Transcribed Videotape Interview with Vicky Gutierrez, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Garland, Texas (Feb. 27, 2005) at 00:20:51–00:21:30 (“My mother, she was a real healthy woman. She would work, take care of us. After the incident of Carlos DeLuna, she just went downhill. She got sick. She had to go to the hospital. They operated on her three times. Then she died. She died after all that.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Vicky Gutierrez, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Garland, Texas (Feb. 27, 2005) at 00:20:51–00:21:30 (“My mother, she was a real healthy woman. She would work, take care of us. After the incident of Carlos DeLuna, she just went downhill. She got sick. She had to go to the hospital. They operated on her three times. Then she died. She died after all that.”); Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Mary Arredando, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 26, 2004) at 4 (“Margarita went into the hospital. She had surgery, and there were lots of complications.”); Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 6 (“Margarita suffered from kidney problems. When Carlos went to trial, she wound up in the hospital. The trial did her in . . . . She died on August 11, 1983, soon after her 61st birthday.”).

Oral Argument on June 20, 1983 Motion for Continuance, Texas v. DeLuna, No. 83-CR–194A (Nueces Cty., 28th Dist. Tex. June 20, 1983) at 2, 3, 5 (“[Defense Counsel James] Lawrence: To further enlighten the Court, she [Margarita Martinez] underwent an operation, she had complications, she had a heart attack, I believe, on Thursday. . . [S]he’s now in Intensive Care.”; “[Prosecutor Ken] Botary: It was not a heart attack, per se, it was a heart-related problem. She had surgery some time ago.”).

Criminal Docket, Texas v. DeLuna, No. 83-CR–194-A (Nueces Cty., 28th Dist. Tex. Feb. 17, 1983) at 3; Oral Argument on June 20, 1983 Motion for Continuance, Texas v. DeLuna, No. 83-CR–194A (Nueces Cty., 28th Dist. Tex. June 20, 1983) at 99. The Court denied Defendant’s Second Motion for a Continuance, but reset the trial from June 20 to July 5, 1983 at the request of the defense. See Oral Argument on June 20, 1983 Motion for Continuance, Texas v. DeLuna, No. 83-CR–194A (Nueces Cty., 28th Dist. Tex. June 20, 1983) at 99.

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Mary Arredando, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 26, 2004) at 4:

Margarita went into the hospital. She had surgery, and there were lots of complications. Mary was with her every morning, then went to the trial, then went back to the hospital. Mary’s three boys had been receiving Robert’s [her deceased husband’s] social security since he was killed in 1976, and they lived on that while the trial was going on. At the time, Toni [Mary’s older sister] was working at Minyard’s, a market like Albertson’s. When she got off work she would go to the hospital so that Mary could be with her boys. [Mary’s sister] Vicky came to the hospital as well.

Carlos’s trial ended on July 21, 1983. Criminal Docket, Texas v. DeLuna, No. 83-CR–194-A (Nueces Cty., 28th Dist. Tex. Feb. 17, 1983) at 9. Carlos’s mother died on August 11, 1983. See Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 6 (“Margarita suffered from kidney problems. When Carlos went to trial, she wound up in the hospital. The trial did her in. . . . She died on August 11, 1983, soon after her 61st birthday.”).

Pre-Disposition Investigation for Carlos DeLuna, Al R. Reyna, Intake Coordinator, Probation Dep’t (June 27, 1978) at 2; Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 19:52:42–19:54:26 (“And before she met my step-dad, she had another baby, I don’t know that baby’s name. That’s why I say she has ten kids. That baby happened to be a boy, and she gave him away. She gave him up for adoption.”); see Transcribed Videotape Interview with Karen Boudrie-Evers, Corpus Christi Television Reporter, in Dallas, Texas (Feb. 28, 2005) at 03:24:20–03:26:03 (reading from a letter written to her by Carlos DeLuna written in early December 1989):

I will go ahead and tell you a little bit about my childhood. Maybe you will be able to understand me a little more. I grew up in a big family. There were nine of us. My real father left when I was only an infant, about five or six months old, and my mother brought us up. I think I was about five or six years old when she married my stepfather. He was a good man but he was an alcoholic. He drank a whole lot. But he always did support us, and he was a good person. But he never really cared, I guess, a whole lot about us. My mother, she was 40 years old when she had me. And she was old, and I guess she was tired of raising kids. But she did try her best. I can’t take anything from her. But one of my sisters does blame my mother. I don’t know why, but she does. I grew up in a poor neighborhood, and we were poor in many ways, but I’d still never gotten in any trouble, yet, with the Law. I think I was 15 years old when I first got in trouble with the Law. I was going out with this girl who was about two years older than me, and she had already been in trouble with the Law before. But I truly did love her, or I thought I did. So you know how that goes, when they say “love is blind,” I do honestly believe that. But I met her brother and his friends, and that’s where all the trouble started.

