Lacombe man convicted in St. Tammany for brutal 2020 stabbing | Courts

It took a St. Tammany Parish jury about 20 minutes to find a Lacombe man guilty of stabbing his girlfriend to death after discovering she was planning to leave him, and then cutting off her lower leg with a hacksaw after she bled to death in their home.

Jurors convicted Fernando Cortez, 30, of second-degree murder Thursday after hearing testimony about the brutal 2020 stabbing of Sandra Aldridge, St. Tammany Parish District Attorney Collin Simm's office said in a news release.

During the three-day trial before Judge Tara Zeller of the 22nd Judicial District Court, testimony established that Cortez called 911 at 5:30 a.m. on April 17, 2020, and said he and a woman he mistakenly called his wife had been stabbed and were dying, the prosecutor's office said.

Cortez then said he stabbed her three or four times, that “her leg was gone” and that “I went too far.” Investigators also said Cortez was asked routine questions after his arrest about his thoughts of harming himself or others and turned to deputies and said, “Don’t they know I just killed someone?”

Cortez would tell police he stabbed Aldridge because she refused to take a Covid test. But jurors heard evidence that Aldridge planned to leave Cortez the day she died, and Cortez told investigators he was aware of her plans to leave him, the prosecutor's office said.

A friend of Aldridge's testified at trial that Aldridge had recently confided she was going to leave Cortez and that the friend told Aldridge she could come stay with her in Florida. Prosecutors presented evidence that Aldridge had recently Googled “cheap airline flights” and sent a text message to Cortez the day of the murder saying, “I won't be here when you get home.” »

A bloody scene

Officers arrived at the residence and found Cortez standing in the kitchen, still armed with a knife, and they arrested him after a brief struggle, the district attorney's office said. They soon found Aldridge's naked body with multiple gashes to his neck and hands; his left leg was missing just above the knee.

Investigators said the smell of bleach filled the air, indicating someone had attempted to clean the scene. A freshly dug hole was discovered in the yard with a shovel nearby, and detectives would later find Aldridge's severed leg in a plastic bag in the freezer.

An autopsy would later reveal that Aldridge died from the severing of her carotid artery and jugular vein, the prosecutor's office said.

Cortez was taken to a hospital, where it was determined his minor lacerations were self-inflicted. The prosecutor's office said testimony indicated Cortez told police he cut Aldridge's leg and dug the hole before realizing he had gone too far.

Self-defense claim dismissed

Cortez's attorneys have said he acted in self-defense, despite evidence that Cortez's injuries were self-inflicted and the presence of defensive wounds on Aldridge's hands.

Assistant District Attorney Amanda Gritten, who prosecuted the case with ADA Iain Dover, told jurors during closing arguments that the claim was “absurd.”

“There is no evidence to suggest this was a justifiable homicide,” she said.

Cortez will be sentenced on July 23. A conviction for second-degree murder requires a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole, probation or reprieve.