Manuel Machado Alvarez

Manuel Machado Alvarez (1960 – July 3, 2020) was a Cuban murderer who was sentenced to death in California. In 1987, while on parole for voluntary manslaughter, he murdered a man during a robbery, a crime for which he was sentenced to die.

In 2020, Alvarez became one of a dozen California death row inmates to die in the span of less than two months as the result of a COVID-19 outbreak at San Quentin State Prison. He died on the same day as Scott Erskine, who also died from COVID-19.

Alvarez died on July 3, 2020, at the age of 59, after contracting COVID-19 during the COVID-19 pandemic in California. He died on the same day as fellow death row inmate Scott Erskine, who also died from COVID-19. Both of them had been hospitalized before their deaths.

Alvarez was charged with first degree murder with special circumstances, rape, robbery, and attempted robbery, while Ross was charged with first degree murder and attempted robbery. The two were tried jointly in 1989, with the prosecution seeking a death sentence for Alvarez.

On June 9, 1989, Alvarez was convicted of all of the charges, while Ross was only convicted of attempted robbery and being an accessory after the fact to murder. She received a sentence of 3 years and 8 months, but received an additional 5 years as a serious felony enhancement. This was due to Ross having a prior robbery conviction from 1978. She was released from prison in the 1990s.

On August 3, 1989, the jury recommended a death sentence for Alvarez. He was formally sentenced to death on September 14, 1989. Brinkman's family, who gave victim impact statements in court, were mostly indifferent to the question over whether Alvarez should be executed, saying all that mattered to them is that he wouldn't get out of prison. Alvarez was sent to death row at San Quentin State Prison.

In March 1987, in violation of his parole, Alvarez moved from Los Angeles to Sacramento. There, he lived on and off with Leslie Colyer and Neetelfer Hawkins, his friend. Alvarez spent most of his time using drugs and drinking alcohol.

On May 12, 1987, a drunk Alvarez made sexual advances toward Sandra S., a local sex worker, near her apartment building late at night. Sandra rejected his advances, then returned to her room and went to sleep. She awoke at noon. Having a "real bad feeling", Sandra looked forward to see Alvarez masturbating at the foot of her bed. She called for her boyfriend's help, but neither he nor her son were home. Alvarez began raping Sandra when Percy Spence, one of her friends, walked in. Spence asked her if she was having a date. Sandra said no, but Alvarez said yes, prompting Sandra to keep saying no. Spence became confused and left. By the time another one of Sandra's friends, Anthony Simpkins, arrived, Alvarez had finished raping her. As Simpkins was entering, he passed Spence. When Simpkins asked him what was happening, Spence replied "Oh, just let it be." Sandra ran to Simpkins in hysterics and said that Alvarez had raped her, prompting him to flee. He stole the nearby car of one of his acquaintances, Edwin Glidewell, and drove off.

Alvarez was convicted of voluntary manslaughter with a deadly weapon and assault with a deadly weapon, and received a four-year sentence. In December 1982, Alvarez escaped with two other Spanish-speaking inmates. Although the prison where the three were held was minimum security, it was reportedly elaborately planned. They surrendered several hours later, and their sentences were each extended by 16 months. Alvarez was paroled in 1986.

Alvarez moved to California in late 1981, where he would later commit his crimes. He struggled to assimilate into life in a different country, but was able to make a few friends.

On December 27, 1981, 21-year-old Pedro Ramirez ran into a liquor store in Hollywood, Los Angeles. Alvarez was chasing him with a butcher knife. Ramirez stopped and put his hands up to try to protect himself. With his other hand, Alvarez pulled Ramirez's hands down, said "Chinga su madre" ("Fuck your mother, motherfucker"), fatally stabbed him through the throat, and withdrew the blade. Alvarez then approached one of the store's clerks, but fled when the man pulled out a shotgun and told him to stop. Manuel later said he killed Ramirez out of revenge for burglarizing the house of his male lover.

Alvarez arrived in the United States in the Mariel boatlift in 1980. After initially being detained at several camps, he went to Richmond, Virginia, in 1981, under the sponsorship of a married couple with young children. He lived with the family for about two months, and displayed mixed behavior of both kindness and anger.

Alvarez was born in Cuba in 1960. As a child, he suffered a serious head injury, which may have contributed to what may have been epilepsy. His mother died when he was young, and his stepmother was abusive and neglectful. Alvarez began to exhibit problematic behavior.