PHOENIX — Every fifteen minutes: that's how often Colleen Rice thinks about her son's murder and how three years later, she's still waiting for justice.
It's all because the man who claims he saw what happened was deported right before he was set to testify in her son's murder trial.
“It's like in the state of Arizona, you can get away with murder," said Colleen Rice.
'My son was in a blue barrel, upside down, zip tied.'
In 2020, Colleen's son, Lee Douglas Rice, was 34 years old. She described him as a man who would take anyone in who needed a place to go. She remembers him bringing spaghetti to those in their neighborhood to ensure everyone went to bed full.
However, she says her son struggled with drug use. She said it got worse after he lost his own child who was less than a year old.
Around October 4, 2020, Lee had been over at an acquaintance's house near Cave Creek Road and Bell Road. It was a place Colleen said he had been before to use drugs.
A witness said he was there, too, and saw what happened to Lee. That witness and other friends showed up to Colleen's home to deliver the news no parent should ever hear.
“My son was in a blue barrel, upside down, zip tied," Colleen recalled.
Colleen called police who got a warrant, went into the home, and confirmed what she had heard.
Police found Lee's body in a blue barrel with zip ties around his neck, knees and ankles.
"His life is, no matter what, he was still human being. He didn't deserve to go like that at all," Colleen said.
State's star witness deported right before trial
Police interviewed the witness who claimed Alfredo Gutierrez was responsible. The witness said Gutierrez admitted to losing his temper and hitting Lee before hiding the body. Police reports show in interviews with detectives, Gutierrez denied killing Lee.
Still, police arrested Gutierrez and he was charged with first degree murder.
Colleen remembers listening to the judge who was assigned to the case.
“He kept going, 'This is a cut and dry case. Let's take it to trial,'" Colleen said.
On October 5, 2022, two years after Lee died, trial was set to begin. Instead, Colleen found out the case was dismissed.
The state's key witness had been deported.
“It didn’t make any sense to me," Colleen said.
Three months later, in January of 2023, the Maricopa County Attorney's Office charged Gutierrez again. Colleen said this time, the judge asked the prosecutor about the witness.
“'May this trial proceed without the material witness?' And she said 'yes,'” Colleen said.
But again, this past June, the state pulled the plug and made a motion to dismiss their own case. They stated it was because the critical witness cannot be located.
12News reached out to the county attorney's office with questions, including how a key witness in a murder trial could be deported, and where the case stands today.
A spokesperson provided the following statement:
“While we sympathize with the family’s loss, there are occasions in which key witnesses are unable to testify. In this case, the federal government made the decision to deport the witness. We were unable to stop that process. Absent that testimony, it was unlikely MCAO could obtain a conviction.”
Alfredo Gutierrez is no longer facing any charges in connection to Lee Rice's death.
“I want somebody to pay for it. Or at least have the court system tell me why they did what they did," Colleen said.
Colleen, 75, wears a necklace and bracelet in her son's memory. She re-reads the Phoenix PD report detailing what happened to him every couple of months and has it nearly memorized. She describes herself as tenacious and is willing to wait as long as it takes until justice is served.
“I don’t give up," Colleen said.
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