[F]irst, the lesser included offense must be included within the proof necessary to establish the offense charged, and, second, some evidence must exist in the record that would permit a jury rationally to find that if the defendant is guilty, he is guilty only of the lesser offense. In instances where mitigating evidence is presented, all that is constitutionally required is a vehicle by which the jury can consider and give effect to the mitigating evidence relevant to a defendant's background, character, or the circumstances of the crime. With this standard in mind, we turn to Cantu's specific ineffectiveness arguments. 724, 735-36 (5th Cir.2005). , 45, was charged in the theft of more than $6,400 in sausage from the Kiolbassa Provision Company. at *24. at 1096, clearly indicated that an indigent defendant does not have a constitutional right to receive funds to hire his own expert. Romans brother Frank, and Joes fourteen-year-old brother, Venancio, were also present. Appellant appeared happy and amused by the conversation and readily agreed with the recollection of events. 37.071. 381, 121 L.Ed.2d 292 (1992); Teague v. State, 864 S.W.2d 505, 519 (Tex.Crim.App.1993); Adanandus v. State, 866 S.W.2d 210, 234 (Tex.Crim.App.1993), cert. Barnes v. State, 876 S.W.2d 316, 329 (Tex.Crim.App. However, appellant was also given the statutorily mandated mitigation instruction of Article 37.071 2(e) which provides the jury with just such a vehicle needed to consider and give effect to evidence such as evidence of intoxication which does not rise to the level of temporary insanity. Proc. Eye Color: Brown at 2609. He does not challenge the sufficiency of the evidence to support the jury's verdict finding him guilty of capital murder. Medellin said that they "had fun" and that their activities would be seen on the TV news. All cuzz them fine ass girls you all wanted to fuck. That standard is applied in light of the Court's recognition that the State has a legitimate interest in counteracting the mitigating evidence which the defendant is entitled to put in, by reminding the sentencer that just as the murderer should be considered as an individual, so too the victim is an individual whose death represents a unique loss to society and in particular to his family. Payne v. Tennessee, 501 U.S. 808, 825, 111 S.Ct. Instead, jurors must individually determine what evidence, if any, mitigates against the imposition of the death penalty and what weight, if any, to give that evidence in its consideration. Appellant argues, in essence, that the prosecutor misstated the law. He then notes that the Texas Constitution proscribes cruel or unusual punishments while the Eighth Amendment prohibits cruel and unusual punishments. We have previously rejected this argument. Texas presents the question of mitigating evidence to a jury through article 37.071, sections 2(e)(1) and 2(f)(4) of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure. [THE STATE:] And did they talk about having anal intercourse with the girls in front of [appellant]? In point of error eight, appellant asserts that the trial court erred in admitting victim impact evidence. Specifically, he avers that because the indictment only named Ertman, allowing victim impact evidence (or any other evidence) regarding Pena was error. Appellant's argument centers around the concept that aggravating circumstances must be adequately defined for the jury. Point of error thirty-one is overruled. Moore v. State, supra at 128, 128-09). Questions Post Question There are no questions yet for this company. This guy is more than just a car's outer appearance. After the belt broke, the killers used her own shoelaces to finish their job. Archived from the original on June 2, 2022. Of the six people convicted, five were sentenced to death. Keller and Womack, JJ., concurred in part, and concurred in result in part. Johnson, supra, at 135. She was born February 8, 1918 to Dallas and Daisy Johnson. Mrs. Naomi (Pete) Cantu of Waxahachie, 94, passed away July . Six months before Jenny and Elizabeth were murdered, three of their killers murdered another young woman, Patricia Lourdes Lopez. The police searched the park without finding anything. Pete Cantu. Point of error thirty-five is overruled. [THE STATE:] They were all saying that? The individual breaking into the home punches the window, suffers a a vicious cut to the hand and runs off. Ekstensive Metal Works Ekstensive Metal Works - Made - Texas Metal D rop Shop About Us We specialize in one off custom cars and trucks. denied, 513 U.S. 861, 115 S.Ct. Appellant was subsequently convicted