Eric Israel Mercado never imagined that a dinner of beans and meat would be the last thing he ever argued about in his life.
According to his girlfriend, Trista Ann Spicer, he became furious about the food, threw it at her, and forced her to sit naked on a sofa. When he ordered her to bring him coffee, she grabbed a frying pan, hit him on the head, and cut his throat. That is Spicer’s version of events, as reported by the San Bernardino Sun; it has not been independently verified.
The body was not discovered right away. Inside the house in San Bernardino, police found what appeared to be an improvised grave beneath a staircase. The truth came to light because a man named Gentry, whom she had been talking to about moving to Illinois, testified at the trial that Spicer had told him she first needed to get rid of her boyfriend, and later, that she had buried him beneath the stairs. Gentry doubted it was true, but called the police when his mother asked him to.
Spicer pleaded not guilty. She was sentenced to 15 years in prison.
