Entry No. Peter Cantu probably would've. State Habeas Record at 261. Web15K. Corey Mitchell's book "Pure Murder," which details the Police said the Waltrip High Vol. The jury instructions in the guilt/innocence phase gave the jury only two options: convict Cantu of capital murder or acquit him. Money can't stop gangs. 1996) (quotation omitted). Her case is full of police misconduct and possible suspects. Maggots swarmed about their bodies, particularly in the bloodied head and genital regions. Id. Jan. 13, 2005); Perez v. Cockrell, 77 F. App'x 201, 202-03 (5th Cir. 2008) (quoting Rogers, 848 F.2d at 608). Here, this inquiry focuses not only on the inflammatory nature of the images but on their importance at trial. O'Brien (the only non-Hispanic in the gang) and Villarreal then proceeded to strangle Ertman with a red nylon belt before the belt broke. 1992) (applying Beck when "a trial judge refuses to give an instruction which is available under state law"). Id. Bush is getting really BAD advice from an staffer and will come to his senses soon. Although better practice would have been to strike the prosecutor's comment, federal precedent shows that it did not violate Cantu's constitutional rights. Ertman and Pea passed the gang and one member, Jos Medelln, attempted to grope and pinch one of Pea's breasts. Four days after the murders, the girls' bodies were found in the park during hot weather conditions. The Texas Legislature's renovation of its capital punishment scheme in the wake of Furman did not include a specific vehicle for the consideration of mitigating evidence. (Doc. 2001); Wheat v. Johnson, 238 F.3d 357, 361-62 (5th Cir. Very well done. Cantu claims that the language of Texas' statutorily authorized mitigation special issue impeded full jury consideration of his penalty-phase evidence. Instead, Cantu bases his claims on Simmons v. South Carolina, 512 U.S. 154, 169 (1994), which held that when "the alternative sentence to death is life without parole . at 736. PROC. In response, Cantu repeatedly kicked the girl in her face and body, dislodging three of her teeth and fracturing several ribs. Jose Medellin said that they killed "a couple of chicks." Before trial, Cantu wanted to discuss Texas parole law with potential jurors. PENAL CODE 19.03(a) (capital murder) with TEX. Yarborough v. Gentry, 540 U.S. 1, 4 (2003); see also Wiggins v. Smith, 539 U.S. 510, 521 (2003). Id. The 24 at 854. R. CIV. On June 24, 1993, members of the Black and White gang met to initiate Raul Villareal into their group. Darden, 477 U.S. at 182. O'Brien was videotaped smiling at the scene of the crime. The Supreme Court itself has broadly used the term "moral blameworthiness" to describe that which a jury considers in effectuating the mitigation inquiry. Cantu raises three interrelated ineffective-assistance-of-counsel claims pertaining to the introduction of crime scene and autopsy photographs and video. The murder of The state habeas court found that "the State's punishment argument referring to the admitted photographs and the injuries shown in such photographs is a summary of the evidence concerning the circumstances of the offense and the complainant's and Elizabeth Pena's resulting injuries, and such argument is a reasonable inference that such photographs are unforgettable to the jury." Entry No. Clerk's Record at 286 ("During your deliberations, you are not to consider or discuss any possible action of the Board of Pardons and Paroles division of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice or of the Governor, or how long the defendant would be required to serve to satisfy a sentence of life imprisonment."). This is one that truly, truly haunts me. "[T]he idea of `invited response' is used not to excuse improper comments, but to determine their effect on the trial as a whole." Capital defendants in Texas state court now face two possible sentences: (1) the death penalty or (2) a sentence of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. . His knowledge of the crimes came from the killers themselves, most of whom came to his home after the murders, bragging and swapping the jewelry they had stolen from the girls. PROC. 21 at 212. Cantu acknowledges that Texas juries now explicitly take into account "the circumstances of the offense, the defendant's character and background, and the personal moral culpability of the defendant." Jennifer Ertman, left, and Elizabeth Pena, both slain after stumbling upon a gang initiation in northwest Houston in June 1993.. Houston Chronicle. Under the appropriate standard, Cantu has not shown that this Court should certify any issue for appellate consideration. When he advanced his three ineffective-assistance-of-counsel claims on state habeas review, he anticipated that the state courts would find that he defaulted any actual due process claim by not making a contemporaneous objection at trial. seeks to show constitutional error from a jury instruction that quotes a state statute"). The state court overruled the defense objection to most of the material. The rapes and murders of Jennifer Lee Ertman and Elizabeth Christine Pea, two teenage girls from Houston, Texas, aged 14 and 16, respectively, 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 2. vote for a capital conviction if the only alternative was to set the defendant free with no punishment at all"). It was traced to the home of the brother of one of the men later sentenced to death for these murders. . . 