Juvenile Face Sheet for Carlos DeLuna, Probation Dep’t, Family Record No. 7147 (Feb. 28, 1978) at 2 (listing Margarita’s six Conejo children and three DeLuna children); Pre-Disposition Investigation for Carlos DeLuna, Al R. Reyna, Intake Coordinator, Probation Dep’t (June 27, 1978) at 3 (“Carlos’ mother was first married to a Francisco Conejo but she does not remember the date of the marriage. They were divorced in April, 1951, and six children resulted from this union.”); Transcribed Videotape Interview with Vicky Gutierrez, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Garland, Texas (Feb. 27, 2005) at 00:10:00–00:10:35 (“There was my father, I can’t remember him, because they separated when I was real young.”); Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 19:51:29–19:52:42 (“[M]y mom was married at age 13, and she had her first six kids. . . . [H]er husband that she was married to, what I’ve heard, was very abusive to her.”); Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Toni Peña, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 25, 2004) at 1–2:

Toni’s father, who was the father of “the six” (Margarita’s first six children), was Francisco Conejo. He was born in Mexico, but Toni did not know where or what year he was born. He worked in construction. Margarita, Toni’s mother, and mother of all the Conejo and DeLuna children, was born on August 1, 1922 in Aransas Pass, Texas. Toni does not know where or when Margarita and Francisco got married. Toni was the second child, born on January 6, 1944. Toni remembered she was three or four years old when her parents divorced. Margarita was pregnant with Becky, the youngest of the six. Toni remembered that Francisco. . . was abusive to Margarita.

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Toni Peña, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 25, 2004), at 1–2.

Pre-Disposition Investigation for Carlos DeLuna, Al R. Reyna, Intake Coordinator, Probation Dep’t (June 27, 1978) at 3 (“Carlos’s mother was first married to a Francisco Conejo . . . . They were divorced in April, 1951”); Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 19:51:29–19:52:42, 19:44:14–19:45:15 (“And then my mom left, left wherever she lived. I’m not quite sure where she lived. And she moved to San Antonio, Tex., and then from San Antonio, Texas, she moved to Corpus Christi, Texas.”; “And we lived in the projects in Corpus Christi, Tex.. Which is called the ‘Armada’ that’s what it’s called in Corpus.”); History of Corpus Christi Housing Authority, Corpus Christi Housing Authority Website, http://www.hacc.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=81&Itemid=28 (last visited Feb. 28, 2012) (describing the Armada projects, which were originally built during World War II as military housing, then were converted to low-income housing after the War). Archived at: http://perma.cc/Y947-EDVG.

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 19:50:18–19:51:05:

It was a project, it was a project. It wasn’t, it wasn’t a bad place. There again, when you’re kids, you don’t know any better. That’s where you’re brought up, so all the kids just hung out. All the kids that lived there were poor kids. We were all poor kids, so we didn’t know any better. So that was just our lifestyle. I mean either that or . . . we couldn’t live anywhere else but there. That’s all our parents could afford and we were thankful enough to have a place to live. So it was, we didn’t know any better.

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 19:49:37–19:50:15:

My mom was able to get help from the government, which they sent her a check, I believe, once a month. And she received funds from there, and with those funds she was able to buy school clothes when needed and as far as food and stuff like that. Of course, my step dad would pay for the groceries. And like I said we lived in the government apartments, so the rent there was maybe a hundred. They had to pay a hundred dollars a month and the government kicked in the rest.

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Vicky Gutierrez, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Garland, Texas (Feb. 27, 2005) at 00:02:00–00:03:49, 00:05:54–00:06:30 (“[M]y mother . . . was like a mother and dad to all of us. She would work and, you know, do whatever she did to be able to take care of us.”; “We worked to help my mother, because, like I told you, my mother was like a dad and a mom.”).

Juvenile Face Sheet for Carlos DeLuna, Probation Dep’t, Family Record No. 7147 (Feb. 28, 1978) at 2.

