The case against a Pontiac woman charged with fatally shooting her child’s father has a heightened risk of mistrial now that two jurors have been dismissed — leaving no alternates.
Oakland County Circuit Judge Kwame Rowe, presiding over the trial of Solana Cervantes this week, released two jurors from service Wednesday. One was dismissed due to a medical condition and the other for a possible conflict after she received a message on social media related to the trial. Both jurors wrote notes to the judge about the issues, which he shared in court outside the presence of other jurors. The plan to let them go was met with no objection from defense attorney Paulette Loftin or assistant prosecutor Christopher George.
In Oakland County Circuit Court trials, it’s customary to seat 14 jurors — 12 who will ultimately deliberate. If all 14 make it through the trial, a random drawing chooses two as alternates who won’t participate as deliberations get underway and will be dismissed from service. But they may be called back if an issue arises with one of the other 12.
Cervantes, 26, faces charges of homicide and felony firearm for the death of 23-year-old Rolando “Nano” Rosario, Jr. on Nov. 3, 2019. Rosario was shot at Cervantes’ apahome on Cherry Hill Drive where he had been caring for the couple’s child, then age 3. Cervantes had reportedly been out with her boyfriend and other friends that night, returning home at around 3 a.m. The shooting happened less than an hour later.
Cervantes’ attorney, Paulette Loftin, says it was done in self-defense. Yet George suggests Cervantes was in a foul mood when she returned home, having been arguing with her boyfriend about dancing with others while they were out.
According to testimony from Rosario’s girlfriend, who was there at the time, Cervantes threw her boyfriend out of the apartment and then turned her anger on Rosario — yelling about the apartment being messy and then blocking the doorway so he couldn’t leave.
“(Cervantes) was getting in his face…picking with him. He didn’t want to be there,” she said.
Rosario asked her to wait on the porch, and the yelling continued, she said. Then, based on shadows, it appeared Rosario walked toward the door and stopped like he forgot something, she said. Next, a gunshot.
She said she entered the apartment and saw Rosario lying on his back, “struggling.” She told him to think of his daughter — that he had to stay for her,” she said.
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“He was struggling to breathe, fighting for his life…he started shaking, he was giving up,” she said.
Cervantes called 911, she said, but didn’t try to help him and “was just standing there,” she said.
Rosario died from a single, through-and-through gunshot to the abdomen, fired from a 9mm handgun. According to testimony from a forensic investigator from the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office, Rachel Grace, Rosario was at least four feet from the gun when he was shot.
More testimony
Working to plant doubt in jurors’ minds about Cervantes firing in self-defense, George also called Julia Rizzi to the stand, who interviewed Cervantes in 2018 as a Child Protective Services employee. Rizzi got involved after Rosario was in a car accident while his and Cervantes’ daughter was with him, and he reportedly had been drinking. Rosario lost an eye due to the crash.
Rizzi said Cervantes “absolutely denied any domestic violence” by Rosario, and claimed they got along “really well and co-parented well together.” Rizzi further testified that she found no past reports of domestic violence involving the couple.
Also called by the prosecution was Deputy Steven Webber of the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office, who testified that he responded to the 911 call reporting the shooting and spotted a woman — later determined to be Cervantes — “whimpering, crying” outside the apartment.
Webber said he approached her as a possible witness, and she admitted to being the shooter.
“She said ‘I shot my boyfriend, I shot my child’s father’ — something like that,” Webber testified.
Webber said Cervantes also told him Rosario had been “choking and hitting her,” so he had paramedics on the scene speak with her. She was provided an ice pack, he said.
According to testimony from other witnesses, Harrison Tong, DO, who subsequently examined Cervantes at McLaren Oakland Hospital, and Detective Renee Stevens who checked her out at the Pontiac substation, a small bruise or blemish was found on her neck but no injuries were noted. On cross examination of Tong, Loftin referenced a hospital report that stated Cervantes had complained of throat pain and face pain after being brought in to McLaren Oakland soon after the shooting. When Loftin asked Tong if he did a “head-to-toe” examination of Cervantes, he said he couldn’t recall.
Another witness, Detective Michael Miller, also said he saw no injuries on Cervantes when he first interviewed her but that she complained of face and neck pain. “She expressed discomfort,” he said.
Miller also testified about Cervantes’ account of what happened in the minutes before the shooting. As Miller recalled, Cervantes told him Rosario was angry about her coming home at such a late hour and an argument between the two turned physical — beginning with pushing and pulling hair. At some point, she said, Rosario had her down on the ground where he strangled her and struck her in the face several times. Their child then awoke, so Rosario got up and went to check on her. She told him that’s when she got her gun from her bedroom, approached Rosario and asked him to leave, but he refused.
Miller said Cervantes told her the arguing continued as they moved into the living room and he started telling her to shoot him. Miller said Cervantes told him that she pointed the gun at Rosario and, as he moved toward him, she fired.
A video recording of the interview was shown to the jury. Cervantes is heard saying that Rosario beat her in the past, including while pregnant. Miller testified that he searched the database used by law enforcement, CLEMIS, and found no reports to support the claim. He did, however, find a report of “harassing communication” Cervantes filed against another man earlier that year.
Testimony continues Friday morning.
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