Murder of Patricia Alatorre

Patricia Jocelyn "Patty" Alatorre[2] (May 14, 2007 – July 2, 2020[3][4]) was a teen from Bakersfield, California who was raped and murdered by Armando Cruz after disappearing on July 1, 2020.[5] Cruz and Alatorre had linked up through social media and sent explicit photos of themselves, with Cruz convincing Alatorre to meet up on two separate occasions. On the second meeting, Cruz strangled Alatorre while raping her until her death, having sex with the body before burning it.[6][7] Cruz was later arrested after police found a white pick up truck similar to the one used during the kidnapping.[8][9] Alatorre's rape and death has been described by the Bakersfield Police Department as one of the worst missing children cases they have ever had.[10][11][12]

Patricia Alatorre
Born(2007-05-14)May 14, 2007
DisappearedJuly 1, 2020
DiedJuly 2, 2020(2020-07-02) (aged 13)
EducationMcKee Middle School
OccupationStudent
Height5 ft 5 in (165 cm)[1]
Parent(s)
  • Clara Alatorre (mother)

After the murder, residents near the area held a vigil and memorial for Alatorre, raising money for her family and campaigning for Cruz's indictment.[13][14] A mural was unveiled in downtown Bakersfield on October 12, 2020.[15]

Kidnapping and murder

Over the course of the week before the murder, Alatorre and Inglewood native Armando Cruz communicated with each other through social media, sharing explicit photos of themselves with each other.[16][17] Alatorre and Cruz then met up with one another, where Cruz convinced Alatorre to perform oral sex.[18][19][20][21]

Alatorre disappeared from her home on July 1, 2020 at around 11:00 p.m., entering a white pick up truck near Wible Road and Hosking Avenue and was captured on camera.[22] Cruz drove her around the area with Alatorre screaming and saying that she didn't want to go with him as he forced himself onto her, sexually assulting her while strangling her until her death.[23][24][25] He then had sex with the body before burning the body in the car.[26][27]

Investigation

The Bakersfield Police Department initially believed that Alatorre had run away from home, but released more information about her disappearance, including an image of a white pick-up truck near Alatorre was last seen on July 4.[1] The investigation turned into a homicide investigation,[28] and on July 6, the police tracked down the pick-up truck, naming 24-year-old Armando Cruz as a person of interest.[29][30][31] Cruz was then arrested after police located a vehicle that matched the white pickup truck seen on the surveillance video.[32][33][34]

Judicial process

On July 7, the Kern Country District Attorney Cynthia Zimmer filed 12 felony charges against Cruz, including aggravated sexual assault.[35][36] Cruz pleaded not guilty to all 12 felony charges.[37][38]

On July 30, Cruz did not show up to the court hearing, with district attorney Zimmer stating that he did not want to leave his cell and wanted to talk to his lawyer before going to court.[39][40] The next day, court documents described Alatorre's killing with Cruz admitting that he had sex with Alatorre against her will, and later killed her before dumping her cellphone on California State Route 99.[41][42][43][44]

On August 14, 2020, Cruz's defense sought to exclude media and the public from all pretrial hearings to create a "fair trial" for Cruz and due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[45] A month later, on September 28, 2020, the First Amendment Coalition asked the court to reject the request with executive director David Snyder stating that "absent extraordinary circumstances not present in the Cruz case, the public has the right to see how their judicial system works."[46][47][48][49] On October 22, the hearings were postponed until December as the Coalition motioned for the trial to be public.[50][51] In December, the trial was once again postponed to February 2021.[52]

Reactions

Memorials and vigils

On the day Cruz was apprehended, the family and community held a vigil for Alatorre near the neighborhood where she was last seen.[53][54] The Greenfield Union School District issued a response to her death, giving grief counseling services at McKee.[55] The family planned to hold a vigil every day until she was found and laid to rest.[56][57] The vigil site continued to be visited by mourners, which prompted concerns for the neighborhood as people mistook the neighbor's houses as her home.[58][59] A memorial service was held on July 25.[60][61]

"Cruise for Patty"

On July 10 and 11, residents planned a cruise in remembrance of Alatorre, who was a fan of cars.[62][63][64] The next day, more than 100 people came to the event to honor Alatorre and raised money for her family.[65][66][67]

Mural

Local artists from the group The Next Steps wanted to paint a mural for Alatorre to recognize her as "Bakersfield’s Daughter."[68] On October 9, the group announced that a mural between 19th and L street would be unveiled on Monday.[69][70][71] The mural was installed after a ceremony, with participants bringing either a red rose or a sunflower, Alatorre's favorite flower.[72][73][74]

References
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  2. "Patricia Jocelyn "Patty" Alatorre". Greenlawn Cemetery.
  3. "Patricia Jocelyn Alatorre". Tribute Archive.
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  5. Wildmoon, KC (July 6, 2020). "13-year-old California girl goes missing; suspect charged with murder, rape, and kidnapping". Crime Online.
  6. "Inglewood man raped and strangled Bakersfield teen he met online, then burned her body: Court docs". KTLA. July 8, 2020.
  7. Rivera, Selene (July 12, 2020). "Conoció a la niña por internet y terminó violándola y quemándola: Los minutos antes de su muerte documentados". The Los Angeles Times (in Spanish).
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  9. Hua, Karen (July 7, 2020). "Police arrest man accused of kidnapping, raping and killing Bakersfield teenager". KRON-TV.
  10. Wright, Anthony (July 6, 2020). "Bakersfield community reacts after 13-year-old is killed". KERO-TV.
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  12. "2020 YEAR IN REVIEW: Non-COVID headlines remained prominent throughout year". The Bakersfield Californian. December 26, 2020.
  13. Wilson, Quinn (July 7, 2020). "Community rallies for Patricia Alatorre outside court as suspect in her death arraigned". The Bakersfield Californian.
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