HOLLAND, Mich. — The man accused of stabbing his ex-girlfriend to death in her Holland home last spring will face trial.
Salvador Gonzales Ruiz III, 61, faces an open murder charge for the death of Linda Rodriguez. He appeared in Holland District Court Thursday for a preliminary examination.
Police say Ruiz killed Rodriguez on April 16 after breaking into her home on W 24th Street near Holland West Elementary.
Ruiz wouldn't stop calling Rodriguez that night, said Danny Perales, who started a relationship with her a few months earlier.
"[I woke up to] this loud crashing noise coming through the sliding door," Perales said. "I saw someone coming through."
Ruiz charged at Rodriguez after calling her "cochina," meaning "dirty," he said.
"I just seen his hand raise up and down," Perales said. "I could hear her pretty much gasping for air, choking."
Rodriguez was stabbed four times and cut several more; the fatal stab pierced her chest and heart, said Dr. Stephen Cohle, deputy medical examiner for Ottawa County.
"I don't think survival would be possible for any more than a minute because of the tremendous loss of blood that would be very rapid," Cohle said.
Family and friends of Rodriguez packed the court room on W 8th Street in downtown Holland. It could have been packed 20 more times with people that adored Linda, said Veronica Kegley, Rodriguez's niece and goddaughter.
"She loved all the kids, all of us," Kegley said. "She played a very large role in raising her grandkids. She was always there for them and did anything she needed to do to make sure they were taken care of."
Ruiz waived his preliminary examination after testimony from several witnesses. He remains lodged in the Ottawa County Jail without bond and will be arraigned in Grand Haven Circuit Court on Oct. 14.
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