Medellin was 14 at the time of the killings and has served 27 years of his 40-year sentence, the maximum punishment allowed for a juvenile. It's his choice. The Fifth Circuit has held that the use of the term "moral blameworthiness" does not prevent the jury from considering mitigating circumstances because "[v]irtually any mitigating evidence is capable of being viewed as having some bearing on the defendant's `moral culpability'" apart from the concerns identified in the other special issues. PROC. 24 at 966-67. TEX. Tennard, 542 U.S. at 284-85. 1994); Kinnamon v. Scott, 40 F.3d 731, 733 (5th Cir. The families filed missing persons reports with the Houston Police Department and continued to look for the girls on their own. There, the gang members strangled the girls with their hands, shoelaces, and a belt. Really. Tr. Failure to Object to Prosecutorial Argument. "In order to ensure `reliability in the determination that death is the appropriate punishment in a specific case,'" Penry I held that "the jury must be able to consider and give effect to any mitigating evidence relevant to a defendant's background and character or the circumstances of the crime." 2 at 30), he did not make those arguments before the jury. A review of the circumstances leading to Cantu's two statements and the trial context as a whole prove that a rational jury would not have convicted Cantu of a lesser offense. "Sau mt thi gian 2 thng s dng sn phm th mnh thy da ca mnh chuyn bin r rt nht l nhng np nhn C Nguyn Th Thy Hngchia s: "Beta Glucan, mnh thy n ging nh l ng hnh, n cho mnh c ci trong n ung ci Ch Trn Vn Tnchia s: "a con gi ca ti n ln mng coi, n pht hin thuc Beta Glucan l ti bt u ung Trn Vn Vinh: "Ti ung thuc ny ti cm thy rt tt. 24 at 929-24; SX 5 and 6. (Doc. '"); Lincecum v. Collins, 958 F.2d 1271, 1274-75 (5th Cir. Cantu premises his argument on the assumption that a jury's knowledge of parole eligibility will inure to the benefit of the defense. I do agree with the father though that it wasn't nearly painful or drawn out enough. Testimony showed that Raul lasted through three of the members before briefly losing consciousness. Until the Texas state legislature could revise the capital sentencing scheme to comply with Penry I, courts attempted to correct the statutory inadequacy through jury instructions. "Courts have always taken into consideration the harm done by the defendant in imposing sentence[.]" At the time of Cantu's trial, a Texas capital defendant who received a life sentence would become eligible for parole after 35 years of incarceration. The images were so Id. Where [are] you going?" 1999) ("Relief based on Simmons is foreclosed by Teague."). The State used substantially the same language when prosecuting O'Brien for his role in the Ertman/Pena murders. Tr. 2254(d)(1). Im not sure who else has brought attention to it. "A jury must be allowed to consider on the basis of all relevant evidence not only why a death sentence should be imposed, but also why it should not be imposed." Is there something we can do to bring more attention to this situation? Tr. Additionally, the challenged material would not necessarily serve as a crucial or determinative factor in the jury's consideration of Cantu's punishment. In rejecting similar claims, the Fifth Circuit has emphasized that Texas courts interpret the statute broadly, holding that "all mitigating evidence can be given effect" under the definition. Payne v. Tennessee, 501 U.S. 808, 825 (1991). Nm 1978, cng ty chnh thc ly tn l "Umeken", tip tc phn u v m rng trn ton th gii. Tr. Even though Texas' statutory framework inherently allows for the consideration of mitigating evidence, "the context of the proceedings is relevant in determining whether the jury could reasonably have given effect to the mitigating evidence." 2254(d) "does not require federal habeas courts to grant relief reflexively"). However, Cantu objects that the instruction unnecessarily confined the jury's review to "evidence that a juror might regard as reducing the defendant's moral blameworthiness." Tr. You are right about Bush, however I believe further that we have been duped by the GOP. Bush only uses the term Christian to gather votes, all while he claims that Allah is the same as Jesus. In Jurek v. Texas, 428 U.S. 262 (1976), the Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of Texas's capital sentencing statute. In 1994, a jury convicted Cantu for the capital murder of Jennifer Ertman. I assume that's why it's left such a strong impact on me. Cantu's motion alleged that his statements were not voluntary because they were "the result of the promises and other