We find no constitutional infirmity as the mitigation special issue was enacted by the Legislature to address the concerns of the Supreme Court as stated in Penry v. Lynaugh, supra. Both men apologized for the crime in their last statements. He didn't go into details. There is no reason to treat such evidence differently than other relevant evidence is treated. All cuzz them fine ass girls you all wanted to fuck. Tuesday he paid for it with his life. FN3. The gang then drank beer and engaged in horseplay. 1127, 127 L.Ed.2d 435 (1994), in support of his argument that capital punishment is violative of the United States Constitution. Pena, however is not the victim for whose death appellant has been indicted and tried, and Payne does not contemplate admission of such evidence as permissible under the Eighth Amendment. Penal Code 8.04, the trial court submitted the following instruction to the jury in the punishment charge: 17 Episodes 2019. These factors are also helpful in this Court's evaluation of this question. THE COURT: Overruled. Instagram Contact Us Check out some new shirts! 106, 133 L.Ed.2d 59 (1995); McBride v. State, 862 S.W.2d 600, 610-11 (Tex.Crim.App.1993), cert. In points of error twenty-one and twenty-two, appellant challenges the sufficiency of the evidence to support the jury's answers to the issues on future dangerousness and mitigation. Pete will be remembered for his infectious laugh and loving personality. We object to the out of court statements of these co-defendants that we can't confront and cross examine. Garcia v. State, 887 S.W.2d 846, 859 (Tex.Crim.App.1994), cert. The admission of such evidence would open the door to admission of victim impact evidence arising from any extraneous offense committed by a defendant. He was on probation for assault in connection with an incident at the Astrodome parking lot in which he threatened another youth with a knife. Jenny was strangled with the belt of Sean O'Brien, with two murderers pulling, one on each side, until the belt broke. For a rational jury to find that appellant was guilty only of sexual assault, robbery, or kidnapping, there must be some evidence in the record that appellant did not intend to kill the victim. Nine minutes later, he was dead. Ertman got away, but Medellin grabbed Pena and dragged her down off the hill. Six months before Jenny and Elizabeth were murdered, three of their killers murdered another young woman, Patricia Lourdes Lopez. After the belt broke, the killers used her own shoelaces to finish their job. Hair Color: Black Texas Department of Criminal Justice - Executed Offenders (Cantu), Cantu, Peter Anthony H-07-CV-3016, 2009 WL 275172 (S.D.Tex. Pursuant to Tex. When the attackers were finished, the girls were taken deeper into the woods where, at Cantus urging, they were beaten, strangled and stomped to death. Copyright 2018 - 2023 PLEASANTON EXPRESS. One of the deputies exited his vehicle and chased after Cantu, who then doubled back to the deputy's vehicle and drove off into Comal County. Sound rental, Band booking, Guitar and Bass lessons. The Forbes 400 net worth cut off this year was a record-high $2 billion. He said he was told repeatedly by Peter Cantu to "get some". "I think about them. Pete Cantu, age 41, passed away on Tuesday, February 15, 2022, in Orange Grove, Texas. , 45, was charged in the theft of more than $6,400 in sausage from the Kiolbassa Provision Company. People named Pete Cantu. A 14-year-old attacker was given a 40-year sentence. Pete Cantu. However, we affirmed the original holding on appeal. ), cert. Testimony showed that the girls' bodies were kicked and their necks were stomped on after the strangulations in order to "make sure that they were really dead.". Deadline Hollywood. Extraneous offenses are only a portion of the evidence a jury is allowed to consider. Mines was remanded by the United States Supreme Court for review in light of Johnson v. State, 509 U.S. 350, 113 S.Ct. denied, 492 U.S. 912, 109 S.Ct. The danger of unfair prejudice to a defendant inherent in the introduction of victim impact evidence with respect to a victim not named in the indictment on which he is being tried is unacceptably high. Pete Cantu Alyssa Cantu John Alexander, 62 John Alexander, 88. has lived in . Article 36.01, which governs the order of proceeding in trial, states in pertinent part: Do we kill our children when you know they needed help, when you know they're a problem, when you know there are problems? Jose Gonzalez, 52, was arrested March 2, 2014, when he tried to smuggle a sword cane in Bexar County Jail to visit his son, currently an inmate at the jail. The prosecutor then asked Martinez if she had written the above cited letter to Perez, to which question she replied that she had. In his argument, appellant basically urges this Court to re-evaluate its prior holdings that Article 37.07 does not apply to capital cases and that the admission of unadjudicated extraneous offenses at the sentencing phase of a capital trial does not offend the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments. (Direct Appeal) Cantu was described as the leader of small gang known as the Black and Whites. Cantu's assertion, however, invites us to look only at a single item of evidence and to ignore all of the remaining evidence in the case. However, we reaffirmed the original holding on appeal. Focus for the victims' families now turns to the remaining three killers. M. Pena also told the