Man will stand trial for murder

PASADENA — A Superior Court judge found Wednesday that there is enough evidence to put a 24-year-old Glendale man on trial for murder with special circumstances for the stabbing death in August of a woman outside a substance abuse treatment center.

Hector Marroquin, wearing a blue jumpsuit with his hair pulled back into a tight ponytail, sat motionless in the courtroom during a preliminary hearing as 12 witnesses implicated him in the death of Glendale resident Joanne Sarkis, 32.

Sarkis died on Aug. 27 as a result of multiple stab wounds, and witnesses testified seeing Marroquin attack her on the patio at the Windsor Club treatment center on Windsor Road, chasing her inside the lobby and trying to drag her out by her hair.

Public defender John Love disputed the prosecution’s claim that Marroquin laid in wait before committing the murder, special circumstances that would make him eligible for the death penalty.

Marroquin had no relationship with Sarkis, therefore there was no motive or a calculated premeditation, Love said.

“That is evidence of a senseless killing that is likely the product of mental illness, not the product of planning,” he said.

But Judge Laura Priver sided with the prosecution, saying that evidence showed that Marroquin laid in wait before springing on her and wielding a knife, and that a jury should decide his fate.

“It’s clear to the court that he snuck up behind her and took her from a position of advantage,” she said.

The procession of witnesses — including both eyewitnesses and employees of the adjacent Glendale Nissan who heard screams and rushed over — formed a retelling of the incident that started when Marroquin allegedly attacked Sarkis while she was talking on her cellphone on the club’s patio.

Landon Armstrong, Sarkis’ boyfriend at the time, testified that he was talking to her moments before the incident.

“She screamed and then yelled, ‘No!’ and I heard the number key of the cellphone being held down,” he said. “Then it was disconnected.”

Glendale Nissan employee Cesar Morales said he heard “loud squeals like somebody was getting killed” and he rushed over to the Windsor Club.

“I saw this gentleman over there [indicating Marroquin] over the top of the woman. . . what looked like he was punching her. . . but what I figured out later was actually a stabbing motion,” Morales said.

Sarkis broke free then ran inside the lobby and Morales followed her inside to see if she was OK, he said.

“I did see quite a lot of blood,” he said. “There was a lot of blood.”

Witnesses said Marroquin ran behind the Windsor Club, returning with a metal tank that he hurled at the windshield of Sarkis’ red Mercedes-Benz.

Windsor Club members testified to seeing Marroquin hanging around the club for months before the killing, but he did not associate with any members or go to any club meetings.

Windsor Club evening manager Robert Elias testified that Marroquin would regularly sit by himself in the lobby, sometimes nodding off. On the day of the killing, Marroquin approached him and asked for a knife to fix his shoe.

Elias said he gave Marroquin a knife that the club would use for things like cutting cake and that it was not returned.

Marroquin is scheduled for an arraignment on May 1 in Pasadena Department J. He remains in police custody without bail.

 CHRIS WIEBE covers public safety and the courts. He may be reached at (818) 637-3232 or by e-mail at chris.wiebe@ latimes.com.