Jury selection began this Wednesday in the trial of two women accused of robbing and beating a senior at the Pechanga Resort Casino in Temecula, inflicting fatal injuries. Candace Tai Townsell, 42, and Kimesha Monae Williams, 38, allegedly left Afaf Anis Assad, 84, battered and dying on the casino’s bathroom floor.
The defendants have been charged with first-degree murder, robbery and elderly abuse. Additionally, they face special circumstances charges for committing a robbery during the course of the murder. This would make them eligible for the death penalty in California.
Prosecutors have not yet stated whether they will be pursuing a death penalty charge.
The prosecution and defense submitted pretrial motions related to witnesses, evidence, and scheduling on Tuesday, at the Southwest Justice Center in Murrieta. Jury selection commenced on Wednesday.
Assad was found soon after the vicious assault by a hotel guest and casino employee – she was rushed to the Inland Valley Medical Center in Wildomar where she died four days later.
Williams is the elder sister to Kewhi Leonard, a two-time NBA champion who plays for the Los Angeles Clippers. Leonard will be paying for his sibling to have the best legal support possible, hiring Virginia Blumenthal, who is widely considered one of the top criminal defense lawyers in the US.
Townsell has a previous conviction for petty theft, while Williams has a lengthy criminal history that includes petty theft, grand theft, grand theft auto and attempted robbery.
At the time of the alleged murder, Williams was banned from Pechanga Resort Casino because she had been caught stealing a wallet from a customer in 2015.
