WALNUT — A hearing for a woman accused of fatally stabbing her estranged husband at his Walnut home was delayed Tuesday, authorities said.
Socorro Mora, 43, was scheduled to be arraigned for the murder of George Mora in Pomona Superior Court, however the hearing was continued until Dec. 15, court officials said.
Socorro Mora is accused of stabbing her estranged husband to death Oct. 19 at the home he

shared with the couple’s four children in the 21600 block of Brookside Court. She also suffered stab wounds in the incident, however authorities have not disclosed how she is believed to have received them.
The couple had celebrated their 18th wedding anniversary in August before separating, family members said.
George Mora had obtained a restraining order against his wife about three weeks prior to the killing, authorities said. Mora is also accused of showing up at George Mora’s home and stabbing the family dog to death about a week for the slaying.
Family members described Mora as a dedicated father whose life revolved around taking care of his children.
According to county booking records, Socorro Mora, who was initially being held in a hospital jail ward following the incident for treatment of her own stab wounds, was being held in lieu of $5 million bail at the Century Regional Detention Facility in Lynwood.

*PHOTO of alleged murder victim George Mora courtesy of the Mora family.

WALNUT — Sheriff’s deputies arrested three burglary suspects Wednesday after a brief chase and manhunt near Mt. San Antonio College, authorities said.
The suspects’ names were not released due to an ongoing investigation by detectives from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Major Crimes Bureau, sheriff’s Lt. John Saleeby said. They were initially described as Los Angeles-area men in their early 20s.
Deputies responded about 11:30 a.m. to a report of a break-in at a home in the 19000 block of Country Hollow Drive and spotted the suspects’ vehicle in the area, the lieutenant said.
Officials initially followed behind the car, then began a pursuit when it failed to pull over, Saleeby said.
The chase led to a parking lot of nearby Mt. SAC, where the driver slowed down to allow his two passengers to exit the car and continue fleeing on foot, Saleeby said. The driver then abandoned the car in a nearby neighborhood before also taking flight on foot.
Deputies set up a search perimeter and quickly located the three suspects, officials said. Items believed to have been stolen from the home on Country Hollow Drive were recovered.
Major Crimes Bureau detectives were looking into the possibility the men may be involved in other burglaries.

WALNUT — A woman critically injured in stabbing that left her estranged husband dead was hospitalized in stable condition Friday, however the circumstances of the incident remained a mystery, authorities said.
Socorra Mora, 43, was found seriously wounded in the front yard of her estranged husband’s home in the 21600 block of Brookside Court shortly after she called 9-1-1 to report a domestic violence incident, Lt. Matt Burson of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Homicide Bureau said.
Her husband, 47-year-old George Mora, was found stabbed inside the home and pronounced dead, officials said.
While investigators have said it appears the stabbing involved only Socorra and George Mora, it was not clear what took place or who may have been the aggressor in the confrontation.
Because of Socorra Mora’s medical condition, “We haven’t had a real opportunity to talk to her,” Burson said.
Coroner’s officials planned an autopsy Saturday to determine George Mora’s official cause of death, Los Angeles County Department of Coroner’s Assistant Chief of Operations Ed Winter said.
The couple had four children who lived with their father, officials said. None were home at the time of the stabbings, and they had been placed with other family members following the incident.

WALNUT — A man died and a woman was critically injured Wednesday in a stabbing initially believed to be a domestic incident between a husband and wife, officials said.
The incident was first reported about 8:50 p.m. at a home in the 21600 block of Brookside Court, Los Angeles County Fire Department Inspector Don Kunitomi said.
Officials initially received reports of to stabbing victims in critical condition, the inspector said.
Firefighters arrived and pronounced one of the patients dead at the scene, while the other was rushed to a hospital with major injuries, officials said.
Sheriff’s officials said it was the husband who died at the scene, while the wife was hospitalized with serious injuries.
No suspect was believed to be outstanding, and the incident appeared to have involved only the husband and wife, Los Angeles County sheriff’s Sgt. Ernie Vanderporten said. The circumstances of the stabbing remained under investigation.
Deputies have responded to family disturbances at the home several times in the past, he added.
The man and woman were believed to be the only people at home when the stabbing took place, officials said.
No further details were available.

