Shooter sentenced to 19 years in 2019 homicide

The man who killed Jahmal Burge in the kitchen of a Clovis home has been sentenced to 19 years in prison.

Johnny Rae Vigil, 29, pleaded "no contest" to the second-degree murder of Burge in a plea agreement.

During Tuesday's sentencing hearing, District Judge Drew Tatum heard from Burge's sister, Chandra Smart, via an internet teleconference.

"I miss him the most," Smart said of Burge, who was 36. "I know he is watching down from heaven."

Smart also told the court that her life changed the day she heard the news that her brother had been shot and killed.

As a shackled Vigil sat at a table with his defense attorney Jacob Ort, District Attorney Brian Stover told the story of Burge's death according to investigators' details in court records.

It was Nov. 7, 2019, when Burge, a caregiver, was visiting the home of one of his clients, Mary Jane Ramirez, in the 1000 block of Lea Street in Clovis.

Burge carried a pistol with him when he made his rounds on his job and that day he brought the pistol into the Ramirez home and put it on the kitchen table.

Investigators said Burge did not leave the weapon in his car as he feared it might be stolen.

Stover said that day Vigil had been released from the Curry County Adult Detention Center and had gone to the Ramirez home because he was friends with Ramirez's son and knew Mary Ramirez would sometimes fix him something to eat.

Ramirez told investigators she heard Burge and Vigil talking in the kitchen, Burge talking to Vigil about Jesus Christ. The two men also posed for a photo.

Stover said that while Ramirez was in another room, she heard gunshots. She said she ran into a bathroom and closed the door. She told investigators she saw Vigil leave her house.

When police arrived at the Ramirez home they found Burge dead, shot five times.

Vigil was located the next day at the Clovis home of one of his relatives.

During the proceedings Vigil said he was sorry for his actions.

Vigil must serve 85 percent of his sentence before he is eligible for parole. He was given credit off his sentence for the two years, 11 months and 24 days he spent in pre-trial detention.