He killed a father of 6. A judge said the man has ‘callous disregard for human life’
A Franklin County judge on Tuesday chastised a convicted killer, telling the 27-year-old he showed “callous disregard for human life” when he shot one man and threatened another.
Judge Sam Swanberg said he was sympathetic to the fact that Victor A. Paniagua’s father died this year, while also recognizing that the Pasco man himself recently became a father.
But all that does not take away the seriousness of the June 3 murder of Abel Yanez Contreras, said the judge.
“It was a simple, verbal argument. ... He simply asked you to leave and then you took offense to him not wanting your help ... to the point where you pointed a firearm at him and ended up shooting him for that,” Swanberg said to Paniagua.
“The court had a hard time wrapping its head around how that justifies, or how that in anybody’s mind would justify taking another person’s human life unless the person is extremely callous as far as what a human life is worth,” he added. “I fear that is where we’re at in this case.”
Swanberg went with the prosecutor’s recommendation and sentenced Paniagua to 37 years and nine months in a state prison.
Paniagua and his attorney, Karla Kane Hudson, had asked for leniency with time a bottom-of-the-range sentence of 29 years.
However, the judge said it was just punishment to order the maximum time given Paniagua’s conduct in this case, his prior convictions, his complete lack of insight and remorse, and the fact he is a violent person who habitually carries and uses guns and endangers others.
“This is an opportunity for you to improve yourself,” Swanberg said. “Hopefully this time you’ll be able to reflect and understand what you have done, understand the changes that you need to make in your life in order to be an effective and safe member of this community.”
The judge finished by saying government resources will be well spent in this case by keeping Paniagua locked up and society protected for as long as needed.
Hudson told the court it was a mischaracterization of Paniagua and his thoughts to say he has not expressed any remorse, saying he has told the lawyer during many conversations that he is sorry for the Contreras family’s loss.
However, when Paniagua was given the chance to talk, he told Swanberg he had nothing to say.
A Franklin County Superior Court jury in October convicted Paniagua of second-degree murder, second-degree assault, tampering with a witness and illegal possession of a gun.
The murder and assault charges include firearm enhancements, which carry eight years of mandatory time that must be served in full before the rest of the sentence.
He originally was charged with first-degree murder for Contreras’ execution-style killing, but jurors went with the lesser charge.
Paniagua was at Contreras’ South 22nd Avenue home when the two men got into an argument.
Paniagua cornered the 47-year-old Contreras in a bedroom and shot him in the chest, according to prosecutors.
He then turned the 9mm handgun on Efren Bueno-Gonzalez — a handyman who was fixing the floors and tried to help Contreras — and threatened to kill him too.
Deputy Prosecutor Albert Lin said Paniagua killed Contreras in cold blood, and a nearly 38-year sentence would be justice.
A victim advocate read a letter from Maria Rodriguez Contreras, who had been with her husband for 31 years, and the couple’s six children.
The wife talked about how her kids ask why Paniagua killed their dad, and why they will never get to see him again.
“We still need him. He was a good father for our children and our children loved him very much,” she said.
And while they feel sad for Paniagua because he is so young and going to prison for a long time,“ he had no right to kill (Contreras). Hopefully next time the defendant will think about his actions.”
At the end of the 30-minute hearing, the defense filed a notice that Paniagua intends to appeal his conviction.
Paniagua waved at his dozen supporters, including his baby daughter, as he was taken out of the courtroom back to jail.