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Thread: Fernando Lavaris, Jr. Gets Life in Prison in 2015 TX Murder of William Valdez

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    Fernando Lavaris, Jr. Gets Life in Prison in 2015 TX Murder of William Valdez


    Eliza Victoria Losoya, Eric John Martinez, Fernando Lavaris, Jr., and Jonathan Jesse Marin


    District Attorney to Seek Death Penalty for 3 in San Angelo Capital Murder Case

    On Aug. 31, 2015, at approximately 4:05 a.m., four suspects forced entry into 69-year-old William Valdez’s home, demanding money before they shot him. The gunshot caused severe injury to Valdez, and resulted in the loss of a kidney, spinal chord injury and a perforated colon. Valdez succumbed to his injuries on Sept. 16.

    The four suspects involved in the case, Elisa Victoria Losoya, 29, Eric Martinez, 26, Fernando Lavaris, 29, and Jonathan Marin, 27, all from San Angelo, were arrested for the crime and indicted on Nov. 23, 2015 for Capital Murder by Terror Threat. Last month, on April 5, 2016, 51st District Attorney Allison Palmer submitted the State of Texas’ Notice of Intent to Seek the Death Penalty should Losoya, Lavaris and Marin be found guilty. On Nov. 23, 2015, Palmer submitted the State’s intent to waive the death penalty on Martinez. According to court documents, during the early morning hours of Aug. 31, William’s son, G. Valdez, heard his dog barking and someone banging on his sliding glass door. G. Valdez went outside to the front yard and observed Losoya in the driveway. Losoya approached G. Valdez and told him they needed to talk. “[G. Valdez] was fearful and retreated back inside the house to call police,” said the complaint. “[He] locked the front door. [He] heard [the] sliding glass door being broken into as he entered his bedroom.”

    At that point, G. Valdez closed his bedroom door and heard the front door being kicked open. He heard a male voice ask, “Where’s the money?” The man also warned, “Do not call the police.” That’s when G. Valdez heard gunshots in his father’s bedroom. Because he was fearful of being shot, G. Valdez waited before exiting his bedroom. “[G. Valdez] observed the back door open and believed [Losoya] and an unknown male had fled through [it],” read the complaint. G. Valdez found his father on the floor by his bed, and stayed with him until SAPD officers arrived. The complaint notes that William Valdez had been shot under his left arm, approximately 4-6 inches from his armpit. When officers arrived, they assisted William with his gunshot injury and transported him to Shannon Hospital for emergency surgery. Later, G. Valdez was presented with a composed photo lineup and positively identified Losoya, who “frequents his game room (Silver Sweeps) businesses.”

    G. Valdez believes, based on the unknown male’s statement referencing money, that a robbery attempt had taken place. In addition to William’s injuries, Detective Jason Chegwidden and SAPD Crime Scene personnel recovered a bullet and bullet fragments from the scene. Additionally, two 9mm casings were recovered. Losoya, Lavaris and Marin will be the first capital murder suspects to face the death penalty in Tom Green County in almost 17 years. The last individual to face the death penalty in Tom Green County was Luis Ramirez, who was sentenced to death by a jury on May 14, 1999 for the murder of San Angelo Firefighter Nemecio Nandin. He was executed Oct. 20, 2005 (read more here). At the time, in regards to the death penalty, Palmer said, “We have to do what we believe is the right thing; we do what we believe justice dictates, and we try to stay with what we believe our community standards have been."

    Recently, Palmer stated she will not confer with San Angelo LIVE! on any of her cases; however, she acknowledged the rise in capital murders since 2013 previously, and said execution will always remain an option in capital murder cases unless repealed by the Texas Legislature.

    http://sanangelolive.com/news/crime/...al-murder-case

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    Hearings set Friday for four suspects in capital murder case

    By Ngan Ho
    The San Angelo Standard-Times

    Pretrial hearings are scheduled Friday for four people indicted on charges of capital murder in the shooting death of a 69-year-old San Angelo man.

    Prosecutors with the Tom Green County 51st District Attorney's Office are seeking the death penalty for three of the four accused.

    Eric John Martinez, 26; Jonathan Jesse Marin, 27; Eliza Victoria Losoya, 29; and Fernando Lavaris Jr., 30, are in the Tom Green County Jail in lieu of more than $500,000 bail each.

    Lavaris has been in jail since Aug. 31, and the other three were taken into custody in September.

    A special sitting of a grand jury was held in November because of the magnitude of the charge. Capital murder is punishable by death or life in prison without parole.

    Prosecutors intend to seek the death penalty for Marin, Losoyo and Lavaris in the event of a conviction, according to court documents.

