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Thread: Bryan Devonte Clay, Jr. Sentenced to LWOP in 2012 NV Slayings of Ignacia Martinez and Karla Martinez

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  1. #1
    Administrator Heidi's Avatar
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    Bryan Devonte Clay, Jr. Sentenced to LWOP in 2012 NV Slayings of Ignacia Martinez and Karla Martinez


    Ignacia Yadira Martinez and her daughter, Karla Martinez




    DA to seek death penalty in bloody Vegas slayings

    Prosecutors intend to seek the death penalty for a 22-year-old man being held in the sexual assault and killing of a mother and daughter and the near-fatal hammer attack on their husband and father in their Las Vegas home.

    Prosecutor Robert Daskas said a Clark County district attorney's office panel approved the move Wednesday.

    Bryan Devonte Clay Jr. faces murder, kidnapping and other charges in the attacks on Ignacia "Yadira" Martinez, 10-year-old Karla Martinez and Arturo Martinez. Clay also is accused of trying to rape a woman hours before the April 15 attacks.

    Clay is being held pending arraignment June 13. His lawyers could not be immediately reached.

    Authorities say he told detectives he drank alcohol, took Ecstasy and smoked PCP, and didn't remember the attacks.

    http://www.ktvn.com/story/18729537/d...vegas-slayings
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    Senior Member Frequent Poster stixfix69's Avatar
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    Give him a shot of lethal injection and he really won't remember a thing......Why people think Alcohol, and drugs is a good excuse to commit such crimes.....

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    Prosecutors to seek death penalty in mother-daughter hammer slaying

    Prosecutors will seek the death penalty against Bryan Clay, the man accused in the April 15 sex attacks and hammer slayings of a Las Vegas mother and her daughter.

    Clay, 22, was arraigned Wednesday morning in Clark County District Court, where he pleaded not guilty to 10 felony charges, including two counts of murder with a deadly weapon, one count of attempted murder with a deadly weapon, sexual assault with a deadly weapon against a minor under 14 years old, kidnapping, robbery and burglary with a deadly weapon.

    During the hearing, prosecutors from the Clark County District Attorney’s Office informed Judge Jessie Walsh that earlier Wednesday morning they had filed a notice of intent to seek the death penalty in the case.

    After Clay entered his plea and waived his right to a speedy trial, Walsh set a trial for June 24, 2013.

    Clay is accused in the slayings of Ignacia Yadira Martinez and her 10-year-old daughter, Karla Martinez, whose bludgeoned bodies were found in the beds of their Las Vegas home. Autopsies on the woman and her daughter determined they had been sexually assaulted during the attacks, a police report states.

    Arturo Martinez, the husband and father of the family, also suffered hammer blows to the head during the rampage.

    The attack was reported on April 16 by a 9-year-old boy who walked to Hoggard Elementary School and told a teacher that his mother and sister were dead and that his father was acting strange and had two holes in his head.

    Clay also is charged in a separate sexual assault of a 50-year-old woman in the early morning hours of April 15. The woman was sexually assaulted amid a patch of tall weeds near Tonopah and Vegas drives, police said.

    Police were able to match DNA from that sexual assault with DNA and other evidence found on the bodies of the Martinezes.

    http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2012...-daughter-sla/
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    DA seeks ways to shorten delays in murder cases

    Death penalty cases can drag on for years, which is something Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson would like to change.

    It's been three months since an intruder broke into the Martinez home and destroyed a family, killing a mother and daughter.

    But for neighbor James Wallace, a ritual continues, leaving a teddy bear in front of the home.

    Bryan Clay, the accused killer of Yadira Martinez and her daughter, Karla, is set to go to trial in June.

    A death penalty case is one that can mean more work and more preparation for attorneys on both sides.

    “We have 77 capital cases pending right now in Clark County,” Wolfson said. “We have about 220 murder cases.”

    Many, he says, have dragged on for years.

    This is why Wolfson is now gathering information on every one of those pending murder trials, looking at the number of continuances and other reasons for long delays.

    “Recognizing defendants have rights, and they're entitled to a fair trial, and they're entitled to effective counsel,” he said. “But some of the cases that are taking four and five years to get to trial, in my opinion that's too long.”

    According to the Department of Prisons, there are 82 men on Nevada's death row. The execution chamber was last used in April 2006.

    Wolfson says capital cases involving the death of a child, such as in the Martinez case, can present another complication.

    Although the case has now moved from the crime scene here at the home to the courthouse, neighbors say they'll never forget the horrors of what happened here. A note to the victims is still taped on the now vacant home. And some say justice can't come fast enough.

    http://www.mynews3.com/content/news/...tugi0Vn3g.cspx
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    Man facing double murder charges pleas to misdemeanors in separate case

    A man facing the death penalty for the brutal double murder and rape of a mother and daughter has pleaded guilty to three misdemeanors in a separate domestic violence case.

