Opening statements were heard Tuesday during a murder trial for a man accused of using a samurai sword to behead his ex-girlfriend in San Carlos.
José Rafael Solano Landaeta is accused of using a samurai sword he owned to allegedly behead his ex-girlfriend, 27- year-old Karina Castro, during an argument outside her San Carlos apartment in September last year. Landaeta on Tuesday declined to be in the San Mateo County courtroom.
A jury of eight men and four women will decide Landaeta's fate. Prosecutors said he texted with a friend hours before attacking the mother of his child with a sword and cutting off her head. He allegedly told his friend Castro was "looking to get smoked" and that the two had been arguing on social media.
Three witnesses will also be called to the stand during the trial. They claim to have seen an argument between Landaeta and Castro, then saw him grab the sword out of his car and attack her.
Family and friends of the victim sat in the front row during opening statements and were deeply emotional as prosecutors laid out their case.
"We can't sleep. We don't eat. We're living in a nightmare," said Martin Castro, the victim's father. "I've watched movies that aren't as bad as what I'm going through and what we're going through."
The trial is getting underway more than a year after the killing. Martin Castro said all the pretrial hearings have been frustrating.
"It seems like a very cut and dry case. He killed my daughter, he’s not denying that and they’ve already said he’s competent and wasn’t crazy when he did it," he said. "What more do they need? Why does it need to take so long and the frustration is growing by the minute."
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Jurors were shown pictures of Karina Castro's body at the scene. At least one of the jurors wiped away tears.
Landaeta's attorney argued the case is not about who did it, but why. He said Landaeta is a paranoid schizophrenic and that Karina Castro made threats to his mother and brother that day. The attorney also said she texted him a gang member was going to come for him. The defense also claims Karina Castro had two knives and tried to stab Landaeta first.
"Imperfect self defense may mitigate first degree murder down to manslaughter," said Robert Cummings, Landaeta's attorney. "A perfect self defense would result in an acquittal and it's a question of what was really going on in his mind."
The jury also heard from a witness who tearfully described what she saw on the day of the killing.
The trial is expected to last up to three weeks.
