Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
Cesar Marmolejos pleads not-guilty in superior court
Cesar Marmolejos, 38, of Pullman, appeared for a first appearance over Zoom in Superior Court Friday, July 5.
PULLMAN - A local man accused in the stabbing of a Moscow, Idaho, resident is now being charged with attempted second-degree murder.
Cesar Marmolejos, 38, of Pullman, is being held in the Whitman County Jail on $750,000 bail on the upgraded charge of attempted second-degree murder. He was initially charged with first-degree assault with a deadly weapon.
Marmolejos made his first appearance in Whitman County Superior Court before Judge Gary Libey on Tuesday, July 2, court records show.
Then on Friday, July 5, shortly his arraignment, police submitted an amended probable cause affidavit to the Whitman County Prosecuting Attorney's Office, seeking to upgrade the charge to Marmolejos entered a not-guilty plea, records show. If convicted, he could spend the rest of his life in prison.
The charges stem from a 5 p.m. call on Monday, July 5.
Officers were dispatched to a convenience store on Bishop Boulevard for a report of a fight involving about half-dozen people, one of whom had a knife, records show. Arriving police learned at least one person had been stabbed.
The victim was transported to Pullman Regional Hospital in a private vehicle before being flown to Sacred Heart Medical Center in Spokane with a severed artery, records show. He is expected to be released from the hospital today.
During the investigation, the victim told officers that Marmolejos threatened to kill him, records show. Marmolejos allegedly confessed he initially tried to grab his gun, but then intended to stab the man in the heart.
The suspect told police the two men had a long-standing dispute, records show.
Although Marmolejos has no prior convictions, his criminal history includes violent charges in south Florida that were eventually dropped.
Records show he informed police that he was jailed in Miami in 2016 for attempted murder. His formal criminal history in Miami includes an aggravated assault charge in 2009 and an aggravated battery charge in 2015, both of which were dismissed.
Olivia Harnack is a Journalist at the Whitman County Gazette. Olivia is enrolled at University of Idaho and is majoring in digital film studies. She serves in the United States Army National Guard and is proud to serve Whitman County.
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