of capital murder in February of *631 1994.FN1 Tex. "They are still in our hearts and prayers.". If there is the mitigation, is it sufficient, sufficient to rise to the level that you want to take this man, [appellant], and show him some mercy. denied, 495 U.S. 940, 110 S.Ct. Co-Defendants: Four accomplices were charged with capital murder following their arrest: Derrick Sean O'Brien, Raul Villareal, Efrian Perez, and Jose Medellin. He was friendly and never met a stranger. He told the call taker that the missing girls' bodies could be found near T.C. Even if the statements that were made in the presence of appellant were hearsay, they were admissible under Tex.R.Crim.Evid. The death penalty in general is immoral, uncivilized, cruel, inhumane, barbaric, unjust and vengeful. FN9. Copyright 2018 - 2023 PLEASANTON EXPRESS. They decided to take a shortcut across the railroad tracks. Peter Cantu, on Death Row since 1994, executed by the State of Texas on 17 th August 2010. Later that night, Joe, Efrian, and Raul regrouped at Cantus house to brag about their exploits. Known for Texas Metal 7.1 TV Series Self - Owner, '96 Impala SS (as Pedro 'Pete' Canti) 2021 1 ep Credits IMDbPro Self Previous 1 Texas Metal Self - Owner, '96 Impala SS (as Pedro 'Pete' Canti) TV Series 2021 1 episode Personal details Alternative name Pedro 'Pete' Canti Contribute to this page Suggest an edit or add missing content Appellant's own statement, plus the testimony of other witnesses, elucidate appellant's full participation in each of these offenses. When Pena screamed, Ertman ran back to try to help her friend, but Cantu grabbed her and dragged her down the hill as well. Appellant argues that the phrase or anticipated that a human life would be taken renders Article 37.071 2(b)(2) unconstitutional because the phrase lacks the required culpability. Roland Gonzales is suspected of stealing more than $100 worth of steak from H-E-B. On death row, Cantu, now 35, was classified among the best-behaving inmates. You are instructed that certain evidence introduced to you has been offered in mitigation of the Defendant's punishment. Location: Houston, TX. Cantu also confessed. ), cert. 'It's ridiculous. They had spent the evening drinking beer and then "jumping in" Raul. Find your friends on Facebook. Testimony showed that the girls' bodies were kicked and their necks were stomped on after the strangulations in order to "make sure that they were really dead.". 2529, 96 L.Ed.2d 440 (1987), and left the decision up to the individual states as to whether this sort of evidence is relevant under their own individual punishment schemes. The testimony of M. Pena consisted of her telling the jury about her family and showing the jury pictures of the victim's sixteenth birthday party. See Darden v. Wainwright, 477 U.S. 168, 181, 106 S.Ct. 1978, 131 L.Ed.2d 866 (1995). 705 (1992). Even if we assume that the prosecutor's statement was an improper comment, we conclude it was not so egregious that it was not cured by the instruction given to the jury to disregard it. Evidence showed Cantu kicked one of the girls in the face with his steel-toed boot. In his thirty-fifth point of error, appellant complains that the trial court erred in failing to give the jury instructions on the lesser-included offenses of murder, sexual assault, robbery, and kidnapping. Texas Execution Information Center by David Carson. Don't kill that child. The murders also forced Houston city officials to treat gangs as a serious crime problem, when they had previously denied that there was a gang problem in the city. The class is further limited in that the death penalty cannot be imposed on an individual convicted of capital murder unless the jury answers the special issues in the manner described in Article 37.071, Section 1, Code of Criminal Procedure. In point of error forty-five, appellant claims that his death sentence should be overturned because racial discrimination continues to taint the Texas sentencing scheme in violation of the Eighth Amendment and the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. BCSO spokesman Roseanne Hughes. Here's a full rundown of the teams, drivers, and their cars. 9/23/93 -- Cantu was indicted for capital murder by a Harris County grand jury. Also gone is natural gas pioneer George Mitchell, who passed . Pete Cantu was a candidate for the Place 6 seat on the Donna Independent School District school board in Texas.Cantu was defeated in the by-district general election on November 8, 2016.. In a thorough and well-reasoned memorandum and order, the district court denied habeas