18-year-old Coloradan sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole in Colfax Avenue slaying

A Denver judge on Thursday sentenced a teenager who murdered a woman at a traffic light on Colfax Avenue to life in prison with the possibility of parole. Because Remi Cordova was a juvenile convicted as an adult, he is eligible under Colorado law to ask for early parole depending on the rehabilitation process. After 20 years, he may apply for a three-year program to get a GED and seek release after 23 years.

Cordova was found guilty of first-degree murder and attempted first-degree murder last month for shooting and killing Colorado real estate agent Pamela Cabriales at a traffic light in 2021 and also attempting to kill the driver of a different vehicle.

Cordova was 14 when the shooting happened but was charged as an adult because of the severity of the crime.

Cabriales was 32 and was shot and severely injured when she was driving home. Prosecutors said Cordova shot into her vehicle with an AR-15 after she got into a minor traffic collision in her car with the vehicle Cordova was riding in. They said his actions were done in part to try to impress gang members. Cabriales died a few days later.

In the courtroom on Thursday evening Cordova, who has maintained that he is innocent, addressed Cabriales' family directly.

"I want you all to know I really feel for y'all, I understand completely ... the pain that you guys feel. But I can not take responsibility for something that I did not do," he said.

Cabriales left behind a young son. Her ex-husband and father of that child testified during the sentencing hearing about the struggles the boy has gone through since his mother's murder.

"This sentence will ensure that Remi Cordova is held accountable and pays a significant price for his heinous crimes," Denver District Attorney Beth McCann said in a statement. "Pamela Cabriales was a loving, joyful and hard-working young woman who would be with us today were it not for Mr. Cordova's entirely senseless actions the night of the murder."

"My thoughts continue to be with all those who knew and loved Pamela, especially her young son."

Cordova has already served nearly four years of his sentence. 

In court, relatives of Cordova talked about his terrible upbringing. His family had repeated contact with child protection services through the years from the time he was a small child.

Judge Darryl F. Shockley told Cordova during sentencing, "Your life is tragic." He continued, "The things that have happened to you that have been done to you should have never happened or been done to anyone."

Cordova's defense claimed his childhood trauma played a role in what happened.

"This is one of the times when you will see 'victim' next to Remi Cordova's name," said defense attorney James Zorich, as he listed out years of incidents and neglect and abuse starting soon after Remi Cordova was born.

He had almost no relationship with his father, who was murdered. Family told the court his mother had suffered from mental illness.

She claimed in court that Remi was raised in Boulder County by a loving family. Later she, too, claimed he was innocent.

"Some of the things that were said in there were not true. Some of the things were fabricated slightly. I was a young mother. Things do happen, I didn't have help," said Christina Cordova. 

The brother of Pamela Cabriales noted their family too had been through a lot. A brother to Alex and Pamela Cabriales was murdered in 1994.

"I understand trauma. We've been through trauma ourselves. Very heavy trauma," he said. "I did not kill someone."

He said Pamela's son also dealt with terrible trauma. "He gets up in the middle of the night screaming and yelling. What about Leo's trauma? What about my mom's trauma?"

The Cabriales family remains upset that Remi Cordova was not in custody at the time of the killing, having been released on a juvenile weapons charge by a Denver Juvenile Court judge.

"I believe Judge Laurie Clark should resign. There's no way she should be on the bench after having released him so that he could be out to murder my sister," said Alex Cabriales.

The family has been pushing the justice system in the case. They opposed a plea deal in a related case against Neshan Johnson, who drove the car and encouraged Cordova to shoot. Judge Christopher Baumann opposed the plea deal as well and rejected it. Ultimately Johnson, who was tried last year, was found guilty of two counts of murder in the second degree, one count of criminal attempt to commit manslaughter, one count of criminal attempt to commit assault, one count of vehicular eluding, and one count of being an accessory to a crime. He was sentenced to 35 years and 14 years of parole.

Cordova spoke to the court before sentencing, saying "Understand that I am not the monster or the murderer that I have been painted to be."

The defense says it plans to appeal his conviction.