Calvin Tagabuel, right, is escorted by Corrections officers at the local courthouse on Tuesday.
ASSISTANT Attorney General Heather Barcinas was delivering her opening remarks in Calvin Tagabuel’s jury trial on Tuesday afternoon when the courtroom microphone malfunctioned, cutting her off mid-sentence.
As it was already past 4:30 p.m. when the Superior Court technicians fixed the microphone, Barcinas and Chief Prosecutor Chester Hinds requested that the court continue the opening remarks the following day.
Attorney Joey McDoulett, counsel for Tagabuel, did not object.
Judge Joseph N. Camacho, who is presiding over the trial, granted the request of the parties for a continuance.
Judge Camacho also ordered the jurors not to discuss the case with anyone and instructed them to return to court by 9 a.m. today, for the resumption of the trial.
On Tuesday morning, eight jurors, including two alternates, were empaneled.
Tagabuel, 48, appeared in court in the the custody of the Department of Corrections. He was charged with second-degree murder and aggravated assault and battery.
Second-degree murder is the criminal act of killing another person without premeditation or intent to cause death.
Earlier, the prospective jurors were asked by the defense and prosecution: “Do you have the right to defend yourself? Do you think people have the right to take the law into their own hands? Do you know a person who drinks every day, and whether that person should be treated as anything less?”
Background
According to police, the victim was punched in the mouth by Tagabuel, causing the victim to fall to the ground.
Initially, Tagabuel was charged with voluntary manslaughter, and aggravated assault and battery.
According to the complaint against Tagabuel, on Jan. 6, 2024, at around 9:46 a.m., the Department of Public Safety received a call about an unconscious man who was later identified as Lark Kasian.
Responding police and Department of Fire and Emergency Medical Services officers found Kasian lying on the stairway at the entrance to Cool Laundry in Kagman. He was observed with a swollen and dry mouth, a scrape on his right kneecap, and blood on his pants.
The victim, who was awake but unable to speak, was transported to the Commonwealth Healthcare Corp. for further evaluation.
Kasian was admitted to CHCC for trauma subarachnoid hemorrhage or “bleeding in the head.” On Jan. 12, 2024, at around 6:07 a.m., he died at the hospital.
Police learned that the victim had consumed alcoholic beverage and had gotten into an argument with another man on the evening of Jan. 5, 2024.
While police were conducting an investigation and processing the scene, they encountered Tagabuel, who told one of the investigators that he fought with Kasian.
In an interview with police, Tagabuel said he saw Kasian inside Cool Laundry where an on-duty security guard asked Tagabuel for help.
Tagabuel said Kasian was pointing at him and the security guard, “making a fist with one hand and punching the palm of his hand threatening to ‘smash’ them.”
Tagabuel told police that Kasian asked him to “fight.”
Tagabuel said he punched Kasian in the mouth. Kasian then fell to the ground, and appeared to have been “knocked out,” Tagabuel added.
He said he later carried Kasian to the stairway near the Cool Laundry entrance and told the security guard not to call for an ambulance and let Kasian “sleep it off.”
On Jan. 13, 2024, investigators reviewed the security camera footage from Cool Laundry. It indicated that at around 11:14 p.m. on Jan. 5, 2024, a security guard attempted to escort Kasian out of Cool Laundry.
Kasian was seen standing at the entrance of the establishment pointing at the security guard and Tagabuel, who was in the parking lot of Cool Laundry.
In the footage, Tagabuel was seen approaching Kasian, pushing him, and pointing toward the exit. But Kasian refused to leave and said “relax” about four times to Tagabuel.
Tagabuel then punched Kasian in the face. Kasian fell to the ground and hit his head. He appeared to be unconscious. Tagabuel slapped Kasian’s cheeks twice, but Kasian did not wake up. Tagabuel again slapped Kasian’s cheeks twice, but the victim remained unconscious. Tagabuel then carried Kasian to the stairway near the entrance to Cool Laundry where five to six people came to look at the victim for a few seconds and later walked away.
On Jan. 18, 2024, Dr. Phillip Dauterman of CHCC performed an autopsy on the victim’s body. Dauterman said the cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head with skull fracture and traumatic brain injuries.
Prospective jurors not selected for the trial exit the courtroom Tuesday morning.