    All four were indicted in paragraph one of the indictment with burglary of a habitation and robbery in paragraph two.

    Four different attorneys were listed to represent each of the four suspects. The pretrial hearings are scheduled in 51st District Judge Barbara Walther's courtroom at 10:30 a.m.

    What began as an attempted robbery Aug. 31 at a residence in the 500 block of Sellers Street led to a shooting and the subsequent death of William Valdez, 69, according to court documents.

    Valdez was shot under his left arm, about 4 to 6 inches from his armpit, according to the complaint, and was taken to Shannon Medical Center for emergency surgery.

    Valdez had his kidney removed and suffered a spinal cord injury and a perforated colon from the gunshot, according to the complaint. The bullet also could not be removed from his body at the time, according to court documents. He died Sept. 15 after about two weeks on life support.

    About 4:05 a.m. Aug. 31 William Valdez's son, Guillermo Valdez, said he heard his dog barking and someone banging on the sliding glass door at his home, according to court documents..

    Guillermo Valdez went outside and was confronted by Losoya in the driveway, who said that the two needed to talk, stated court documents.

    Guillermo Valdez told police he became fearful and went back in the house, locked the front door and called police. He then said he heard the sliding glass door being broken into as he entered his bedroom and the front door being kicked open after, according to court documents.

    He said he heard a man say "Where's the money and do not call the police" before hearing gunshots inside his father's bedroom, according to the complaint. Guillermo Valdez said he was afraid he was going to be shot, so he stayed inside his bedroom, according to the complaint.

    When he eventually left the room, he said he saw his father lying by his bed as he waited for police.

    Losoya told police that she, Lavaris, Martinez and Marin went to the residence with the intent to steal after breaking into the house, according to court documents. She said Marin "had been casing the victim's house for a future robbery" and that the men all had guns and Martinez had a BB gun.

    Losoya also told police she was hiding with Lavaris near a vehicle that was parked in the driveway at the front of the house when the incident began, according to court documents. She then began knocking on the sliding glass window that was near the parked car, and she said she spoke with Guillermo Valdez before he walked back into the house.

    Losoya said she returned to her hiding spot, heard the front door being knocked down and ran away when she heard gunshots.

    Marin told police he arrived at the residence in a car with the three other suspects. According to court documents, he told police the others had asked him if he was willing to commit a burglary with them, and he agreed to. Marin told police that Martinez, Losoya and Lavaris went to the front of the house while he stayed at the back of the house by himself, according to court documents.

    In another account, Marin told police he waited with Martinez at the back door during the incident, according to court documents. Marin also told police he was inside the house when the burglary occurred and that he saw Lavaris shoot William Valdez, the documents stated.

    Lavaris told police he was present during the robbery and that he was at the front of the home with Losoya, but said he was under the influence of methamphetamine laced with heroin and couldn't remember anything, according to court documents. Lavaris refused to provide details of the incident and only stated that he ran from Sellers Street and never went inside the home, according to court documents. Investigators matched Lavaris' palm print to one on the sliding glass door and recovered a bullet and two 9 mm bullet casings at the scene.

    http://www.gosanangelo.com/news/loca...381717401.html
    "I realize this may sound harsh, but as a father and former lawman, I really don't care if it's by lethal injection, by the electric chair, firing squad, hanging, the guillotine or being fed to the lions."
    - Oklahoma Rep. Mike Christian

    "There are some people who just do not deserve to live,"
    - Rev. Richard Hawke

    “There are lots of extremely smug and self-satisfied people in what would be deemed lower down in society, who also deserve to be pulled up. In a proper free society, you should be allowed to make jokes about absolutely anything.”
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    State Seeks Death Penalty for Man Charged with Capital Murder

    The state is seeking the death penalty for a San Angelo man charged with capital murder.

    Fernando Lavaris Jr., 30, stood in front of Judge Barbara Walther at the Tom Green County Courthouse Friday for a pre-trial hearing. According to court documents Lavaris Jr. is one of four suspects accused of breaking into a home last year and shooting the resident, 69-year-old William Valdez, who later succumbed to his injuries. The next hearing date is set for October.

    http://www.conchovalleyhomepage.com/...capital-murder
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    San Angelo murder suspect has hearing

    By Ngan Ho
    The San Angelo Standard-Times

    A local man accused of capital murder appeared before a district judge Friday for a pretrial hearing.

    Fernando Lavaris Jr., 30, and three other suspects — Jonathan Jesse Marin, 27; Eliza Victoria Losoya, 29; and Eric John Martinez, 26 — were indicted in late November on charges of capital murder by terror threat and other felony in the shooting death of a 69-year-old man.

