Judge gives man 10 years in attempted killing

A 33-year-old man who admitted to trying to kill another man in April 2006 — allegedly over cocaine and money — was sentenced to 10 years in prison Monday.

“Patrick, you have earned the right to be separated from this community,” state District Judge Michael Vigil told Patrick Herrera. “I think you need to do a substantial amount of time in prison.”

Herrera pleaded guilty to attempted murder, being a felon in possession of a handgun and tampering with evidence in July. He faced between five and 14 years in prison as part of the plea agreement, said Assistant District Attorney Francisco Prieto.

Herrera shot Thomas Quintana, 21, in the lower jaw with a 9mm handgun so he could steal 3 ounces of cocaine and an undisclosed amount of money from him, police have said. The bullet exited the back of Quintana’s neck, and he survived after collapsing on the hood of a passing motorist’s vehicle.

On Monday, Quintana’s mother, Pauline Quintana, told Vigil the bullet severed her son’s carotid artery and doctors told her that night they didn’t expect him to live.

“You stole from us peace of mind and turned our lives into a living nightmare,” she told Herrera.

Thomas Quintana wasn’t in the courtroom Monday because “he’s still traumatized by this,” Prieto said.

Gary Mitchell, Herrera’s lawyer, said drugs and alcohol were to blame for the shooting. “When he’s not on drugs, Patrick’s a model citizen,” Mitchell said.

Roberta Ulibarri, Herrera’s sister, said her brother deserved a second chance. “He’s a good man,” she said. “He’s got the biggest heart ever.”

Several of Herrera’s family members — including Ulibarri and Herrera’s parents — apologized to the Quintana family for the shooting, though their comments to the court alleging threats and harassment by members of the Quintana family made clear that bad blood exists between the two clans. Vigil said he was concerned by those comments and cautioned family members against seeking revenge. “This has to be over,” the judge said. “This has to end today.”

Herrera, who was convicted to stabbing a 15-year-old in September 1994, also apologized to the Quintana family, as well as his own family, which includes a fiancée and two young children.

“I just thank God nobody died,” he said. “I would just like for this to end.”

Vigil, who sentenced Herrera on a heroin possession charge in 2002, lamented the community’s drug problem, and the judge said he’d previously warned Herrera about the dangers of life as a drug addict.

“You cannot believe how disappointed I am in you,” Vigil said.

The judge told him the choices he’s made are to blame for the fact that his children will spend a significant amount of time without him.

Contact Jason Auslander at 986-3076 or jauslander@sfnewmexican.com.