Denver teen to be tried as an adult in murder of Pamela Cabriales

Teenager Remi Cordova will be tried as an adult in the 2021 murder of Pamela Cabriales. Cordova was 14 at the time of the shooting. 

In February of 2021, Pamela Cabriales was headed home after having dinner with a friend in Denver. She was the mother of a 6-year-old boy. On Colfax Avenue near Interstate 25, she had a minor fender bender with another car. Police say Neshan Johnson,18, and a 14-year-old boy were in the car, both reputed gang members.

Alex Cabriales said the 14-year-old turned to the older teen and asked, "Can I bust on em'?" Cabriales recounts that Johnson told the 14-year-old, "Do what you gotta do." With that, the 14-year-old allegedly got out of the car and, armed with a high-powered rifle,  opened fire on Pamela Cabriales. The shots would end her life.

"My sister's life means nothing to that boy," said Alex Cabriales. "It was just a gang initiation to them. This was a person, a human being, a really good person and a 14-year-old boy decided her life was worth nothing."

Denver prosecutors initially planned to cut a plea bargain with Neshan Johnson that would have allowed him to plead guilty to second-degree murder and serve seven years in prison. The Cabriales family rejected that deal and a judge agreed the proposed plea bargain was not commensurate with the crime. A jury later found Johnson guilty at trial and he was sentenced to 35 years in prison.

On Friday, Judge Laurie Clark ordered the case of Cordova to be transferred from Denver Juvenile Court to Denver District Court.