Menifee Woman Ordered To Stand Trial On Attempted Murder

MENIFEE, CA — A 47-year-old woman accused of shooting a man during a domestic dispute at her Menifee home must stand trial for attempted murder and other offenses, a judge ruled Monday.

Jobana Secilia Machuca was arrested a year ago following a Menifee Police Department investigation at her residence in the 29000 block of Farbo Court, near Pelion Road.

At the end of a preliminary hearing Monday, Riverside County Superior Court Judge John Davis found there was sufficient evidence to bound Machuca over for trial on the attempted murder count, as well as assault with a semiautomatic firearm resulting in great bodily injury and a sentence-enhancing allegation of using a gun in the commission of a felony.

The judge scheduled a post-preliminary hearing arraignment for March 14 at the Southwest Justice Center in Murrieta.

According to Menifee police Lt. Paul Barbieri, shortly after 6 p.m. on Jan. 27, 2023, Machuca and the victim, identified only as an adult male acquaintance, were involved in an unspecified squabble that culminated in the defendant grabbing a handgun and allegedly leveling it at him.

Barbieri alleged Machuca fired a single shot that struck the man in the "left side of his upper torso."

Witnesses called 911, and officers and paramedics reached the location within a few minutes.

According to the lieutenant, Machuca was immediately taken into custody without incident, and the victim was transported to a regional trauma center for treatment of the wound, from which he has since recovered.

Machuca has no documented prior felony convictions in Riverside County.