A young man accused of taking part in the killing of a homeless man at Bonita Cove Park last summer was ordered Monday to stand trial on a murder charge.
Daniel Ruben Martin, 19, is accused in the death of Michael Shook, 65, who was stabbed three times and beaten in the early morning hours of July 5.
Martin, who was 18 at the time of Shook’s death, was arrested along with a then-17-year-old boy in connection with the homicide. Martin is being tried as an adult while the other defendant is in juvenile proceedings.
According to preliminary hearing testimony in Superior Court, the juvenile is accused of stabbing Shook, while both defendants are accused of beating the victim.
San Diego police Detective Chris Bernard, who interviewed both defendants, testified that Martin admitted to elbowing Shook in the face several times and kicking him in the ribs.
“I didn’t kill him, but by the time I was finished with him, he was done,” Martin said, according to the detective.
Investigators also asked Martin about the victim’s pants, which were balled up and found near Shook’s body. One of Shook’s shoes was entangled inside the pants, which Deputy District Attorney Shane Waller said was consistent with the pants being forcibly removed.
Bernard said Martin admitted the victim’s pants were removed after the stabbing. When asked why, the detective said Martin laughed, then said “We thought it would be cool.”
Both teens’ accounts to detectives differed in some aspects.
Martin said his friend and Shook initially got into a verbal argument with each other, that escalated into violence, the detective said.
The juvenile said Martin and Shook argued first and at some point, Shook pulled out a knife. The boy said he grabbed Shook’s knife hand and forced the victim’s own blade into his body, while Martin held Shook’s arm down, Bernard testified.
Defense attorney Amy Balfe argued her client was being held responsible for acts committed by his friend, the juvenile who allegedly stabbed Shook. Balfe cited testimony from a deputy medical examiner who conducted Shook’s autopsy and said one of the stab wounds was what caused Shook’s death.
The attorney also argued there may have been some provocation from Shook, noting that the knife used in the killing belonged to the victim.
She also said that according to one witness, Shook was beaten and repeatedly kicked by a group of six people earlier in the night. Balfe argued that many of the victim’s injuries, including more than a dozen rib fractures, were likely sustained in that altercation.