Trial set in Indian Hills stabbing

A June 12-16 trial has been set in the case of a man who is denying a charge of attempted murder with a deadly weapon in a Nov. 14 Indian Hills stabbing.

Efrain Gonzales-Magana, 29, has been in custody since the Nov. 14 in lieu of $100,000 bond.

Magana entered an innocent plea to the attempted murder charge on Tuesday.

A pre-trial motions hearing is scheduled for May 23. Magana is represented by attorney Brian Filter.

• A Carson City man was sent to prison after he admitted he violated his probation by committing a new crime.

Brett Michael Seslar, 22, is currently incarcerated after being convicted an ex-felon with a firearm in Carson City and sentenced to 18-48 months in prison.

Seslar was convicted of burglary of a Topsy shoe store and received a suspended 2-5-year prison sentence in April 2021.

Seslar was given credit for 301 days time served.

• A Gardnerville man admitted Tuesday to felony battery by a prisoner while in custody after punching a fellow inmate.

Cristian Jose Morales, 27, was in custody after he admitted fleeing from the back of a probation officer’s vehicle last summer.

At the start of Tuesday’s hearing, Morales had three attorneys, but said he was OK with one and Nadine Morton was appointed to represent him in three cases.

He’s also facing revocation of his probation for possession of controlled substance for sale.

In exchange for his guilty plea to the Dec. 14 battery, prosecutors will recommend the probation violation and the escape charges be capped at 1-4 years and run simultaneously.

He faces up to six years in the battery charge at his Feb. 7 sentencing.

• A man who admitted to abusing his elderly mother received credit for the 93 days he’s spent in custody.

Brandon James Canfield, 48, admitted to a charge of abuse of an elderly person, after he grabbed his 70-year-old mother around the throat on Oct. 24, 2022. He received a suspended 364-day sentence, a $1,000 fine and 48 hours of community service.

Canfield still faces proceedings in El Dorado County on a Dec. 28, 2021, charge of attempting to terrorize involving a roommate.

• A man who failed drug court was given a suspended 19-48-month prison sentence.

Joshua Tyler Steen, 31, pleaded guilty on March 2, 2021, of possession of a controlled substance after he was arrested on Dec. 26, 2020.

He was offered an opportunity to do Western Nevada Regional Drug Court that would have the felony removed from his record.

Instead, five months after being placed on diversion he was arrested in Washoe County and sentenced to prison.

Steen said he’d spent 14 months in prison when he was released in October. In the meantime, he’s obtained a job and has remained sober. He was given credit for 70 days time served.

• A 41-year-old Ridgecrest, Calif., man who said he’s been convicted of eight felonies, admitted to a count of possession of methamphetamine on Tuesday.

David James Johnson said he’d been using the drug since he was 17 years old. Judges are mandated to place those accused of simple drug possession on probation, but Johnson’s criminal record makes him eligible for a 19-48-month maximum prison sentence.

He is scheduled to appear for sentencing on March 28.