28 at 785. I do agree with the father though that it wasn't nearly painful or drawn out enough. art. However, Cantu objects that the instruction unnecessarily confined the jury's review to "evidence that a juror might regard as reducing the defendant's moral blameworthiness." The medical examiner later testified that this is how she could be sure as to the horrible brutality of the rapes, beatings and murders. Cantu has not yet requested that this Court grant him a Certificate of Appealability ("COA"), though this Court can consider the issue sua sponte. A petitioner's compliance with the AEDPA alone does not entitle him to habeas relief. 2004). Cantu faults his trial attorneys for not making a federal due process objection when the prosecution introduced the allegedly inflammatory material into evidence. 12.) Bush only uses the term Christian to gather votes, all while he claims that Allah is the same as Jesus. Clerk's Record at 278-79. 3) Your have handed the Presidency to Hillary Clinton. at 171. The jury instructions followed Texas law and cautioned the jury not to speculate on parole during deliberations. 21 at 307-08. Dowthitt, 230 F.3d at 757 (quotation omitted). Under Texas law, a defendant is entitled to a lesser-included-offense instruction only if the lesser crime is within the proof necessary to establish the charged offense. Having a teenage daughter myself reading this was so painful. Rule 403 of the Texas Rules of Criminal Evidence governs the admissibility of allegedly inflammatory photographs. WebHOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- A former gang member convicted for his role in the brutal murder of two Houston teens has been denied parole, according to the Harris County He is not an eighteen year old child that didn't know what he was doing." The families of both Ertman and Pea strongly favored the execution(s). The Fifth Circuit has consistently and unconditionally ruled that Simmons' due process holding did not require Texas to inform its juries of a defendant's future parole eligibility. Cantu claims that Texas still unconstitutionally limits a jury's consideration of mitigating evidence. WebOn the night of June 24, 1993, 14-year-old Jennifer Ertman and 16-year-old Elizabeth Pena were walking home when they encountered a gang initiation. This Court cannot issue the writ unless the error "ha[d] a `substantial and injurious effect or influence in determining the jury's verdict.'" Vol. 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. The Furman Court established that a state capital sentencing system must satisfy two requirements to be constitutionally acceptable: it must "rationally narrow the class of death-eligible defendants" and "permit a jury to render a reasoned, individualized sentencing determination based on a death-eligible defendant's record, personal characteristics, and the circumstances of his crime." Vol. due process plainly requires that [the defendant] be allowed to bring [parole ineligibility] to the jury's attention by way of argument by defense counsel or an instruction from the court." Cantu, Jos Medelln, and Prez then strangled Pea to death with shoelaces. The Jurek Court recognized that, while the then-existent Texas capital sentencing statute did not directly address a defendant's mitigating evidence, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals interpreted the statute in a way that let a jury consider mitigating circumstances. State Habeas Record at 252. 21 at 120. . I wish to hell he could have died the way she died.". The Tennard court found that the Fifth Circuit's precedent "ha[d] no foundation in the decisions of [the Supreme] Court." Other gang members confessed that they only participated because they were "just following whatever Peter Cantu was doing." Id. Jennifer Latson of the Houston Chronicle said that the deaths of the girls "shook" the Oak Forest neighborhood of Houston "to its foundation.". Because the Fifth Circuit, however, has avoided ruling on this argument, see Foster v. Dretke, 2006 WL 616980 (5th Cir. Ertman could have easily run to escape at this point, but ran to help her friend. Medellin later complained that "the bitch wouldn't die" and that it would have been "easier with a gun". Vol. Specifically, the Supreme Court has used the term to describe how a jury gives effect to good character evidence that is not "directly relevant" to the crime. Mr. Ertman died Sunday August 17th at home with his wife Sandy by his side. I have no good words left for President Bush. Id. Vol. 28 at 664. 