Atlantic City man held in fatal shooting he says was accidental
A night that started with three friends eating dinner and getting ready to watch a movie ended with one dead and another now jailed.
Jaylou Marlenne Pineda Lopez, 22, died of a single gunshot wound to the head April 22, inside the Venice Park apartment.
Franklin J. Felipe De La Paz was ordered held in jail during a detention hearing held Thursday. He also has an immigration detainer and could face a federal charge of possession of a weapon by an illegal immigrant, Chief Assistant Prosecutor Seth Levy told the court.
Felipe De La Paz originally was charged with aggravated manslaughter but that was downgraded to the lesser charge of manslaughter for recklessly pointing the gun at the victim and firing.
The defendant insists he did not mean to shoot Pineda Lopez, but that the gun accidentally discharged as they spoke.
The victim was close friends with Felipe De La Paz and his girlfriend, defense attorney Alex Settle told the judge.
“When police arrived, they both were hysterical,” he said.
They cooperated with police, with Felipe De La Paz breaking down in tears and dry-heaving as he told them what happened, Settle said.
The three had just finished dinner, when Felipe De La Paz and Pineda Lopez went to sit on the couch and get ready to watch a movie, as Felipe De La Paz’s girlfriend cleared the dishes.
That was when Felipe De La Paz realized his gun was still stuffed between the couch cushions, so he took it to put away in his bedroom.
As he walked up the stairs, Pineda Lopez told him to hurry up as the movie was long and there was work in the morning, Settle said.
Felipe De La Paz turned to tell her he was hurrying, when the gun accidentally went off, Settle said. The girlfriend immediately called 911.
While the state presented it as the defendant flagrantly waving the gun around, Settle said it was simply his client’s habit of talking with his hands that caused the fatal act.
“This was a complete and freak accident, and something not intended whatsoever,” Settle said.
Felipe De La Paz told police that he had purchased the gun on the street in New York. They also found an extended magazine capable of having 30 rounds, according to the charges.
The state did not charge him with the illegal firearm, but he could face a federal charge.
Settle noted that Felipe De La Paz has no criminal history and argued that his client proved he is not a flight risk, since he was not immediately arrested in the case and stayed where he told police he would be.
“While it is a terrible tragedy that this young woman lost her life, this was a complete accident and did not rise to a level of reckless manslaughter,” Settle said.
That argument will be for trial.
In the meantime, Superior Court Judge Christine Smith ordered him held in the Atlantic County Justice Facility.
