Sex-on-the-beach trial will resume Monday in Bradenton

MANATEE -- The trial of a Bradenton couple charged with having sex in the open on Bradenton Beach will resume Monday.

On Friday, a jury heard sometimes-graphic testimony from witnesses who recounted seeing Elissa Alvarez, 20, and Jose Caballero, 40, engage in what appeared to them to be sexual intercourse.

About 5:30 p.m. Friday, the trial recessed for the day.

In his testimony, Caballero denied he and Alvarez had sex on the beach. He said she was "nudging" him to get up from the blanket they were laying on.

Two women testified Friday morning that they witnessed the couple having sex in public on Bradenton Beach when a 2-year-old and a 4-year-old were present. One of the women said she took video.

Alvarez and Caballero were each charged with two counts of lewd and lascivious exhibition after multiple witnesses reported to law enforcement the two had been having sex on Cortez Beach at 8:36 p.m. July 20, 2014.

If convicted, they could be sentenced up to 15 years in prison; fined up to $10,000; and be forced to register as sex offenders.

The great-grandmother, Victoria Champ, and grandmother, April Champ, of the children who allegedly witnessed the act, testified about the couple's behavior and actions that day. Their family was on vacation together at Bradenton Beach.

They said that they realized Alvarez and Caballero were having sex that Sunday afternoon when the then 3-year-old child began looking over at the couple, who were on a blanket nearby, and asked, "What are they doing?"

"I couldn't believe it," April Champ said. "I was like, 'What?'"April Champ said the two were moving like they were having sex, but that she did not see their genitals or penetration.

"(The child) wanted me to explain what they were doing," April Champ said. "I redirected her and we looked at seashells."

Victoria Champ got out her cell phone and started recording the two, shooting a 25-second video that was shown in court. It showed the couple on a blanket on the beach, with Alvarez moving on top of Caballero in a sexual manner.

They said that Emily Hall, April Champ's daughter, had been off making sandwiches when she came back and saw the couple's activities. Both Champs said they saw Hall go over to the couple to ask them to stop, but they didn't hear what was said.

"(Caballero) seemed angry, based on his body language," April Champ said.

The couple stopped after that, according to April Champ, and went in the water and took a nap together for a couple hours. Sometime in the early evening, April Champ said they started again.

"They were touching each other and kissing, so with that I just took the kids and walked to the pier," Champ said.

Both Champs also said that Alvarez's top was removed at one point, although neither said they saw it happen.

Law enforcement was called, and April Champ said she saw from the pier that Caballero was laughing when police visited the couple. When April Champ walked back, both of them were handcuffed and laughing.

Ronald Kurpiers, defense attorney for both Alvarez and Caballero, asked April Champ how she knew the two were having sex if she hadn't seen genitals or penetration.

"I knew based on the movement," April Champ said.

"You can have sex without taking your clothes off," Victoria Champ added later.

Kurpiers argued in his opening statements that in order for the jury to find the defendants guilty, they would have to know that penetration had occurred, and that none of the witnesses knew that for a fact.

"I submit that after watching the video today, you guys won't know what happened," Kurpiers said.

Assistant State Attorney Anthony Dafonseca said at the very least that "sexual simulation" had occurred.

"Witnesses said, 'Hey, there are families here! There are children here!'" Dafonseca said. "But (the defendants) didn't stop there."

Bradenton Beach Officer Eric Hill, who responded to the incident, also testified Friday.

When he arrived, Hill recalled seeing a beach blanket and an empty bottle of what he described as "some type of citrus alcoholic beverage." The officer said the bottle was as big as a standard wine bottle.

During his questioning, Kurpiers picked at Hill over the six affidavits he had collected from the scene. He asked if Hill knew that all six complainants were related and asked how he could verify that they each had filled out their own statements if not all had stayed at the scene.

"If people went up into the apartment to fill that out, you must have gone with them, right?" Kurpiers asked. "Well then, how did you verify, Officer Hill, that they are the ones who filled it out and not somebody else?"

Emily Hall, who called 911, also took the stand. She described seeing the couple when she returned from making sandwiches.

"I was very upset because my daughters were with me at the beach," she said.

She said she walked over to Caballero and Alvarez to ask them to please stop and that there were families and children on the beach. Hall said Alvarez stopped and that the couple then napped for several hours before the second incident.

"The second incident was not sexual intercourse, it was nudity -- exposure," said Hall, adding that the couple removed Alvarez's bikini top and her breasts were exposed.

Kurpiers questioned Hall about why she didn't say that the couple was having sex in the 911 call.

"I guess I was hoping that they'd just stop and things would calm down," Hall said.

Caballero, who said he's still in a relationship with Alvarez, said they began their day by going to church and later having breakfast with family before heading to the beach together. At no point did he and Alvarez have sex at the beach, he testified.

Caballero said he didn't want to get up when they were both laying down, so Alvarez got on top of him in a flirtatious manner. He said he wasn't aroused then, nor when he stood up.

"She was on the top part of my thighs, close to my hips," Caballero said, adding that it "could look sexy."

Caballero described the movements Alvarez made while on top of him as dancing, or something someone might see on TV's "Dancing With The Stars." He said he told Alvarez, "That's enough."

"As she continues on in the video to gyrate on top of you, up and down, back and forth, you stated that you just say, 'That's enough,'" Dafonseca said to Caballero.

The assistant state attorney noted that Caballero's hands, however, remained on Alvarez's legs in the video.

Caballero added that Hall did not approach him then, but another man did to let him know that he and Alvarez were being filmed. Caballero maintained that he wasn't doing anything wrong.

The trial will resume at 9 a.m. Monday.

Kate Irby, Herald online/political reporter, can be reached at 941-745-7055 or kirby@bradenton.com.

Amaris Castillo, law enforcement/island reporter, can be reached at 941-745-7051. Follow her on Twitter@AmarisCastillo.

This story was originally published May 2, 2015 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Sex-on-the-beach trial will resume Monday in Bradenton ."