Julio Paiz Jr. Gets Life for San Pedro Murder

When Julio Paiz Junior was eighteen, he shot and killed his friend and former co-worker in a shocking act of revenge. After bullying his co-worker’s wife and getting reported, Paiz Junior came back to settle the score, executing his friend in public, right in front of his wife. After spending three years on remand, Paiz Junior claimed he had changed and asked the court for leniency, expressing remorse for his actions. However, this morning, Justice Nigel Pilgrim considered various factors before sentencing Paiz Junior to a fixed life term of thirty years, starting from December sixteenth, 2024. Paiz Junior will be eligible for parole after serving half of his sentence. Justice Pilgrim considered the circumstances of the crime, the offender’s background, and both mitigating and aggravating factors. He noted that while the murder was premeditated and carried out in broad daylight, it did not qualify as the “worst of the worst,” thus avoiding a death sentence. Instead, a fixed term was deemed appropriate. The judge also reflected on the impact of the murder on the victim’s family, reading heart-wrenching statements from Hilberto Cáliz Junior’s mother and brother. Despite Paiz Junior’s young age and claims of remorse, his history of infractions and the heinous nature of the crime led to the thirty-year sentence. Paiz Junior’s sentence will be backdated to December sixteenth, 2021, when he was first remanded. In court, the prosecution was represented by Senior Crown Counsel Sheniza Smith, while Paiz Junior was defended by attorney Emerita Anderson.