Deliberations start in murder case of Burbank resident

Jurors began their deliberations Tuesday in the murder trial of a man suspected of stabbing a Burbank resident to death nearly six years ago.

The jury deliberated for roughly four hours before being dismissed for the day. Deliberations will continue Wednesday morning.

Jorge Villalobos, 41, is charged with murder in the slaying of Burbank resident Glen Giles, then 47, who was found dead on Feb. 26, 2008, on the front porch of his neighbor’s home.

Giles, who suffered 32 stab wounds, left a trail of blood from his bedroom, across the street, up his neighbor’s driveway and on the doorbell.

Prosecutors argued that Villalobos was driven by bitterness over a love triangle that included a woman named Christina Ingram.

Closing arguments took place Monday and Tuesday, marking the culmination of the four-week trial.

A major point of disagreement between the prosecution and the defense was Giles’ time of death.

Prosecutors argued Giles died at around 12:30 a.m. on Feb. 26, but Villalobos’ attorney James Blatt argued that Giles died later that morning, between 6 and 8 a.m., when Villalobos was reportedly at his San Gabriel home.

Blatt argued that since Giles would have died from his injuries in one or two minutes, Villalobos couldn’t have killed him if his time of death was between 6 and 8 a.m.

Prosecutors, however, argued that Villalobos had been “tracking” Giles during the weeks before his death, having called him 18 times in February from a blocked number. Prosecutors claim the last phone call from Villalobos to Giles was placed at 10:34 p.m. on Feb. 25, and that Villalobos stabbed him to death shortly after.

“This was no random act,” said prosecutor Stephanie Mire. “This was a planned attack.”

Mire also argued that the sock prints recovered from the scene match Villalobos’ feet, and Giles’ blood was recovered from Villalobos’ car.

But Blatt argued that in an interview with Ingram, police told her that they located Giles’ blood in Villalobos’ car, but the interview occurred 18 hours before the blood was actually located. At the beginning of the trial, he accused police of planting the evidence.

“These problems create reasonable doubt,” he said during the closing.

Editor’s Note: A previous version of this article stated Villalobos is 41-years-old. This is incorrect. He is 47-years-old.
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