Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Trying to avert the needle he surely deserves

Let me list what one poster wrote about the underlying crime he committed.

"He put the gun to Ram's stomach and shot him.
Then shot Douglas for not opening the cash drawer fast enough. Then ordered the woman, Kroger, to get the cash. After she did, he shot her in the back and began kicking her in the head. Then he picked Douglas up again and shot him again.
He was positively identified in a lineup, his fingerprints and DNA were found at the scene. The criminal court of appeals affirmed the conviction in 2009. He's had his day in court, and lost his appeal. It's time to move on. . ."

Indeed, it is.


Taco Land killer returns to court
By Craig Kapitan - Express-News

A condemned killer responsible for San Antonio's infamous 2005 Taco Land double murder returned to a Bexar County courtroom Monday to begin a series of appellate hearings.

A jury convicted Joseph Gamboa, 30, in 2007 of the fatal shootings of Taco Land owner Ramiro “Ram” Ayala and Douglas Morgan, an employee at the since-shuttered music venue. A second employee was also shot but survived to testify against Gamboa.

Texas' high court rejected Gamboa's death row appeal in 2009. The latest request for a new trial, in which Gamboa's current attorneys are expected to argue that he had ineffective defense counsel, is a necessary final step in the state-level appellate process.

The rest of the story: