Drizzt
Member
Albuquerque Journal
February 4, 2003 Tuesday
SECTION: WEST SIDE JOURNAL; Pg. 1
LENGTH: 779 words
HEADLINE: Forgiveness Follows Death
BYLINE: Chris Vogel Journal Staff Writer
BODY:
Wife Supports Probation for Her Husband's Killer
Manuel Fernandez sat alone on a long wooden bench in an almost barren hallway Monday afternoon at Sandoval County District Court waiting to be sentenced for accidentally shooting a driver in 2000.
After receiving 18 months of probation, Fernandez was not so alone as he and the victim's wife shared a hug.
John Murdoch, 44, died on May 8, 2000, after a .38-caliber bullet struck him in the head as he was driving southbound along N.M. 528 to the dry cleaners.
On Nov. 18, Fernandez, 22, pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter, admitting he had fired the fatal shot from the former Del Norte Gun Club site in Rio Rancho. "There are no words to describe the loss of a spouse," said Lori Ortiz-Murdoch during the hearing. "I have battled for the last two and a half years and have dealt with my anger toward the defendant. The day after he entered the plea, I met with him, and he became a real person to me. I don't believe he intended to kill my husband, but he made a really bad decision."
Fernandez apologized to Ortiz-Murdoch during the hearing, saying that "getting to know Lori has been a great thing. She's a very strong person, and I'm glad she's on my side."
Fernandez, who had not been jailed before the plea and sentencing, declined to comment after the sentencing.
In addition to the probation, District Judge Kenneth Brown ordered Fernandez to be evaluated to see whether anger management and substance abuse counseling is needed. He also ordered 150 hours of community service, some of which Fernandez can work off by making public presentations with Ortiz-Murdoch to at-risk youths about gun safety.
Fernandez had pleaded guilty to an aggravated battery charge in June 2001, and his remaining 16 months of probation from that case will run consecutive to Monday's order of 18 months of probation.
Fernandez was scheduled to go to trial in November, but on the day it was to begin, he accepted a plea offer.
"I was shocked," Ortiz-Murdoch said, "because I was ready for a trial. At that point, my mind-set was 'I've got to get this guy in prison he killed my husband, he goes to prison.' So, when I agreed to the plea, I asked if Manuel would meet with me for an hour. I really wanted John to become more than just a name to him."
Chaperoned by attorneys, the two met, "and suddenly Manuel became a real person as well," Ortiz-Murdoch said. "When I first saw him at the arraignment a year ago, he seemed a little bit arrogant, but now he seemed remorseful. We spoke for an hour, and I told him who John was, I told Manuel I needed to forgive him for my sake, and I asked him if he would work with me talking to at-risk juveniles. He agreed, and that started the relationship."
The two spoke several more times by phone, and a week before Monday's sentencing they sat down this time alone to get to know each other over dinner.
"We spent one and a half hours together," she said, "and I dug deep with him. I learned a lot about him, who he is, and it helped me deal with today. My heart aches so bad, but I can't live with this rage and anger. There needs to be forgiveness when it's appropriate. If Manuel had deliberately killed my husband this would never be happening I would never forgive him."
On May 8, 1999, one year to the day of John Murdoch's death, Ortiz-Murdoch met her future husband. They decided to marry on his parent's wedding anniversary, to honor his mother's death at the age of 44. Five weeks after exchanging vows, Murdoch was killed, Ortiz-Murdoch said after the hearing.
She is trying to turn her pain into something positive, and is now volunteering at the District Attorney's Office. She works about 20 hours a week helping attorneys prepare for trial and talking with witnesses and victims.
"I was one of those victims who was on the phone with the DA every week," she said. "I was not easy to deal with, but I didn't care. Until you've lived through a tragedy, you don't know what the other person is going through. I have lived through it, so when I say 'I know how you feel,' I know how they feel. It's healing for me, and it's given me a purpose, which I desperately need."
By not demanding a trial and by not pushing for Fernandez's incarceration, Ortiz-Murdoch knows she has put a lot of faith in the man who killed her husband.
"If Manuel does not stay on the up and up and does something wrong again, I'll be devastated," she said. "I gave Manuel every opportunity and I believe in him, and I told him that. Manuel has shown me a different side of him of late, and I have to go with my gut. I think it's the right thing to do."
