Nathan Alfaro attended a little concert where 4 out of 5 bands performing that night he knew personally. What happened was this show wasn’t that big in audience at that specific time in the night and some guy who appeared to be drunk and out of control started mosh pitting. He was doing it aggressively, shoving anyone in his way and knocking over band equipment. My brother didn’t appreciate that he was also pushing him aggressively as well especially since no one wanted to mosh pit. My brother told him to stop and he kept pushing him so my brother and him got into a small fight where attendees broke up after a few minutes. 20 mins later the defendant comes back around and starts shoving my brother again, this time starting an even more intense fight. My brother was drastically taller and huskier than this man so sure enough Nathan was overpowering Mr. Rivera.  My brother ended up on top of this guy and in court Rivera said “he couldn’t breathe and thought he was going to die” so he pulled a concealed knife from his pocket and stabbed my brother 5 times. One so long that stretched across his chest, and another puncturing his lung, that ultimately killed him.

The fight was broken up and Rivera fled through the back door where ONLY bands and band mates should enter/exit NOT attendees. Especially since Rivera entered the establishment through the front door, should raise questions as to why he fled the scene through the back door if he was simply “defending himself”? Why run? Why not wait until the police arrive so you can explain what you’ve done to “protect” yourself? It’s because he knew he overkilled Nathan and needed an excuse to do so after the two fights he initiated with the biggest and strongest man in the bar that night.

This place was Underground DTSA in Santa Ana CA and my brother went up the stairs, into the lights and collapsed right in front of the bar where hundreds of people watched over him seeing him bleed out.

Police arrived and the ambulance picked him up and rushed him to the hospital where just 20 mins into arriving he was pronounced dead.

His killer Juan Angel Rivera was tried and sentenced 11 years for voluntary manslaughter on July 17, 2017. Just two years into his sentence he’s applied for an appeal due to the previous judge “errors” such as not fully informing the jurors of their options in sentencing. He had First degree murder, Second degree, and Voluntary manslaughter on the table. Him and his new lawyer have found this loop hole by reopening the case by saying “involuntary manslaughter” should’ve been an option and it wasn’t. With that being said three new judges signed off for this appeal to happen in court. Actually in the next 60 days.

Nothing is official but if he is tried for involuntary manslaughter he’ll be serving 5 years not the 11 given to him from the first conviction. You can imagine how this makes me and my family feel. We fought hard the first time around in court for first degree murder since my brother was killed and this man is still living. We were pretty upset and shattered what the outcome was. As it is 11 years for killing someone has been taken very lightly. It’s not fair at all.

Now there’s no way he can be tried again for the same sentencing given so he’s looking at less time, or more time if God willing. The reason why I started this petition is because I need your help with the hope of shedding some light on this injustice. I want to make noise for my brother’s justice. Would you help me spread awareness on this case? On this petition? I know with enough signatures and voices we can make something... ANYTHING happen. We can maybe persuade the court to deny his hopes of receiving less time.

I can’t and won’t let this man get a shorter sentence. It’s not fair at all, a life for a life is what should be taken into action.

This man has a strong fascination with knives and machetes as presented in court. He had a knife collection in his mother’s living room for crying out loud. This man had a prior incident with the police in 2015 where he pulled a knife on someone else and started chasing them with it. Again, all of this information was presented in court back in July of 2017. He’s a danger to society. I just don’t know how nor can I see how this is okay for him to be sentenced so lightly.

My brother Nathan was a 23 year old, hardworking college student of Golden West in Huntington Beach with a clean record, who was an aspiring musician. Him having a total of 5 benefit concerts from the city of Santa Ana, Fullerton, and Pamona says a lot about the kind of character he was. His funeral was completely funded by the city of Santa Ana because he was a victim of violence. I need all the voices and signatures I can possibly get for my brother. I don’t even know if this action I’m taking will mean anything in the court of law but I must do something. Apart from Nathan being my brother... someone was killed. An innocent life was taken by the hands of another. What would’ve been a simple “bar fight” turned into murder. Justice needs to be served.

Just digging through all this information again is so heartbreaking for me and is taking me to that dark place again that I thought I’d never have to reopen so suddenly and so soon. Please help me and my family. Thank you so much for your time.