LAKEPORT — A witness in the toddler-killing trial testified Wednesday she observed one co-defendant handle a shotgun the night of the shooting but didn”t see the other man tote any weapon that day.
Clearlake Oaks residents Paul William Braden, 21, and Orlando Joseph Lopez Jr., 24, have pleaded not guilty to 15 felonies and have denied more than 30 special allegations in connection with the June 18 fatal incident in Clearlake.
Authorities allege the two men shot into a crowd of people at a barbecue party, killing Skyler Rapp, 4, and injuring five others.
Braden and Lopez are standing trial in the same courtroom but have different attorneys and separate juries.
Ashli Athas, the former girlfriend of Lopez”s brother, Leonardo, was the primary witness to testify Wednesday at the Lake County Courthouse.
Her testimony began Feb. 29 but was interrupted for nearly two weeks because the trial was delayed while Lopez”s lawyer, Stephen Carter, recovered from an illness.
The majority of Athas” testimony Wednesday came under cross-examination from Carter.
Athas described a gathering she hosted at the Clearlake home she lived in with her grandmother, Leonardo Lopez, and their infant son.
The prosecution alleged Braden and Lopez left the Athas party on the night of June 18 and drove with a third man, Kevin Ray Stone, to another part of Clearlake where the fatal shooting occurred.
Stone was a co-defendant in the case but pleaded no contest to three lesser counts in November. He is expected to testify as a prosecution witnesses.
Athas said Lopez was among the first to arrive at the home on June 18, around 12:30 p.m. Braden showed up separately about 30 minutes later, she added.
Also in attendance were several of her female friends and four men who were part of the “Avenue Boys,” according to Athas.
She described the “Avenue Boys” as a group of young white men, who often wore red, that she never saw engage in criminal behavior. She said she has observed the phrase “Ave Boyz” written in graffiti.
Braden and Lopez were not members of the “Avenue Boys,” according to Athas.
She said some partygoers played drinking games throughout the afternoon and evening on June 18.
Athas originally testified she was not under the influence of alcohol or drugs that day but later confirmed she smoked marijuana. She said it did not affect her perception of the evening”s events. “It just got me high,” she added.
Braden and Lopez left the gathering together in the afternoon, possibly around 3 p.m., and returned roughly 45 minutes later, according to Athas.
She said that when the two men came back, Braden carried a shotgun wrapped inside a sweatshirt under his arm.
Athas testified she never saw Lopez handle the shotgun, another firearm or any other weapon that day.
Later in the afternoon, Braden said it would “look tight” if he sawed off the butt of the shotgun and asked Leonardo Lopez for permission to do so, according to Athas.
She said she watched all of the men walk toward the garage but did not see whether they went inside or what they may have doing. When she went to the area about five minutes later, one of the men threw a shotgun butt into a recycling container, according to Athas.
Sometime later, one of the “Avenue Boys” helped Braden wrap the shotgun with duct tape, Athas said. She also described seeing Braden pumping the shotgun two or three times and making a comment like, “I”m bored. Let”s go shoot somebody.”
Athas testified that around 7 p.m. she overheard Braden arguing on the phone with a woman she knew was a relative of Rapp. “They were talking (expletive) back and forth,” Athas said.
Toward the end of the conversation, Braden told the woman, “I”m not gonna sit here and argue with a female on the phone. Let”s meet up,” according to Athas.
People continued hanging out at the house until about 9 p.m., Athas said. For some of that time, Braden wrapped the shotgun in the sweatshirt and put it on the porch, she added.
Athas said she saw Stone”s dark-colored SUV-like vehicle outside the house at around 10:30 p.m.
She testified that through a window she observed Braden and Lopez walk out to the vehicle with Braden holding a bunched-up sweatshirt. She said she could not see if Braden had a shotgun.
Athas said she soon stopped watching the three men, did not see Braden and Lopez get into Stone”s vehicle but heard it drive off about five minutes after arriving.
She said Braden called her on June 19 at which time she asked, “Did you know that was like my cousin you shot last night?” In describing Braden”s alleged response, Athas added, “He said he was sorry.”
Under cross-examination from Braden”s attorney, Doug Rhoades, Athas said she provided different information to investigators and during the October preliminary hearing about some issues, including timelines and whether Braden held anything when he left the house the night of June 18.
District Attorney Don Anderson called a second witness at 3:50 p.m. but as he began asking his initial questions, one of the alternate jurors left the courtroom because of an apparent asthma attack.
Presiding Judge Doris L. Shockley immediately paused the proceedings and minutes later, released all jurors for the day.
The trial is set to reconvene today at 9 a.m. in Department 1.
Before testimony began Wednesday, the judge excused one of the regular Braden jurors because of a medical emergency. An alternate was randomly chosen as a permanent replacement, marking the second time such a switch occurred on the Braden jury.
Contact Jeremy Walsh at jwalsh@record-bee.com or call him at 263-5636, ext. 37.
