"I Was A Burglar Before I Was A Murderer"
"I Was A Burglar Before I Was A Murderer"
Burglary: The gateway crime to murder
With the Menendez Brothers almost certain to be re-sentenced or given a new trial for the brutal slaying of their parents in 1989, it’s worth revisiting the gateway crime to murder: Burglary.
Lyle and Erik Menendez were involved in a burglary ring in Calabasas circa 1988. They, along with their friends, burglarized the houses of their neighbors. (Side note: Committing crimes in one’s own neighborhood is one of the stupidest things to do). One of the members of the burglary outfit was Craig Cignarelli, who Jose Menenedez suspected of being a police informant. Cignarelli became an informant for the Beverly Hills Police and wore a wire during the investigation of the murders of Jose and Kitty Menendez.
(Cignarelli also co-wrote a screenplay with Erik titled “Friends,” which was about a rich kid committing murder for financial gain. Ironically, Kitty formatted it).
Lyle, 20, was an adult whereas Erik, 16, was a minor when the burglaries occurred. Jose Menendez allegedly interceded on Lyle’s behalf and convinced Erik to take the rap. Lyle was already in trouble at Princeton for plagiarism and had been suspended for a year and was scheduled to re-enroll at the New Jersey Ivy League College in Fall 1988. So Erik took the blame and Jose arranged for him to go to therapy with the sleazy Dr Jerome Oziel. Ironically, Oziel’s ill-fated affair with Judalon Smyth was the straw that broke the camel’s back and allowed Beverly Hills Police Detective Les Zoeller to crack the case.
The California Penal Code treats burglary in a unique way. Penal Code Section 459 sets forth the framework for the crime. Penal Code 460(a) and 460(b) set forth the severity. The former charge pertains to residential burglary and is always a felony. The latter charge pertains to nonresidential burglary and is a wobbler: It can either be charged as a felony or a misdemeanor.
Burglary is also a predicate offense for Felony Murder. Its fellow predicate offenses include arson, kidnapping, penetration with a foreign object, rape, robbery, and train wrecking. This should give one an idea of the significance of burglary in the eyes of the law: This is serious shit.
And understandably so. One just needs to examine the high-profile cases over the years where the offender(s) had committed burglary prior to committing even more heinous crimes: Richard “The Night Stalker” Ramirez, the Helzer Brothers, Jodi Arias, and, yes, the Menendez Brothers. In many ways, the crime of burglary emboldens one to commit more serious crimes.
CoCo County Example
The 2019-2020 Contra Costa County Trial involving the People v. Jonathan Barrera, Gabriel Schroeder, and Marcos Figueroa near perfectly illustrated this phenomenon. The three men were tried for the 2012 murder of rapper Rene “Lil G Tha Great” Garcia in North Richmond. It spanned 97 trial days and ended up being the longest criminal trial in Contra Costa County history. Barrera and Figueroa were convicted of first degree murder, while the jury hung on Schroeder. He ultimately took a plea deal for manslaughter.
All three defendants had the distinction of having been convicted of burglary prior to being convicted of murder. In fact, Schroeder had made a Facebook status update post that read, “I was a burglar before I was a murderer. What makes you think I won’t be peaking through your curtains?” This Facebook post occurred six weeks after Garcia’s murder and was introduced as evidence at trial.
Schroeder was quoting modified lyrics from Oakland rapper Mac Blast’s song “We Sleep Good At Night.” Real name Marc Anthony Candler, Mac Blast is currently serving 48 years to life sentence at Ironwood State Prison in Riverside County for a 2006 attempted murder in West Oakland. That shooting, which occurred after a memorial service, was the catalyst for Operation Nutcracker, which resulted in the arrests of more that 50 persons in June 2008.
Jonathan Barrera, 35, is currently incarcerated at Pelican Bay State Prison in Del Norte County doing LWOP. Gabriel Schroeder, 29, is incarcerated at Old Folsom in Sacramento County and has an earliest possible parole date of May 2028. Marcos Figueroa, 37, is incarcerated at Pleasant Valley State Prison in Fresno County and has an earliest possible parole date of February 2034.