relief and, sua sponte, declined to issue a certificate of appealability on any of the issues raised by Cantu. "The victims were so sympathetic and rightly so," said Robert Morrow, one of Cantu's trial lawyers. The charge given was as follows: Seventeen years is a long time to have something eating on you like that. Petitioner filed application for certificate of appealability (COA). March 11, 2019. He's set to make the trip again, to witness for the third time the execution of one of the gang members responsible for the rape and murder of his teenage daughter and her schoolmate. If you decide that an aspect of the Defendant's character and record or circumstances of the crime is a mitigating circumstance, you must not give it aggravating effect. The police were then able to find the badly decomposed remains of Ms. Ertman and Ms. Pena. In response to the study, a district court judge held that the statute unconstitutionally permitted the arbitrary and unguided imposition of the death penalty. Every memory left on the online obituary will be automatically included in the book. Additionally, through the work of Houston crime victims advocate Andy Kahan, the case led to statewide policy changes giving crime victims and their families more of a voice in the criminal justice process. Information on every contractor in United States. We decline to do so. Mines was remanded by the United States Supreme Court for review in light of Johnson v. State, 509 U.S. 350, 113 S.Ct. 381, 121 L.Ed.2d 292 (1992). Tex.R.App.Proc. Cantus execution was the third connected with the case. At this point, the Sandoval brothers decided that it was time to leave. [WITNESS:] I did that. Race: White Maria Cantu Hexsel 221 West 6" Street, Suite 1800 Jennifer Buntz GERMER GERTZ . Because we have this procedure set up, do we kill our children? Ertman made the drive here four years ago for the first execution. At 11:30 p.m., Jennifer and Elizabeth decided to head for Elizabeth's house where Jennifer would then call a taxicab to take her home. Article 27.16 states that: 2630, 2639, 129 L.Ed.2d 750 (1994). Ha-ha. See Photos. Appellant has given us no reason to revisit our analyses in these cases, nor has he shown us any distinguishing evidence in the record or provided us with any other reason why these cases should not control in the instant case. Michael A. Cantu is the morning News Now reporter for KCBD NewsChannel 11. In making this comparison, the prosecution referred to the challenged photographs. Appellant alleges in point thirty-three that the death penalty as presently administered in Texas is cruel and unusual punishment in violation of the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution and Article I, 13 of the Texas Constitution. Appellant, Peter Anthony Cantu, was charged by indictment with the offense of capital murder for killing Jennifer Ertman in the course of committing or attempting to commit robbery, kidnapping and aggravated sexual assault. Cantu strangled Pena with shoelaces. See Sonnier, supra. On cross-examination, the State asked Martinez if she thought the killing of the two girls was funny. When the witness answered in the negative, the State asked that the jury be excused and introduced two letters the witness had written to appellant's co-defendant, Efrian Perez, and questioned her about one of them, which read: Efrian, what's up, ugly? Specifically, appellant requested the following instructions: Please visit www.cbp.gov to view additional news releases and other information pertaining to Customs and Border Protection. * * *. Jester Park in Houston to participate in a gang initiation ritual. ; Keeton v. State, 724 S.W.2d 58, 61 (Tex.Crim.App.1987) ( Keeton I); Heiselbetz v. State, 906 S.W.2d 500, 507-508 (Tex.Crim.App.1995). If enough of any type of evidence exists in the record so that any rational trier of fact could have believed an issue to be true, then we need not know what a specific trier of fact believed. The absence of an explicit assignment of the burden of proof does not render Article 37.071 2(e) unconstitutional. At this point, Roman and Frank Sandoval decided to leave. We further note that appellant made no request for such a special verdict form and no objection was made to the instruction given at trial. The girls were still on the tracks when they encountered the group of boys. He gave the police the names of all of the perpetrators, except for new initiate Villareal, who he did not know. Points one and two claim constitutional error in the trial court denying his requested punishment jury charge instruction informing the jury