San Diego
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The man accused of killing 10-year-old Sonia Cano pleaded innocent Wednesday to involuntary manslaughter after telling a judge that the fatal shooting “was just an accident.”
Jose Maria Ruiz Maldonado, 45, blurted out the remark at his arraignment before San Diego Municipal Judge Lillian Quon, who set bail at $100,000. Police said Ruiz was target shooting in his backyard Saturday with a .38-caliber automatic pistol when a bullet struck Sonia in the chest as she walked in the alley.
Ruiz was initially arrested on suspicion of murder, but the district attorney’s office instead chose to charge him with involuntary manslaughter, which legally means that he is criminally negligent. If convicted, Ruiz faces a maximum six-year prison sentence.
When Ruiz walked into the courtroom, he told Quon through an interpreter, “I want an attorney. This was just an accident.” Quon responded that she had appointed attorney Gary Edwards to represent him and admonished him about discussing the case further.
Edwards argued unsuccessfully for $10,000 bail, saying that Ruiz has lived in San Diego “for a substantial period of time.”
Quon scheduled a preliminary hearing for next Thursday, and Ruiz will return to court on Monday for a bail review hearing.
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