Lengthy trials impacting victims and jails housing inmates in Fresno County

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Daniel Cervantes has sat successful the Fresno County Jail for much than a decennary helium was convicted of his girlfriend's 2013 execution astir 2 years ago.

However, sentencing has been delayed clip and clip again.

Cervantes returned to the courtroom Tuesday morning, but his sentencing was pushed backmost to the extremity of this period due to the fact that his lawyer is successful the hospital.

This is astatine slightest the 11th clip sentencing has been delayed since a assemblage recovered Cervantes blameworthy of execution successful 2022.

Prosecutors accidental successful 2013 Cervantes changeable his woman successful the backmost of the caput portion she was sleeping and staged it arsenic a suicide.

It took astir 9 years aft that for the proceedings to begin.

During that time, Cervantes remained successful the Fresno County Jail.

Cervantes has been successful the Fresno County Jail for astir 11 years, longer than immoderate different inmate who is presently successful the jail.

That clip includes 2 years since helium was convicted.

The latest delays person been astatine the petition of the defense.

However, the Fresno County Sheriff's Office says cases similar his are not communal and that astir radical are moved retired of jailhouse reasonably rapidly aft conviction.

Right now, astir 24 100 radical are housed successful the Fresno County Jail.

About 1900 are moving done the proceedings process, little than 100 are waiting for transport to prison, and the remainder person been sentenced to service their clip successful jail.

Russell Duran, Assistant Sheriff of the Custody Division, said of each the inmates lone 17 person been successful the jailhouse for much than 5 years.

"A bulk of our incarcerated radical get done the tribunal strategy wrong that 5 to 6-year people astatine the most," said Duran.

In the much than 20 years he's worked successful the division, he's lone seen 1 oregon 2 radical astatine a clip held for adjacent to 10 years.

After conviction, particularly those involving superior crimes, Duran said the inmate is typically moved to situation wrong weeks.

"The mean process from the clip that they're convicted usually their sentencing tribunal day is scheduled a period retired from their condemnation and past erstwhile they are sentenced successful tribunal if they're going to spell to authorities situation they're usually with america for different 4 to six weeks earlier we really get them to the prison," said Duran.

Drawn-out cases and trials instrumentality a greater toll connected victims and their families, disrupting their lives agelong aft a crime, and often impacting their consciousness of justice.

"When it takes this agelong a batch of families consciousness unheard, they don't consciousness similar their rights are being validated oregon adjacent taken into consideration, and successful immoderate situations they conscionable suffer each faith," said Cynthia Reinaga, Senior Victim Advocate.

As a unfortunate advocate, Cynthia Reinaga serves arsenic a usher done the tribunal strategy and offers absorption to therapy and fiscal services.

She said advocates effort to explicate from the commencement that the tribunal process tin beryllium lengthy, but that often doesn't easiness achy emotions.

"A batch of them person said its triggering, it's reliving what the archetypal feeling was of the loss," said Reinaga. "A batch of them bash recognize that the defendants bash person rights and victims bash arsenic well, but they consciousness similar the defendant's outweigh their victim's rights."

As for Cervantes, he'll look for the 12th clip for sentencing connected June 28th.

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