Five years after deputies forced their way into a locked San Jacinto home and found a man dying inside, a jury is finally being seated to decide what happened that night. Pretrial motions in the case against Wynette Clara Nunez, now 43, wrapped up Tuesday, and opening statements could begin as soon as this week before Riverside County Superior Court Judge Charles Koosed.
Nunez is accused of fatally stabbing her boyfriend, 27-year-old Mauro Villiasenor, during a dispute at his residence on the 100 block of Boxelder Way near Elderberry Street in San Jacinto on July 4, 2021, according to MyNewsLA.com. Witnesses called 911, and patrol deputies arrived at the residence within minutes, the outlet reports. They found the front door locked and heard sounds of distress coming from inside before forcing entry, discovering Villiasenor with significant injuries. Paramedics attempted life-saving measures, but he died at the scene.
The Boxelder Way address sits within Pheasant Pointe, a suburban development of newly built single-family homes constructed around 2020 and 2021, according to Livabl. Because San Jacinto contracts its law enforcement rather than running its own police force, the response fell to Riverside County Sheriff's deputies working out of a substation on Sixth Street, per the City of San Jacinto.
A Predawn Interrogation and an Arrest
Nunez was detained at the property and questioned by homicide detectives into the predawn hours of July 5, 2021, before being arrested and booked into jail that same day, per the same account from MyNewsLA.com. Sgt. Ben Ramirez has said Nunez allegedly grabbed a knife and stabbed Villiasenor during the confrontation. She has no documented prior felony convictions in Riverside County, the outlet notes.
The investigation into Villiasenor's death was led by the Riverside County Sheriff's Department's Central Homicide Unit working alongside investigators from the San Jacinto Sheriff's Sub-Station, according to The Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle. That unit assumes jurisdiction over major violent crimes across the county's contract cities, the outlet notes.
From a Banning Courtroom to Riverside's Hall of Justice
The case took nearly a year to reach a formal charging decision on trial eligibility. Following an April 6, 2022 preliminary hearing at the Banning Justice Center, Riverside County Superior Court Judge Jorge Hernandez found sufficient evidence for Nunez to stand trial on first-degree murder and a weapon enhancement, according to Banning Patch. Nunez was ordered held on $1 million bail after that hearing and has remained in custody at the Larry D. Smith Correctional Facility in Banning ever since, Banning Patch reported.
More than five years after her arrest, Judge Koosed has now summoned panels of prospective jurors to the Riverside Hall of Justice for screening, MyNewsLA.com reports. Domestic violence homicide cases like this one are typically handled by the Riverside County District Attorney's Office's specialized Domestic Violence Unit, which focuses on violent crimes between intimate partners, according to the Riverside County District Attorney's Office.
What Nunez Is Facing at Trial
Nunez was charged with first-degree murder along with an allegation that she personally used a deadly weapon in the commission of a felony. Under California Penal Code Sections 187 and 189, a first-degree murder conviction carries a mandatory 25 years to life in state prison, and prosecutors must prove the killing was willful, deliberate, and premeditated, according to legal resource Proper Defense. A second-degree murder conviction would carry 15 years to life instead.
The weapon enhancement Nunez faces, under Penal Code Section 12022(b)(1), adds a mandatory consecutive one-year sentence for anyone who personally uses a deadly or dangerous weapon such as a knife during a felony, according to court documents cited by the Santa Barbara County District Attorney. That enhancement would be served on top of, not instead of, whatever murder sentence a jury imposes.
A Broader Pattern in Riverside County
The case also lands amid wider concerns about intimate partner violence among young adults in the region. A Riverside University Health System report released in January 2024 found that people aged 18 to 34 accounted for more than half of all domestic violence emergency department visits tied to physical abuse in Riverside County between 2017 and 2021, according to Riverside University Health System Public Health. Both Nunez and Villiasenor were 27 years old at the time of the fatal encounter.
With jury selection now underway, opening statements could begin within days, putting the case in front of a Riverside jury more than five years after deputies first broke down that Boxelder Way door. What jurors ultimately decide about what happened inside that home remains to be seen as testimony gets underway.
