A jury Friday rejected an Odessa man’s claims that he acted in self-defense when he stabbed another man to death in December 2020 and sentenced him to life in prison.
It took the jury 30 minutes to convict Joseph Richard Grondahl Jr., 33, of murder in the death of Austin Pasillas, 25. It took another hour to render their sentence.
Grondahl was represented by Luis Chavez and law school student Anthony Chavez, who argued he acted in self-defense. According to Texas law, jurors needed to find that Grondahl “reasonably believed” his actions were “immediately necessary” to protect himself or others from the unlawful use of deadly force. The law states someone who “reasonably believes” their actions are justified is someone who is an “ordinary and prudent person.”
Grondahl testified Thursday that he drove over to the Carriage House Apartments on North Dixie Boulevard shortly after midnight on Dec. 13, 2020 to hang out with his former girlfriend, Natalee Lassiter. After he arrived, he said Pasillas, who had also dated Lassiter, showed up high on methamphetamine. A short time after that, Grondahl said Pasillas grabbed Lassiter’s face and neck to force her to kiss him and then announced he was going to kill her and her family. He then stood up with a knife in his hand, Grondahl said.
When he stood up to defend Lassiter, Pasillas announced he was going to kill everyone on the porch, starting with him, Grondahl said.
Grondahl said Lassiter made to go into her apartment and he took the opportunity to slip past Pasillas to go down the stairs. Thinking twice about leaving Lassiter unprotected and remembering his keys, cellphone and wallet were upstairs, Grondahl said he turned around to go back up the stairs from midway down.
However, Pasillas “reminded me he was going to kill me,” so he turned around again to go back down, Grondahl said.
He was at the bottom of the stairs when Pasillas shoved him into another apartment’s door and thinking he’d been stabbed, Grondahl said he pulled his own knife.
As he backpedaled, Grondahl said he struck out repeatedly until he heard Pasillas say he’d been stabbed.
He then retrieved his belongings and fled in a panic, Grondahl said. He got part way to El Paso before his adrenaline started to wear off and he turned around.
An autopsy revealed Pasillas was stabbed three times in the chest and slashed once. One of the stab wounds was straight to the heart.
Although prosecutors alleged he was arrested while going on a food run with his brother later that day, Grondahl testified he’d seen a detective in his neighborhood and purposely left the home so his mother’s door wouldn’t be kicked in with children present.
Assistant Ector County District Attorneys Kevin Schulz and Elizabeth Howard attacked Grondahl’s character on multiple levels.
Five knives were found in Grondahl’s car and he testified he owned another four to six dozen. He lied to authorities and to them about his extensive criminal history and fabricated details to justify his actions, the prosecutors told jurors.
They reminded jurors that Grondahl told Odessa Police Detective Kara Thompson a dozen times he wasn’t at the Carriage House that night. If he were innocent, he would have stayed at the scene and explained his actions and he wouldn’t have sent a Facebook message to Lassiter asking her to destroy evidence, they said.
“If the truth will set you free why would you run? Why would you destroy evidence and call your aunt to tell her you needed to get the hell out of Dodge?” Schulz said.
Grondahl testified repeatedly he wasn’t thinking straight because of fear and adrenaline, but the prosecutors urged the jurors to remember his interview with Thompson and his trial testimony.
“He was calm as a cucumber both times,” Schulz said. “This is a guy very comfortable lying.”
Three witnesses, Christopher Penn, Jeremiah Limon and Felipe Limon, all testified Pasillas went down the stairs first and was being chased by Grondahl, the prosecutors said.
“The only person who said he was down the stairs first is the guy who said he wasn’t there,” Schulz said.
The same three witnesses also testified they didn’t touch any evidence at the scene and Pasillas’ knife was found folded on the ground at the scene. Schulz said it was completely unreasonable to believe that as Pasillas was dying and falling to the ground he thought to himself, “Oh, wait a second, let me fold this knife.”
The most likely explanation for Pasillas’ folded knife was that he had second thoughts after Grondahl pulled his and he folded it and threw it down, Howard said.
That being the case, Grondahl was clearly not justified in his actions, she said.
Howard suggested that Pasillas was the unfortunate victim of an adrenaline-filled man who hadn’t been able to finish an earlier bar fight prompted when a man yelled at his mother.
Grondahl knew there were cameras at that bar and “that’s probably why he didn’t pull his knife and stab that guy, too,” Howard said.
Howard reminded jurors Grondahl bragged about that fight on Facebook and was applauded by his family in their comments. He thought he was in the right and when Pasillas became loud with Lassiter, he thought he’d play hero, she said.
If he perceives a “slight” against a family member or friend “he’s going to go full on,” Howard said.
“Nobody messes with people he knows,” Shulz said.
The thing is, Lassiter clearly wasn’t scared that night. She simply turned and went into her apartment, Howard said.
“Are a drunk person’s perceptions ‘reasonable?’ I submit to you they’re not,” she said.
The jury had the option of sentencing Grondahl to life in prison or from five to 99 years. Those sentenced to five to 99 years are eligible for parole after serving half of their sentence or 30 years, whichever is less.
The prosecutors asked jurors to give Grondahl no less than 30 years to send a message to him, the victim’s family and society. They asked the jurors to consider his criminal history and the crime itself.
“He has shown you he is a violent person,” and judging from the number of knives he owns and his Facebook posts, takes pride in it, Shulz said.
Shulz said he doesn’t think it was a coincidence Pasillas was stabbed on each side of the chest and once in the heart. It’s somewhat reminiscent of killers who are trained to put two bullets in the chest and one in the head, he said.
“He knew what he was doing,” Shulz said.
Howard pointed out Grondahl’s criminal behavior has escalated over the years and “now he’s a murderer.”
She told the jurors to ask themselves several questions when determining the defendant’s fate.
“When do you want him back in your community? Ten years, 15 years, 16 years? When do you want to go to Walmart and see his face? When do you want to go to the ballpark and see his face? When will you feel comfortable going into a restaurant and seeing him bussing your table?” Howard asked.
Grondahl hung his head and pinched the bridge of his nose after the guilty verdict was read. While the jury was deliberating his sentence and he was being led down the courthouse hallway, he addressed Pasillas’ mother.
“I’m sorry what happened to your son,” he said.
