According to Innocence Project, approximately 20,000 people roughly 1% of the prison population arefalsely convicted of crimes. He was spared a death sentence because he and his lawyer, Todd Melnik, were able to prove that at the time the crime was committed Catalan was not at the murder scene but at Chavez-Ravine -- for a May 12, 2003, game between the Dodgers and Braves. "That's where my love for the Dodgers grew. '"That video evidence, combined with phone records that showed Catalan's cellphone pinged a tower near Dodger Stadium at 10:12 p.m. -- 31 minutes before the murder took place, roughly 20 miles away -- was enough to get Catalan acquitted. The documentary was released on Netflix on September 29, 2017. Juan Catalns life changed forever the day he attended a Los Angeles Dodgers game with his little daughter. How Juan Catalan Got Arrested for Killing a 16-Year-Old Girl in 2003 In August 2003, 16-year-old Martha Puebla was reportedly shot dead outside her home in San Fernando Valley. Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. Pueblas girlfriend had told detectives that as the gunshots went off, Puebla had yelled, Its Peps! But Puebla denied it, telling Pinner, Rodriguez and two other detectives that she had only speculated that Ledesma may have been the shooter. Nice and short and sweet and compelling. But before he was proven innocent, he had to face the possibility that his life would be reduced to another tragic statistic as he lived his life behind bars for a crime he did not commit. But for law-abiding father, Juan Catalan, it was his harsh reality. The Real Housewives of Atlanta The Bachelor Sister Wives 90 Day Fiance Wife Swap The Amazing Race Australia Married at First Sight The Real Housewives of Dallas My 600-lb Life . The events leading to Martha Pueblas slaying began five months earlier outside her bedroom window. Catalan was arrested for Puebla's death in August 2003, and he maintained his innocence, telling prosecutors that he had taken his 6-year-old daughter to the Dodgers game on the night of the murder.Though Catalan could produce ticket stubs and offered to take a lie-detector test, real proof that he was in attendance was unavailable. Im so happy and grateful for that.. Thank you for posting. 2010 The Thought & Expression Company, LLC. "The experience I've had, the people I've met, the places I've gone, it's actually all come from this, which is something crazy to think about. The shooting was retaliation for Puebla's testimony in a gang murder case in which Catalan's brother was a co-defendant. Shortly before 2 a.m. on Nov. 27, 2002, a girlfriend of Pueblas pulled up outside her house. She argued that there was plenty of time for Juan to leave the stadium and drive the 20 miles to commit the slaying. But after his release from jail, he became a devoted fan. But Juan Catalan said he was at a Los Angeles Dodgers baseball game -- not a drive-by shooting -- at the time of the murder. Who is Heather Hopper? Whenever Larry inevitably finds himself lying to his wife, Cheryl, about his latest convoluted mishap . You know me.. [Letting them review the tapes] sounded very cool because my life is so lacking in anything interesting.It did seem like kind of a lame story, but I told the lawyer, Go ahead, go crazy. Juan Catalan was later seen in the footage with his daughter returning to their row after getting snacks at the concession stand. To drive home his point, Pinner laid down a six-pack -- an array of mug shots that detectives often show to witnesses or victims of crimes. The problem came on August 12, 2003, when Juan was arrested by the police, accused of having murdered Martha Puebla, a teenager who testified against her older brother in a murder trial. A phone number was listed in the log. On the night of May 12, 2003, 16-year-old Martha Puebla was shot to death outside her home in Sun Valley, CA. Great documentary on Netflix about this, they interview Larry David and everything. Turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest? Heard the gunshots. Juan appeared sitting in the living room, accompanied by his wife, Brenda Rivera, whom he married in 2017 after 22 years of dating. Ledesma insisted he did not know her. Not even "sorry." 15 Types, Know All About Dramatic Character of Mia Benitez played by Sohvi Rodriguez, Know All About Ex Wife of Dave Portnoy -Renee Portnoy? View the profiles of people named Juan Cataln. About | Police response when the case was dismissed: crickets. Founded in 2010, Thought Catalog is owned and operated by The Thought & Expression Company, Inc. For over a decade, we've been at the bleeding edge of media, pioneering an infrastructure for creatives to flourish both artistically and financially. Where and How to Become Billionaire With Just $20 in Your Wallet !! That is why I keep my Google Location History active - not fool proof, but I am on the phone nearly all the time and can "triangulate" my calls and the location of my phone to establish almost always where I was at any given moment. After six months in jail, he was freed and later awarded a $320,000 settlement for police misconduct. Martha had earlier testified in a another gang-related murder . Plastic letters marking pieces of evidence dotted the street. Thanks to a series of tapes from the production of an HBO series, which on May 12, 2003, recorded a chapter in the house of the Los Angeles painting, the lawyer was able to verify that Juan was in the stands. Soon after regaining his freedom, Juan Catalan and his lawyer, Melnik became best of friends and was