February 4, 2003 Tuesday
SECTION: WEST SIDE JOURNAL; Pg. 1
LENGTH: 779 words
HEADLINE: Forgiveness Follows Death
BYLINE: Chris Vogel Journal Staff Writer
BODY:
Wife Supports Probation for Her Husband's Killer
Manuel Fernandez sat alone on a long wooden bench in an almost barren hallway Monday afternoon at Sandoval County District Court waiting to be sentenced for accidentally shooting a driver in 2000.
After receiving 18 months of probation, Fernandez was not so alone as he and the victim's wife shared a hug.
John Murdoch, 44, died on May 8, 2000, after a .38-caliber bullet struck him in the head as he was driving southbound along N.M. 528 to the dry cleaners.
On Nov. 18, Fernandez, 22, pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter, admitting he had fired the fatal shot from the former Del Norte Gun Club site in Rio Rancho. "There are no words to describe the loss of a spouse," said Lori Ortiz-Murdoch during the hearing. "I have battled for the last two and a half years and have dealt with my anger toward the defendant. The day after he entered the plea, I met with him, and he became a real person to me. I don't believe he intended to kill my husband, but he made a really bad decision."
Fernandez apologized to Ortiz-Murdoch during the hearing, saying that "getting to know Lori has been a great thing. She's a very strong person, and I'm glad she's on my side."
Fernandez, who had not been jailed before the plea and sentencing, declined to comment after the sentencing.
In addition to the probation, District Judge Kenneth Brown ordered Fernandez to be evaluated to see whether anger management and substance abuse counseling is needed. He also ordered 150 hours of community service, some of which Fernandez can work off by making public presentations with Ortiz-Murdoch to at-risk youths about gun safety.
Fernandez had pleaded guilty to an aggravated battery charge in June 2001, and his remaining 16 months of probation from that case will run consecutive to Monday's order of 18 months of probation.
Fernandez was scheduled to go to trial in November, but on the day it was to begin, he accepted a plea offer.
"I was shocked," Ortiz-Murdoch said, "because I was ready for a trial. At that point, my mind-set was 'I've got to get this guy in prison he killed my husband, he goes to prison.' So, when I agreed to the plea, I asked if Manuel would meet with me for an hour. I really wanted John to become more than just a name to him."
Chaperoned by attorneys, the two met, "and suddenly Manuel became a real person as well," Ortiz-Murdoch said. "When I first saw him at the arraignment a year ago, he seemed a little bit arrogant, but now he seemed remorseful. We spoke for an hour, and I told him who John was, I told Manuel I needed to forgive him for my sake, and I asked him if he would work with me talking to at-risk juveniles. He agreed, and that started the relationship."
The two spoke several more times by phone, and a week before Monday's sentencing they sat down this time alone to get to know each other over dinner.
"We spent one and a half hours together," she said, "and I dug deep with him. I learned a lot about him, who he is, and it helped me deal with today. My heart aches so bad, but I can't live with this rage and anger. There needs to be forgiveness when it's appropriate. If Manuel had deliberately killed my husband this would never be happening I would never forgive him."
On May 8, 1999, one year to the day of John Murdoch's death, Ortiz-Murdoch met her future husband. They decided to marry on his parent's wedding anniversary, to honor his mother's death at the age of 44. Five weeks after exchanging vows, Murdoch was killed, Ortiz-Murdoch said after the hearing.
She is trying to turn her pain into something positive, and is now volunteering at the District Attorney's Office. She works about 20 hours a week helping attorneys prepare for trial and talking with witnesses and victims.
"I was one of those victims who was on the phone with the DA every week," she said. "I was not easy to deal with, but I didn't care. Until you've lived through a tragedy, you don't know what the other person is going through. I have lived through it, so when I say 'I know how you feel,' I know how they feel. It's healing for me, and it's given me a purpose, which I desperately need."
By not demanding a trial and by not pushing for Fernandez's incarceration, Ortiz-Murdoch knows she has put a lot of faith in the man who killed her husband.
"If Manuel does not stay on the up and up and does something wrong again, I'll be devastated," she said. "I gave Manuel every opportunity and I believe in him, and I told him that. Manuel has shown me a different side of him of late, and I have to go with my gut. I think it's the right thing to do."