    Prosecutors with the 51st District Attorney's Office are seeking the death penalty for Lavaris, Marin and Losoya.

    The defense submitted several motions Friday — including one requesting that Lavaris be allowed to appear in street clothes at all pretrial and trial proceedings as well as preclusion from being shackled in public.

    The motions should be decided by Lavaris' next pretrial hearing, which is slated for 9 a.m. Nov. 28.

    Lavaris has selected that the jury will assess punishment if he is convicted of a lesser offense than capital murder.

    Martinez, Marin, Losoya and Lavaris have been held in the Tom Green County Jail in lieu of more than $500,000 bail each since their arrest last year.

    Court documents say an attempted robbery at a residence in the 500 block of Sellers Street about 4:05 a.m. Aug. 31, 2015, led to the shooting and subsequent death of William Valdez, 69.

    Valdez was shot under his left arm and died Sept. 15, 2015, at Shannon Medical Center after about two weeks on life support.

    Losoya, Marin and Lavaris told police that "the plan was to steal from the victim by breaking into his house," according to court documents.

    Lavaris told police he was under the influence of methamphetamine laced with heroin and couldn't remember anything, according to court documents.

    Investigators matched Lavaris' palm print to one on a sliding glass door and recovered a bullet and two 9 mm bullet casings at the scene.

    http://www.gosanangelo.com/news/loca...397981011.html
    "I realize this may sound harsh, but as a father and former lawman, I really don't care if it's by lethal injection, by the electric chair, firing squad, hanging, the guillotine or being fed to the lions."
    - Oklahoma Rep. Mike Christian

    "There are some people who just do not deserve to live,"
    - Rev. Richard Hawke

    “There are lots of extremely smug and self-satisfied people in what would be deemed lower down in society, who also deserve to be pulled up. In a proper free society, you should be allowed to make jokes about absolutely anything.”
    - Rowan Atkinson

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    Trial Date Set for Capital Murder Defendant

    SAN ANGELO, TX - A judge has set a trial date for a second defendant in a capital murder case.

    26-year-old Jonathan Marin is one of four people charged in the 2015 shooting of a 69-year-old man at a home on Sellers street. William Valdez died of his injuries.

    A district judge set Marin's capital murder trial date for May of 2018.

    A judge set a trial date for capital murder codefendant Fernando Lavaris earlier in the week.

    http://www.conchovalleyhomepage.com/...dant/649144709
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    Fernando Lavaris' capital murder trial set for January 22, 2018.

    http://www.gosanangelo.com/story/new...2018/97344812/

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    July 21, 2017

    Reduced bail requested in capital murder case

    Defense attorneys are seeking a bail reduction for a suspect in the August 2015 shooting death of a 69-year-old San Angelo man.

    Fernando Lavaris Jr., 31, who is charged on suspicion of capital murder, appeared before 51st District Judge Barbara Walther for a pretrial hearing Friday. He was accompanied by court-appointed attorneys James A. Drummond and Anthony C. Odiorne from the Lubbock Regional Public Defender for Capital Cases.

    Prosecutors and defense attorneys, alongside Walther, reviewed about 10 motions submitted in preparation for trial in the coming months. Some of the motions requested prosecutors to provide crime scene photos, criminal history records of witnesses and test lab results from the Texas Department of Public Safety, among others.

    The bail reduction hearing will be scheduled later.

    Lavaris and three other suspects — Jonathan Jesse Marin, 27; Eliza Victoria Losoya, 29; and Eric John Martinez, 27 — were indicted on charges of capital murder by terror threat and other felony in the August 2015 shooting death of William Valdez, 69.

    https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/...ase/499932001/

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    Capital murder trial from 2015 deadly home invasion again delayed until 2019

    By John Tufts
    eu.gosanangelo.com

    SAN ANGELO — A senior judge expressed frustration during a pretrial hearing for Fernando Lavaris Jr., accused of murder in the 2015 shooting death of a 69-year-old San Angelo man.

    Lavaris — now with a full head of hair and well-trimmed beard, contrary to what his mugshot depicts — arrived before 51st District Judge Barbara Walther, who appeared irritated by the slow pacing and delays in the case.

    "This is a 2015 case," Walther said. "We've got to get on process."

    Due to scheduling conflicts between the District's Attorney's office, which has dealt with several murder cases, and scheduling issues with defense attorneys for Lavaris, the case has been deferred "as many as three times," Walther noted.

    Walther pointedly questioned attorneys on both sides as to how soon a jury could reasonably be seated.

