Shooter of man killed in parking spot dispute takes plea agreement

The trial for a man accused of killing another man over a parking space at a drug treatment center ended abruptly Friday with a plea deal, the day after the prosecution's key witness went into labor outside the courtroom.

Prosecutors were seeking a first-degree murder conviction for Kureem Jabbar Glenn, 31, charged with shooting Sergio Rosales-Cuello, 22, outside a drug treatment center Feb. 21, after they fought over a parking spot.

Witnesses said they saw Rosales-Cuello chasing Glenn with a knife after Glenn had kicked and punched him. Glenn then pulled out a gun and fired.

Prosecutors offered Glenn a deal Friday. He made what's known as an Alford plea to voluntary manslaughter. Prosecutors agreed to drop a deadly weapons enhancement that would have doubled his sentence and agreed not to argue for more than eight years in prison during Glenn's August sentencing hearing.

An Alford plea is not an admission of guilt but an acknowledgement that prosecutors have enough evidence to prove their charge.

"We had identification issues," said Deputy District Attorney Robert Turner, who added the jury might have bought a self-defense argument because Rosales-Cuello had chased Glenn with a knife.

He disputed that argument because Rosales-Cuello was running away from Glenn as Glenn shot him, according to witnesses.

Witnesses Orlando Verde and his friend, Maria Pantoja, were in the parking lot of Choices Group Inc. at 800 S. Valley View Blvd., near Charleston Boulevard at the time of the shooting. They were the prosecution's only witnesses to identify Glenn as the shooter.

But Glenn's defense attorney Frank Kocka emphasized Verde failed to identify Glenn in a photo lineup after the shooting, and Pantoja could not identify him during the preliminary hearing.

On Thursday, Pantoja identified Glenn as the shooter during the prosecution's questioning. The court took a break and, before the defense could cross-examine her, Pantoja's water broke outside the courtroom on the 11th floor.

Paramedics took her to Sunrise Hospital, where she gave birth. Attorneys said they could not find Pantoja Friday.

Turner said it has been difficult to stay in contact with some of the witnesses, who did not have reliable telephone numbers or addresses.

At Glenn's preliminary hearing earlier this year, Pantoja had been heard making comments outside court indicating she was afraid to identify him as the shooter. Had Kocka been able to cross-examine her, he said, he wanted to explore why she never told anyone in court about her fear.

If Pantoja couldn't be found, he said, "the most likely result is a mistrial."