Teen pleads innocent to attempted murder in Pasco
A teen accused of being part of an attempted murder and robbery pleaded innocent Tuesday in Franklin County.
Moses Balderas, 19, entered his plea to a charge of first-degree attempted murder in Franklin County Superior Court for his part in the July 13 robbery in Pasco.
The 17-year-old gunman, Eduardo Ramos, was scheduled to enter a plea on his charges in court Tuesday, but he wasn’t brought over from the Benton-Franklin Juvenile Justice Center.
Balderas’ defense attorney, Danielle Purcell, asked Judge Sam Swanberg to lower the $500,000 bail. She pointed out he wasn’t convicted of any other felonies and he isn’t likely to flee the city.
Deputy Prosecutor Albert Lin disagreed, saying he did miss a previous court hearing in a 2016 case, and the nature of the charges calls for a high bail.
The judge agreed the bail was appropriate.
Balderas is schedule to go to trial on Sept. 19. Ramos’ hearing was rescheduled for next week.
Luis Nunez-Gomez said he discovered Ramos inside the garage of his Sixth Avenue home as he was getting ready to leave for work at 5 a.m., according to court documents.
After confronting the teen, Ramos started to walk away, but then turned, pulled out a gun and pointed at Nunez-Gomez.
Ramos demanded his wallet and money, court documents said.
Nunez-Gomez charged Ramos, but slipped and fell. He was still on the ground when Ramos allegedly pulled the trigger multiple times.
The gun kept clicking, but nothing happened, court documents said.
Realizing the gun wasn’t working, Nunez-Gomez chased his assailants down an alley, then got in his car and drove through the neighborhood looking for them.
Patrol officers spotted two teens matching Nunez-Gomez’s descriptions a short time later, police said.
Police said Ramos and Balderas ran inside an West Agate Street apartment and hid as officers and the Tri-City Regional SWAT Team surrounded it.
They convinced them to come outside where they were arrested. Officers found the pistol inside a backpack tucked under a bed.