regularly seen playing basketball and watching games together. . Thankfully, the night of the accused crime Catalans wife had called him just as he was leaving the stadium with their daughter at 10.13pm. With his freedom back, Catalan has also not forgotten the show that helped him secure it.May 1, 2021. Witnesses had signed their names. The convincing proof was provided by outtake footage from Larry David's hit sitcom, which just so happened to be filming in Catalan's section on that May day.This is a story that might involve Hollywood, but it's not one you could concoct with your imagination. It also stated that at that time, Catalan was working in his fathers machine shop in other to support his family. Stay on your toes, homie. Catalan was ultimately exonerated by outtakes from "Curb Your Enthusiasm," an HBO comedy show that captured him at the Dodgers game, which was featured in Season 4's episode "The Car Pool Lane.". The ruse, as Pinner would later call it in court, was a legal move. Peps, as Ledesma was called in the gang, wasnt there. "The film covers the drive-by shooting of 16-year-old Martha Puebla, a witness in a gang-related murder case in which Catalan's brother was a co-defendant. Scanning through the three hours of videotape from the game, Melnik was able to pinpoint where Catalan and his daughter were sitting, but the video resolution wasnt clear enough to definitively show in a court of law. When Pinner and Rodriguez stepped into the interrogation room with Ledesma, they had little real information to work with. In regards to the murder, four men were later arrested and found guilty. OK. Thats poison in our bodies that, you know, it doesnt hurt the person you hate, it hurts yourself, and it eats away at your soul. Makes you really call into question the quality of their investigation and ability to collect facts and evidence, when this happens. The documentary was released on Netflix on September 29, 2017, and it received numerous awards and an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Documentary for a Short Film. However, when he was in jail awaiting trial, Juan remembered seeing camera crews filming at the stadium on the night in question. In addition to his flies and his genes, Juan had passions and interests that he carried with his proven sobriety. Following the acquittal, the two officers have allegedly reassigned posts within the LAPD but they were not penalized for their conduct. "Back in 2003, Catalan was arrested for a murder he did not commit. So interesting and so good to know an innocent man avoided jail! When you hear a grown man, you know, cry for help, and youre like, helpless, its a feeling like, man, just of completeno hope. No. My friend. Previously we told you about theBritish family with seven children who lost their dad to suicide who are the subject of a heartbreaking new Netflix documentary. We went through, probably, the first five tapes and there was no Juan on it, said Melnik. Of the 58,000 seats filled with fans, filming took place right near where Catalan was sitting. I dont even know a Martha, Ledesma lied. My brother was accused of a murder he did not commit, and it took me months of constant investigation - 50 hours or more per week - to gather the evidence necessary to establish conclusively it was not him. And dont get caught.. He sued the city of Los Angeles and was compensated with $320,000 due to the mismanagement of the detectives in charge of the case. Catalan was arrested and sent to prison where he spent six months awaiting trial. As David might say, baseball has been pret-tay, pret-tay, pret-tay good to Catalan. Puebla, in fact, hadnt dropped a dime. The documentary Long Shot, available on Netflix, tells the story of Juan Ignacio Cataln, a man with a troublesome life during his youth, who, because he was with the wrong people, at a bad time, was about to be sentenced to death, had it not been for that game that the Los Angeles Dodgers lost 11-4 to the Atlanta Braves and a cheap comedy shoot. Her name starts with an M . In 2004, federal investigators got involved in the investigation into Pueblas killing as part of a larger case against the Vineland Boyz. After dancing with death, Juan was a free man. Fortunately, he was able to remember that someone in his section mentioned that the famous actor and comedian Bob Einstein, who plays Marty Funkhouser on Curb your Enthusiasm was in attendance. Aside from that he allegedly had no criminal records. I busted through the ceiling, Nicola Adams on fighting sexism & inspiring the next generation, Treat Mum to something special this Mother's Day gift ideas from 23, Prince Harry diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder by trauma expert Dr Gabor Mate in tell-all interview. He mocked and swore at Pinner, repeatedly denying any role in the killings. Since an eyewitness identified Juan as the shooter and Juan had a criminal record from his teens, police arrested him and charged him with murder. And now Juan is hoping to get a place at university to study business administration and is now a huge fan of Curb of Enthusiasm. But despite providing his ticket stubs, police weren't convinced of his innoncence and proceeded with proseucting him, which if he had been convicted, could have seen him face the death penalty. The case status is Pending - Other Pending. ProStarSolar > Blog Classic > Uncategorized > juan catalan wife. "It was incompetence; they took the easy way out," said the civil rights attorney. Even though I was looking at a possible death sentence, it felt like I was already halfway there because I was away from my family, he told Bartlett. Thanks, I know what I'm going to watch tonight, Yup. I have multiple witnesses who are going to testify that you were the shooter.. But [keep a] low-pro[file]. This is true. . which is not a strategy that a defense attorney representing a client will employ? In 2003, a man named Juan Catalan was arrested for murder in Los Angeles. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Desperate mountain residents trapped by snow beg for help; We are coming, sheriff says, Look up: The 32 most spectacular ceilings in Los Angeles, Hidden illegal casinos are booming in L.A., with organized crime reaping big profits, 19 cafes that make L.A. a world-class coffee destination, David Lindley, guitarist best known for work with Jackson Browne, dies at 78, Newsom, IRS give Californians until October to file tax returns, Calmes: Heres what we should do about Marjorie Taylor Greene, Randall Emmett, Ambyr Childers settle domestic violence restraining order dispute. The case status is Pending - Other Pending. TIL Juan Catalan Spent nearly 6 months in jail for the murder of a teenage girl until his lawyer found unused footage from HBO's 'Curb Your Enthusiasm' that proved he . NEW YORK -- Here he was among the multitudes that had assembled in Yankee Stadium on this wet October night. Juan Catalan was put on death row and spent nearly 6 months in jail for the murder of a teenage girl, until his lawyer found . Police swarmed the area, roping it off with yellow tape. He begged the girl for help and then died, his head slumped against the steering wheel. To the gang, Puebla was a snitch and needed to be dealt with. His offer to take a lie-detector test was refused. You mean there is a small possibility that cops are morons who lie and incriminate innocent people to justify their own existence? Yet despite the settlement, a Gofundme page organized by Melnik last March in support of Catalan says that Juan "still struggles today" financially, working in his father's machine shop to support his three children. On 05/30/1978 for a murder he did not commit Catalan lives today sun Valley, CA, where! Pinner remains a homicide detective in North Hollywood. my house? According to reports, the homicide detectives in charge of the case, Martin Pinner and Jose Rodriguez, who were certain Juan was the killer, just wanted to set him up and end the case. Cheryl Hines has been fantastic in her role as Larry David's wife and ex-wife throughout the 10 seasons of Curb Your Enthusiasm. Contact, how to write a letter of power of attorney, how long after death does someone have power of attorney, how is christian rivera paying for his attorney, how much does kenya attorney general earned income, va free legal forms, how to award power of attorney of my child while i am incarcerated, what does it mean to give power of attorney, how long after a personal injury do i have to contact an attorney. Right underneath my basketball hoop on the side of the street. john smith laramie wife juan catalan wife. In 2007, Catalan received a $320,000 settlement from a lawsuit against the City of Los Angeles and its police force, and was the subject of a short Netflix documentary, "Long Shot," that examines his ordeal. According to reports, he had been arrested as a teenager for breaking into cars. Until the same tracking pins you near a crime scene making you a suspect. On 06/28/2021 CATALAN, JUAN filed a Personal Injury - Motor Vehicle lawsuit against ALLSTATE INDEMNITY COMPANY. . He was later awarded a $320,000 settlement for police misconduct, false imprisonment, and defamation in 2007. Again, he was able to prove that his wife, Amla called him as he was leaving the stadium with his daughter at around 10:13 pm. The New York Post reported in 2017 that Catalan had earned an associate's degree in general education and hoped to pursue a bachelor's degree in business. After a couple months with Juan in jail, his girlfriend reminded him he had been at the Dodger game that night with his daughter. Juan was arrested and charged with a murder he clearly did not commit. To inquire about a licence to reproduce material, visit our Syndication site. You're never going to find your client on a tape., And on the, probably the fifth tape I think it was, Juan walked right into the camera shot, and the rest is history, as they say.. . A judge threw out the case, and Catalan was awarded $320,000 in a wrongful-arrest suit. Shes dead!. Before federal prosecutors and the LAPD sorted out Pueblas murder, however, Pinner and Rodriguez had arrested an innocent man in connection with Pueblas slaying. What Caused, Can Botox Help You in Looking Young? But incredibly, as 60 Minutes reporter Liam Bartlett revealed, its comedy that saved him. With that information, his lawyer was able to ask the actor and shows producers permission to go through the outtake footage from the filming of the Car Pool Lane episode of the show. . Catalan told Ledesma about the weapon immediately. Last year, in a federal plea deal to avoid the death penalty, Ledesma, Covarrubias and the gang member thought to be the gunman admitted to taking part in killing Puebla. If the video did not exist he'd still be in prison right now. Why is Hasan Piker known as Hypocritical Leftist? By subscribing, you agree to the terms of our Privacy Statement. "I mean, if that's not a miracle, I don't know what is. Came here to say this! Sometimes they go the extra step of making up documents to bolster their lies. According to Melnik: I told him.