jennifer ertman autopsy photos

2007). State Habeas Record at 260. 2000). Importantly, the state courts did not unreasonably find a lack of Strickland prejudice. Officer Swainson "[a]sked him if he [would] like to continue, put it in writing. Id. To warrant the lesser-included-offense instruction, however, the evidence of the lesser crime must be of sufficient magnitude to allow a rational jury to convict him only for that offense. Even without the photographs, trial testimony painted a vivid image of Cantu's brutality in killing the girls. 2000) (same); Boyd v. Johnson, 167 F.3d 907, 912 (5th Cir. 22 at 452-53. As the prosecution introduced the various exhibits into evidence, trial counsel reurged their state-law objections. Many of Cantu's criminal actions were attributable to his youth, which "result[ed] in impetuous and ill-considered actions and decisions." 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. management. Entry No. The Due Process Clause protects against prosecutorial excess in closing summation. 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. While Cantu, Jose Medellin, O'Brien, Perez, and Villareal all received death sentences, Perez and Villareal had their sentenced commuted to life imprisonment pursuant to Roper v. Simmons, 543 U.S. 551 (2005), because they were minors when they participated in the killings. He petitioned the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals in 1998 regarding this issue; the appeal failed. In the alternative, the state habeas court essentially considered whether the challenged comments "so infected the trial with unfairness as to make the resulting conviction a denial of due process." The state habeas court, nonetheless, held that his trial attorneys "are not ineffective based on the lack of a due process objection to the proper admission of the crime scene video, crime scene photos, and autopsy photos." art. WebOn June 24, 1993, Elizabeth Pena and Jennifer Ertman from Houston, Texas were raped and murdered. Vol. The murder of Jennifer Ertman and Elizabeth Pea, two teenage girls from Houston, Texas, occurred on June 24, 1993.The murder of the two girls made headlines in Texas newspapers due to the nature of the crime and the new law resulting from the murder that allows families of the victims to view the execution of the murderers.. Strickland only commands relief when an inmate shows a reasonable probability of a different result. Cantu complains that the Equal Protection Clause should have allowed the same information to come before his jury. The State of Texas prosecuted Cantu and his four fellow gang members simultaneously but in separate trials. The State of Texas charged Cantu with the capital murder of Jennifer Ertman during a kidnapping, robbery, or aggravated sexual assault. Unfortunately, as they took a shortcut home, Ms. Ertman and Ms. Pena came upon the gang at around 11:30 p.m. Roman Sandoval and Frank Sandoval were leaving as the girls neared the other gang members. One of the gang members later said during the brag session that by the time he got to one of the girls, "she was loose and sloppy." 21 at 235. The jury instructions followed Texas law and cautioned the jury not to speculate on parole during deliberations. 21 at 298. Tr. So I know that this is a trivial side point. In Penry v. Lynaugh, 492 U.S. 302 (1989) ( "Penry I"), the Supreme Court found that some elements of that defendant's mental retardation and child abuse evidence evaded the jury's specific inquiry under the special issues, particularly when that evidence (1) had a mitigating thrust that went beyond the deliberateness question and (2) became a "two-edged sword because the future dangerousness question only gave it aggravating effect." 21 at 323-24. 24 at 857-60. The AEDPA also rigorously defers to state findings of fact unless a petitioner presents clear and convincing evidence in rebuttal. at 736. Vol. 16, 2010 3 Seventeen years later, the simple mention of their names still evokes a shudder, a shake of the head that such a thing could happen. ___ at ___"; and a transcript of the state habeas proceedings, cited as "State Habeas Record at ___.". 2254(d)(1). While Cantu was not particularly talkative, he agreed with the statements made by the other gang members. . WebHannah starts out the epsiode with the unsolved murder of Jennifer Harris in Bonham. Tr. Vol. Guns, cops, all that shit. After the murders, the gang members went to Cantu's house. East, 55 F.3d at 1005. As an integral component of the Fifth Circuit's test, a defendant had to demonstrate a "nexus" between the mitigating evidence and the special issues. Vol. I want them to suffer without stop until the end of time, until their very souls explode from sheer agony and pain. I refuse to vote for another RINO, we should not be feared into voting for these one world types who could care less about America, our sovereignty and the constitution. See 28 U.S.C. To be sure, other young men in similar circumstances would not have participated in cold-blooded murders. The images were so While the jury may have been able to infer that Cantu could not have been paroled before the end of that period, Texas law hindered him from fully explaining parole ineligibility to the jury. The trial court's instruction prevented the jury from giving any effect to the parole inferences before the jury. Accordingly, Cantu has not shown that the state court's rejection of this claim was contrary to, or an unreasonable application of, federal law. "In deciding whether a jury could rationally acquit on the capital crime and convict for the noncapital crime, [this Court] must turn to Texas law." The Jurek Court found that the constitutionality of the Texas scheme "turns on whether the enumerated [special issue] questions allow consideration of particularized mitigating factors." See 28 U.S.C. State Habeas Record at 261. None of this is to excuse his past criminality nor to endorse the lenient punishments that were previously imposed. 