A 29-year-old undocumented immigrant has been charged with attempted murder after he sexually assaulted and savagely beat with a hammer a 64-year-old woman in Santa Maria, California, late last month. The woman died later.
Victor Aureliano Martinez Ramirez attacked Marilyn Pharis in her home and is also facing charges of first-degree burglary with person present, assault with intent to commit rape, sexual penetration by foreign object and resisting a peace officer, according to the Santa Maria Times.
Santa Maria Police Chief confirmed that Ramirez is in the US illegally.
Ramirez pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Pharis suffered severe injuries when she was attacked by Ramirez and was brought to the Marian Regional Medical Center where she died.
She called for help and the police arrested Ramirez in another home he had broken into.
Police said Ramirez has a history of four arrests by the Santa Maria Police for minor crimes, the latest in May last year.
US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials said they had asked police authorities to notify them before Martinez was released last year when he was at the Santa Barbara County Jail. ICE said it did not receive any such notification.
Martinez was arrested in May last year for felony assault with intent to commit sexual assault but it was downgraded to misdemeanor and was sentenced to probation.
"Available records indicate that Mr. Martinez (Ramirez) was released by local authorities a week later without ICE receiving the requested notification," said ICE spokeswoman Virginia Kice.
However, the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Department said for local jails to hold a person on an immigration detainer, the US ICE must have a federal court order.
Under the 2013 California Transparency and Responsibility Using State Tools Act, the sheriff's department said, when a felony assault charge is downgraded to a misdemeanor, it could not hold Ramirez without a federal court order.
A week before the Pharis assault, Ramirez was arrested last July 16 for possession of a concealed "dirk or dagger" and drug paraphernalia.
He pleaded no-contest to a misdemeanor on the weapons charge and was released on July 20. He was set to serve 30 days in jail in the fall.
Because he has no felony convictions, the ICE declined to issue an immigration detainer after reviewing his case.
Ramirez will appear for a preliminary hearing in court on August 13.
