ESCONDIDO — Two men accused of an armed attack and attempted robbery on a Marine and his brother got more than they bargained for when they picked the fight, a judge said Feb. 4.
Moments before ordering Andy Flores and Victor Resendiz Hernandez to stand trial for a New Year’s Day attack, Superior Court Judge Joan Weber said the incident was a “classic case” of picking the wrong victims.
Flores, 25, and Hernandez, 23, pleaded not guilty to one felony count each of attempted robbery and assault with a deadly weapon as well as a brandishing a knife, a misdemeanor.
The duo faces up to seven years in prison if convicted, Deputy District Attorney Laurie Hauf said outside the courtroom.
Mark Reynolds testified the defendants started the altercation around 9 p.m. Jan. 1 near the basketball courts at Washington Park. Eventually, he said, the two men cornered him and his brother near the park’s bathrooms. At that point, he said Flores pulled out a folding knife and demanded one of their mp3 players.
Mark Reynolds said Hernandez took the knife off of Flores, who was intoxicated.
Under cross-examination by Hernandez’s attorney, Matt Roberts, Mark Reynolds testified Hernandez tried to get Flores to leave multiple times. He said he believed when Hernandez got the knife from Flores, it was an attempt to diffuse the situation.
However Raymond Reynolds, a Camp Pendleton Marine, testified that after Hernandez acquired the knife, he moved toward him with the blade out. As the victims walked away from the duo, a fight broke out between Flores and Raymond Reynolds. During their skirmish, Flores stabbed the Marine multiple times; however, the stab wounds were only superficial and didn’t require any stitches, Raymond Reynolds said.
Roberts argued that his client had the unfortunate luck of being in the wrong place at the wrong time with someone who was intoxicated and being a “jerk.”
Weber citied Raymond Reynolds’ testimony about Hernandez’s actions with the knife as one of the reasons why she held him accountable on the aforementioned criminal charges.
Both men remain in custody. Their trial is scheduled for March 25.
