Neighbor noticed change in Victoria's demeanor

Jul. 28—In the weeks leading up to Victoria Martens' death, Amber Wilson, a neighbor, noticed a change in her behavior.

Wilson, who had a daughter a year younger than 10-year-old Victoria, said the girl was more reserved at the bus stop before school, and she wasn't talking to other kids as much as she usually did.

The morning of her death on Aug. 23, 2016, Victoria appeared disheveled.

"She wasn't ready for school like she normally was," Wilson said on the witness stand Thursday in Fabian Gonzales' trial.

The state rested its case against Gonzales early Thursday, and the defense called most of its witnesses, which included Wilson, who was one of the last people to see Victoria alive.

Gonzales, 37, is charged with child abuse, recklessly caused, resulting in the death of a child under 12, seven counts of tampering with evidence and conspiracy to tamper with evidence in Victoria's death in August 2016. If convicted of all charges, he faces 18 to 43 1/2 years in prison, based on state statutes and sentencing guidelines.

The case was complicated Wednesday after Gonzales tested positive for COVID-19 on Tuesday night. Originally, plans were made for Gonzales to watch the rest of the trial from a glass box brought into the courtroom. Because of how ill he was feeling, Gonzales instead opted to watch the proceedings virtually on Thursday. He was muted throughout the day, but could be seen blowing his nose and coughing. At times he appeared to almost lie down or recline.

Prosecutors are alleging that Gonzales committed child abuse by creating a dangerous environment that led to the child's death. He was dating Michelle Martens, Victoria's mother, and had recently moved into Martens' apartment.

Prosecutors said he allowed Victoria to stay alone with Jessica Kelley, Gonzales' cousin, who had recently been released from prison and was using methamphetamine and having paranoid delusions.

A few hours before Victoria was killed, no one picked her up from the bus stop. Wilson said she was walking with her daughter back to their apartment when they saw Victoria wearing her backpack and carrying Tupperware near the apartment office.

"She told us no one was there to pick her up," Wilson said.

Victoria spent some time at Wilson's apartment before returning to her home later that evening.

Despite the recent change in her demeanor, Wilson said she didn't think anything was amiss.

"I did not sense Victoria was in danger," she said.

Police were called to the apartment at 4:30 a.m. the following morning and found Victoria's body had been dismembered and was on fire in a bathtub at the apartment complex.

Another defense witnesses called Thursday was Amanda Padilla, Gonzales' relative.

Padilla, who was pregnant at the time, was in a fight with Gonzales at a barbecue several days before Victoria's death, giving him a black eye.

Gonzales then sent threatening text messages to her and searched the internet for guns for sale after the fight. Prosecutors have said that fight and Gonzales' threats might have contributed to the dangerous situation that led to Victoria's death. They suggested that an unknown man may have taken revenge against Gonzales by killing Victoria over his threatening remarks.

Padilla said there's no chance that happened.

"One hundred percent no. It ended that night," Padilla said. "I didn't take (the threats) seriously. Fabian has always been all talk."

During her testimony, Padilla said Kelley had stayed with her and her daughter around 2010. Padilla said Kelley was great with Padilla's daughter and often babysat the child. Padilla bought Kelley a phone so she could continue to babysit when Padilla was at work.

"Jessica did help tremendously, I don't know what I would have done without her," she said.

On cross-examination, however, Padilla said she never would have welcomed Kelley into her home if she was using meth. Padilla said her mother was addicted to the drug and she won't associate with people who use it.

"If she were using (meth) and paranoid, would you let her babysit your children?" Chief Deputy District Attorney James Grayson asked.

"Never," Padilla responded.

Jurors also heard from several children who saw Kelley carry Victoria down the stairs of the apartment just as Gonzales and Martens had returned to the home at about 8:45 p.m. that evening. The children are now adults, and at times they had trouble recalling exactly what they saw that night. They did say they didn't see any strange men enter the Martens apartment prior to watching Kelley walk down the stairs with the child.

Denise De Los Santos, who was in eighth grade at the time, said she thought Victoria was asleep. Prosecutors say that Victoria was dead at that time.

"It was weird because I don't know why she would take a child outside who was sleeping," she said. The defense plans to call Martens to the stand Friday morning. She will be the last witness to testify. Gonzales is not going to take the stand, his attorneys said.

Martens has pleaded guilty in an agreement that calls for her to serve 12 to 15 years in prison. Her sentencing hearing hasn't been scheduled. Kelley's plea agreement called for her to be sentenced to 44 years, though she will be eligible for parole in half the time.

The state rested its case against Gonzales early Thursday morning. A jury was seated July 13 and Judge Cindy Leos is presiding over the case.

Defense attorneys asked for a directed verdict on some aspects of the charges against Gonzales, which was not granted.

In arguing that the charges shouldn't be dismissed or altered, Grayson said Gonzales created a dangerous environment that led to Victoria's death.

Gonzales and Martens were not at the apartment when Victoria was killed, prosecutors have said. But Grayson said that Gonzales has allowed his cousin, Jessica Kelley, to stay at the apartment shortly after she was released from prison.

He knew that she was using methamphetamine and was acting paranoid, Grayson said. He also said that Gonzales had been making threats to other people and coaxing Martens to do meth, all of which created the dangerous environment.

Grayson said prosecutors will argue that an unknown man or Jessica Kelley strangled Victoria to death before her body was dismembered in an effort to clean up the crime scene.

Kelley testified that an unknown man killed Victoria, although the defense argues that Kelley was the killer.

"Causation could be a man coming into the apartment and strangling Victoria, or it could be Jessica Kelley strangling Victoria herself," he said. "We lean more strongly to Jessica Kelley's version of events."