IN her opening statements before Superior Court jurors on Wednesday morning, Assistant Attorney General Heather Barcinas said the defendant, Calvin Tagabuel, punched Lark Kasian in the face causing him to fall and hit his head on the concrete ground, knocking him out. She said Kasian suffered severe head trauma as a result of this assault that ultimately led to his death on Jan. 12, 2024, at 6:07 a.m.
Barcinas said an incoming cashier noticed Kasian unconscious by the stairway and called the police.
The incident occurred on Jan. 6, 2024, at Cool Laundry in Kagman at approximately 2:15 a.m., but “nobody called for medics until 9:46, close to eight hours later,” the prosecutor said.
Barcinas said the government charged Tagabuel, 48, with second degree murder for the unlawful killing of Kasian, 44, with malice afterthought.
“To kill with malice afterthought means to kill either deliberately or intention with reckless disregard for human life,” she added.
She said the prosecution will also play video footage of the assault and call 15 witnesses, including first responders, eyewitnesses and doctors.
For his part, defense attorney Joey McDoulett said Tagabuel is a “father, a family man, a hard worker, a protector, and also an innocent man.”
McDoulett told jurors that there is no evidence to prove that “a single punch resulted in these catastrophic injuries.”
He said the prosecution will offer theories of a “possible outcome, [but] not a likely outcome.”
He said multiple witnesses will also testify that Kasian “was involved not in one, but two violent altercations where he was struck in the head more than once” before the incident.
McDoulett said his client acted in self-defense, adding that “they called him for help.”
“He used reasonable force, he did not use deadly force…he used one hand, and it was one punch…it was self-defense,” he added.
McDoulett said his client will testify during the trial. “What he saw that night, you can judge [for yourself]. What was going on in his mind…what drove his decisions,” the lawyer added.
“My client did not commit second-degree murder,” he said. “Firing a gun into a crowd is an extreme disregard for human life…. The fact that he checked Kasian multiple times…is not an act of disregard for human life…he was worried, and no deadly force was ever used,” McDoulett reiterated.
Initially, Tagabuel was charged with voluntary manslaughter, and aggravated assault and battery. Later, the government charged him with second-degree murder and aggravated assault and battery.
The jury trial, which started on Tuesday, will resume Thursday, Feb. 13, at 9 a.m.
