Jury finds nephew guilty of 1st-degree murder of uncle at Phoenix car wash

A jury on Tuesday found a 21-year-old man guilty of first-degree murder in the shooting of a relative at the Los Olivos Hand Car Wash in Phoenix in 2014.

Manuel Pacheco will be sentenced Nov. 30 by Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Meg Mahoney. His uncle, David Pacheco-Chavez, 54, was shot to death.

The jury deliberated for less than a day.

In closing arguments before the case went to the jury, the prosecutor and defense attorney debated over whether the shooting was premeditated first-degree murder or manslaughter.

Pacheco's attorney, Jason Gronski, argued for the jury to convict him of manslaughter instead.

On Nov. 23, 2014, the day of the shooting, Pacheco rode his bicycle to the car wash, watched Pacheco-Chavez working and then shot him, according to a police report.

According to authorities, Pacheco subsequently told witnesses to call police and that he would be waiting down the street.

Gronski told the jury that this crime occurred in the heat of passion.

He argued that Pacheco killed Pacheco-Chavez because Pacheco's brother had just told him that Pacheco-Chavez had molested him.

Gronski reminded the jury of what Pacheco had said on the stand earlier in the trial about his motive: “Because of what he did to my brother.”

Prosecuting attorney John Schneider argued that the crime had to be premeditated because Pacheco told Phoenix police that he had been thinking about killing his uncle for weeks.