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The Utah Court of Appeals on Thursday reversed the murder conviction of an Ogden man, ruling the trial judge erred when he excluded the testimony of several defense witnesses.
The unanimous decision by a three-judge panel opens the door for a retrial of Robert Lee McCullar in the slaying of Filiberto Bedolla, who was stabbed 14 times on Dec. 22, 2009, in his Ogden apartment. McCullar was found guilty in 2011 of first-degree felony by a 2nd District Court jury and sentenced to 15 years to life in prison.
At trial, prosecutors presented a taped conversation McCullar had with his one-time girlfriend, who was working with police. McCullar, now 53, said that after a "run in" with Bedolla, he followed him home and cut his throat with a piece of glass.
Another prosecution witness, a pastor serving time for statutory rape who met McCullar while he was awaiting trial, testified that McCullar told him "I had to handle my business, and so I had to do what I had to do" and that he "left the body" at the scene of the crime.
McCullar denied confessing to the pastor, said he lied to the girlfriend because he believed she would run away with him to Dallas if he confessed, and countered the confessions did not square with other evidence. He also sought to present an alternative theory to the jury that the evidence suggested a woman described by investigators as Bedolla's "main prostitute" was the killer.
Among his potential witnesses were two of Bedolla's friends who told police they witnessed a violent outburst by the woman six to eight months before the victim was killed, and a convenience store clerk who said that several days before the slaying, Bedolla told him that the woman had demanded money and threatened to rob him if he didn't pay.
In addition, Bedolla's landlord told police that Bedolla had said he was planning to move to California — which McCullar believed was motivated by his fear of the woman, according to the appeals court ruling.
However, 2nd District Judge W. Brent West ruled the testimony of those four witnesses would be inadmissible hearsay. That decision, the appeals court judges said, deprived McCullar of a "meaningful opportunity to present a complete defense."
Twitter: @PamelaMansonSLC