Pre-Disposition Investigation for Carlos DeLuna, Al R. Reyna, Intake Coordinator, Probation Dep’t (June 27, 1978), at 3 (“In 1960 [Margarita] had a commonlaw marriage with Carlos’ father, Jose De Peña [sic]; they separated in 1963. Three children resulted from this union.”); Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Mary Arredando, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 26, 2004) at 2. (“Mary remembered Joe DeLuna as “nice, okay.” He worked in a scrap metal yard in Corpus Christi, and he would haul scrap metal to Mexico and sell it. Carlos resembled Joe DeLuna. In addition to the three children he had with Margarita (Manuel, Carlos and Rose), Joe fathered three sons with someone else. Mary said the children were brought together at times, but the three boys lived with their grandmother, Joe’s mother, who raised them.”); Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Toni Peña, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 25, 2004) at 2 (“Toni thought her mother must have been on her own, after her divorce, for over 10 years. That was from 1947 or 1948 until 1961, when she began living with Joe DeLuna.”).

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 3 (“Joe left Margarita when she was pregnant with Rose. Joe and Margarita were not married, but Manuel, Carlos and Rose all used his name.”); see also Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Mary Arredando, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 26, 2004) at 2 (“Joe left . . .[,] possibly when Margarita was still pregnant with Rose.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 19:52:42–19:54:26 (describing the family “story told” and the family “stories that I’ve heard”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 19:52:42–19:54:26 (“She [Margarita] already had six kids, so when she moved to Corpus Christi, Tex., she met my dad. And my dad was younger than my mother. These are the stories that I’ve heard.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 19:52:42–19:54:26:

She [Margarita] already had six kids, so when she moved to Corpus Christi, Tex., she met my dad. And my dad was younger than my mother. These are the stories that I’ve heard. And she did not tell my dad. My dad’s name is Joe. She did not tell my dad that she had six kids. She told him, she only had four kids. So that’s pretty much where the issue came, the problems came. And then he found out that she had six kids, so he left her.

See Transcribed Videotape Interview with Karen Boudrie-Evers, Corpus Christi Television Reporter, in Dallas, Texas (Feb. 28, 2005) at 03:24:20–03:25:12 (reading from a letter written to the her by Carlos DeLuna written in early December 1989: “‘I will go ahead and tell you a little bit about my childhood. Maybe you will be able to understand me a little more. I grew up in a big family. There were nine of us. My real father left when I was only an infant, about five or six months old, and my mother brought us up.’”).

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Mary Arredando, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 26, 2004) at 2 (“Joe’s mother did not care for Margarita or any of her children. Mary remembered Margarita and Joe constantly fighting. When Margarita was mad at him, she wouldn’t cook for him. Mary would make him a sandwich because she felt bad for him.”); Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 2–4 (“After divorcing Conejo, Margarita began a relationship with Joe DeLuna. Joe was younger than Margarita by 7 or 8 years, and a ‘real momma’s boy.’ His mother was completely against the relationship and constantly nagged Joe to leave Margarita.”).

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 2–4 (“After divorcing Conejo, Margarita began a relationship with Joe DeLuna. Joe was younger than Margarita by 7 or 8 years, and a ‘real momma’s boy.’ His mother was completely against the relationship and constantly nagged Joe to leave Margarita.”).

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Mary Arredando, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 26, 2004) at 2 (noting that Mary remembered Margarita and Joe constantly fighting. When Margarita was mad at him, she wouldn’t cook for him. Mary would make him a sandwich because she felt bad for him.).

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Mary Arredando, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 26, 2004) at 2 (“Rose was named Rose for Joe’s mother and Mary for [her own mother Maria (Mary)] Margarita.”).

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 3–4 (“Joe and Margarita were not married but Manuel, Carlos and Rose all used his name. . . . Rose never knew or saw Joe DeLuna. According to Rose’s older sister Toni, Carlos once went to meet Joe’s mother. She did not want to have anything to do with him, and did not want her son Joe to have anything to do with Carlos, Rose or Manuel.”).

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 3–4.

