Osbel Isaac Ornelas, a 24-year-old Black/African American man from Rochester, Minnesota, was a devoted father to his two young sons, Royce and Cezar. Born in Davenport, Iowa, on March 16, 1999, he was the eldest of six children and cherished time with his family. He loved the outdoors, enjoying fishing and hiking, and shared a passion for football with his father, especially cheering for the Dallas Cowboys.
Those who knew him remembered him as a loving and caring person who was always wearing a smile.
On the afternoon of February 3, 2024, a parking dispute in a busy Rochester shopping center escalated into a fatal encounter. The incident began around 2 p.m. near a Chick-fil-A on South Broadway Avenue. Osbel, driving an SUV, and another driver, Jose Gutierrez Ojeda, who was in a pickup truck, got into an argument after Gutierrez Ojeda began backing into a parking spot, obstructing Osbel’s path. Both men got out of their vehicles. Witnesses reported that Gutierrez Ojeda brandished a handgun and “racked” the slide before placing the weapon back inside his truck.
The verbal altercation quickly turned into a fistfight between Osbel and Jose Gutierrez Ojeda. A passenger from Osbel’s vehicle, Jose Perez, then got out to join the fight. At that point, Jose’s younger brother and passenger, 20-year-old Isaac Gutierrez, exited the truck, retrieved the handgun, and ran toward the scuffle. He fired a single shot at close range, striking Osbel in the head. Osbel was rushed to St. Mary's Hospital, where he died from his injury shortly after arriving.
The Gutierrez brothers remained at the scene and were taken into custody. Initially, Jose Gutierrez Ojeda told police that he had shot Osbel in self-defense. However, after reviewing witness cellphone footage and surveillance video, investigators determined that Isaac Gutierrez was the shooter. Isaac was ultimately charged with second-degree murder with intent and second-degree murder without intent. His brother Jose was charged with aiding an offender.
Isaac Gutierrez’s case went to trial in August 2024. He testified that he had grabbed the gun intending to use it as a striking weapon to de-escalate the fight and that it discharged accidentally. After a weeklong trial, a jury found him not guilty of murder with intent but convicted him of second-degree murder without intent while committing a felony.
In a separate proceeding, Jose Gutierrez Ojeda reached a plea agreement, admitting to aiding an offender in exchange for the dismissal of assault and terroristic threats charges. He was sentenced without prison time. On October 28, 2024, a judge sentenced Isaac Gutierrez to five years, or 60 months, in prison with credit for time served and ordered him to pay restitution. The judge noted that the sentence was a departure from the recommended 10 to 15 years, citing Gutierrez's cooperation and acceptance of responsibility. The case was resolved as of October 2024.