28 at 786-87. Tr. Two brothers who had been with them but testified that they were not in the gang left first and passed Jenny and Elizabeth, who were unknowingly walking towards their deaths. 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. The gang problem was bad enough that my middle school wouldn't allow us to wear clothing that was mostly white, mostly black, most red, mostly green, etc because of possible gang affiliation. This Court would have struck the balance differently in deciding whether to admit the challenged photographs. She then attempted to flee. When the rapes finally ended, the horror was not over. Jennifer tried her hand at basketball before concluding she wasn't cut out for athletics. See 28 U.S.C. 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 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. 2 at 24.) Even if the trial prosecutor encouraged the jury to consider Cantu's mitigating evidence in an improper manner, Cantu has not overcome the strong presumption that juries will follow their instructions. Other judicial doctrines, such as the harmless-error doctrine and the non-retroactivity principle, bridle federal habeas relief. "Mitigating evidence that illustrates a defendant's character or personal history embodies a constitutionally important role in the process of individualized sentencing, and in the ultimate determination of whether the death penalty is an appropriate punishment." The state habeas court's decision in that regard was not contrary to, or an unreasonable application of, federal law. 28 at 666-67, 673, 770, 793. The police arrested the gang members simultaneously. The trial court's instruction prevented the jury from giving any effect to the parole inferences before the jury. I attended all five trials with the Ertmans and know too well the awful things that they and the Penas had to hear and see in the course of seeing Justice served for their girls. R. EVID. Cantu said the girls "had to die [so] they couldn't identify them." Accordingly, Cantu has not shown that the state court's rejection of this claim was contrary to, or an unreasonable application of, federal law. Structural Error in Texas' Mitigation Special Issue. Related linkssome have the same or similar titles but are different threads: Death Penalty Case Puts Bush and Texas at Odds Over Mexicans Fate Entry No. In his first statement, Cantu admitted to a limited role in kidnapping, raping, and robbing the two girls. Habeas relief is not available on Cantu's ineffective-assistance-of-counsel claims. He then transcribed a detailed second statement in which Cantu confessed to his role in the actual murder of the two girls. CODE CRIM. WebHUNTSVILLE, Texas (CBS/AP/KHOU) Tonight, Peter Anthony Cantu will be executed for two of the most notorious deaths in Houston history, the 1993 rapes and murders of 16-year According to Cantu, that language allows jury consideration of evidence relating to his culpability at the exclusion of additional aspects of his character. In light of the discussion above showing no due process violation, the state court could reasonably find that no Strickland deficient performance or prejudice flowed from trial and appellate counsel's failure to couple their arguments with a federal law objection. Tr. In response to accusations from anti-death penalty advocates that the death penalty is a cruel and unusual form of punishment, Pea's father later remarked O'Brien's death had occurred peacefully, "in twenty seconds", adding: "I wish to God that my daughter could have died that easily. TEX. Officer Swainson "[a]sked him if he [would] like to continue, put it in writing. Im not sure who else has brought attention to it. O'Brien, 156 F. App'x at 734. 2253(c); FED. He and his fellow gang members also stood on the young girls' necks to ensure that they would die. May the souls of these poor girls rest in peace in Gods loving arms, and may the monsters who did this be subject to the most vicious and painful torture that hell has to offer. Pea brushed aside Medelln's hand and continued walking. Woodford v. Garceau, 538 U.S. 202, 206 (2003) (quotation and citation omitted). 