A South Bay murder suspect has won the right to represent himself at trial.
Salvador Cuellar, 29, will stand trial Aug. 22 in the shooting death of Hector Arce, 36, of Imperial Beach. Arce was shot five times in the head and neck on Jan. 28, 2012.
A Chula Vista Superior Court judge warned Cuellar of some of the risks involving in self-representation, but acting as one’s own lawyer is a constitutional right for people who wish to do so.
Cuellar was also ordered to trial for possessing a weapon in the central jail. A prosecutor said when Cuellar was being moved from a cell, deputies found a thin 5-inch piece of wire that was sharpened at the end. It was hidden inside a tube of toothpaste.
The sentencing for two Chula Vista men, Reyes Michael Cruz, 26, and Adrian Ernesto Lopez, 21, has been delayed to Sept. 29.
They both pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter involving Arce’s death.
Cuellar and the Chula Vista men are alleged to be gang members, but the prosecutor said they have mistaken Arce for a rival gang member as they did not know him.
Security surveillance video was seen at the preliminary hearing which depicted Cuellar, Lopez, and Cruz all walking near the scene of the shooting which was in the 1300 block of Imperial Beach Boulevard.
Lopez, Cruz and Cuellar were arrested in September and October 2014 by sheriff’s deputies following a long investigation.
Cuellar has pleaded not guilty. Cuellar, Cruz, and Lopez remain behind bars.
