2 Men Guilty of Murder Outside World Cup Viewing Party

Daniel A. Gonzalez and Salvador Oswaldo Chavez were convicted in the shooting death of Josue Crook

After deliberating for three days, a jury has convicted two men of murdering another outside a World Cup party in National City one year ago.

Daniel A. Gonzalez, 36, and Salvador Oswaldo Chavez, 38, were found guilty Thursday of second-degree murder in the death of Josue Crook, 36.

Both were also convicted of assault with a deadly weapon – Gonzalez for shooting Crook, and Chavez for stabbing a second victim, City News Service (CNS) reported.

The three were involved in a fight at the Rincon Del Mar restaurant, which spilled into the street on June 17, 2014. That day, the restaurant was hosting a viewing party for the Mexico-Brazil World Cup game.

According to Deputy District Attorney Melissa Diaz, the brawl began when someone in Gonzalez’s group thought a person in Crook’s group looked at him strangely. That person started a fist fight that continued outside the restaurant.

Prosecutors say Chavez stood guard as Gonzalez fired multiple shots at Crook. The two worked hand in hand during the murder and stabbing, according to Diaz.

Gonzalez’s attorney Jan Ronis said the charge against his client should have been, at most, manslaughter – not murder – because there was plenty of evidence the two men were defending themselves, CNS reported. The evidence against Chavez was “minuscule,” Ronis said.

Crook’s family maintained he was not a violent or aggressive person, but instead was a father of four and an active member in his church. They believed he was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

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