KeynoteUSA—
Texas executed Ramiro Gonzalez by lethal injection Wednesday for a 2001 murder, the state Department of Criminal Justice said, following unsuccessful appeals to the U.S. Supreme Court that argued, in part, that he should not have been eligible for the death penalty under state law because it is no longer dangerous. .
Gonzales, 41, was convicted and sentenced to death in 2006 for the sexual assault and murder of 18-year-old Bridget Townsend, court records show. His execution was the first of two – the other in Oklahoma – scheduled for this week in the United States.
Gonzales was pronounced dead at 6:50 p.m., the state criminal justice department said.
The department provided Gonzales’ last statement before he was executed, in which he repeatedly apologized to the Townsend family and said he “never stopped praying” for their forgiveness: “I cannot put into words the pain I have caused everyone.” . the pain that I took with me and that I cannot return.”
“I hope this apology is enough. I lived the rest of my life for you, doing the best I could to repay, restore and take responsibility,” Gonzales said. “I never stopped praying that they would forgive me and that one day I would have the opportunity to apologize.”
During the penalty phase of Gonzales’ trial, jurors were required to find, as they do in all capital cases in Texas, a “likelihood” that Gonzales would continue to “commit criminal acts of violence.” Without this determination, capital defendants in the Lone Star State are not eligible for the death penalty, under state law.
In their appeals to the Supreme Court, Gonzales’ attorneys said his record over the past 18 years shows he is not dangerous, noting his commitment to his Christian faith, his ministry to others behind bars and his unsuccessful Attempts to donate a kidney to a stranger in need.
Furthermore, they said that the evidence they relied on to reach the conclusion of future dangerousness was false: an expert witness who diagnosed the inmate with antisocial personality disorder relied on recidivism data that was later found to be incorrect, and since He then evaluated Gonzales and recanted his testimony. .
In a pair of brief orders Wednesday, the U.S. Supreme Court made no comment on its denial of Gonzales’ requests. There were no notable dissents.
Gonzales’ lawyers, Thea Posel and Raoul Schonemann, said in a statement Monday: “Ramiro has not only disproved the jury’s prediction – he has never committed a single act or threat of violence since he was sentenced to death in 2006 – but “In fact, he actively participated and contributes to the prison society in an exceptional way. He should not be executed.”
The state of Texas also opposed Gonzales’ appeals, arguing in part that his team had misinterpreted the eligibility requirement and maintaining that the question of whether Gonzales would continue to be a threat is not limited to the inmate’s behavior on death row. .
Even when his post-conviction behavior is taken into account, “there is undoubtedly sufficient evidence to support the conclusion of future dangerousness,” the state’s attorneys wrote, pointing to the subsequent kidnapping and rape of another woman and a litany of transgressions he committed. while in jail.
“Even if a jury could somehow consider events that had not yet happened, namely Gonzales’ behavior on death row, the jury still could have rationally believed that Gonzales would be a danger in the future,” they said.
On Monday, the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles declined to recommend clemency in a 7-0 vote. Without that recommendation, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott is limited by state law to granting Gonzales a one-time pardon of 30 days.
KeynoteUSA has reached out to the Medina County Criminal District Attorney’s Office, which prosecuted the case, and members of Townsend’s family for comment.
In his final statement before the execution, Gonzales also thanked his family and friends, along with two officials from the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, for “the opportunity to become responsible, learn accountability, and do good.”
Gonzales murdered Townsend in January 2001 after he called the home of his drug supplier, her boyfriend, looking for drugs, according to a 2009 Texas appeals court opinion that affirmed the conviction and death penalty of the prisoner.
When Townsend told Gonzales that her boyfriend was not home, he went to the house to look for drugs. He stole money and then kidnapped Townsend, tying her hands and feet before taking her to a location near her family’s ranch, her opinion states. There, he raped her and shot her to death, he says.
The case remained unsolved for 18 months. Then, while in prison after pleading guilty to the rape of another woman, Gonzales confessed to Townsend’s murder and led authorities to her body.
Gonzales’ execution was the eighth in the country this year, and the ninth is scheduled for Thursday in Oklahoma, according to data from the Death Penalty Information Centera nonprofit organization that tracks capital punishment in the U.S. and has in the past criticized the way it is administered.
Oklahoma intends to execute Richard Rojem for the 1984 kidnapping, rape and murder of his 7-year-old stepdaughter, Layla Cummings, court records show. The state parole board voted last week against recommending clemency for Rojem, who claims to be innocent. according to KeynoteUSA affiliate KOCO.
Rojem, like Gonzales, would be the second person executed in their respective states so far in 2024, according to center data. This time last year, 13 inmates had been executed in the United States, the data shows.
KeynoteUSA’s Emma Tucker and John Fritze contributed to this report.
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