coercive actions of law enforcement officers," taken without proper warnings or an adequate arrest warrant, and after Cantu exerted his right to remain silent. Lockett v. Ohio, 438 U.S. 586, 604 (1978) (plurality opinion); see also Eddings v. Oklahoma, 455 U.S. 104, 114-15 (1982). Jurek v. Texas, 428 U.S. 262, 271 (1976) (plurality opinion); see also Woodson v. North Carolina, 428 U.S. 280, 303-04 (1976). WebHannah starts out the epsiode with the unsolved murder of Jennifer Harris in Bonham. The State of Texas, represented by Solicitor General Ted Cruz, challenged Bush's order, and the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that only the Congress of the United States has the right to order hearings to be held. Long v. State, 823 S.W.2d 259, 272 (Tex.Crim.App. why don't you also think in terms of maybe what these girls were thinking about, what their hopes and dreams were, what their wishes were[.] Mar. The prosecution explained why they sought to admit the photographs into evidence: Tr. This had not previously been done in Texas courts and now is done as a matter of routine. He is not an eighteen year old child that didn't know what he was doing." Tr. Cantu, like his co-defendant, offers no persuasive showing that constitutional error crept into the jury instructions or somehow prevented consideration of his mitigation evidence. 1997). If you can live in this country for years illegally and then remember you did not get to talk to the Mexican Council general, it should be to damn bad. Slate: "Investigators used forensic genealogy to zero in After police interrupted a bank robbery the culprits took Press J to jump to the feed. Randy Ertman sits on the railroad tracks near the location where the bodies of two young women were found. WebMost of the soft tissue on Jennifer Ertmans head and the external portion of her vagina was eaten by maggots, indicating that there was trauma, hemorrhaging and bleeding. Because a reasonable jury would find that Cantu's second statement fully agreed with the other overwhelming evidence against Cantu, the Court of Criminal Appeals was not unreasonable in holding that the facts of this case did not entitle him to a lesser-included-offense instruction. In Beck v. Alabama, 447 U.S. 625 (1980), the Supreme Court overturned a death sentence because the trial evidence allowed for the possibility of a non-capital conviction but the jury instructions placed the defendant in an all-or-nothing conundrum: if the jury thought he was guilty merely of a lesser offense, then they could only sentence him to death or acquit him. It is stories like this that make me think this country is going to explode in a paroxysm of rage - pure rage. Maybe other people can email to other hosts as well. SIGN UP FOR FOX 26 HOUSTON EMAIL ALERTS I hope he spends the entire 40 years in prison. The case was also notable in that the state of Texas rejected attempts by the International Court of Justice to halt the executions of several of the perpetrators. Vi i ng nhn vin gm cc nh nghin cu c bng tin s trong ngnh dc phm, dinh dng cng cc lnh vc lin quan, Umeken dn u trong vic nghin cu li ch sc khe ca m, cc loi tho mc, vitamin v khong cht da trn nn tng ca y hc phng ng truyn thng. Entry No. There's no mitigation you could provide that will ever make me believe anyone who is fit to breathe clean air could or would commits this crime. 2 at 18.) Cantu claims that the trial court violated his constitutional rights by not allowing for his conviction for less-serious offenses. It was traced to the home of the brother of one of the men later sentenced to death for these murders. 21 at 294, Vol. 2001). Clerk's Record at 268-69. http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1907733/posts, Death Penalty Case Puts Bush and Texas at Odds Over Mexicans Fate Cantu's federal habeas claims require the Court to discuss the particulars of the murders. Although Cantu had been a continuing disciplinary problem, expelled from three schools and given to threats of violence, nothing about his life even began to approach the depravity of his conduct on June 24, 1993. Autopsy Cantu bases this claim on the following interchange during closing arguments: Is there a connection between what they try to give you as mitigation, is there connection between that and the crime itself, when you think of what you discovered to possibly be mitigating? Anderson, a Houston Police Department officer who worked on the murder case, described the murder as "part of the impetus for the antigang programs in Houston." (Doc. He and his fellow gang members also stood on the young girls' necks to ensure that they would die. [T]here is no reason to show any mercy to this man because you know what kind of a person he is and how much mercy and compassion he has in him." See id. Texas has already executed O'Brien and Medellin. 