    "The court is in a quandary over setting a jury trial date," Walther said. "I realize you've been preparing for other cases, but maybe the only way to give you focus is to set a date."

    Pockets of silence in the court followed as calendars were checked, and dates worked through together by 51st District Attorney Allison Palmer, Assistant District Attorney Ashley Knight and Defense Attorney Alexander Calhoun with the Lubbock-based Regional Public Defender’s Office.

    "Pick a date, Mrs. Palmer, the State would be ready — realistic given the current capital murder cases," Walther said.

    Palmer suggested the State could be ready to begin jury selection as early as February 2019.

    Walther, however set a later date in light of other scheduling issues.

    Eight pretrial hearings were announced for Lavaris between November and May 2019, with a jury trial set for May 27, 2019.

    What began as an attempted robbery Aug. 31, 2015 about 4:05 a.m. at a residence in the 500 block of Sellers Street led to a shooting and the subsequent death of William Valdez, 69, according to court documents.

    Valdez was shot under his left arm and died Sept. 15 at Shannon Medical Center after about two weeks on life support.

    William Valdez's son, Guillermo Valdez, told police he heard his dog barking and someone banging on the sliding glass door at his home the morning of the incident, according to court documents.

    Valdez said a home invasion then took place, and he heard gunshots inside his father's bedroom.

    In 2016, Lavaris and three other suspects — Jonathan Jesse Marin, 27; Eliza Victoria Losoya, 29; and Eric John Martinez, 26 — were indicted in late November by a grand jury on charges of capital murder by terror threat and other felony in Valdez's shooting death.

    Losoya, Marin and Lavaris all told police "the plan was to steal from the victim by breaking into his house," according to court documents.

    Court documents show Losoya said she heard the front door being knocked down and ran away when she heard gunshots; Marin told police he was inside the house when the shooting happened and saw Lavaris shoot Valdez.

    Lavaris told police he was under the influence of methamphetamine laced with heroine and couldn't remember anything.

    Investigators matched Lavaris' palm print to one on the sliding glass door and recovered a bullet and two 9 mm casings at the scene.

    In part of a plea deal, Marin was sentenced to life in prison for his role in the shooting.

    Losoya had a hearing scheduled earlier in August. Online court records don't show the outcome of that hearing. Martinez is scheduled for a jury trial in November 2018, according to online court records.

    Capital murder is punishable by death or life imprisonment.

    https://eu.gosanangelo.com/story/new...ed/1085303002/

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    Man Pleads Guilty to Murder in Brutal Slaying Avoiding the Death Penalty

    By Yantis Green
    San Angelo LIVE!

    SAN ANGELO, TX -- A San Angelo man accused of murder in the brutal killing of 69-year-old William Valdez took a plea deal Monday afternoon that sends him to prison for 40 years.

    According to court documents, 28-year-old Eric John Martinez was originally charged with capital murder but took a plea deal offered by the District Attorney's office that reduces the charge to murder.

    Martinez is accused of conspiring with three others in the murder of an eldery San Angelo Man in a home invasion.

    The four defendants are accused of killing 69-year-old William Valdez while invading his home on August 31, 2015. The crime took place in the 500 block of N. Sellers St.

    Those charged in the crime are Elisa Losoya, 28, Eric Martinez, 26, Fernando Lavaris, and Jonathan Marin, 26.

    According to court documents, Losoya approached Guillermo Valdez, who lived with the victim at the house, telling him they needed to talk.

    As Guillermo went back to the house and locked the door, the four broke into a glass door and threatened Valdez asking for money and not to call the police.

    Valdez was shot in his left arm and taken to Shannon Medical Center, where he later died.

    Marin took a plea deal earlier that sent him to prison for life. Losoya had a pretrial hearing earlier this month. Lavaris has a jury trial set for May 2019.

    https://sanangelolive.com/news/crime...-death-penalty
    "I realize this may sound harsh, but as a father and former lawman, I really don't care if it's by lethal injection, by the electric chair, firing squad, hanging, the guillotine or being fed to the lions."
    - Oklahoma Rep. Mike Christian

    "There are some people who just do not deserve to live,"
    - Rev. Richard Hawke

    “There are lots of extremely smug and self-satisfied people in what would be deemed lower down in society, who also deserve to be pulled up. In a proper free society, you should be allowed to make jokes about absolutely anything.”
    - Rowan Atkinson

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    April 8, 2019

    San Angelo man pleads guilty in fatal shooting of 69-year-old during botched burglary

    By John Tufts
    The San Angelo Standard-Times

    SAN ANGELO — William Valdez went to bed in his east-side residence almost four years ago and never woke up.

