The cases against a man and woman accused of shooting a San Mateo man resolved Monday after the pair took plea deals related to the July 18, 2017, shooting over an alleged methamphetamine and marijuana dispute, according to the San Mateo County District Attorney’s Office.
Leonardo Lopez
After pleading guilty to felony assault with a semiautomatic firearm and admitting to a prior felony strike conviction, East Palo Alto resident Leonardo Lopez, 33, was sentenced to six years in state prison Monday. He will receive 484 days credit for time served, according to prosecutors.
Maria Hernandez
East Palo Alto resident Maria Hernandez, 40, pleaded no contest to felony accessory to felony assault and was sentenced to three years supervised probation and 845 days in county jail. Because she will receive 845 days credit for time served, Hernandez is expected to be released shortly, according to prosecutors and her defense attorney Scott Sherman.
The two were arrested Aug. 23, 2017, in Jefferson Township, Ohio, after a monthlong investigation into the shooting of a 36-year-old man at his home on the 900 block of Delaware Street more than a month prior. They were extradited back to San Mateo County and have been facing multiple felony charges in the months since the incident, according to prosecutors.
Lopez is believed to have known the victim, who he allegedly shot twice over a methamphetamine and marijuana dispute, once in each leg, according to police previously. Hernandez, who acted as the getaway driver, fled with Lopez in a red car before authorities were called to the victim’s home around 7:30 p.m., police said previously.
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District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said the prosecutors encountered issues with witness testimonies and were concerned about proving the charges at trial, leading them to negotiate a plea deal on fewer charges for both defendants.
“Often the case when you’re dealing with combative people, they are engaged in the drug world,” he said.
Arguing his client was overcharged for months, Sherman expressed relief that some of the more serious charges filed against Hernandez were dropped in the plea deal she took Monday.
“She can move on and get to her family who has been supportive from the beginning and start to put the pieces of her life back together,” he said.
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