A 23-year-old Cathedral City man found guilty last week in the Palm Springs quadruple murders could be sentenced to death or life in prison without parole, according to Palm Desert Patch.
That decision is in the hands of jurors, as the trial was set to move into the penalty phase last week.
In just 30 minutes, the jury found Jose Vladimir Larin-Garcia guilty of four counts of first-degree murder and also upheld a special-circumstance allegation of multiple murders, as well as gun and great bodily injury allegations that could enhance his sentence.
Larin-Garcia's victims were gunned down in Palm Springs on Feb. 3, 2019, and have been identified as Jacob Montgomery, 19, Juan Duarte Raya, 18, Yuliana Garcia, 17, and Carlos Campos Rivera, 25, according to Patch.
Though the jury's quick before-lunch verdict was criticized by the defense attorney, Deputy District Attorney Samantha Paixao said Larin-Garcia's motive was the desire for blood.
"Some people are just bad. Some people just want to kill, and when you kill four people within a matter of minutes, you like to kill," she told jurors, according to Patch.
According to News Channel 3, defense attorney John Patrick Dolan faulted the jury for reaching a speedy verdict; he had spent weeks attempting to prove that the murders were committed by another man whom the Palm Springs Police investigated but found unconnected to the crimes.
"Horrible verdict, the worst I've ever seen in 45 years of practice," Dolan told News Channel 3. "Jury came back in 30 minutes and never reviewed 1,000 exhibits and obviously didn't have much of a discussion on four counts of murder."
But Paixao insisted during closing arguments that it was Larin-Garcia in the car the night of the killings. Paixao said that someone who shoots each victim twice knows what he's doing and is acting with the intent to kill. She showed jurors photos of each victim while describing their fatal injuries.
According to News Channel 3, three of the victims were found in a car that had crashed at Sunny Dunes and El Placer roads, while the fourth victim was located on Canon Drive a few blocks away. Responding police officers said they discovered Larin-Garcia hiding under a truck, covered in blood, and he appeared to be intoxicated. He was taken to Desert Regional Medical Center for treatment of minor injuries but fled the hospital that night, as recorded on security footage.
Following the murders, prosecutors said Larin-Garcia put into play an escape plan that involved shaving his head and beard as a disguise. In their testimony, detectives said Larin-Garcia fled to the home of a friend, who had purchased a one-way bus ticket to Florida for him under an alias. Police arrested him waiting at the bus stop.
This was Larin-Garcia's second trial, with the first ending in a hung jury.