Man charged with first-degree murder of ex-girlfriend

A man accused of killing his ex-girlfriend after violating multiple orders of protection filed against him has been indicted on first-degree murder charges, his lawyer said Tuesday.

Leonardo Valdez-Cruz was also charged Monday with second-degree murder and criminal contempt, a felony, said Valdez-Cruz's lawyer, Dana Grossblatt of Jericho.

The indictment won't be officially handed up until next Monday. Eric Phillips, a spokesman for Nassau District Attorney Kathleen Rice, confirmed that Valdez-Cruz had been indicted but would not say on what charges.

Grossblatt said an indictment is not proof that her client is guilty. "It's the bare minimum standard, and certainly not proof beyond a reasonable doubt." she said.

Jo'Anna Bird, 24, a mother of two, was stabbed to death in her New Cassel home on March 19. Police originally charged Valdez-Cruz, 24, of Westbury, with second-degree murder.

Prosecutors did not say why the top charge against Valdez-Cruz had been upgraded to first-degree murder, but a person can be found guilty of first-degree murder if he kills someone in the course of committing another felony, such as burglary.

Bird's family said yesterday that they had not heard about the indictment from the authorities, but they believe Valdez-Cruz deserves to be charged with first-degree murder.

"There's evidence to prove that he planned to murder my daughter. He said it repeatedly, that he was going to kill her," said Bird's mother, Sharon Dorsett.

Bird's family has filed notice that they intend to sue both police and prosecutors for failing to protect Bird. An internal police review found that seven officers failed to properly investigate previous domestic violence calls to Bird's mother's home.

The Bird family's civil lawyer, Fredrick Brewington of Hempstead, said he could not comment in detail before seeing the indictment. "These are serious allegations, and there should be a series of counts that reflect the seriousness of this terrible crime," he said.

Bird had been terrorized by Valdez-Cruz, according to court records that allege he violated an order of protection three times - including an incident in which he beat, kidnapped and held her at gunpoint in January, sparing her life only when she vowed to stay with him.

Although Valdez-Cruz was arrested, he remained free after that incident and another earlier in January.