Lubbock man sentenced in father-in-law's stabbing death
A 33-year-old man was sentenced Friday to 20 years in prison after admitting to fatally stabbing his father-in-law two years ago.
Jonathan Rodriquez Mermella appeared with his attorney, Jeff Nicholson, in the 137th District Court and pleaded guilty to a count of murder in the April 10, 2022 slaying of 48-year-old Robert Flores at a residence in the 2800 block of 43rd Street.
Mermella, who has been held at the Lubbock County Detention Center since April 11, 2022 arrest, will have to serve half of his sentence before he will be eligible for parole.
Mermella also pleaded guilty to a third-degree felony count of being a felon in possession of a firearm in exchange for a 10-year prison sentence that will run concurrently.
Mermella had been held at the jail on the weapons charge and a parole violation. On May 6, prosecutors filed an information charging him with murder after he accepted a plea deal.
Murder carries a punishment of five years to life in prison and Mermella will have to serve half of his 20-year sentence before he becomes eligible for parole.
Mermella's attorney, Jeff Nicholson, said there were issues of self defense in the case that factored into the 20-year prison sentence.
However, he said he was concerned about how jurors would consider the fact that Flores was stabbed in his home.
Prosecutor Lauren Murphree said Flores' family was receptive to the 20-year plea deal in the interest of resolving the case without a trial.
Investigating a deadly stabbing
His charge stems from a Lubbock Metropolitan Special Crimes Unit investigation that began after Lubbock police officers responding to a stabbing found Flores suffering serious injury. He was taken by ambulance to Covenant Medical Center where he was pronounced dead.
Investigators spoke with witnesses at the scene who said they saw Mermella stab Flores, according to the warrant.
Mermella's now ex-wife, who was at Flores' residence, told investigators that Mermella threatened her by phone and text, saying he was going to assault her when he found her. She said Mermella assaulted her in the past and she didn't want to go home, the warrant states.
Meanwhile, she said Mermella called her father, who left the residence to take the call. She said her father returned to the residence with Mermella following behind him.
She said Mermella walked up to her to tell her something, then approached Flores, circled him before drawing a knife and stabbing him twice.
The woman said she and her sister tried to help their father after he was stabbed and her sister struck Mermella with a wall mirror, the warrant states.
Flores' son told investigators he drove to his father's house when he learned that Mermella was threatening his sister. He said Mermella tried attacking him after stabbing his father. He said he blocked Mermella's attack and struck him with a baseball bat. He said Mermella dropped the knife and left, the warrant states.
Mermella was not at the scene when police arrived. He was arrested later that day in the 4800 block of Avenue P without incident, according to a Lubbock police news release.
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Jonathan Mermella admits to fatally stabbing father-in-law