jury what her daughter had been like in life: personality traits she exhibited, activities she had engaged in, and similar good character type evidence. Andrea Gorfolova. He told Venancio to stay behind, saying he was "too little to watch." Defendant was convicted upon jury verdict in the District Court, Harris County, William Harmon, J., of capital murder and was sentenced to death. Rather, there must be some evidence directly germane to a lesser included offense for the factfinder to consider before an instruction on a lesser-included offense is warranted. We think about those girls every day. at 49. He did not look toward the witnesses and made no last statement. At 11:30 p.m., Jennifer and Elizabeth decided to head for Elizabeth's house where Jennifer would then call a taxicab to take her home. 3047, 111 L.Ed.2d 511 (1990); Lawton v. State, 913 S.W.2d 542 (Tex.Crim.App.1995); McFarland, supra. Johnson v. State, 604 S.W.2d 128, 135 (Tex.Crim.App.1980) (panel op.). Associated Addresses. Extraneous victim impact evidence, if anything, is more prejudicial than the non-extraneous victim impact evidence found by this Court to be inadmissible in Smith, supra. Pete Cantu, age 41, passed away on Tuesday, February 15, 2022, in Orange Grove, Texas. Notwithstanding this, the Ake Court, 470 U.S. at 83, 105 S.Ct. Ex parte Cantu, No. I continue to voice my disagreement with the majority's continued refusal to acknowledge the constitutional infirmities in depriving the jury of information relevant to the special issues as to the statutorily required mandatory serving of 35 calendar years before becoming eligible for parole on a life sentence for capital murder. The individual breaking into the home punches the window, suffers a a vicious cut to the hand and runs off. Both of these claims are governed by the familiar Strickland standard. 5. the defendant's age and personal circumstances at the time of the offense; 2934, 106 L.Ed.2d 256 (1989). Evidence concerning her sexual assault, robbery and murder is admissible as same transaction contextual evidence. Thus, this evidence is admissible under Texas Criminal Evidence Rule 401. Date of Birth: 05/27/75 In the portion of the prosecution's argument that Cantu challenges, the prosecution stated: Two of Cantu's companions in the gang they dubbed the Black and White preceded him to the death chamber. You know, if you got the law you argue the law, if you got the facts you argue the facts, if you don't have either the law or the facts you don't have anything. [THE STATE:] And how did he agree with them? 270, 277 (5th Cir.2007); Jackson v. Dretke, 181 Fed.Appx. Days later, Cantu's brother and sister-in-law reported what they had heard to the police. 803(23) as statements against interest, corroborated by appellant's own responding actions and the co-defendants' possession of the victims' jewelry and the blood on the co-defendants' clothing when they came to the Cantu residence. This allegation was addressed and answered by the United States Supreme Court in Jurek v. Texas, 428 U.S. 262, 96 S.Ct. The other gang members present were Roman Sandoval, Joe Medellin, Efrian Perez, and Derrick Sean OBrien. However, nowhere does appellant tell us specifically which terms he alleges are inadequately defined in the special issues. Seventeen years is a long time to have something eating on you like that. Lawton, 913 S.W.2d at 557; McFarland, 928 S.W.2d at 497-99. ), cert. Just prior to that statement, the prosecution set up its argument by asserting that [t]he State has brought to you a lot of evidence to show you what this defendant is like, who he really is. Look at the evidence. To begin, we note that the only evidence that appellant specifically complains about on appeal is the testimony of Pena's mother at the punishment phase of trial. 463rd murderer executed in Texas since 1976. B B King; B L A C K I E; B Movie Blues; B Rezell and OFTB; B-52s; B-Wave Heusden; B3 Fusion; B3 Kings; B52s; Ba Cissoko; Baaba Maal; Bab L Bluz; Bab Lbluz; Baba Commandant; Baba N 2213, 2223-24, 60 L.Ed.2d 777 (1979). They pulled on the belt, one boy on each side, until the belt broke. 946, 952 (5th Cir.2004) (emphasis added); cf. Appellant's argument in effect is that a jury should be instructed to consider only mitigating evidence when addressing this special issue. No, not in the least. Building Materials. Moore v. State, 935 S.W.2d 124, 130 (Tex.Crim.App.1996). 2113, 147 L.Ed.2d 125 (2000) (emphasis added). All Filters. shall consider mitigating evidence to be evidence that a juror might regard as reducing the defendant's moral blameworthiness. The 14-year-old, Venancio Medellin, was handled in juvenile court and given the maximum sentence, split between juvenile and adult prison facilities. 3230, 106 L.Ed.2d 578 (1989). Appellant's claimed error could have been corrected easily if he had timely called it to the court's attention by making a contemporaneous objection. Furthermore, any error, assuming there was error, was harmless. Ayesha Gani. Part of the belt was left at the murder scene, the rest was found in O'Brien's home. It is well-settled that, in reviewing the sufficiency of the evidence at the punishment stage, this Court views the evidence in the light most favorable to the verdict to determine whether any rational trier of fact could make the finding beyond a reasonable doubt. Cantu then parceled out jewelry and money he had taken from the girls. And then ask yourself another question.