Published in the April 27 – May 10, 2016 issue of Morgan Hill Life
By Staff Report
Tara Romero
One of two men on trial for the 2011 drive-by shooting that killed 14-year-old Sobrato High School freshman Tara Romero was found not guilty by a jury earlier this month. After about five days of deliberation, the 12-person jury acquitted Primitivo Hernandez, 27 — who had been in custody since the shooting outside the Village Avante apartment complex at Cosmo and Del Monte avenues where Romero and five friends were waiting for a ride home.
That same jury found Fernando Mateo Lopez, 24, of Gilroy guilty of second degree murder, five counts of attempted murder and three counts of shooting at an inhabited dwelling. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for June 20.
Five suspects were arrested just hours after the shooting. Ricardo Diaz, 23, of Morgan Hill, pleaded guilty to murder and testified against Hernandez and Mateo Lopez in their trial. He agreed to a minimum sentence of 25 years.
The trial for suspect Esmeling Bahena, 22, of Morgan Hill, began in mid-April. The fifth suspect, Ramon Gutierrez, 21, of Morgan Hill, has been in custody at state mental health facilities since he was declared incompetent to stand trial after a 2012 preliminary hearing.
According to news reports, the prosecutor and investigators presented mounds of evidence that connected Mateo Lopez to the shooting.
However, the state had less evidence connecting Hernandez to the shooting even though he was caught with the others. His attorney argued to the jury that while Hernandez might have been affiliated with the same Sureño street gang as the other suspects in the past, and he was in the car with them during the 2011 shooting, he was unaware the others were planning a shooting.