28 at 787 (emphasis added). Ramdass v. Angelone, 530 U.S. 156, 166 (2000). The prosecution responded by comparing the legal process by which Cantu could receive a death sentence to the brutal murders. Venancio Medellin has been denied parole five times, most recently in November 2020. Cantu was again informed of and waived his rights. 2004); Woods v. Cockrell, 307 F.3d 353, 360-62 (5th Cir. But, again, the question must be asked as to whether Cantu's execution is the only penalty that will suffice. First, Cantu faults trial counsel for not raising a federal due process objection in addition to his state law objection (claim ten). The Fifth Circuit long relied on Johnson v. Texas, 509 U.S. 350 (1993), and Graham v. Collins, 506 U.S. 461 (1992), to deny relief in Penry cases. Clearly established Supreme Court precedent applies Simmons "only to instances where, as a legal matter, there is no possibility of parole if the jury decides the appropriate sentence is life in prison." State Habeas Record at 261. Payne, 501 U.S. at 825. The details in this description of the girls last moments are brutal. He raped Jennifer and was later sentenced to 40 years for aggravated sexual assault, which was the maximum sentence for a juvenile. Cantu, Medelln, Prez, and Villarreal then met at Cantu's residence, where he lived with his brother, Joe Cantu, and sister-in-law, Christina Cantu. 13, 2006) (unpublished), and has unconditionally applied Beck to all inmates who have received a death sentence, the Court will apply Beck to Cantu's claim. Like 4 of us climbed a tree. 28 U.S.C. Mr. Ertman died Sunday August 17th at home with his wife Sandy by his side. Clark v. Johnson, 202 F.3d 760, 764 (5th Cir. Maggots swarmed about their bodies, particularly in the bloodied head and genital regions. 2 at 24.) Vol. Vol. The lethal injection was performed at 6:09 pm, and at 6:17 pm, Cantu was officially pronounced dead. PROC. The AEDPA gives statutory effect to traditional limits on habeas review. The gang members then stomped on both girls' throats to ensure their deaths. Peter Anthony Cantu ("Cantu"), a Texas inmate, seeks federal habeas corpus relief. there are times we have all thought and had dreams of what we would do with a big lottery win. Cantu also makes no argument that his actions in participating in the murder did not rise to the level of "intentional" mens rea required for a capital murder conviction. Tex. The girls were walking along the White Oak Bayou when they encountered six "Black and White" gang members drinking beer shortly after holding the gang initiation ceremony of 17-year-old Raul Omar Villarreal. Tex. See Horn, 536 U.S. at 272 (relying on Teague v. Lane, 489 U.S. 288 (1989)). That guy was a fucking monster. Here, Cantu's attorneys argued that, if he were to receive a death sentence, he, like the victims, would be killed. Prior to his execution, O'Brien expressed his regrets for his actions to the families of Pea and Ertman. Cantu filed a pre-trial motion to suppress his confessions. 1995) (citation and quotation omitted); see also Dowthitt, 230 F.3d at 737 n. 37 ("A state trial court may not . Teague v. Lane, 489 U.S. 288 (1989), thus bars relief on these claims. (Doc. Tr. They had spent the evening drinking beer and then "jumping in" Raul. HOUSTON - State officials have denied parole for Venancio Medellin, the youngest of six gang members convicted of the vicious rapes and murders of Jennifer Ertman and Elizabeth Pena in 1993, Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg made the announcement on Saturday, Nov. 14. The punishment phase evidence showed Cantu to be a violent young man, though the murders were of previosuly unknown level of violence. He was silent about their deaths. However, a court on summary judgment must view the evidence through "the prism of the substantive evidentiary burden." Id. Robertson, 324 F.3d at 304 (quoting Brecht v. Abrahamson, 507 U.S. 619, 629 (1993)); see also Aleman v. Sternes, 320 F.3d 687, 690-91 (7th Cir. When the pair realized that they were going to be late returning home, they decided to leave the party to commit the curfew both had promised to their parents. 24 at 863-66, 917-18. The state habeas court was not unreasonable in finding that the failure to object did not impact his sentence. . Cantu has not shown that the state court's rejection of his Beck claim was contrary to, or an unreasonable application of, federal law. Houston Police Department Officer Robert G. Parish informed Cantu of his constitutional rights. 24 at 944. See id. Until then, Cantu had spent only a short time in jail. This was clearly a job for a lynch mob. They also knew they would have to pass a sexually-oriented business on that route and so decided to take a well-known shortcut down a railroad track and through a city park to Elizabeth's neighborhood. 37.071 2(g). 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