22 at 410, 418-19, 440. For that reason, the Simmons Court stated that it will "not lightly second-guess a decision whether or not to inform a jury of information regarding parole." The state habeas court concluded that the prosecutor's statements were not "extreme or manifestly improper or inject[ed] new and harmful facts into the trial, in light of the record as a whole." A state court unreasonably applies federal law when it "identifies the correct governing legal rule from [the Supreme Court] cases but unreasonably applies it to the particular facts of the particular state prisoner's case" or when "the state court either unreasonably extends a legal principle from [Supreme Court] precedent to a new context where it should not apply or unreasonably refuses to extend that principle to a new context where it should apply." The trial court did not allow any voir dire discussion of potential parole eligibility. Having a teenage daughter myself reading this was so painful. The state habeas court found that "the State's punishment argument referring to the admitted photographs and the injuries shown in such photographs is a summary of the evidence concerning the circumstances of the offense and the complainant's and Elizabeth Pena's resulting injuries, and such argument is a reasonable inference that such photographs are unforgettable to the jury." The prosecution closed with the following statement that Cantu complains was inflammatory but went unchallenged by his trial attorneys: Cantu "concedes that the argument was responsive, but not that it was invited." . The gang members present were Jose Medellin, Peter Cantu, Roman Sandoval, Efrain First, Cantu faults trial counsel for not raising a federal due process objection in addition to his state law objection (claim ten). The trial court refused to provide the jury with the requested instructions. WebJennifer Elizabeth Texas Early Like any typical teen in the early 90's, Jennifer decorates her room with posters probably from magazines like "Tiger Beat" M Maria Narvaez Elizabeth See Franklin, 487 U.S. at 179. "The due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment provides an independent check on a prosecutor's comments that `so infected the trial with unfairness as to make the resulting conviction [or sentence] a denial of due process.'" vote for a capital conviction if the only alternative was to set the defendant free with no punishment at all"). Casetext, Inc. and Casetext are not a law firm and do not provide legal advice. See 28 U.S.C. In ordinary civil cases, a district court considering a motion for summary judgment must construe disputed facts in a light most favorable to the nonmoving party. Cantu gave Officer Parish an oral account of his acts on the night of the murders, which Officer Parish reduced to writing. (quoting Graham, 506 U.S. at 476). Tr. 2003) (finding that 28 U.S.C. Also, "in his closing argument, the prosecutor reiterated that a nexus between possibly mitigating evidence and the crime was required[.]" Other gang members confessed that they only participated because they were "just following whatever Peter Cantu was doing." Seventeen years after the crimes, Peter Anthony Cantu was executed on August 17, 2010. 37.071 2(e)(1). See Alexander v. Johnson, 211 F.3d 895, 898 (5th Cir. In the wake of Tennard, the Supreme Court and Fifth Circuit have found error in most pre-1989 cases, with limited exceptions. In Penry v. Johnson, 532 U.S. 782, 804 (2001) (" Penry II"), the Supreme Court found that the supplemental mitigating instructions given before 1991 amounted to an "ineffective and illogical" mechanism for giving effect to mitigating evidence. The jury's answers to the special issues required the trial court to impose a death sentence. at 369. See Darden v. Wainwright, 477 U.S. 168, 180 (1986); Caldwell v. Mississippi, 472 U.S. 320, 337-38 (1985); Rogers v. Lynaugh, 848 F.2d 606, 608 (5th Cir. Trial counsel compared the possible fate of his client to the death of the two victims. The Due Process Clause only provides relief from evidentiary rulings that are "so unduly prejudicial that it render[ed] the trial fundamentally unfair." Corey Mitchell's book "Pure Murder," which details the He said he was told repeatedly by Peter Cantu to "get some". 