Woman Convicted of Murder for Stabbing Boyfriend with Stiletto
By Associated Press
04/08/2014 at 05:05 PM EDT
A Houston woman was convicted of murder Tuesday
for
fatally stabbing her boyfriend with the 5½-inch stiletto heel of her
shoe, hitting him at least 25 times in the face.
Prosecutors said Ana Trujillo used her high heel shoe to kill
59-year-old Alf Stefan Andersson during an argument at his Houston
condominium in June.
Trujillo's attorney had argued the 45-year-old woman was defending
herself during an attack by Andersson, a University of Houston professor
and researcher.
Trujillo, who faces up to life in prison, showed little emotional
reaction when the jury verdict was read. The jury will begin hearing
evidence in the trial's punishment phase Wednesday.
During the
trial, prosecutors portrayed Trujillo, a native of Mexico, as out of
control on the night of the slaying. A cab driver who took the couple
home before Andersson's death told jurors that Trujillo was angry and
yelling on the ride to his condo.
Prosecutors told jurors that once the couple got home, they began
arguing and during the confrontation, Andersson was injured and fell on
his back. Trujillo sat on Andersson, preventing him from getting up and
repeatedly struck him in the face and head with her shoe, they said.
During witness testimony, prosecutors highlighted that Trujillo did not
have any injuries from her confrontation with Andersson while the
researcher had defensive wounds on his hands and wrists. Trujillo's
attorneys argued she did have injuries.
Witnesses portrayed Andersson, a native of Sweden who became a U.S.
citizen, as mild-mannered and quiet.
In a video of Trujillo's police interrogation that was played at trial,
she told detectives Andersson had become enraged after thinking she was
going to leave him, attacked her and that she used the only weapon she
had at her disposal — her shoe — to defend herself.
Trujillo told detectives she hit Andersson with her shoe "a couple of
times" and didn't realize she had hurt him until she saw blood on the
floor. Trujillo told detectives she tried performing CPR on Andersson.
The blue suede stiletto heel — a size 9 platform pump with a 5 1/2-inch
heel — was brought out during testimony about the bloody crime scene.
In video and photos taken by police at the crime scene, the stiletto
heel can be seen lying on the carpeted floor of Andersson's condominium,
above his head. A large pool of blood was also near his head, which was
bloodied, purple and had several visible wounds.