Jury recommends death sentence for convicted cop killer John Hernandez Felix
Following weeks of witness testimony and evidence review, a Riverside County jury took only a few hours to convict John Hernandez Felix of first-degree murder for killing Palm Springs Police Officers Jose “Gil” Vega and Lesley Zerebny.
After hearing painful stories of loss from friends, family and colleagues of the slain officers, the same jury needed just as little time to decide Felix’s mortal fate: he should get a death sentence, they announced Thursday.
Felix stood still as the foreperson read the decision: unanimous death sentence recommendations for both murder counts. Hushed gasps and sighs came from the courtroom. Some cried.
The jury’s decision is only a recommendation. Judge Anthony Villalobos could deliver a different sentence, but that rarely happens, a spokesman for the Riverside County District Attorney’s office said.
Villalobos set the sentencing for Aug. 30.
After the verdicts were read, the courtroom was cleared as the jury and the attorneys met to discuss the case. The families and former colleagues of the victims were gathered in the hall just outside the courtroom when one of the sheriff's deputies informed them that the jury wished to meet with them also.
Immediate family and uniformed personnel were then let back into the courtroom, where they could be seen greeting, hugging and crying with some of the jury members.
Outside the courthouse, Palm Springs police Chief Bryan Reyes said he was confident the jury returned the right choice Thursday. While the department will never be the same, he said, justice was served for the two slain officers.
More: Fallen officer Vega remembered in court by widow, co-worker as jury considers killer's fate
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“Everybody has been changed,” Reyes said of his department. “But we’re moving on from this step in the process, it’s our job to keep going.”
Jose Hector Vega, Officer Vega’s brother said he finally feels like he can move on, and that the first-degree murder convictions were most important to him.
“Two-and-half years of waiting for justice was exhausting,” Vega said. “The guilty verdict is what was important... Justice was served, that’s what Gil worked for, that’s what matters.”
Earlier in the day, prosecutors and Felix’s defense attorneys made their final arguments to the jurors.
Michelle Paradise, one of the prosecuting attorneys, repeated the themes of the prosecution’s case: the now-convicted murderer chose to go to war with the Palm Springs Police Department on Oct. 8, 2016.
She held up the AR-15 Felix used to fire 21 shots at the officers that arrived at his house after his mother had called the police reporting her son was acting erratically.
“The police were called there to help a family with a domestic disturbance,” Paradise said. “And what did they get for their effort? Bullets through the heart.”
Felix started a war, Paradise said, against law and order, against two officers that walked up to his door thinking they were going to have a “respectful conversation” with the man.
Felix started a war, Paradise told the jury, that he now deserves to die for.
“You kill a police officer in the line of duty, you are looking at death,” Paradise told the jury. “Because we value police officers. Their lives matter.”
While the jury will receive two forms for each officer, one for the death penalty and one for life without parole, Paradise told the jury that she believes there is only one choice.
“I without hesitation or reservation look each of you in the eye and ask that you return the only acceptable verdict in this case: death.”
Defense attorney Jake Devane urged the jury to think deeply about the consequence of this decision.
“You are being asked to kill John Felix, my client,” Devane told the jury. “This is life and death.”
More: John Hernandez Felix found guilty on all counts in Palm Springs police murder trial
Video: John Hernandez Felix verdict is read
Devane reiterated the case the defense team had presented throughout the trial: Felix had a drug problem and a mental and intellectual deficiency.
Devane asked the jury to consider life without parole as a reasonable and serious punishment.
“John Felix deserves to be punished, should be punished and he will be punished,” Devane said. “Death is not the answer in this case, ladies and gentleman.”
Several family members from the Vega and Zerebny families testified during the penalty phase.
The Vega family shared their memories of a beloved brother, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather who was a proud family man, who offered advice and support to anyone who needed it.
“He was a great friend to many people,” Susana Vega, the slain officer’s widow, said.
Jose Hector Vega described his brother as a self-made man from a large family of migrant farmworkers, who had earned a spot on the police force and used it to make a positive impact throughout the Coachella Valley.
He advised his brother to retire as soon as he could, telling him “he had done his job.”
But only months away from his retirement, Jose “Gil” Vega’s life was cut short before he could fully enjoy the new truck, camper, and fishing gear he had purchased to enjoy the next chapter of his life.
He didn’t pass away, his brother said, he “was taken from us.”
“When this is over, all this ugliness, we’re going to remember him for who he was — a great man,” Jose Hector Vega said of his brother.
A sentiment that Vega’s colleagues shared, many of whom reported to the scene of the crime and later to the hospital where Vega and Zerebny were pronounced dead.
“Every person he came in contact with would remember him as a kind, caring human being,” Officer Mike Villegas said of Vega.
“He always had a joke for you,” Sgt. Shawn Flynn told the jury. “He was Gil.”
The Zerebny family described a young mother, sister, daughter, and wife who was enjoying her life as a police officer, who had recently returned to patrol from maternity leave shortly before she was killed.
“She was living her dreams,” LuAnne Kling said of her daughter.
Britta Kling, Lesley Zerebny’s sister, said her sister was rising to the challenges of being a cop and a mother with grace and the fearlessness that defined her youth.
“She had everything she ever wanted,” Kling said of the time leading up to her sister’s death. “I always thought we’d die together. And, in a way, we did.”
Zachary Zerebny described his admiration for his late wife, a “one-of-a-kind” person.
He described the challenges he faces daily as he raises their young daughter without his wife.
“I can bear my own burden, but to explain it to your daughter — it’s crippling,” Zachary Zerebny said. “We do everything we can, me and my family, to ensure she knows her mother.”
John Hernandez Felix was convicted of first-degree murder for the shooting deaths of the two officers, the attempted murders of six other officers, and three firearms charges.
Felix opened fire on Oct. 8, 2016, when officers were dispatched to his house in response to a domestic dispute. He fired 21 shots at officers, killing two and injuring several others. Felix was arrested over 12 hours later when SWAT fired teargas into the home where he barricaded himself.
Desert Sun reporter Christopher Damien covers crime, public safety and the criminal justice system. He can be reached at christopher.damien@desertsun.com or follow him at @chris_a_damien.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Jury: death sentence for convicted Palm Springs cop killer