24 at 857-60. Gang members fought Villareal in turn. In response to accusations from anti-death penalty advocates that the death penalty is a cruel and unusual form of punishment, Pea's father later remarked O'Brien's death had occurred peacefully, "in twenty seconds", adding: "I wish to God that my daughter could have died that easily. For the next hour or so, these beautiful, innocent young girls were subjected to the most brutal gang rapes that most of the investigating officers had ever encountered. See 28 U.S.C. He said yeah." Peter Anthony Cantu ("Cantu"), a Texas inmate, seeks federal habeas corpus relief. http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1908103/posts, Bush, Texas at Odds Over Death Case WebThe rapes and murders of Jennifer Lee Ertman and Elizabeth Christine Pea, two teenage girls from Houston, Texas, aged 14 and 16, respectively, occurred on June 24, 1993. In addition to Cantu's youth, other influences upon his conduct during the night in question included heavy drinking and a ritual of gang initiation, circumstances that lend themselves to peer-driven recklessness and even madness. In that case, the prosecutor allegedly imposed "deliberate, constant limitations" on the jury's consideration of mitigating evidence by repeatedly "telling the jury there must be a connection between mitigating evidence and the charged crime." "It is not enough that the jury may disbelieve crucial evidence pertaining to the greater offense. Tr. Here, the state habeas court found: Federal due process concerns are not coextensive with state evidentiary rules. Medellin later complained that "the bitch wouldn't die" and that it would have been "easier with a gun". Vol. The next morning, the girls parents began to frantically look for them, paging them on their pagers, calling their friends to see if they knew where they were, to no avail. Eventually, the en banc Fifth Circuit in Graham v. Collins, 950 F.2d 1009 (5th Cir. Jennifer Ertman's dad, Randy Ertman, was about to give an interview regarding the missing girls to a local television reporter when the call came over a cameraman's police scanner that two bodies had been found. Texas law, however, then prohibited any information about potential parole eligibility from coming before the jury. Vol. Campbell v. Dretke, 117 F. App'x 946, 952 (5th Cir. management. 21 at 294. Summary judgment is proper when the record shows "no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law." After the trial of Peter Cantu, Judge Bill Harmon allowed the family members to address the convicted. No death, but it was a year before columbine. 28 at 799-800. This one has always stuck with me, to an insane degree. 2 at 27.) Peter Anthony Cantu, Jos Ernesto Medelln, Derrick Sean O'Brien, Efrain Prez, and Raul Omar Villarreal received death sentences. 2 at 30.) "Congress enacted AEDPA to reduce delays in the execution of state and federal criminal sentences, particularly in capital cases, and to further the principles of comity, finality, and federalism[.]" Nothing in Penry I signaled a wholesale rejection of Texas' special issues, yet the Supreme Court failed to articulate how to determine what evidence evaded Texas' sentencing review. Following Cantu's initial instruction, Villarreal first shouted "Get on your knees, bitch!" See id. Tr. 24 at 944. 2 at 24.) The Fifth Circuit concluded: Also, the Court of Criminal Appeals noted that the prosecution's statement was merely a "suggestion," and did not tell "the jury that they must find a nexus between the offense and the evidence offered as mitigation[.]" In his first statement, Cantu admitted to a limited role in kidnapping, raping, and robbing the two girls. 2000). Donald R. Davis Also, the record must contain some evidence that would permit the jury to find the defendant guilty of only the lesser crime. Cantu filed a pre-trial motion to suppress his confessions. These stopgap instructions often called nullification instructions required the jury to answer the statutory special issues in the negative if sufficient mitigating circumstances existed. He told the call taker that the missing girls' bodies could be found near T.C. Tr. Tr. Vol. Marsh, 548 U.S. at 174. The Supreme Court has not, however, extended the Simmons holding beyond "when, assuming the jury fixes the sentence at life, the defendant is ineligible for parole under state law." When Ms. Pena was nearly lifeless, Cantu kicked her in the mouth with his steel-toed boots. 13 at 13.). While the disturbing photographs probably unsettled the jurors, the state courts would not be unreasonable in finding that the complex and textured case against Cantu was not unconstitutionally tainted by the material. (Doc. 21 at 324-27. Ertman died Sunday August 17th at home with his wife Sandy by his side.