroom and shot the woman in the chest. Neighbors who heard the gun shot allegedly called 911 and the victim was rushed to the hospital with injuries that were not life-threatening, according to prosecutors.
Valiente, who allegedly tried to move her onto the porch or into his car just after he shot her, told police the victim was shot in a drive-by. An investigation revealed a handgun under a pile of clothing in the closet and 10 grams of cocaine, drug packaging and a digital scale belonging to Valiente, according to prosecutors.
District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said Judge Jeffrey Finigan’s sentence was excellent and showed domestic violence and use of a gun in a domestic relationship are unacceptable.
“People who commit this type of crime deserve to be in prison,” he said.
Valiente will receive 785 days credit for time served, and will next appear in court March 15 for receipt of a restitution report, according to prosecutors.
His defense attorney Scott Sherman could not be immediately reached for comment.
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