Woman Dies During Sexual Act – Boyfriend Found Not Guilty
Henry Patterson, 65, a resident of Florida who claimed his oversized penis caused him to accidentally choke his girlfriend to death during an act of oral sex was found not guilty of murder on Monday. His girlfriend, Francisca Marquinez, was found dead at the age of 60 in her home on October 28th, 2015. Marquinez and Patterson had been dating for only four months. His defense attorney Kenneth Padowitz argued that Patterson should not be convicted because prosecutors could not adequately make their case. There was insufficient evidence contradicting the man’s claims proving the cause and manner of death to be anything other than what he claimed to have caused it.
Broward county medical examiner Dr Ronald Wright determined that Marquinez died of asphyxiation. He testified in court, saying the woman could have indeed met her demise during the act. Defense attorney Ken Padowitz said the woman’s death was undetermined, although could have been caused by the act, and the associate Broward County Medical Examiner Louri Boiko, who performed the autopsy on Marquinez several days after her death, told the court Thursday for the victim to have choked to death on Patterson’s penis the organ would have had to become lodged in her throat for two to three minutes. Boiko went on to say if Patterson’s part was, in fact, obstructing Marquinez’s airway, there would have been evidence of struggle during the act.
Patterson did not call 911 immediately following the incident, which was brought to the court’s attention by Peter Sapak, assistant state attorney. Instead, the woman had been dead for at least 24 hours when her body was finally found — more likely 48 or more. Police found the already decomposing corpse after Patterson called his attorney, Padowtiz, and directed him to summon police to his girlfriend’s apartment. Marquinez was found face down on her bed with a bag filled with paper towels and tissues stained with blood and semen nearby. More blood was found in and around the apartment and on the victim’s hand, Patterson was arrested a week later on a second-degree murder charge after sending text messages to his daughter and a friend, admitting he “did something bad and was so so sorry,” He said he “’choked Francisca” because his medications were making him “crazy.” However, Patterson’s attorney pointed out his client did not say he strangled the woman in the texted conversations.
The victim’s son, Omar Andrade, 41, previously described Patterson as a “desperate man trying to avoid being convicted for the crime” by concocting his ridiculous story. In the course of testimony and presenting evidence, the prosecution and defense argued over the appropriateness of showing Patterson’s organ to the jury and its need to be erect to give them an accurate depiction of its size. On the day his client was acquitted, defense attorney Padowitz appeared before Judge Lisa Porter asking her to allow his client to present his anatomy as evidence to members of the jury panel. Porter insisted “I believe it’s pertinent.” However, Assistant State Attorney Peter Sapak raised a concern regarding the logistics of such a presentation, namely that Patterson’s member would need to be erect. “Is it going to be erect, or is it going to be flaccid?” he asked. “Because the allegation is they’re having a sexual intercourse and I’m assuming the size of the penis does matter for the defense. A flaccid penis, whether it be a picture or the jury actually seeing it, is completely irrelevant. It needs to be erect.” The request was never granted, anyway.
The jury’s not guilty verdict was met with a mixed response, particularly considering the couple’s supposedly tumultuous relationship, according to friends and family. A former neighbor of the couple said Marquinez and Patterson had a stormy relationship and were heard arguing, and on the eve of her death, the woman wanted to break up with her boyfriend.
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