Man gets 20 years in prison for slaying outside Bum Steer

A Tucson man who shot and killed another man outside the Bum Steer just months after being released from prison was ordered back to prison for 20 years Thursday.

Vernon Bullock Jr., 29, expressed sorrow over Francisco Arriaga's death, but he also rejected the testimony of a ballistic expert who tied his gun to the crime.

"I'm not a murderer. Never have been. Never will be. I still don't even if know I fired both of the shots that struck Mr. Arriaga and killed him," Bullock said.

If future tests prove he shot Arriaga, he'll accept responsibility then, Bullock said.

"This has been a nightmare of an experience and I keep hoping I'll wake up," Bullock said.

According to court testimony, more than 250 people were gathered outside the Bum Steer on June 12, 2005, when several fights broke out for unknown reasons.

Arriaga, 25, was shot in the chest with a 9 mm gun while talking to a friend on a cell phone. A second shot hit him in the right forearm and then traveled into his chest.

After police received a tip that Bullock was the shooter, prosecutor Lewis Brandes said forensic experts discovered Bullock's DNA on a gun found at the scene and proved the gun was the one used in the shooting.

During his trial last month, defense attorneys, Michael Rosenbluth and Monique Lyon, argued Bullock fired the gun in self-defense after a bullet from an unknown person's gun passed through his pant leg from behind. They said he simply wheeled and fired indiscriminately.

The jury convicted Bullock of second-degree murder.

Because Bullock had just been released on parole at the time of the shooting, he was facing between 16 and 22 years in prison instead of the normal 10 to 22 years.

Brandes had argued for the maximum sentence, noting Bullock's juvenile criminal history and his 2000 conviction in a convenience store armed robbery. When asked by a probation officer if he would ever rob a convenience store again, Bullock responded "I don't know," Brandes said.

"He's missing something that the rest of us have, a conscience," Brandes said.

Arriaga's mother, Virginia Valenzuela, 49, also asked for the maximum sentence.

"My son just went out dancing to have a little fun and he got shot," Valenzuela said.

Bullock apologized to the Arriaga family and his own.

"I want you all to know that I will become a better person and never put myself in this situation again," Bullock said, sobbing.

After the hearing, Arriaga's family expressed relief that the case has been resolved, but disappointment at the sentence.

"He talked about wanting to wake up from his nightmare, but Frankie's not going to get to wake up. He's not going to get married or have kids or see his nieces and nephews grow up," said his sister Anna Arriaga. "When (Bullock) gets out he'll be able to do all of those things."

Judge Hector Campoy also ordered Bullock to pay $11,314 in restitution and gave him credit for the 455 days he's already spent in custody.