that pursuant to Article 42.18, 8(b)(2), V.A.C.C.P., a prisoner serving a life sentence for capital murder is not parole eligible until the actual calendar time served, without consideration of good conduct time, equals 35 calendar years. On June 24, 1993, Cantu and other members of the Black and White gang met to initiate a new member. Pete Cantu in Texas. Overstreet, J., filed concurring and dissenting opinion. Done purely to prevent him being caught for the crimes that had been done. Peter Anthony Cantu (AP Photo/Texas Dept. [THE STATE:] And how did he agree with them? [I]t is incumbent upon the defendant to show that in its operation the statute is unconstitutional as to him in his situation; that it may be unconstitutional as to others is not sufficient. 4. the existence of a prior criminal record, and the severity of the prior crimes; 400, 413-14 (5th Cir.2006); O'Brien v. Dretke, 156 Fed.Appx. The break in solving the case came from, of course, the 911 call. Neither party disputes that murder, sexual assault, robbery, and kidnapping are lesser included offenses of capital murder for purposes of the instant case. And Cantu's brother, upset at the gang's gloating about having fun with the girls, called police. She's been a part of the famous Texas Metal cast since the beginning. Jenny was strangled with the belt of Sean O'Brien, with two murderers pulling, one on each side, until the belt broke. See Colella v. State, 915 S.W.2d 834 (Tex.Crim.App.1995); McFarland, No. Appellant contends in his forty-fourth point of error that Article 37.071 2(a),FN13 which prohibits the judge and the parties from informing the jury of the effect of a failure of the jury to agree on their answers to the special issues, violates the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution. Appellant avers in point fourteen that the mitigation issue set forth in Article 37.071 2(e) is unconstitutional in that it does not require jury consideration of mitigation evidence when answering it. This issue reads as follows: He was born on June 9, 1980, in Stephenville, Texas to Jesus Cantu, Jr. and Maria Acuna. In Rousseau, 855 S.W.2d at 673, we established a two-prong test to determine whether a defendant is entitled to a charge on a lesser included offense. The State mentioned the 35-year period that defense counsel had talked about and asked the witness about the jury's concerns being not about what's going to happen 35 years from now but rather what's going to happen in the next day, the next week, the next month, the next year. In light of that questioning mentioning situations of capital murder defendants, including Kenneth McDuff, being paroled and committing murders, it was even more critical that the jury be informed of the law, i.e. The medical examiner stated that Patricia was probably on her knees in front of her murderer when she was stabbed, based on the angle of the wounds. After police informed Cantu that one of the other participants fully confessed, Cantu gave his second statement, in which he described how both girls were killed. 1756, 95 L.Ed.2d 262 (1987). Medellin and O'Brien wrapped O'Brien's red nylon belt around Ertman's neck. The police traced the 9-1-1 call to Cantu's home. WOMACK, J., concurs in the result on points of error five and eight and joins in the remainder of the opinion. 440, 256 S.W.2d 86, 88 (1953); Tutor v. State, 599 S.W.2d 818, 819 (Tex.Crim.App.1980). On June 24, 1993, the group was conducting a fight-filled initiation ceremony for a prospective member across from T.C. Joe Cantu also testified as to the conversation of Joe, Efrian and Raul concerning the events of that night. KELLER, J., concurs in the result on point of error eight and joins in the remainder of the opinion. Point of error twenty-two is overruled. ] (Emphasis added.). Arrangements are entrusted to Holmgreen Mortuary, 2061 East Main Street, Alice, Texas. Your email address will not be published. Enchiladas, fajitas and a cinnamon bun. In point thirteen, appellant remarks that this Court has said that it can and should interpret the Texas Constitution in a more expansive manner than the federal constitution and cites us to several cases for this proposition. Pete will be remembered for his infectious laugh and loving personality. The other gang members present were Roman Sandoval, Joe Medellin, Efrian Perez, and Derrick Sean O'Brien. Appellant concedes that there is no requirement that all statutory elements be proven before evidence of an extraneous offense can be admitted at punishment. Thank you. (plurality op. However, as they passed Joe Medellin, he grabbed