The Fresno man who allied with a Hollister man in killing San
Jose resident David Owens in 2004 is set to be sentenced Friday in
Santa Clara County Superior Court.
The Fresno man who allied with a Hollister man in killing San Jose resident David Owens in 2004 is set to be sentenced Friday in Santa Clara County Superior Court.
A jury found Francisco “Frankie” Vega guilty of first-degree homicide for Owens’ death, and the 23-year-old Fresno man will serve a life term without parole – the only sentence allowed for the crime, attorneys have said.
Vega accompanied Hollister resident Joshua Joseph, 26, to Owens’ San Jose home in August 2004, waited at the apartment until he came home, then went inside and watched while Joseph shot Owens several times with a .22 caliber handgun.
Vega has been described by attorneys on both sides as a “follower” who participated in the crime because he was pressured by Joseph, who had been upset about Owens’ affair with a Hollister woman with whom he also had been in a relationship. Still, 12 jurors agreed Vega planned and helped commit first-degree murder.
Owens’ mother, meanwhile, told the Free Lance she blames the murder “100 percent” on embattled San Benito High School food service attendant Nancy Polizzi. Kathryn Owens told the Free Lance she would be at Friday’s sentencing, but that justice so far has been bittersweet.
“I won’t have closure until (Polizzi) is behind bars,” she said.
Polizzi declined to comment when reached by phone today, saying to “never call here again.”
Polizzi testified March 27 during Vega’s trial that she had been in a relationship with both Owens and Joseph, who is her stepson. She admitted to traveling to Fresno with the killers and providing the money they used to purchase the weapon – though she says she had not known how the money was being used or that they intended to kill Owens.
She also admitted that she felt insulted when Owens broke off their relationship and that Joseph had made references to Owens, including use of the phrase “David is dead” and asking where Polizzi’s husband Mark kept his guns.
She also said in court that after the killing, she gave Joseph $1,000 to start a “marijuana business.”
Polizzi was put on leave by San Benito High School officials shortly after her testimony, according to SBHS Superintendent Stan Rose. Rose has refused to specify whether the district is still paying Polizzi.
The Free Lance submitted a California Public Records Act request to Rose and SBHS Human Resources Director Mike Potmesil on Friday in an attempt to determine if Polizzi is still receiving tax dollars.
Santa Clara County Deputy District Attorney Daniel Carr has said he has not decided whether to seek criminal charges against Polizzi but that he would make the determination after he finishes a current murder trial he expected to last about two weeks.
