Two other men who belong to the same gang as Flores were tried and acquitted of charges related to Sam’s death in 2005, although one did receive eight years in prison for another assault he pleaded guilty to that occurred at the same party. Thereafter the case went cold, but Ventura County Sheriff Investigators - supplied with information from Santa Paula Police - decided to take another look at the case, an investigation that led to Flores’ arrest. Flores later admitted to his cousin Mauricio Reyes, who was wearing a wire, that he had shot Reeves.
During Tuesday’s court hearing Judge Patricia Murphy said for privacy and security reasons steps would be taken to shield the identifies of prospective jurors; those seated for the trial will be assigned numbers for identification. Flores’ lawyer objected that such a move would create fear among jurors and that the inference of gang involvement was prejudicial toward his client, but the prosecutor approved the suggestion.
The murder of Sam shook the community and its population of tight-knit teenagers, who held a massive candlelight vigil after his death. A talented musician, Sam played with a band named Fallen Angels. A bench placed by Sam’s family near his Santa Paula Cemetery burial plot is often occupied by the teen’s wide circle of friends.
