Man charged in woman’s slaying
88-year-old died nearly amonth after beating at her home
SAN JOSE — A 19-yearold San Jose man was formally charged with murder Thursday in the death of Flo Douglas, the 88-year-old woman who was brutally beaten in a home-invasion robbery.
Zachary Omar Cuen was previously charged with premeditated attempted murder in connection with the Sept. 12 home invasion and assault of Douglas, who spent about one month hospitalized in an intensive care unit before she succumbed to her injuries on Oct. 8.
Cuen, who is also charged with robbery, burglary and elder abuse, is next scheduled to appear in court on Dec. 15. He faces life in prison if convicted, according to the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office.
“Our deepest condolences go out to Ms. Douglas’s family and to so many in the community who loved and respected her,” prosecutor Lance Daugherty said in a statement. “We will do fractured bones and internal hemorrhaging in the eyes and brain as a result of the attack – injuries that lead to her death, according to the district attorney’s office.
According to a police statement of facts submitted to prosecutors, Douglas told investigators that in the dark early-morning hours of Sept. 12, a man entered her home, demanded money and threatened to kill her.
When Douglas told the intruder that she did not have any money, he punched and kicked her, knocking her to the floor, and continued to land blows on the elderly woman.
The statement contends he left for a brief time and then returned to make the same demands and “kicked her several additional times.”
After ransacking the home, the intruder took off in Douglas’ car but abandoned it down the street from her home, investigators say.
The ensuing investigation and examination of Douglas’ home turned up a fingerprint that was examined and matched to Cuen, according to sheriff’s detectives.
Cuen, who turned 19 just days after the attack, has a criminal history that includes several attemptedburglary arrests as a juvenile, according to sources and court records.
One of those arrests involves a 2015 attempted burglary where the victim was an 85-year-old woman. Both that victim and Douglas lived within a few blocks of Cuen, authorities said.
Most recently, Cuen pleaded no contest on May 19 to charges in a February vehicle theft and hit-andrun. He was sentenced to 90 days in jail and placed on three years probation.