Defense Rests in Trial of Selena Slaying Suspect

Lawyers for the former Selena fan club president accused of gunning down the Tejano star rested their case Friday without calling their client as a witness.

Closing arguments were scheduled for Monday in the murder case against 35-year-old Yolanda Saldivar.

Defense attorney Douglas Tinker asked the judge to let Saldivar take the stand to talk only about her disputed interrogation by police. But the prosecution objected, and Judge Mike Westergren denied the request.

The defense then rested after calling five witnesses, including the detective who took Saldivar’s signed confession.

The defense has claimed that Saldivar, who rose from president of the singer’s fan club to manager of her boutiques, shot Selena by accident but that the Corpus Christi police officers who interrogated her left out that claim.

Under questioning Friday by the defense, Sgt. Paul Rivera, the lead investigator on the case, said he never heard such a claim.

Prosecutors said Saldivar deliberately shot the 23-year-old Grammy-winning singer in a motel room March 31 after Selena went there to confront her about claims that the woman had embezzled $30,000.

If convicted of deliberately killing Selena, Saldivar could get life in prison.

Undermining Saldivar’s claim that the gun went off accidentally, several motel employees testified they saw a bleeding, screaming Selena run from a room into the lobby with a calm Saldivar in pursuit, gun in hand.