'Not Guilty' Pleas Entered By Murder Suspects

The road to justice will begin on Halloween for the family of , shot and killed seven years ago, with the opening of the preliminary trial of the murder suspects.

Both the alleged triggerman —accused of killing the 17-year-old Fernandez on South Rengstorff Avenue in 2004—entered "not guilty" pleas on Wednesday at the Criminal Hall of Justice in San Jose.

Federal Bureau of Investigation agents and detectives from the and Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety got leads in the case in 2011 that led them to the arrest of the Figueroa in August and Duarte in March.

Police say that on Sept. 24, 2004, at about 10:30 p.m., Fernandez walked with with some friends along the 500 block of Mountain View's South Rengstorff Avenue when Duarte, Figueroa and three others pulled up in a car.

Fernandez, who had previously admitted affiliation with the Mountain View Sureños gang, approached the car and, according to police, was shot in the chest when Duarte opened fire. Fernandez died later on at Stanford Hospital.

At the time of Duarte and Figueroa's arrest, according to the MVPD, the three others in the car at the time of the homicide had been identified. However, they lacked the evidence to make the arrests.

The preliminary trial will take place at 8:45 a.m. in department 24 of the Criminal Hall of Justice.