Chief Prosecutor Chester Hinds and Assistant Attorney General Heather Barcinas leave the courtroom following the jury trial of Calvin Tagabuel on Monday morning.
Attorney Joey McDoulett, who represents Calvin Tagabuel, speaks to his client’s family members after a hearing on Monday.
AFTER deliberating for three hours on Monday morning, jurors found Calvin Tagabuel not guilty of second-degree murder.
However, they found him guilty of the lesser charge of aggravated assault and battery, which is punishable by up to 10 years in prison
Superior Court Judge Joseph N. Camacho, who presided over the jury trial that began on Feb. 11, scheduled the sentencing for June 18 at 10 a.m.
Chief Prosecutor Chester Hinds and Assistant Attorney General Heather Barcinas prosecuted the case.
After the hearing, Hinds told reporters: “I think it was a just verdict; the jury gave the evidence a good review.”
Hinds added, “The victim in this case, Lark Kasian, somebody who we talked about in the trial…was drunk that night. The reason why we take this case to trial…is nobody should be treated the way he was treated. Not only was he punched and injured, but nobody also gave him aid until seven hours later. This community cannot be okay with that. I’m glad that the jury came back the way they did because it’s important that we send a message that people cannot be treated like trash.”
Tagabuel was represented by attorney Joey McDoulett, who told Variety that he does not agree with the jury verdict, but he declined to elaborate.
McDoulett said he will move for a bail modification to allow for his client to be with his family before sentencing.
The court remanded Tagabuel to the custody of the Department of Corrections. He was escorted by Judiciary Marshals and Corrections officers as he exited the courtroom Monday morning.
Tagabuel, 48, was accused of causing Lark Kasian’s death by delivering a single punch to Kasian’s face, rendering him unconscious and causing him to fall on the concrete floor at Cool Laundry in Kagman, where he struck the back of his head. Kasian was 44 years old.
During the trial, the prosecution played video footage of the incident and called 14 witnesses to testify.
The defense, for its part, moved for a mistrial, requested the exclusion of the prosecution’s expert witness testimony, and made a motion for acquittal — all of which were rejected by Judge Camacho.
Tagabuel also testified in his defense, and his lawyer called four other witnesses to testify during the jury trial.
Correction: There was no jury instruction for the lesser charge of assault and battery, as earlier reported.
