Jury deliberations continued this week in the murder trial of the son of Angela Burks, a longtime science teacher at Otay Ranch High School, who was stabbed to death in her home in 2017.
Attorneys gave closing arguments Monday in which Deputy District Attorney Makenzie Harvey asked jurors to convict Joseph “Joey” Robert Burks, 31, of first-degree murder, noting she received 19 stab wounds to her neck, head, and upper body.
His attorney, Jeremy Thornton, asked the eight woman, four man jury to acquit his client, saying Joseph Burks stabbed his 58-year-old mother in self-defense after she pulled a knife on him in their Clairemont home.
Jurors began deliberations Tuesday and will continue discussing the case this week in San Diego Superior Court. They will only be considering a verdict for first-degree murder as they have not been instructed or urged to consider a lesser verdict such as manslaughter.
Thornton played the 911 call Joseph Burks made on July 24, 2017 at 7:16 p.m. and jurors followed along with a transcript of what he told a police dispatcher.
“My Mom attacked me with a knife. She’s not OK. I need a paramedic. She needs a paramedic,” said Joseph Burks. “She got me first. She broke into my room.”
“She had a knife in her hand. It broke. She came in with a steak knife,” said Joseph Burks.
“My (knife) went into her neck a few times…She has been unpredictable, abusive in the past.”
Harvey told jurors the 911 call was filled with “misleading statements” by her son who made no contributions towards expenses or rent and did not work. The prosecutor described the 911 call as “a lie.”
Angela Burks met with an attorney six days before her death about taking legal actions to evict her son, said Harvey. She increasingly became fearful of him and “she was conflicted about what to do.”
Harvey said one knife used by her son broke because it hit her skull, jaw, and spine, and he had to find another knife. Jurors viewed gruesome pictures of her body where she died in the hallway.
Harvey said the cuts Joseph Burks had on his body were described by witnesses as “superficial.” Joseph Burks was taken to a hospital and checked due to a forehead wound and a 5-6 inch scratch on his chest.
“He intended to kill and accomplished that goal,” said Harvey.
Thornton told jurors his client was not required to retreat or run after being attacked by his mother. “He’s allowed to stand his ground,” said Thornton.
“Joseph was scared of his mother,” said Thornton. “He didn’t want his mother to die.”
The defense attorney told jurors if they have reasonable doubt over his guilt they must vote not guilty. “Justice is rendering a not guilty verdict in this case,” concluded Thornton.
Joseph Burks, who wore a suit and sported a ponytail in court, did not testify as his attorney got his words in the 911 call admitted as evidence. Judge Charles Rogers asked him if he understood that he could testify if he wanted, and he said he understood that.
“My attorney advised me not to testify and I will go with him,” said Joseph Burks on May 31.
If he is convicted, he faces a sentence of 25 years to life in state prison. He has pleaded not guilty and remains in jail on $1 million bail.
Angela Burks taught students in the Sweetwater Union High School District since 1983. She also taught at Southwest Middle School and Rancho Del Rey Middle School. She had hoped to retire in 2018.
