Family, state, defense react to convicted murderer’s 38 year prison sentence UPDATE 6:30 PM A jury of 5 men and 7 women found Angel Josue Velasquez-Pineda guilty in the murder of 19-year-old Brendan Hawkins at the Dickinson Civic Pool. Hours later, the jury sentenced the now convicted murderer to 38 years in state prison This all came on Tuesday (4/2/2024) in the 56th District Court with Judge Lonnie Cox, presiding. Brendan‘s mother, Tomasa Montez Chalk was shook up during and after she had the opportunity to voice her anger towards her son’s killer. She said she was happy with the guilty verdict, but disappointed that he was only given 38 years. She plans to be at Angel’s parole meeting when that arrives to protest it. Angel will have to serve 19 years before eligible for parole. The state asked for 60, while the defense asked for anywhere between 5 to 30 years. Prosecutor Tyler Alley said that while it was not the amount of years he wanted, he was happy with the jury’s decision. What led the jury to their guilty verdict was a video recorded where Angel said that he could live with the murder he committed. Angel’s court appointed defense attorney, Margaret Hindman said she was disappointed with the guilty verdict for her client. However, she respected the jury’s decision and the due diligence they did when deciding on his punishment. “He got a very fair trial,” Hindman added.

Posted by i45NOW Joey at 2024-04-02 16:11:19 UTC