Woman who killed boyfriend sentenced to 4 years

A woman who fatally stabbed her boyfriend at their Otay Mesa home was sentenced Wednesday to four years in state prison.

Amanda Smith Rosales, 48, pleaded guilty in Chula Vista Superior Court to voluntary manslaughter in connection with the July 8, 2021, stabbing death of David Earl Jones, 38.

San Diego police said Rosales initially reported waking up to find Jones wounded in the home’s entryway. Officers and fire personnel responded to the residence on Caminito Quixote around 3:30 a.m. Jones died at the scene.

Rosales was arrested about two months later and charged with murder, which could have led to a 26-yearto-life prison term if convicted of all counts and allegations.

Defense attorney Alonso ZavalaSoto said Wednesday that his client was a victim of numerous acts of domestic violence at the hands of Jones and had suffered from domestic-violence-related trauma involving past partners.

Rosales apologized in court, saying she “made a bad decision and acted out of fear,” but added that she had previously sought help and protection from the police and the courts without success.

Deputy District Attorney Abigail Dillon, who called Rosales’ case “extremely sad,” said her history as a domestic violence victim was a factor in reaching the plea deal for voluntary manslaughter.

However, she argued that the circumstances of the killing warranted a six-year prison term, the maximum term that Superior Court Judge Michael Popkins indicated he might impose.

The prosecutor said Jones had no defensive wounds and the two stab wounds he sustained were “clean,” meaning he was likely not moving at the time they were made. She also described Rosales and Jones’ relationship as “volatile,” and that both had been arrested on different occasions for alleged domestic violence against one another, including one arrest in 2021 where Rosales allegedly slashed Jones in the face with a knife.

Popkins said if he was looking at the specific facts of the killing on their own, he would likely impose the maximum six-year sentence. However, the judge said he could not ignore other factors, such as the violence perpetrated against Rosales during her relationship with Jones.

While Popkins said the stabbing did not constitute legal self-defense, he said, “based on the victim’s previous assaults on her, somewhere in her mind, she perceived this as self-defense.”

An 80-year-old man sustained lifethreatening injuries when he was hit by a vehicle while walking in Grantville on Wednesday, San Diego police said.

The man was crossing Twain Avenue near Fairmount Avenue from the north sidewalk around 5:40 p.m. when a 68-year-old man driving a Toyota Camry heading west on Twain struck him, police Officer John Buttle said.

The man suffered a broken knee and leg, a fractured pelvis, broken ribs and an orbital bone fracture, police said.

San Diego Superior Court officials are warning of recent attempts by scammers to steal money from residents by posing as court or law enforcement officials over the phone.

The scams highlighted by the court in a recent announcement typically involve individuals asking for money orders or cash to resolve outstanding warrants, failures to appear for jury duty, or other court-related fines and fees.

In one such scam, someone claiming to be a member of the San Diego Police Department, sheriff ’s office, or the court system, calls someone to inform them that they have been fined. If the payments are not made, the person will be arrested, the scammer often says.

The person is then told to obtain a money order or get cash, then meet someone outside the sheriff ’s office or courthouse to pay the supposed fine.

In some instances, court officials say the victim is told a money order is required because the court does not accept cash, checks or credit cards.

“People need to know that the court will not call someone on the phone to remedy a court issue or fine,” said Michael Roddy, executive officer of the San Diego Superior Court. “The court will send you a written notice; it will not call you asking for money. In addition, the court also accepts checks and credit cards so no one should be insisting you pay a fine in cash.”

Court officials suggest those who receive a scam phone call should hang up or call law enforcement if the calls continue.