1st-degree murder conviction vacated for defendant in 'Junior' slaying

Jonaiki Martinez-Estrella was originally sentenced to life without parole in 2019. He will face resentencing following the dropped charge.

Adolfo Carrion

Mar 9, 2023, 8:28 PM

Updated 657 days ago

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The first-degree murder conviction is being vacated for a defendant in the 2018 fatal stabbing of Lesandro “Junior” Guzman-Feliz.  
This comes from the Appellate Division of the New York State Supreme Court. The defendant, Jonaiki Martinez-Estrella, was caught on video stabbing Junior in the throat with a knife.  
Martinez-Estrella had been sentenced to life without parole in October of 2019. He now faces resentencing on his remaining convictions.
For Leandra Feliz, Junior's mother, the news was a nightmare. 
"I was thinking, I'm never going to have to be in the courthouse going through that," said Leandra. "Why, I don't understand why they're giving him that opportunity. I don't know."
She says that she felt better once she heard directly from Bronx district attorney Darcel Clark earlier on Thursday, but that she is scared that the defendants will be back on the streets one day.
"We need safety protection on the street," said Leandra. "We need the government to do something for the humble community people. Crime is winning."