Facts of the Crime:
Carlos Jaime Avena was convicted of the September 12, 1980 first-degree murders of Manuel Solis and Miguel Vasquez. Intending to steal a car, Avena saw the victims in a Camarro. He approached and demanded the keys and their money and then shot into the car, wounding both. Avena grabbed one of the victims, pulled him out of the car and shot him four times in the chest. The other victim exited the car, the co-defendant hit him on the head with a club.
When one of the victims attempted to flee, Avena told his co-defendant to move out of his line of sight, and then he shot the victim twice. Some people on the street, including the victim's brother, Daniel Solis, witnessed this crime. The defendants then burned the car. When Ana Hernandez stopped at a light, Avena walked up to and shot into the car door. The co-defendant slammed a beer bottle on the windshield. Hernandez accelerated through the light and Avena shot and hit her car. Avena had previously been convicted of a drive-by shooting. While in custody awaiting trial, Avena shanked another inmate three to four times in the chest. The inmate died. A month later, Avena attacked a deputy.
Avena was sentenced to death in Los Angeles County on February 12, 1982.
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