Isaac Gutierrez

Case details

Isaac Gutierrez was convicted of the murders of Billie Faye Jones and John Stopher. The jury also found him guilty of the kidnapping of Rose V., aiding and abetting her rape, and attempted murder of Coachella police officer David Dunavent. The sentencing court imposed the death penalty. Isaac Gutierrez died in prison on December 7, 2008, after a death row inmate died of natural causes.

Timeline

• Oct. 31, 1986 — Isaac Gutierrez murdered Billie Faye Jones and John Stopher.
• Aug. 1986 — Isaac Gutierrez was paroled.
• Oct. 1986 — Isaac Gutierrez went to live with his sister and her husband in Bakersfield.
• Last day of Oct. 1986 — Isaac Gutierrez picked up his 15-year-old son in Jones’ van and took him to the Hesperia home he had shared with his wife.
• Halloween 1986 — The crimes involving Rose V. and John Stopher occurred at the Hesperia home; Billie Faye Jones was found in the van that Isaac Gutierrez was driving when he was stopped.
• Shortly after midnight, Nov. 1, 1986 — Police officer David Dunavent stopped the van near Coachella; an armed encounter occurred and Isaac Gutierrez was struck by a single bullet and taken to the hospital.
• Nov. 1, 1986 (after the armed encounter) — Rose V. came out of the van and sought help; the van was released to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department as part of its investigation.
• Three days later — The van was transferred to the custody of the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department and stored in its impound lot.
• Dec. 7, 2008 — Isaac Gutierrez died in a hospital; the death was described as natural causes.
• August 16, 2002 — A state Supreme Court upheld the death sentences.

Background

Isaac Gutierrez was a former firefighter for the State Department of Forestry. He had been twice fired because his drinking problems had affected his work. After the second termination, he tried to run over a police officer during a drunk driving stop and was sentenced to four years in prison.

While he was incarcerated, his wife told him she had a boyfriend and filed for divorce. Isaac Gutierrez was paroled in August 1986. He went to live with his sister and her husband in Bakersfield in October 1986.

The relationship issues and restraining order were described as part of his background. The divorce filing and a restraining order prevented him from visiting his wife and his 5-year-old daughter while he was serving his time. During a phone call to his home while he was incarcerated, “a man’s voice answered the phone,” and Isaac became hostile and threatened the man at the other end of the line.

Isaac Gutierrez later claimed that Stopher called him and threatened to kill him if he showed up around Rose’s Hesperia, California home. The narrative also stated that John Stopher was taking large amounts of testosterone for years and had a full beard, and that Rose V. identified Stopher as her boyfriend. Another account described Stopher as a 25-year-old transsexual taking hormones in preparation for sex-change surgery, with a full beard and deep voice and dressing and acting as a man.

The offence

Crimes on Oct. 31, 1986

Isaac Gutierrez murdered Billie Faye Jones and John Stopher. Both murders were said to have taken place on Oct. 31, 1986.

At the Hesperia home that Isaac Gutierrez shared with his wife, he confronted Rose V. and John Stopher. Rose V. was thrown to the ground; Isaac ordered his son to cover her and then went looking for Stopher. Stopher was in the shower when Isaac barged in and fired a shotgun blast to Stopher’s face, followed by additional rounds into Stopher’s torso. Isaac also hit Rose V. in the head with the butt of the shotgun.

After the killings, Rose V. was dragged from the house and placed in the van where she was gagged and blindfolded. Isaac instructed his son to rape Rose V., and the son proceeded to do so.

Rose V. was later tied up with ropes in the back of the van while Isaac drove. The van traveled south on I-15 toward San Bernardino, and they stopped once for gas. Near Coachella, the van was stopped by police officer David Dunavent.

Armed encounter with David Dunavent

Officer David Dunavent stopped Isaac Gutierrez because the van had a headlight out and asked for his license and registration, which Isaac could not provide. The officer asked Isaac to step out of the van and they walked to the rear of the vehicle. When Officer Dunavent looked into the vehicle and saw a face looking back at him, an armed encounter followed.

Isaac Gutierrez placed a stolen .38 revolver against Officer Dunavent’s neck and pulled the trigger. The description stated the revolver “dry fire” and that Isaac then pulled the trigger a second time, after which the gun discharged and a gun battle ensued. Joseph bailed out of the van with the shotgun and fired several rounds. Isaac was struck by a single bullet and taken to the hospital. Rose V. came out of the van and sought help.

Billie Faye Jones’ body

The van was released to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department as part of its investigation into the Hesperia crimes. A detective opened the van and found the wrapped body of Jones on a rear bench seat, wrapped in a rug, with her body described as decomposing. The narrative stated she had been garroted and that the garrote was still wound around her neck. The coroner estimated the date of death to be mid-afternoon on Halloween.

Forensics linked the wooden ends of the garrote to a dowel found at the home where Isaac was staying. Isaac denied killing Jones and claimed he found her dead in the van, and suggested her death was related to drugs and owed money to dealers. He testified that he made the garrote and gave it to her because she was afraid of the dealers, and that he did not know her body was inside the van when he took it.

