Yuba City man acquitted of rape, attempted rape

A Sutter County Superior Court jury found a Yuba City man not guilty of rape and attempted rape Friday.

Luis Miguel Juarez-canizalez, 27, was charged with rape and had been in custody since May 27, 2019. The charge stemmed from a victim who reported Juarez

Canizalez raped her during a visit to his apartment.

The trial began Tuesday and was the first in Sutter County since the pandemic began in March. The jury was selected on Wednesday and Deputy District Attorney Diego Heimlich presented half of his case. On Thursday, he finished presenting his case and defense attorney Richard Thomas called one witness as part of his case. Heimlich called six witnesses, including the victim and the victim’s friend who drove her to Juarez-canizalez’s house.

The attorneys gave closing arguments Thursday afternoon and the jury began deliberations Friday morning. Just after 2:30 p.m. Friday, the jury returned with its verdict. The jury was asked to come to a verdict on the charge of rape but also attempted rape if they found Juarez-canizalez not guilty of rape. They found him not guilty of both rape and attempted rape.

Judge Susan Green commended the jurors for their service given the pandemic and the poor air quality from wildfires. During the trial, jurors sat where the audience would normally sit. They sat socially distanced from each other with most seats in the gallery covered.

The jury box was left empty and the attorneys’ tables were turned to face the jury away from Green. The last jury trial in Sutter County took place just before the first stayat-home order went into effect in March, according to Green.