MADISON, Wis. (AP) - A Wisconsin man who fatally ran over his 2-year-old son and allegedly stabbed the boy’s mother entered a plea deal Monday just as his trial was to begin.
Jesus Castillo-Dimas, 32, pleaded no contest to first-degree reckless homicide in the 2012 death of his son, Yandel Castillo-Castillo, and attempted first-degree intentional homicide for trying to kill his ex-girlfriend, Maria Castillo-Castillo, the boy’s mother.
Castillo-Dimas also pleaded no contest to second-degree reckless endangerment for stabbing Maria Castillo-Castillo’s boyfriend. That charge was reduced from another count of attempted first-degree intentional homicide.
The plea agreement was finalized Monday morning as jury selection was scheduled to begin, the Wisconsin State Journal (https://bit.ly/1ilTdXx ) reported. The trial was canceled. Castillo-Dimas had pleaded not guilty to the charges, citing mental disease or defect.
The trial would have determined whether Dimas was mentally fit at the time of the July 9, 2012, attack in Fitchburg and whether he intended to kill his son and the boy’s mother.
Under the plea agreement, prosecutors can ask for as much prison time for Castillo-Dimas as they want, up to the maximum penalty. His lawyers agreed to seek no less than 30 years of confinement.
Castillo-Dimas would have faced a mandatory life prison sentence if convicted on the original first-degree intentional homicide charge. Sentencing is set for June 12.
One of Castillo-Dimas’ lawyers, Victor Arellano, told Dane County Circuit Judge Ellen Berz that his client called him from jail over the weekend and said he wanted to go over what was then an offer from prosecutors.
“We said it was something we would recommend,” Arellano said. As part of the plea agreement, Castillo-Dimas abandoned his insanity defense.
The criminal complaint alleged that Castillo-Dimas was upset at seeing his former girlfriend with another man. After telling them they would all “pay for it,” Castillo-Dimas drove his sport utility vehicle at Castillo-Castillo and Yandel as they walked up a driveway at an apartment building, striking both.
Castillo-Dimas got out of the SUV and began to stab Maria Castillo-Castillo, telling her he was going to kill her, and injured the boyfriend as he tried to stop Castillo-Dimas, the complaint said. As Castillo-Castillo cried that Castillo-Dimas had killed their son, the complaint said, Castillo-Dimas told her, “There’s nothing you can do now, neither one of us are going to have him now.”
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Information from: Wisconsin State Journal, https://www.madison.com/wsj
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