    Bryan Clay struck a deal with prosecutors that allowed him to plead guilty to two counts of domestic violence battery and one count of petit larceny for twice beating his ex-girlfriend, who was pregnant with his child.

    As part of the deal, prosecutors dropped three felonies against Clay. Had Clay been convicted of the felonies, prosecutors could have used them as aggravating factors to convince a jury to sentence the 23-year-old to death in the double murder case.

    State law prevents prosecutors from using misdemeanor convictions as aggravating factors, but they can be used to show a defendant’s prior bad acts.

    At a death penalty hearing, a jury decides a convicted defendant’s punishment based on aggravating or mitigating factors. Prosecutors and defense lawyers present as many of these factors as they can to a jury. But the jury determines how much weight to give each factor — meaning one mitigator could outweigh 12 aggravators, or vice-versa.

    Judge James Bixler approved the plea deal last month and sentenced Clay to a year in the county jail. With time off for good behavior, Clay is expected to complete his sentence on May 8, jail records show.

    Following his arrest in the double murder case, Clay was indicted last year on two counts of child abuse and one count of robbery in the domestic violence case.

    Prosecutors had hoped to swiftly convict Clay of the felonies and use them as aggravating factors, but the case took a turn in July when the Nevada Supreme Court tossed one of the child abuse charges.

    The high court ruled that prosecutors failed to properly explain the statutory definition of “physical injury” to a grand jury while presenting their case. The justices said the grand jury could have confused the common definition of “physical injury” with the statutory one, which is a permanent or temporary disfigurement or impairment of any bodily function or organ.

    The victim told the grand jury Clay slapped her across the face. But the grand jury received no other evidence.

    Clay’s attorneys, veteran death penalty trial lawyers Tony Sgro and Chris Oram, would not comment on the case, but said they were pleased with the result.

    Chief deputy district attorney Robert Daskas, who is prosecuting Clay on the murder charges and did not handle the domestic violence case, declined to comment.

    On April 14, four weeks before to Clay will complete his sentence in the misdemeanor case, he is set to stand trial for the double murder before Judge Jessie Walsh.

    Prosecutors said Clay, while drunk and high on drugs, sexually assaulted a 50-year-old woman near the intersection of Vegas and Tonopah drives before going to a home at 1016 Robin St. in April 2012.

    Once inside, investigators say, Clay used a claw hammer to pummel Arturo Martinez, then 39, and sexually assault and beat to death both his wife, Ignacia “Yadira” Martinez, 38, and daughter, Karla Martinez, 10.

    Arturo Martinez survived the attack.

    The couple’s two sons, then 9 and 4 years old, were not attacked.

    Prosecutors have a significant amount of DNA evidence to support their case, court documents show.

    Clay told investigators he blacked out and has no memory of what happened that night.

    It’s unknown if the April trial date will stand or be continued.

    Death penalty cases are often delayed for years as lawyers must prepare for the trial and a separate penalty hearing, if the defendant is convicted.

    Clay’s capital case was delayed once already, last spring.

    He remained at the Clark County Detention Center without bail on the murder charges.

    http://www.reviewjournal.com/news/cr...-separate-case
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    Trial reset to 2015 in Las Vegas hammer deaths of 2012

    Trial has been reset to June 2015 for a 23-year-old man accused of sexually assaulting and killing a Las Vegas mother and daughter, and nearly killing their husband and father in a bloody hammer attack.

    Court records show that Bryan Devonte Clay Jr.'s defense attorney, Tony Sgro, and prosecutor Pamela Weckerly sought more time to prepare, and Clark County District Court Judge Jessie Walsh granted the delay.

    Clay's death penalty trial had been due to begin this month.

    He's accused of attacking and killing Ignacia "Yadira" Martinez and 10-year-old Karla Martinez in April 2012, and leaving Arturo Martinez with a severe head injury.

    Martinez's two sons, ages 9 and 4, were spared in the attack.

    Authorities say Clay told detectives he was under the influence and didn't remember anything.

    http://www.8newsnow.com/story/252041...deaths-of-2012
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    Accused rapist, killer due in court before death penalty trial

    LAS VEGAS (KSNV News3LV) -- Accused rapist and killer Bryan Clay is due in Eighth District Court on Monday morning, more than three years after a grisly north valley home invasion that killed a mother and her 10-year-old daughter and nearly killed the woman's husband as well as injuring one of his sons.

    The court visit, scheduled for 8:30 a.m., is a status check to make sure all is in order before the scheduled start of the trial, set for June 22 at 1 p.m. before Judge Jessie Walsh.