21 at 294. These scum deserve to be treated as they treated those young girls. Id. Four days after the girls disappeared, a person identifying himself as 'Gonzalez' called the Crimestoppers Tips number. Cantu, 939 S.W.2d at 632; State Habeas Record at 257. Tr. I was in Menlo park in during a huge gang fight. Entry No. 1992), aff'd 506 U.S. 461 (1993), outlined a "constitutional-relevancy test" that it would apply to all capital trials where the jury received no directive to consider mitigating evidence. At trial, Officer Swainson testified that, "[b]ased on the statements that [they] had obtained, it appeared as if maybe there was a possibility [Cantu] didn't reveal his total involvement." Congress, through the AEDPA, has constricted both the nature and availability of habeas review. Tr. Nothing in the trial testimony seriously questioned the integrity of Cantu's statements, particularly his second one in which he provided a full account of his actions. Officer Swainson again informed Cantu of his rights. Respondent asks this Court not to apply Beck to Cantu's claim because, unlike the defendant in that case, Cantu faced a situation where the jury chose between acquittal and a capital conviction, not acquittal and an automatic death sentence. Campbell, 117 F. App'x at 953. 2254(e)(1). Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. C s sn xut Umeken c cp giy chng nhn GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice), chng nhn ca Hip hi thc phm sc kho v dinh dng thuc B Y t Nht Bn v Tiu chun nng nghip Nht Bn (JAS). CODE CRIM. Williams v. Taylor, 529 U.S. 362, 413 (2000); see also Bell v. Cone, 535 U.S. 685, 698 (2002); Early v. Packer, 537 U.S. 3, 7-8 (2002). 28 at 768-69. They had spent the evening drinking beer and then "jumping in" Raul. 1991). Importantly, the state courts did not unreasonably find a lack of Strickland prejudice. Until the Texas state legislature could revise the capital sentencing scheme to comply with Penry I, courts attempted to correct the statutory inadequacy through jury instructions. TEX. In 1994, a jury convicted Cantu for the capital murder of Jennifer Ertman. Tr. I might try to email it to Dennis Prager. Tr. East, 55 F.3d at 1005. With respect to those convictions between 1989 and 1991, the Supreme Court ultimately rejected Texas' stopgap instructions. This prompted Medelln to say the gang "had fun" and that details would appear on the news. The stopgap instructions given by the Texas courts generally informed the jury: In 1991, the Texas Legislature added a statutory special issue that explicitly required the jury to consider a defendant's mitigating evidence: TEX. PROC. Cantu has not shown that trial counsel's failure to object amounted to Strickland deficient performance. WebAug. Umeken ni ting v k thut bo ch dng vin hon phng php c cp bng sng ch, m bo c th hp th sn phm mt cch trn vn nht. Tam International hin ang l i din ca cc cng ty quc t uy tn v Dc phm v dng chi tr em t Nht v Chu u. Vol. Texas, Houston Division. 1998). In 1972, the Supreme Court in Furman v. Georgia, 408 U.S. 238 (1972), condemned death penalty statutes that gave the sentencer open-ended discretion. Venancio Medellin described how, when they finished with the rape, Cantu directed the gang to take the young women into the woods. 22 at 396. Medelln reported that he had killed a girl, and noted that he would have found it easier with a gun. Several courts have already provided a detailed factual review. One gang member described how Cantu "kicked one of the girls in the face with his steel toe [boots]" because she "wouldn't die." CODE CRIM. See 28 U.S.C. The trial court reviewed the other photographs, found that they were essential to explain the medical examiner testimony, and discussed with the prosecution how to best present the photographs without shocking the jury. Clerk's Record at 278. Death penalty opponents protested the impending execution. 28 U.S.C. The police were sent to the scene and searched the park without finding anything. The Court must decide whether "there is a reasonable likelihood that the jury has applied the challenged instruction in a way that prevents the consideration of constitutionally relevant evidence." Their Cantu read the statement and, in the presence of two other police officers, signed it. The prosecution explained why they sought to admit the photographs into evidence: Tr. Like 4 of us climbed a tree. State Habeas Record at 261. Cantu filed a pre-trial motion to suppress his confessions. See 28 U.S.C. The victim's bodies were left to decompose in the summer heat. Vol. art. See Howell v. Mississippi, 543 U.S. 440, 445 (2005) (finding that similar reasoning by the Mississippi Supreme Court "finds some support in [Supreme Court] cases"); Hopkins v. Reeves, 524 U.S. 88, 98-99 (1998) (distinguishing Beck from those cases where the jury "did not have to consider the dilemma faced by Beck's jury; its alternative to death was not setting respondent free, but rather sentencing him to life imprisonment"); Schad v. Arizona, 501 U.S. 624, 646 (1991) ("Our fundamental concern in Beck was that a jury . After the trial of Peter Cantu, Judge Bill Harmon allowed the family members to address the convicted. 