Elizabeth and dragged her down a hill as she screamed for help. We hold that the same analysis applies to the new statute and appellant has given us no reason to revisit this issue. Appellant asserts in points twelve and thirteen that the Texas death penalty has been arbitrarily imposed and is unconstitutional because of the different capital sentencing schemes that have been in effect since the early 1970's. The 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 vendors on the roadside. The Forbes 400 net worth cut off this year was a record-high $2 billion. The United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas, 2009 WL 275172, denied petition. Proc. Though some of the assailants had little previous brushes with the law, Cantu by the age of 18 had given plenty of indication he was headed for trouble. denied, 516 U.S. 1021, 116 S.Ct. 2253, 132 L.Ed.2d 260 (1995). 84 Lumber. 3230, 106 L.Ed.2d 578 (1989). Hence, the Supreme Court removed the Eighth Amendment bar to evidence about the victim and evidence about the impact of the murder on the victim's family created by Booth v. Maryland, 482 U.S. 496, 107 S.Ct. Do we kill our children when you know they needed help, when you know they're a problem, when you know there are problems? When Peter Cantu saw Jenny and Elizabeth, he thought it was a man and a woman and told the other gang members that he wanted to jump him and beat him up. He is preceded in death by his brothers, Alcardo Cantu, Jesus Cantu III; maternal grandfather, Juan Santos Acuna, and paternal grandparents, Jesus Cantu Sr. and Olivia Cantu. at 2608. * that appellant threatened a woman and broke a window at her home; 2052, and, notably, the mere possibility of a different outcome is not sufficient to prevail on [this] prong, Crane v. Johnson, 178 F.3d 309, 312 (5th Cir.1999). Jester Park. She screamed. This murder was unsolved until after O'Brien was arrested for the murder of Jennifer Ertman and Elizabeth Pena. In appellant's arraignment in open court, but outside the presence of the jury, the State read the indictment and appellant's counsel entered appellant's plea of not guilty. While the plain language of Article 36.01 indicates that an identical procedure should be followed in the jury's presence, it is not required by that language. Johnson v. State, 803 S.W.2d 272, 292 (Tex.Crim.App.1990), cert. Appellant again attacks the constitutionality of Article 37.071 2(e) in point of error forty-two alleging that it invites the open-ended discretion condemned by the United States Supreme Court in Furman v. Georgia, 408 U.S. 238, 92 S.Ct. Texas Department of Criminal Justice - Executed Offenders (Cantu), Cantu, Peter Anthony He was dearly loved and will be greatly missed by all who knew and loved him. Cantu argues that the latter standard in Neal is too onerous; however, he made no such argument to the district court in his habeas petition. Martinez was fifteen years old and testified that she had known appellant for approximately three years and went out with him and mutual friends almost every weekend. In the first statement, Cantu only admitted his role in raping and stealing from the girls, but he was silent as to their murder. ), cert. 2. McFarland, 928 S.W.2d at 520. The State then cross-examined this witness about several death row prisoners committing subsequent violent crimes, and two, including the infamous and notorious Kenneth McDuff, getting out on parole and committing murders. Joe Cantu, brother of ringleader Peter Cantu, whose call to police had led to the arrests in the Ertman/Pena murders, had again contacted authorities and told them that he recalled O'Brien bragging about another murder that occurred before the girls were killed. Point of error seven is overruled. Instead, the Code of Criminal Procedure simply requires that the State prove each element of a crime beyond a reasonable doubt, whether the jury believes all of the State's evidence or only part of it. However, he contends that a meaningful review of the mitigation issue is impossible. Appellant raises forty-five points of error. Police traced the 911 call to the Cantu home, and Joe passed on what he knew. The phone transferred the photos to her online account, and she shared them on Facebook. In the instant case, it is evident the prosecutor did not inject any new facts into the proceeding, much less new facts that could be deemed prejudicial or harmful. Pete Cantu. Log In. Anderson v. State, supra, at 509-10. The court overruled his objection. art. It is not enough that the jury may disbelieve crucial evidence pertaining to the greater offense.