Crime

The murder trial of Theobald Lengyel ended on Wednesday, with jurors now deliberating whether the former musician is guilty of first-degree murder or a lesser charge in the death of his girlfriend, Capitola resident Alice “Alix” Herrmann. The defense argued that Lengyel was provoked, while prosecutors alleged premeditation.

Theobald Lengyel was found guilty of murder in the first degree by a Santa Cruz County jury on Thursday, after a weekslong trial in which prosecutors depicted the former Mr. Bungle alternative rock musician as someone with a pattern of abusive and violent behavior that culminated with the murder of his girlfriend, Capitola resident Alice “Alix” Herrmann, in December 2023. 

Prosecutors in the murder trial of Theo Lengyel began their closing argument, aiming to paint the defendant, a former rock musician charged with killing Alice “Alyx” Herrmann of Capitola last year, as having a history of violence and aggressive behavior, specifically toward his romantic partners. They hope to convince the jury to convict Lengyel of first-degree murder, and pointed to a dramatic recording of an argument between Lengyel and Herrmann that was played during the trial that appears to capture Herrmann’s death.