Yolanda Valdez, 35, a Hispanic mother of three described as bubbly and outgoing, was killed on November 7, 2013, after being struck by a stray bullet during a shootout in the attic of a west-side Sioux City, Iowa, home. She had been planning to move from Orange City back to California. The gathering in the attic stemmed from a drug-related dispute between Juan Nino-Estrada and Luis Sanchez, who lived at the residence.

According to the case account, Nino-Estrada drew a gun and pointed it at Sanchez. Michael Delgado, 35, entered the attic armed and a scuffle broke out on the stairway landing. Multiple gunshots were fired; Delgado and Valdez were killed, and Sanchez was shot and stabbed but survived. Nino-Estrada, then 26, was arrested and charged with two counts of first-degree murder and the attempted murder of Sanchez. The jury rejected his self-defense claim and found him guilty on all counts, and in July 2015 he received two consecutive life sentences.