The narrative included that detectives found notes in the van on the back of an envelope. The notes read:

Mon. call Rose, Wed. gather all necessities, lic. plates off comm van, wig spook/Halloween store, wig shop, call/Billy dinner, make garrote.
Friday rendezvous w/J 1300 Greyhound. DEADLINES: Call Billy 3:00, J5:00, ETA 5 PM Get to VV, *Call Don Oakes for closing time, carpet . . . gas cans . . . shovels.

Isaac said he made the garrote at Jones’s request because “she thought she might need it later on down the line.”

Investigation

The van was transferred to the custody of the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department and stored in its impound lot three days after the armed encounter. Detective Gary Stroup visited the lot and opened the van, encountering a stench. The detective found Jones’s wrapped body and described the garrote still wound around her neck. The dowel connection was described as linking the garrote’s wooden ends to a dowel found at the home where Isaac Gutierrez was staying.

Arrest

Isaac and Joseph were arrested after other officers arrived following the gun battle. Isaac was taken to the hospital after being struck by a single bullet.

In the emergency room of the JFK Memorial Hospital in Riverside, California, Isaac admitted killing Stopher and hinted at further wrongdoing. Isaac told the detective administering a GSR test:

“Oh, God. Oh, God. I didn’t mean to kill both of them,”
“Oh, What did I do? Did I kill them? Tell the officer I’m sorry. Tell him I’m sorry.”

Trial

A jury found Isaac Gutierrez guilty of the murders of Billie Faye Jones and John Stopher. The court also upheld his convictions for the kidnapping of Rose V. (Rose V. was the person identified as his wife), aiding and abetting her rape, and the attempted murder of Coachella police officer David Dunavent.

Isaac’s defence included claims that he lied in juvenile court to protect his son. At a juvenile court hearing for his son, Isaac testified that he forced Joseph to participate, striking him on the head when he tried to back out before they entered the house.

At trial, Isaac denied killing Jones and claimed he found her dead in the van. He suggested her death was related to her drug use and money owed to dealers. He admitted killing Stopher but said he did not plan to do so before entering the house.

The sentencing opinion described the court’s rejection of defences on venue and severance. Justice Marvin Baxter stated that it was never conclusively determined where Jones was killed and that it was proper to try her murder in San Bernardino County where her body was found, particularly since the killing was part of a crime spree that began there. He also stated that the trial judge did not abuse discretion in denying severance, reasoning that evidence of each murder would have been admissible to prove the other. Justice Marvin Baxter wrote:

“Nor was this a situation where a weak case was joined with a strong one in order to produce a spillover effect that unfairly strengthened or bootstrapped the weak case,”

The opinion identified the case as People v. Gutierrez, 02 S.O.S. 4303.

Sentencing

After the jury found special circumstances were present, Isaac Gutierrez was sentenced to death by San Bernardino Superior Court Judge Ben Kayashima. The death sentence was upheld on appeal by a unanimous state Supreme Court.

The state Supreme Court decision was attributed to Justice Marvin Baxter. The Supreme Court ruled that the death sentence was properly imposed and upheld the death sentences imposed on Isaac Gutierrez Jr.

Appeals

The state Supreme Court upheld the death sentence imposed by San Bernardino Superior Court Judge Ben Kayashima. The opinion was said to be unanimous and authored by Justice Marvin Baxter.

Aftermath

Isaac Gutierrez remained a death row inmate and died on December 7, 2008 in a hospital. The death was described as natural causes. He was 64 at the time of death.

People mentioned

• Isaac Gutierrez Jr. / Isaac Gutierrez — defendant; former firefighter; convicted of murders of Billie Faye Jones and John Stopher; convicted of kidnapping of Rose V.; aiding and abetting her rape; and attempted murder of David Dunavent; sentenced to death.
• Billy Faye Jones — victim; body was found in her van; described as a medical clerk at Kern County General Hospital; garroted.
• John Stopher — victim; Rose V.’s ex-wife’s boyfriend; shot with a shotgun.
• Rose V. — victim; Isaac Gutierrez’s wife as identified; abducted/gagged and blindfolded; raped; sought help after the vehicle was released to police custody.
• David Dunavent — Coachella police officer; stopped the van near Coachella; exchanged gunfire with Isaac Gutierrez; wounded Isaac.
• Ben Kayashima — San Bernardino Superior Court Judge; imposed death sentences.
• Marvin Baxter — Justice; authored the unanimous state Supreme Court opinion upholding the death sentence.
• Gary Stroup — detective; visited the sheriff’s impound lot and found Jones’s body in the van.
• Joseph — Isaac Gutierrez’s 15-year-old son from a prior marriage; was ordered to cover Rose V.; proceeded to rape Rose V.; bailed out of the van with a shotgun and fired rounds during the gun battle.
• Rose’s 5-year-old daughter — child mentioned in relation to divorce and restraining order preventing visitation.
• David Dunavent — police officer referenced in the opinion as a Coachella police officer.
• Pablo — person Isaac Gutierrez knew by that name; described as Jones’s dealer, whom Isaac suggested probably killed her.
• Don Oakes — person referenced in the notes: “Call Don Oakes for closing time.”
• Joseph’s prior marriage context / Hesperia/Coachella elements — Joseph’s prior marriage and visiting arrangement were mentioned as part of the Halloween 1986 events; no additional individuals were named there.