With less than a week before their preliminary hearing and an all important bail reduction request Juan Luis Davila has one of the best private criminal defense lawyers in rural Nevada while his wife Angelica Ruby Numez-Alcala could not even get a public defender according to the Elko Justice Court office.
Davila is now represented by Elko Attorney David Lockie who was privately retained by the man’s family a week ago. In a motion to the court Alcala indicated that she did not have the resources to afford a lawyer and asked to be represented by the Elko county Public Defenders Office.
However because the Public Defender had previously represented Davila on other criminal charges, the office notified the court Wednesday that it had a conflict of interest. According to the justice court a private Elko area attorney will be appointed for her by the court, but with less than four working days before her preliminary hearing who ever gets the job will have their work cut out for them,
A SWAT team of Elko County Narcotics agents raided a West Wendover home September 14, describing it as a ‘illegal drug super market’ and and arrested Juan Luis Davila, 29, and Angelica Ruby Numez-Alcala, 24.
According to the Elko County Narcotics Unit press release agents spent three months investigating the couple.
Both are now being held in the Elko County jail on a combined bail of over $1.2 million on nine felony counts each.
While the raid was dramatic and the bails were huge, the actual amount of drugs seized were quite small.
After serving the no knock warrant and arresting the pair, agents spent several hour searching the residence and found according to the release: 2.25 ounces of meth, over four ounces of cocaine, more than 12 ounces of marijuana and a small amount of psychedelic mushrooms. Agents also seized over $10,000 in cash and two handguns, one of which was reported stolen recently in Battle Mountain.
If the couple were truly the Wendover equivalent of ‘Scar face’, they certainly kept a low profile. According to family member the two did not even own the mobil home they were living in and their newest vehicle was seven years old. Alcala at least also had full time legitimate job. And while her husband was described as a ‘frequent flyer’ in the Elko and West Wendover Court system Alcala, until the September raid, had no criminal record.
The amounts of illicit drugs seized did not however include any amounts agents may have purchased from the couple during the three month investigation.
The affidavit that led to the warrant permitting the raid indicates that police gained. probable cause by an earlier search of the couple’s trash cans published on page two of this edition.
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The couple’s young child was also present during the first moments of the raid and was placed in the care of relatives.
Lockie according to his office is already preparing a bail reduction request. Alcala will have to wait until she meets with her still unknown and un-appointed lawyer.
“I think a case could be made that this was a case of over charging,” said one source close to the case. “Over half a million for a pound of drugs and a stolen gun? People arrested for murder get less than that.”