2004); Woods v. Cockrell, 307 F.3d 353, 360-62 (5th Cir. The Due Process Clause only provides relief from evidentiary rulings that are "so unduly prejudicial that it render[ed] the trial fundamentally unfair." Vol. 24 at 854. Woods v. Johnson, 75 F.3d 1017, 1037 (5th Cir. The admissibility of evidence is generally a matter of state evidentiary law. His initial statement, however, he claimed that he did not join the other gang members as they murdered the two girls in the woods. Feb. 14, 2003); Cantu v. State, 939 S.W.2d 627, 631-32 (Tex.Crim.App. WebThe rapes and murders of Jennifer Lee Ertman and Elizabeth Christine Pea, two teenage girls from Houston, Texas, aged 14 and 16, respectively, occurred on June 24, 1993. The confessions of the gang members that were used at trial indicated that there was never less than 2 men on each of the girls at any one time and that the girls were repeatedly raped orally, anally and vaginally for the entire hour. I think about this case a lot, usually at random times it'll pop back into my head without warning. How sick My heart is broken. 24 at 857-60. WebExecutions and More Executions: Jennifer Ertman and Elizabeth Pena Murder. . Thank you for doing this write up. 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. Ertman died Sunday August 17th at home with his wife Sandy by his side. (Doc. Prosecutorial Argument Concerning Mitigating Evidence. 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." Entry No. Mar. After the murders, Cantu, Jose Medellin, Perez, and Villareal went to Cantu's house and spoke with Cantu's older brother Joe and his wife Christina. Vn phng chnh: 3-16 Kurosaki-cho, kita-ku, Osaka-shi 530-0023, Nh my Toyama 1: 532-1 Itakura, Fuchu-machi, Toyama-shi 939-2721, Nh my Toyama 2: 777-1 Itakura, Fuchu-machi, Toyama-shi 939-2721, Trang tri Spirulina, Okinawa: 2474-1 Higashimunezoe, Hirayoshiaza, Miyakojima City, Okinawa. The importance of mitigating evidence in capital trials cannot be gainsaid. Vol. 28 at 758, 760. 2 at 13.) 2006); but see Smith v. Quarterman, 515 F.3d 392, 412 (5th Cir. Vol. The Court of Criminal Appeals rejected Cantu's arguments both on direct appeal and on habeas review. Campbell v. Dretke, 117 F. App'x 946, 952 (5th Cir. Autopsy See Franklin, 487 U.S. at 179. Tr. When the police informed him that O'Brien confessed, Cantu provided the following statement relating his role in the murders: Tr. Tr. I wondered that too. In 2005, Texas revised its capital sentencing statute. 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 has held that Texas' current definition of mitigating evidence "encompasses `virtually any mitigating evidence.'" Happy Halloween! 1995); Montoya v. Collins, 955 F.2d 279, 286 (5th Cir. TOP 0.5% June 8, 2021 The most difficult episode of Clueston. See Wheat, 238 F.3d at 361 (finding any extension of Simmons to violate Teague); Clark v. Johnson, 227 F.3d 273, 282 (5th Cir. East v. Scott, 55 F.3d 996, 1005 (5th Cir. I wonder if any of these men would have done something like this if they were alone. Ramdass, 530 U.S. at 169 (emphasis added). The Fifth Circuit concluded: Also, the Court of Criminal Appeals noted that the prosecution's statement was merely a "suggestion," and did not tell "the jury that they must find a nexus between the offense and the evidence offered as mitigation[.]" 2 at 30.) The Court of Criminal Appeals' rejection of this claim was not contrary to, or an unreasonable application of, federal law. . 23 at 699-703. We need to send Jorge some kneepads so he wont hurt himself in dealing with Mexico. WebThe Ertmans and Penas gathered friends and neighbors to help them pass out a huge stack of fliers with the girls' pictures all over the Houston area, even giving them to newspaper 42.18 8(b)(2) (1991). Woods v. Johnson, 75 F.3d 1017, 1039 (5th Cir. Cantu argues that his trial attorneys should have objected to the prosecution's encouragement to look at the allegedly inflammatory photographs as his "handy work" when weighing his fate. Clerk's Record at 268-69. Cantu complains that the absence of correct information about parole law left his defense theory incomplete and ineffectual. Tr. 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. Tr. The prosecution closed with the following statement that Cantu complains was inflammatory but went unchallenged by his trial attorneys: Cantu "concedes that the argument was responsive, but not that it was invited." Vol. Randy commandeered the news van and went to the scene that was now bustling with police activity. The lack of a due process violation undercuts the ineffectiveness claims Cantu raises on federal habeas review. Vol. 31, SX 6. Cantu argued that Officer Swainson manufactured the second statement, but provided no testimony to support that assertion. After the gang left, Christina Cantu convinced Joe Cantu to report the crime to police. See Thacker, 396 F.3d at 617-18; Elizade v. Dretke, 362 F.3d 323, 332-33 (5th Cir. "[T]he state may shape and structure the jury's consideration of mitigation so long as it does not preclude the jury from giving effect to any relevant mitigating evidence."
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