A Chattanooga resident and undocumented immigrant was sentenced to 25 years in prison for second-degree murder after a lengthy hearing on Thursday.
Zacarias “Carlos” Salas-Rufino, 32, stabbed and murdered his girlfriend Yessica Ruiz in September 2016. According to police, Rufino told them he had stabbed her after he overheard Ms. Ruiz telling another man she loved him over the phone.
When the officer arrived, he found Ms. Ruiz lying in a pool of blood, and Rufino ran straight at the officer and asked for him to help Ms. Ruiz. Their two children were also present and were crying and screaming.
A witness said she overheard an argument coming from inside Rufino’s house, and then saw an injured Yessica Ruiz come out of the house. Another witness said he saw the couple fighting.
A probation officer found Rufino to be a low risk to re-offend in many aspects based on his education and long work history, but he also had several troubling issues come up as well. One such red flag was his cocaine addiction.
“He reported to me that he first used cocaine when he was 26, up until the offense in 2016,” she said. Rufino said he started using the drug to cure alcohol-induced hangovers, but then continued to use it “to feel it in his nose and his body.”
She also told the judge about a letter Rufino sent to her, where he gave an account of the murder different than the one he gave police and investigators. Rufino completely denied murdering Ms. Ruiz.
“The letter said he hoped he would be exonerated and vindicated ‘when they catch the person who committed the crime,’” recounted the writer.
Rufino’s former boss also testified. He repeatedly reminded the court Rufino was a great employee and an incredible worker. The man said he still maintains a close relationship with Rufino. The man believed his former employee was innocent.
“If he had more money to spend on a lawyer rather than a public defender, he wouldn’t be sitting here today,” he said. Judge Barry Steelman said he was entitled to his opinion, but also rebuked him, saying that Erinn O’Leary had done everything she could to defend her client.
Rufino then shocked the courtroom by asking to go up to the witness stand and give his side of the story. Ms. O’Leary tried to dissuade him from doing so, but Rufino was set on speaking.
Using an interpreter, he told Judge Steelman what he believed happened. He said what he told the police at the crime scene and to the court during his trial was not true. Rufino said he lied to police in order to protect his family from people who wished to harm them.
“What happened to me was very hard for me,” Rufino said, “And in that moment, I just wanted to protect my family.”
Rufino admitted to doing cocaine, saying “back in those days, it was every day, but not a lot in quantity. I became addicted to that drug, and I lost control of it.”
When asked who gave him those drugs, the convicted man simply said, “I can’t say it” over and over. After repeated questioning from the prosecution, Rufino said gave the reason he was being so secretive. “I’m still scared of those people and what they do outside.”
Rufino then said, “If I told you the truth, I would have put her and my family in danger,” and thought she would “clarify things” after the situation was over. He said he “changed a few things.”
“If you allow me, I will tell you the truth,” said Rufino.
“Oh, I’ll get to the truth,” said the prosecutor.
According to Rufino, he and Ms. Ruiz had been drinking and doing cocaine at a bar the night before, and got home during the night. He wanted to sleep, but then he heard Ms. Ruiz talking to someone on the phone.
He then said she was making signals to two strangers outside of the house. When Rufino acted distressed, she seemed to make motions for them to come over to them. He said the two strangers had actually attempted to kill him a few days prior.
“I think they were in some sort of cartel or gang,” he said.
Throughout his testimony, Rufino repeatedly said he was trying to protect Ms. Ruiz from danger, and did not hurt her. This was the complete opposite of what he told police the day it happened.
When the prosecution told him this, Rufino denied it. He said he told the police “they tried to kill me.” But when the body cam footage was played, what showed was a different story.
“She tried to kill me,” is what the video showed. He then changed his story again, saying, “I couldn’t say she was in the company of people who wanted to kill me.”
“So you lied to police,” asked the prosecutor.
“I had to do it,” replied Rufino.
Rufino also said he didn’t know that his girlfriend had been stabbed, saying, “I had no idea. I had run, so I had no idea what happened.”
After Rufino’s testimony, the prosecution and defense both laid out their reasons for either enhancing or reducing his sentence.
The prosecution recounted the official story of what happened, as was laid out during the trial.
“He treated the victim with extreme cruelty. He chased her around the house and stabbed her 25 times,” said the prosecutor. “It was a heinous crime, committed in front of the victim’s children. And what he said was a gross misinterpretation of the facts introduced by witnesses.”
Ms. O’Leary asked for leniency, citing Rufino’s stellar work history and his complete lack of a criminal background. She also asked for Judge Steelman to not account for the repeated use of the knife when possibly enhancing her client’s sentence. She said it was already the basis of his conviction, so the manner in which it was used to commit the murder should not be used to enhance his sentence.
After hearing both sides, Judge Steelman gave his opinion before laying out the sentence.
“The D.A used the word heinous, and that word is appropriate. A crime that involves stabbing someone 25 times is unique. But certainly, to stab through skin, flesh, and muscle to the bone of an individual is a unique and heinous act.”
Judge Steelman recalled a witness from the trial, who said “she heard screaming, like screaming she’d never heard from any other living thing.”
The judge also took time to point out the numerous and inconsistent stories Rufino told over the course of the investigation, trial, and sentencing.
“I don’t know what to believe about Mr. Rufino,” he said, “Mr. Rufino has been untruthful with the court and law enforcement.”
And so, after six hours in court, Judge Steelman finally gave Zacarias Salas-Rufino his sentence.
“This court sentences Mr. Rufino to 25 years in the Department of Corrections.”
As Rufino was escorted out, his attorney said she plans to file a motion for a new trial.