Man sentenced to life in prison for grandmother’s stabbing death
A man who stabbed his grandmother in the head, causing her to die days later, was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison plus one year for an aggravated enhancement Thursday morning in Kern County Superior Court.
Juan Valdez, 32, stabbed his grandmother, Maria Magdalena Valdez, 70, with a kitchen knife on July 13 at their home on the 500 block of Flower Street. The younger Valdez had lived with his grandmother since he was 3 years old.
Valdez appeared in court with his defense attorney, Julius Cruz from the Kern County Public Defender’s Office, while Judge Judith Dulcich pronounced sentence. Valdez mainly looked at the desk in front of him and at the floor.
The Kern County District Attorney’s Office originally charged Valdez with assault with a deadly weapon. However, the charge was amended to second-degree murder after his grandmother died at Mercy Hospital on July 21.
According to the Bakersfield Police Department report filed in Kern County Superior Court, Maria Valdez was still breathing and conscious before she was taken to the hospital, but she was unable to speak. The report said Maria Valdez had two stab wounds: one on her temple and one near an ear.
According to the DA’s office, Valdez stabbed his grandmother in the head while she was sleeping. The pair had gotten into an argument over cigarettes earlier that day.
Valdez called 911 to report he stabbed his grandmother and admitted to the stabbing as Bakersfield police officers took him into custody, the report said.
According to the BPD report, Valdez said he stabbed his grandmother because he was scared since he was abused as a child. Valdez told officers that he could not control his “fear” and “snapped,” according to the report.