WALNUT — Four years after the unsolved shooting death of a retired police sergeant and school teacher outside his Walnut handyman business, detectives and family members are renewing their calls to bring his killer to justice.
Ruben Whittington, 61, of Diamond Bar, had just left his Mr. Handyman business in the 300 block of South Lemon Avenue on July 29, 2007, when he was fatally shot, sheriff’s investigators said.
No motive has been established in the killing, and nothing was believed to have been stolen from Whittington.
“It’s just so hard to understand what the person wanted enough to kill him,” said his wife, Marsha Kramer. “I will never understand. The worst part of the anger and the frustration is it literally got them nothing.”
Whittington had noticed a flat tire on his SUV and was waiting for a tow truck when he was shot, authorities said.
“Our best guess is he couldn’t get the lug nut off for some reason, he called AAA,” Kramer said. “As he was waiting for the tow, he was killed.”
Between five and 10 minutes passed between the time Whittington called AAA and the time the driver arrived and found him dead.
Investigators have been left with no witnesses and no solid leads to follow, Detective Kevin Lowe of the Los Angeles County sheriff’s Homicide Bureau said.
“It’s a frustrating case for us,” Lowe said, adding that detectives continue to pursue the killer.
The leading theory in the shooting is that Whittington was surprised by someone who tried to rob him, the detective said. But he added he could also not rule out the possibility of some type of personal dispute “that we didn’t know about.”
Having been retired from the LAPD for 13 years at the time of the killing, Lowe said it was unlikely the shooting had anything to do with his previous career as a Los Angeles police officer.
Whittington resisted his attacker, Lowe said.
“There were defensive wounds,” he said. “There was a struggle, I believe over the gun. It was a struggle for his life. He put up a good fight.”
Whittington was ultimately shot in the torso and died at the scene.
Though his status as a retired police sergeant allowed Whittington to carry a concealed handgun, he didn’t arm himself, Kramer said.
“We really talked about that,” she said. “His thought was, honestly, it’s pretty easy to disarm an older person.”
It did not appear that the killer intentionally flattened Whittington’s tire prior to the killing, Lowe said. A nail was found in the tire of Whittington’s SUV that appeared to have been there for some time.
Whittington, a Vietnam veteran, was born and raised in the Philadelphia area before coming to California to join the LAPD in 1974, his wife said.
“He loved being a cop, and it suited him so well because he was a community service kind of guy,” she said.
After his retirement from police work, he spent 10 years teaching law enforcement at high schools through the La Puente Valley Regional Occupational Program.
“As it turned out, he loved it,” Kramer said. “Besides liking the kids and wanting to talk to them, he tried to get them to do really productive things in their lives. He recruited many officers into the LAPD.”
In 2005, he started his handyman business.
She described her husband as an “extremely sociable” man who quickly made friends with everyone he met.
Whittington is survived by son, Joseph, 29, and daughter, Emily, 27.
Kramer said she was thankful for the detectives and community since her husband’s slaying.
“They’ve been really gracious to us,” she said.
Kramer and Lowe both said they hope someone has information regarding this killing and implored anyone who may have information to call sheriff’s homicide investigators at 323-890-5500.
With all leads in the case drying up, Lowe said, “we’ll take any help we can get.”

PHOTO of Ruben Whittington courtesy of family members

WALNUT — A show of force by deputies may have stopped a brawl from erupting after a football game Saturday at Mt. San Antonio College, authorities said.
Fans began arguing with each other heatedly following Mt. SAC’s 51-0 victory over Cerritos College, and sheriff’s officials were called for fear of a fight breaking out, Los Angeles County sheriff’s Sgt. Mario Estrada said.
Deputies from the sheriff’s Walnut-Diamond Bar and Industry stations responded to the stadium with less-lethal weaponry such as rubber bullets at the ready, Estrada said.
Ultimately, however, the presence of deputies seemed to calm the situation, and Estrada said no injuries were reported and no arrests were made.

PHOTO: Staff photo by Watchara Phomicinda

A West Covina man suspected of carjacking two cars and trying to carjack a third was arrested at his home Thursday, authorities said.
Andy Ramirez, 31, was taken into custody on suspicion of two counts of carjacking and one count of attempted carjacking, West Covina police Sgt. Dennis Patton said. He was booked at the West Covina jail.
A woman was in a a parking lot near Grand Avenue and San Jose Hills Road in Walnut about 11:30 a.m. Thursday when a man pushed her down and took her car keys, Los Angeles County sheriff’s Lt. John Saleeby said. The suspect then drove off in the woman’s car south on Grand.
Ramirez allegedly abandoned the stolen car and tried to steal another vehicle, but was unsuccessful, Patton said. A short time later, he’s suspected of carjacking a second vehicle by physically wrestling with a woman.
West Covina police saw the stolen car at Nanette Avenue and Ridgewood Drive and detained the driver, said Saleeby, who works out of the sheriff’s Walnut Station.
Ramirez allegedly drove that car about 500 yards before abandoning it and running away, police said. He was found at his home, which was near where the car was left.
The woman who owned the first stolen car was brought to the scene and positively identified the suspect as the carjacker, Saleeby said.
According to sheriff’s booking records, Ramirez was being held in lieu of $100,000 bail and was due in West Covina Superior Court for arraignment Tuesday.

WALNUT — A young man was hospitalized with major injuries Wednesday following a two-car crash on Grand Avenue.
The crash occurred about 1 p.m. at Snow Creek Drive.
A 19-year-old man was initially hospitalized in critical condition, but upgraded to “guarded” condition later Wednesday at Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center, sheriff’s and fire officials said.
Another woman who was injured in the crash, estimated to be in her 40s or 50s, was hospitalized with apparently minor injuries, Los Angeles County Fire Department Capt. Richard Brambila.
The investigation into the crash remained ongoing, however it appeared Wednesday that the badly injured young man may have been driving too fast, Los Angeles County sheriff’s Sgt. Ernie Vanderporten said.
“It looks like there was excessive speed involved,” he said.
The young man was southbound on Grand in an Acura coupe prior to the crash, Vanderporten said.
“He lost control, struck a (pickup) truck and then continued somewhat southbound and struck a light (pole,” the sergeant said.
The Chevrolet pickup being driven by the woman had been in the left turn lane on Grand, waiting to make a turn onto Snow Creek, according to sheriff’s and fire officials.
The Acura driver apparently slammed on his brakes prior to the impact, Vanderporten said, causing his car to skid sideways and slam driver-side first into the rear of the truck.
Firefighters had to cut the young man free from his wrecked Acura, Brambila said.
The Acura had a Mt. San Antonio College sticker on it, and the crash occurred about half a mile away from the school, however officials could not say Wednesday if the injured man was a student at Mt. SAC.