A felon who gunned down an Indio man during a street confrontation stemming from an apparent grudge was convicted Wednesday of second-degree murder and other charges.
After two days of deliberations, an Indio jury on Wednesday found Hilario Larry Muela Jr., 39, of Indio, guilty of the murder count, along with being a felon in possession of a loaded firearm, illegal possession of a gun and sentence-enhancing gun and great bodily injury allegations for the 2023 death of 36-year-old Marco Ramirez Jr.
Riverside County Superior Court Judge James Hawkins did not immediately schedule a sentencing date at the Larson Justice Center. Muela is being held without bail at the nearby Benoit Detention Center.
“This is not a case of self-defense. This is a case of a man who was shot two times,” Deputy District Attorney Jenna Barsamian told jurors in her opening statement last week.
The prosecutor recalled the victim and defendant were familiar with one another and not on good terms.
She said that shortly after 1 a.m. Feb. 3, 2023, Muela was walking through the 45600 block of Smurr Street, near Requa Avenue, just north of Highway 111, when he passed Ramirez and a few other people outside the victim’s home.
Barsamian said Muela later admitted to Indio Police Department investigators that he was armed, but the pistol “was just a backup type of thing.”
The prosecutor told jurors there had been bad blood between Muela and Ramirez and something triggered the defendant during their encounter that morning, leading him to see “an opportunity to gain revenge on prior grievances.”
Muela pulled his pistol and shot the victim twice in the back. Ramirez died at the scene.
The defendant fled the location, but he was quickly identified as the assailant and taken into custody without incident that afternoon.
Defense attorney Joshua Visco told the jury that “Mr. Muela acted in self-defense, and he is not guilty of murder.”
Visco also pointed to previous conflicts between the men, but he insisted his client was not the gadfly.
The attorney maintained that Muela only pulled his gun and opened fire to prevent harm to himself, but he did not elaborate on the exact circumstances.
Court records show the defendant has prior convictions that resulted in prison time, but they weren’t specified.