Ogle County judge clears man of aggravated battery following 1-day bench trial

A Chicago man accused of beating an Oregon man at a March 2024 gathering in rural Oregon was acquitted of felony aggravated battery Monday after a one-day bench trial.

Vincente Estrada-Martinez, 44, was found not guilty after Ogle County Associate Judge Anthony Peska listened to witness testimony in the morning and attorney arguments in the afternoon at the Ogle County Judicial Center in Oregon.

“The court finds you not guilty,” Peska told Estrada-Martinez. “I believe self-defense was justified.”

The Ogle County State’s Attorney’s Office had charged Estrada-Martinez with aggravated battery, a Class 3 felony, alleging that he caused “great bodily harm” when he punched the man and broke his nose.

Assistant State’s Attorney Melissa Voss argued that Estrada-Martinez also broke the man’s ribs following a verbal altercation during which the man made a slur about Estrada-Martinez’s daughter.

“[Estrada-Martinez] didn’t just hit him once,” Voss said, adding that the man suffered “severe” injuries, including broken ribs and damaged teeth. “This wasn’t self-defense. This was a beating.”

But Estrada-Martinez’s attorney, Melinda Jacobson of Rockford, said Estrada-Martinez was acting in self-defense when the man – who she said was heavily intoxicated – was verbally abusive to other people at the party and threatened to “kill everyone.”

“These things do not happen in a vacuum. It all happened very quickly,” Jacobson said.

Jacobson said the alleged victim was the aggressor and had argued and fought with others at the party before Estrada-Martinez stepped in to try to calm the situation.

“[The man] came back with what was believed to be a weapon, wearing a hoodie, with his hands in his pockets,” she said. “That was a real threat.”

Jacobson said Estrada-Martinez took physical action in an attempt to save others.

“This was self-defense, and this was also defense of others,” she said. “There were no weapons. This was a fist fight. My client believed his actions were necessary to not only protect himself, but everyone who was present.”

Jacobson said that after someone called 911, Estrada-Martinez chose to stay at the ranch and cooperate with police. She said her client struck the man because he believed his threat to “kill everyone” was real.

“A drunk person can pull a trigger as well as anyone,” Jacobson said.

Voss disagreed, arguing that Estrada-Martinez became angry when the man made a slur about Estrada-Martinez’s daughter.

“[Estrada-Martinez] did not have a right to create great bodily harm,” Voss said.

In reviewing witness testimony, Peska said the alleged victim had been drinking and could not remember who hit him when questioned.

Both the defendant and the man testified through Spanish-speaking interpreters.

“[The alleged victim] had something inside his hoodie and asked if anyone wanted to start a problem and said he was going to kill all the people at the party,” Peska said. “That is alarming in itself.”

Peska also said he did not believe Estrada-Martinez was responsible for causing the broken nose.

“I do not believe the defendant caused the injury,” Peska said.