    Clay is accused of bludgeoning to death Yadira Martinez and her 10-year-old daughter, Karla, whose bodies were found April 16, 2014, in their Las Vegas home. Both mother and daughter had been sexually assaulted during the attacks, which also left Arturo Martinez-Sanchez with severe head injuries, according to police reports.

    Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson has said his office will seek the death penalty if Clay is convicted.

    The killings rocked much of the valley, especially because Arturo and his sons survived more than a day in the home before one of his son's told his brother to go to school and get help. The killings were not reported until the child could get to Hoggard Elementary School to tell staff that his mother and sister were dead.

    In June 2014, a grand jury indicted Clay on 10 felony charges, including two counts of murder with use of a deadly weapon. Metro Police arrested Clay in late April after DNA tied him to the crimes.

    Arturo, a religious man, has since remarried. He has said several times that he has forgiven Clay for his actions.

    http://www.news3lv.com/content/news/....cspx?rss=3269

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    Trial reset to 2016 in Vegas hammer deaths of 2012

    LAS VEGAS (AP) — A death penalty trial has been pushed back for a 25-year-old man accused of sexually assaulting and killing a Las Vegas mother and daughter, and nearly killing their husband and father in a bloody hammer attack.

    Clark County District Court Judge Jessie Walsh on Monday reset Bryan Devonte Clay Jr.'s trial to May 2, 2016.

    Trial had been scheduled to start this week.

    Clay faces charges including murder, attempted murder, kidnapping and sexual assault with a weapon.

    Defense attorney Tony Sgro wasn't immediately available to comment.

    Clay is accused of attacking and killing Ignacia "Yadira" Martinez and 10-year-old Karla Martinez in April 2012, and leaving Arturo Martinez with a severe head injury.

    Martinez's two sons, ages 9 and 4, were spared.

    Authorities say Clay told police he doesn't remember anything.

    http://www.news3lv.com/content/news/...XB3ydF-XA.cspx

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    Trial reset to 2017 in Las Vegas hammer deaths case of 2012

    A death penalty trial has been reset to 2017 for a 26-year-old man accused of sexually assaulting and killing a Las Vegas mother and daughter, and nearly killing a husband and father in a bloody hammer attack four years ago.

    Bryan Devonte Clay Jr.'s trial had been set for next week. But court records show that Clark County District Court Judge Jessie Walsh reset the date next February after discussions with both sides about the time it'll take.

    Clay faces murder, attempted murder, kidnapping and sexual assault with a weapon charges.

    He's accused of attacking and killing Ignacia "Yadira" Martinez and 10-year-old Karla Martinez in April 2012, and leaving Arturo Martinez with a severe head injury.

    Two boys, 9 and 4, were spared.

    Clay told police he didn't remember anything.

    http://www.lasvegasnow.com/news/tria...s-case-of-2012
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    5 years later, man faces trial and death penalty for family hammer murders

    By Adam Herbets
    KVVU-TV

    LAS VEGAS (FOX5) - More than half a decade ago, Bryan Clay stuck his tongue out and blew kisses into the camera as he was taken into custody. He was 22 years old at the time, accused of sexually assaulting and bludgeoning 38-year-old Ignacia "Yadira" Martinez and 10-year-old Karla Martinez to death with a hammer on April 15, 2012 at their home on Robin Street.

    Their bodies were found the next day, along with a severely injured Arturo Martinez, who suffered multiple skull fractures. Two little boys were also in the home, ages 9 and 4, but they were not attacked. The 9-year-old reported the crime the next day when he arrived at school.

    Investigators said Clay told them he was under the influence and doesn't remember anything. He will finally stand trial on Tuesday, Oct. 31, 2017. Opening statements are set to begin at noon.

    "This is the kind of case that goes on that they write movies about, and I don't say that as to be an entertainment factor," Lt. Ray Steiber said in 2012. "I'm saying this was a savage, heinous crime. I've been doing this 24 years, and this is the case that you hope you never see."

    Arturo Martinez has since struggled but survived. He continues to mourn the loss of his wife and daughter.

    "Step by step you know? He's getting better every day," his boy told FOX5 in 2012. "He comes back from the therapy. I help him."

    Investigators said the attack was completely random and that Clay never knew the Martinez family.

    Defense lawyers asked for multiple delays in the past five years in order to be completely prepared for the trial. If Clay is convicted, he could face the death penalty.

    Police said Clay also sexually assaulted a 50-year-old woman before the killings. In that incident, the victim fought back, striking Clay with a rock before he ran off, according to an arrest report.

    http://www.fox5vegas.com/story/36721...hammer-murders

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