Navarrete maintains innocence, family testifies in trial

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Former state Sen. Otoniel “Tony” Navarrete is currently on trial for a series of sexual crimes against children, which his attorney maintains he did not commit.  

The first three days of trial included testimony from the alleged victims (Navarrete’s two nephews), other family members and police.  

Much of the state’s case hinges on testimony from the alleged victims and a recorded phone call between Navarrete and one of his nephews where Navarrete allegedly apologizes for his “actions.” 

Navarrete’s attorney, Andrew Feldman, argues that Navarrete was not confessing to the seven crimes he was indicted on but was only apologizing for getting drunk one night and grazing his nephew’s genitals on accident.  

Feldman said that Navarrete was confronted by family members about the incident at the time and apologized but wasn’t aware of any other instances of sexual abuse. He said that on the recorded call, that’s the incident that Navarrete is apologizing for.  

“The state will not present you with a single admission from Mr. Navarrete … you did not hear an admission of the kind that has been alleged against Mr. Navarrete,” Feldman said. “You don’t know the Cervantes family,” he told the jury. “You don’t know the lengths that they’re willing to go to take down Mr. Navarrete.” 

In the recorded phone call, the older alleged victim asks Navarrete why he touched his penis but isn’t specific about whether that happened multiple times or went beyond touching to oral sex, which is part of the charges.  

“Of course, I regret any bad actions mijo, that I did,” Navarrete said on the call. “I wish everything could be different … I’m so sorry mijo.” Navarrete continues to say that he regrets “it” and that he had sexual experiences from as young as he can remember. “I’ve never hurt someone like that before,” Navarrete said. 

Feldman pressed the alleged victim on the stand about why he didn’t bring up oral sex or make it clear that he was talking about multiple incidents. 

The state argues that over the course of a few years, Navarrete performed sexual acts including molestation on one of his nephews, who was a minor, six times. There is also a charge against Navarrete for attempting to touch one of his other nephews, also a minor.  

The two alleged victims testified all day on Tuesday – standing by the accounts of the crimes, although in cross examination, Feldman made it clear that the timeline is fuzzy and that each of the siblings recalls differences in the details of their accounts to the police back in 2021, to family before then, and now in front of the jury.  

For example, one of Navarrete’s nieces said initially in one of her recollections to police that the house was dark when she spoke to her brother about one of the alleged crimes, and she later said she thought the hall light was on.  

One thing that witnesses differed on in their testimonies is the timeline of events, including which elements of the suspected crimes occurred in what order and how many months passed between each event. 

Feldman said in his opening remarks that he aims to prove that Navarrete is the victim of a conspiracy between his nephews and some other family members who are “up against Tony” and are trying to take him down for acts he did not commit.  

Feldman declined to comment to our reporter. Prosecutors said it’s not certain whether Navarrete will testify. 

If the state succeeds in getting a conviction on all seven counts, Navarrete faces life in prison without the possibility of parole.  

The two alleged victims moved in with Navarrete when they were young with some of their other siblings. One was between 13-15 and the other was two years younger. 

The older alleged victim said the first incident with Navarrete happened before they moved in with him and the other five incidents happened at Navarrete’s house. 

Navarrete’s house was a more comfortable living situation for the older alleged victim than the trailer he moved into with his sister and two other people. At Navarrete’s house, the siblings testified they had a pool, games, Wi-Fi and enough clothing and food. But when they left, those things weren’t always available. 

The younger alleged victim said he liked it there, but both say they eventually left because of the sexual abuse.  

The younger alleged victim testified that he would try to stay awake some nights to protect his brother, that he sometimes barricaded their door with a chair and that he once slept with a knife under his pillow when his other siblings weren’t home. 

The siblings reported the alleged incidents to their grandmother – who is also Navarrete’s mother – but they say she didn’t make it stop and discouraged the boys from going to the police.  

The older alleged victim said he didn’t feel comfortable talking about everything that happened to him on the recorded phone call or with family members. He said he felt “gay” for not doing more to stop it from happening, but said when it happened, he “froze.”  

Detectives on the case testified that they didn’t check phone records between the older alleged victim and his sister to see if they could corroborate their communications and establish a timeline of the crimes.  

“You don’t know if he’s capable of setting somebody up,” Feldman said of the older alleged victim while interviewing one of the detectives.  

Feldman also reiterated multiple times that there’s no physical evidence in the case like DNA or fingerprints. 

One of the prosecutors asked the older alleged victim if some of the events run together in his head. He said they do. 

Eventually, the older alleged victim moved out of Navarrete’s house with his sister. 

She has not testified yet. 

Several people in the courtroom sat behind Navarrete in the “friends and family section” and greeted him during court recesses. The alleged victims and their sisters sat on the other side of the room. They testified that when the boys came forward with their allegations against Navarrete, the rest of their family stopped speaking to them and inviting them to family events.  

Navarrete’s mother is scheduled to testify at some point. The trial will continue next week.