Jury finds man accused of beating, jamming sticks into SLO man guilty of murder
A jury found the man accused of beating a San Luis Obispo resident to death and jamming sticks into his body guilty of murder and mutilation Tuesday, the San Luis Obispo County District Attorney’s Office confirmed to The Tribune.
Marco Antonio Cota Jr., 45, was accused of murdering 64-year-old Rick Fowler on Nov. 20, 2021. At the time, the two were both unhoused and camping in the creekbed near the interchange at Highway 101 and Madonna Road.
Fowler’s body was found with his head misshapen and sticks protruding from his eyes and rectum. An additional stick was also found in his neck during the autopsy.
A defense expert testified Thursday that Fowler died of blunt force trauma to the head.
The prosecution alleged Cota murdered Fowler while in a rage, while the defense argued Cota killed Fowler in self-defense.
Cota was charged with murder and mutilation of human remains.
During opening statements, Cota’s defense attorney, James Askew, said Fowler “basically ambushed” Cota and challenged him to fight. Evidence shown later in the trial found Fowler also had traces of methamphetamine in his blood while Cota had traces of marijuana.
Cota told a detective that he forced sticks into Fowler’s body “to show you motherf--kers what evil looks like,” San Luis Obispo County Deputy District Attorney Melissa Chabra told jurors during her opening statements.
The first two times Cota spoke with law enforcement, he said he had no knowledge of what happened to Fowler, witnesses said in court testimony. When detectives said they found DNA evidence linking Cota to Fowler’s demise, Cota said he killed Fowler in self-defense.
The sticks were inserted into Fowler at the time of death or after, witnesses testified.
Jurors deliberated for approximately two days.
Cota faces a 25-to-life sentence for the murder. He was also found guilty of violating health and safety code 2052, mutilation of human remains and has a sentencing enhancement for having committed previous crimes that qualify under the California Three Strikes law.
Cota’s previous crimes included a 1998 conviction for robbery in Tulare County, convictions for criminal threats in 2014 and assault with a deadly weapon in 2016, both in San Luis Obispo County, a Wednesday news release from the San Luis Obispo District Attorney’s Office said.
This story was originally published February 13, 2024 at 4:32 PM.
