Relatives of murder suspect Richard Henley raise their hands Wednesday in District Court at the request of Judge James Gubler, who then ordered them removed from court. He later did the same with relatives of Roberto Ortega Jr., who was shot to death Oct. 29. Photos by Ronda Churchill. Richard Henley appears Wednesday in District Court.

It started with a playful food fight and ended with a 33-year-old man dead and a 15-year-old boy in jail.

Tension between the families of the shooting suspect and the victim was so intense Wednesday that only a few relatives were allowed to sit in on a three-hour preliminary hearing on a murder charge against Richard Henley.

District Judge James Gubler ordered bailiffs to escort Henley's relatives out of the courthouse. Once they left the building, bailiffs walked out the family of shooting victim Roberto Ortega Jr. Henley's parents and a few of Ortega's family members were allowed to remain.

The judge said he wanted the families separated, fearing that reported harassment could escalate in the courtroom. Before the hearing ended, one family member complained that members of the other family were following them around town.

Gubler ultimately ordered Henley to stand trial on an open count of murder. He is being charged as an adult.

Before his decision, witnesses for both the prosecution and the defense shed light on the events leading up to the shooting in the early morning of Oct. 29, when a festive Halloween bash turned into a nightmarish birthday party.

Ortega's widow, Brenda Montoya, testified that she and her husband threw a Halloween bash for about 50 friends and relatives. About 1 a.m. Oct. 29, someone pulled out a birthday cake for one of Montoya's friends. During the celebration, she said some friends began hurling pieces of cake at other guests.

Montoya said she became upset when she saw Henley and his brother, Philip, two boys she did not know, tossing cake. "I said, 'Ya'll need to get the hell out of my house now,' " Montoya testified.

She said Henley's brother insulted her, and she punched him in the face. As she approached him again, someone jumped on her back, she said.

When she turned to escape that person, she said she saw Henley firing a gun. Two shots were fired in the air, and subsequent shots struck guests Alberto Vasquez, Rogelio Salgaeo and Ortega.

Ortega suffered gunshot wounds to the head and chest. The fatal bullet entered his left side and came to rest in his right lung. "I told him, `Don't die on me, don't die on me,' and he was gasping for air," Montoya said, breaking down into sobs Wednesday.

Vasquez and Salgaeo testified that they were shot, but neither man saw the gunman.

Henley's cousin, Nancy Martinez, testified that she attended the party with two people she had met earlier in the evening. She could not recall their names.

Martinez's version of the cake throwing was similar to the account offered by Montoya. However, Martinez said Henley and his brother apologized as soon as Montoya confronted them about throwing the cake.

Martinez said Montoya threw a punch for no reason. "She was acting like she was a crazy person," Martinez said.

She testified that 20 or 25 guests swarmed Philip, hitting and kicking him. She heard gunshots, and the crowd dispersed. Richard Henley and his brother ran down the street, she said.

Martinez, who is pregnant and was so at the time of the incident, said a mob of men and women grabbed her and began hitting her in the face and ribs. Another guest threatened to shoot her, she said.

Prosecutor Bruce Nelson questioned why Martinez offered such a detailed account on Wednesday after offering few details when police interviewed her after the incident. She denied suggestions that she concocted the story to help her cousin and said she did not believe police officers were interested in helping her.

She said that once guests told police officers Henley was the gunman, she was treated as a suspect rather than an assault victim.

The case is scheduled to go to trial Jan. 11.