12/21/2009 10:58:00 PM
Prescott Valley man gets probation in shooting
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Courtesy photos
TOP: Juan Carlos Rueda-Gonzales, 25, of Phoenix
BOTTOM: Jimmy Caraveo, 27, formerly of Prescott Valley |
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By LINDA STEIN
The Daily Courier
PRESCOTT - One of two men who faced charges in a Valentines Day shooting earlier this year received a sentence of 18 months on probation Monday.
Jimmy Caraveo, 27, formerly of Prescott Valley, had fired a gun in the air during the incident but injured no one, said Deputy County Attorney Glen Hammond. He recommended that Superior Court Judge Thomas B. Lindberg impose a probationary sentence along with confiscating Caraveo's Smith & Wesson pistol.
A co-defendant, Juan Carlos Rueda-Gonzales, 25, of Phoenix, is facing nine counts of aggravated assault, eight counts of disorderly conduct with a weapon and attempted first-degree murder.
A dispute over a woman allegedly sparked a dispute between groups of men in the parking lot of Poor Red's Steakhouse on Long Mesa Drive in Prescott Valley in the early morning.
A group of men threw Rueda-Gonzales, an illegal immigrant, to the ground, struck him with beer bottles and kicked him in the head, police said. Sergio Fonseca, who suffered gunshot wounds to his stomach and thigh, told police that he had kicked Rueda-Gonzales in the head, a police report stated. Prosecutors allege that bullets Rueda-Gonzales fired struck Fonseca, whom emergency personnel rushed to surgery. He lost three feet of his intestines.
Defense lawyer David A. Rubin said the investigation by the state was "extremely helpful" and showed that his client did not injure the victim. Caraveo was never in trouble with the law before, is a student and works in a bank, Rubin said. "He got caught up with what his codefendant (allegedly) did," Rubin said. "He suffered some punitive sanctions. He picked the wrong guy and the wrong place to defend."
Caraveo, meanwhile, pleaded guilty in November to felony charges of unlawful discharge of a handgun and unlawful discharge of a firearm, Lindberg said. If he successfully completes probation the prosecution will downgrade those charges to misdemeanors, the judge told him. After his arrest Caraveo spent 27 days in jail before getting out on bond.
Lindberg warned Caraveo against falling in with a bad crowd.
"We've seen how fast things can go to hell in a hand basket," Lindberg said. While Caraveo's shots did not injure anyone when he fired in the air to break up the fight, he easily might have hurt someone, Lindberg said. Caraveo, who now lives in Maricopa County, could have received a sentence of two years in prison on each count and still could go to jail if he violates his probation. The state dismissed other charges against Caraveo.
Today, Rueda-Gonzales will appear before Lindberg where he either will accept a plea agreement or have his case listed for trial, Hammond said.
Neither Rubin nor Caraveo would comment after the hearing.
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Posted: Thursday, December 24, 2009
Article comment by:
Gracie
No Name: My statement is true. Deadly force can be used against deadly force.
Posted: Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Article comment by:
No name provided
its only illegal if they have a sign up sayin you cant bring it in
Posted: Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Article comment by:
No name provided
haha... what you guys dont get is that mr. rueda-gonzales was never beaten up with bats, bottles or 2x4's or beaten by a group of people... thats why this story doesnt sound right... caraveo and rueda-gonzales left poor reds and came back to pick a fight... no weapons used on (fonseca's) defense... these 2 guys are just trying to make us feel sorry for them... they very well deserve what they have ahead of them...
Posted: Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Article comment by:
No name provided
Wrong Gracie! You can use any force necessary, including deadly force, if you feel your life, or the life of another is in immediate threat of death. Ever been kicked in the head or beaten with beer bottles?
Posted: Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Article comment by:
No name provided
(Site administrator's note: A portion of this comment was removed because it violated our Terms of Use Agreement) Instead of pulling your gun and shooting them, you're supposed to just pull out a knife and do some sort of West Side Story dance off with them? You Gracie, are sadly mistaken. Getting kicked in the head is deadly force which can be answered with deadly force. The same applies to threats with knives, bats, broken bottles, scissors, etc..
Posted: Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Article comment by:
Fed up
Contrary to what the previous posters think it is NOT illegal in the state of Arizona to carry a firearm into a resturaunt. Yes you can carry (under certain circumstances) even if they serve alcohol. The correct question would be to ask why according to the story that an illegal has a firearm in the first place.
Posted: Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Article comment by:
Gracie
You cannot defend yourself with a weapon of greater force than is being used against you.
Posted: Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Article comment by:
No name provided
First, it's illegal to carry in a restaurant if they serve alcohol. Second, while it was self defense, he did pull a gun and shoot someone. He's going to be charged with it because there's no getting around it. It's up to the court/judge and his lawyer to see how they handle it. I noticed the article didn't say what (if anything) Fonseca was charged with and if there were any other people charged in this matter.
Posted: Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Article comment by:
No name provided
A group of men throw me to the ground and kick me in the head and I pull out a gun and shoot one of them in defense and I get charged with Assault and Attempted Murder. Maybe I'm missing something here.
Posted: Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Article comment by:
use2do
Sheesh! Somebody should have told these guys that they're not supposed to bring guns to a restaurant. It's illegal!
Posted: Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Article comment by:
Old Gringo
Did I miss something here? A group of men threw one of the defendants to the ground, beat him with beer bottles, and kicked him in the head. Sounds like self defense to me! Were any of them charged with agg assault too?
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