On a summer evening in Dunkirk, New York, the life of 21-year-old Julian Duman was cut short by a single gunshot. The fatal incident occurred on July 6, 2017, at a residence on Lake Shore Drive East. When Dunkirk Police officers arrived at the scene around 10 p.m., they discovered Duman lying unresponsive in the yard. He was quickly transported to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The immediate investigation led to the arrest of Duman's 28-year-old girlfriend, Rebecca Ruiz.
In the frantic moments after the shooting, Ruiz was reportedly heard by police saying, 'I shot him! Oh my God, is he dead? I didn't know it was Julian.' Her statements to officers at the scene and in subsequent interviews painted a picture of a tragic mistake. Ruiz claimed she believed her abusive, estranged husband, Walter 'Waldo' Duprey, was at her door and, in a state of fear, she fired a. 22 caliber weapon through the door. It was her boyfriend, Julian Duman, who was on the other side.
Following her arrest, Rebecca Ruiz was charged with second-degree murder. A grand jury later indicted her on additional charges of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon and tampering with evidence. During her trial, the prosecution argued that Ruiz intentionally fired the weapon, while her defense maintained that the shooting was a tragic accident fueled by her fear of her estranged husband. The defense also suggested that Duman may have been pretending to be Duprey as a misguided joke.
In March 2018, a jury found Rebecca Ruiz not guilty of second-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. However, she was convicted of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon and later sentenced to six years in state prison. The legal battle did not end there. In August 2021, an appellate court overturned Ruiz's weapon possession conviction and granted her a new trial on that charge. The court ruled that the jury should have been instructed on the defense of temporary and lawful possession of a firearm.