    The 69-year old San Angelo man was fatally shot about 4:05 a.m. Aug. 31, 2015, during a botched robbery involving four people — one of whom told police he was under the influence of methamphetamine laced with heroin and couldn't remember anything, according to court documents.

    Officers arrested Jonathan Jesse Marin, Eric John Martinez, Eliza Victoria Losoya, and Fernando Lavaris, Jr. in connection to Valdez's homicide.

    Marin and Martinez both pleaded guilty and were sentenced earlier last year.

    In November 2015, Lavaris was charged with capital murder, punishable by death or life in prison, for his role in the fatal shooting of Valdez.

    At about 4 p.m. Thursday, April 4, 2019, Lavaris stood before 119th District Judge Ben Woodward and pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of first-degree murder after a plea agreement with state prosecutors.

    Woodward sentenced Lavaris to life in prison. As part of his plea agreement, Lavaris waived his right to appeal and was ordered to pay $7,236.80 in restitution.

    Valdez's daugher gives tearful impact statement on the loss of her father

    Standing in a courtroom packed with friends, family and other members of San Angelo's legal community, Jody Valdez read a victim impact statement about the loss of her father.

    "I am not at peace. ... I was with my father every day for two weeks while he was in the hospital. I was there when he died," Valdez said.

    Choking back tears, Valdez's daughter turned toward Lavaris and said, "I hope this weighs as heavy on (your) heart as it does on me and my family."

    Woodward, before he adjourned court, spoke directly to Jody Valdez.

    "I'm very sorry for your loss," Woodward said. "I hope closing this case will get you closer to peace."

    State of Texas vs. Fernando Lavaris, Jr.

    What began as an attempted robbery at a residence in the 500 block of Sellers Street led to a shooting and the subsequent death of Valdez, according to court documents.

    Valdez was shot under his left arm and spent about two weeks on life support before dying Sept. 15 at Shannon Medical Center.

    Valdez's daughter said family members waited in the intensive care unit for two weeks hoping her father would wake up; he never did.

    "I was there with him when he passed away," she said, as other family members sobbed in the courtroom. "He was taken from us."

    Valdez's son, Guillermo Valdez, told police he heard his dog barking and someone banging on the sliding glass door at his home the morning of the incident, records state.

    Guillermo told police he hid inside his room when the suspects broke in. Soon after the home invasion, Guillermo heard gunshots inside his father's bedroom.

    In November 2016, all four suspects were indicted by a grand jury on charges of capital murder by terror threat and other felonies.

    Losoya, Marin and Lavaris all told police "the plan was to steal from the victim by breaking into his house," according to an affidavit.

    Losoya knew the victim's family owned a gambling gaming room in town, records stated, because she frequented the business.

    The suspects probably thought the owners had money, an attorney for Marin said in May 2018, and "somebody brought a gun" when they went to William Valdez's home.

    Investigators matched Lavaris' palm print to one on the sliding glass door and recovered a bullet and two 9 mm casings at the scene.

    Court documents show Losoya said she heard the front door being knocked down and ran away when she heard gunshots; Marin told police he was inside the house when the shooting happened and saw Lavaris shoot Valdez.

    Lavaris told police he was under the influence of methamphetamine laced with heroin and couldn't remember anything, according to court documents.

    Three have now been sentenced in the fatal shooting of Valdez

    In October 2018, Eric John Martinez, originally charged with capital murder, stood before then-51st District Judge Barbara Walther and pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of murder. Martinez will spend the next 40 years in prison after a plea agreement with prosecutors.

    During the hearing, Walther flatly addressed the unlikely possibility Martinez would be paroled anytime in the near future because of the nature of the crime and the involvement of a deadly weapon.

    "You might very well have to serve the full 40 years," Walther said.

    Martinez waived the right to appeal or request a new trial. He will pay fines of $7,236.80.

    In May 2018, Jonathan Jesse Marin was the first suspect to be sentenced for his role in the death of Valdez. Marin pleaded guilty and received life in prison.

    Tom Green County prosecutors had sought the death penalty in Marin's case. They dropped the capital charge in exchange for life in prison and his guilty plea to murder, which is punishable by five to 99 years or life in the penitentiary.

    One more trial to go as Losoya faces capital murder charge

    Losoya had a court hearing earlier in April and has been tentatively scheduled for a criminal pretrial in May 2019, according to online court records.

    Losoya will be the last to stand trial among the co-defendants. Her case has stretched on because her previous court-appointed attorney died in 2016.

    Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty for Losoya.

    https://gosanangelo.com/story/news/c...ez/3365061002/

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