Opening statements are slated to begin this afternoon in the murder trial of a Tucson man accused of stabbing a disabled man to death in May 1998.
Ronnie Sartin Jr. is accused of stabbing Marc Truesdell 26 times in the chest, neck and head, on May 18, 1998.
Sartin was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to a no-parole life sentence, but a judge overturned that conviction in August 2006, saying that a prosecutor's comments about premeditation during closing arguments may have unduly influenced the jury during deliberations.
Sartin was arrested May 18, 1998, in California after he reportedly confessed to his half-brother that he had killed someone in Tucson.
He initially told detectives he found Truesdell dead and stole his television and VCR. He then said he stabbed Truesdell after the victim made a sexual advance.
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Deputy Pima County Attorney David White, who has since died, told jurors during closing arguments that the evidence was "overwhelming" that Sartin acted with premeditation, pointing out Truesdell was stabbed 26 times and had no defensive wounds. Following his arrest, Sartin also said, "I wonder what (penalty) you get for first-degree murder?"
Sartin's attorneys argued Sartin, a victim of sexual abuse, acted out of "reflexive rage" when Truesdell made a sexual advance toward him.
Truesdell had a mild mental disability and cerebral palsy. Pima County Superior Court Judge Howard Hantman is presiding over the trial.