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 3–4 (“[Joe’s] mother was completely against the relationship and constantly nagged Joe to leave Margarita. . . . Joe left Margarita when she was pregnant with Rose. . . . She did not want to have anything to do with [Carlos], and did not want her son Joe to have anything to do with Carlos, Rose or Manuel.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 19:52:42–19:56:31:

And before [Margarita] met my step-dad, she had another baby, I don’t know that baby’s name. That’s why I say she has ten kids. That baby happened to be a boy, and she gave him away. She gave him up for adoption. That’s the story told. So I’ve never met that sibling, that brother, so we don’t know anything about him. So she did keep us three and that’s when she met my step-dad [Blas Avalos] . . . . I think she met my step dad, I must have been, I know I wasn’t in kindergarten yet. I must have been four or maybe as young as three and a half or maybe five when he came into the picture.

See also Transcribed Videotape Interview with Vicky Gutierrez, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Garland, Texas (Feb. 27, 2005) at 00:02:00–00:03:49, 00:10:00–00:10:35 (“From my first dad we were six, then from my second, step-dad there were three, which is Rosemary and Carlos and Manuel.”; “There was my father, I can’t remember him, because they separated when I was real young. Then DeLuna, which is the father of my brothers, which is Manual, Rosemary, and Carlos. Then Avalos after I was already grown up and married.”).

Pre-Disposition Investigation for Carlos DeLuna, Al R. Reyna, Intake Coordinator, Probation Dep’t (June 27, 1978) at 3 (“In 1969, [Margarita] married Mr. Avalos”); Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 4 (“Blas and Margarita probably met in a bar. Margarita drank at that time, but by the time Rose was a teenager, she had stopped drinking. Rose never saw Margarita drunk.”); see also Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Toni Peña, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 25, 2004) at 3 (“Toni did not remember exactly when Margarita married Blas Avalos. He was three years younger than Margarita, and worked in construction. He was an alcoholic.”).

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 4 (“Rose does not remember exactly when Margarita and Blas married. He was a ‘weekend alcoholic’ and an ‘okay’ stepfather. He just wanted the kids to go to school and listen to their parents. He was on the sidelines. He only spanked them because Margarita told him to. It was not his own nature.”); see also Transcribed Videotape Interview with Karen Boudrie-Evers, Corpus Christi Television Reporter, in Dallas, Texas (Feb. 28, 2005) at 03:24:20–03:25:12 (reading from a letter written to her by Carlos DeLuna written in early December 1989):

[I] will go ahead and tell you a little bit about my childhood. Maybe you will be able to understand me a little more. I grew up in a big family. There were nine of us. My real father left when I was only an infant, about five or six months old, and my mother brought us up. I think I was about five or six years old when she married my stepfather. He was a good man but he was an alcoholic. He drank a whole lot. But he always did support us, and he was a good person. But he never really cared, I guess, a whole lot about us. My mother, she was 40 years old when she had me. And she was old, and I guess she was tired of raising kids. But she did try her best. I can’t take anything from her.

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:42:15–20:43:31 (“[M]y step-dad was an alcoholic. As soon as he got paid on Friday—he always went to work, that’s one thing I can say about him. He went to work Monday through Friday. Friday evening, that’s it, he drank ‘till Sunday evening. That’s all he did, was drink Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, all day long, from the time he would wake up to the time he would pass out.”); Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 4 (“[Blas] was a “weekend alcoholic” . . . . He would drink on the weekends until he passed out. He would either drink at home, or at a friend’s house—an older man who lived nearby. The two of them would just sit and drink until they passed out. Blas had a daughter from a previous relationship, whom he adored. Rose remembered going to visit that girl a few times, but did not remember her name.”); see also Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Toni Peña, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 25, 2004) at 3 (“Toni did not remember exactly when Margarita married Blas Avalos. He was three years younger than Margarita, and worked in construction. He was an alcoholic.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:42:15–20:43:31 (“[M]y step-dad was an alcoholic. As soon as he got paid on Friday—he always went to work, that’s one thing I can say about him. He went to work Monday through Friday. Friday evening, that’s it, he drank ‘till Sunday evening. That’s all he did, was drink Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, all day long, from the time he would wake up to the time he would pass out.”); Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 4 (“Blas and Margarita probably met in a bar. . . . He was on the sidelines. He only spanked them because Margarita told him to. It was not his own nature. He would drink on the weekends until he passed out. He would either drink at home, or at a friend’s house—an older man who lived nearby. The two of them would just sit and drink until they passed out.”); see also Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Toni Peña, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 25, 2004) at 4 (“I asked about Blas Avalos, Toni and Carlos’s stepfather. Toni did not know where he was living now. He is in very bad shape. He has organic brain syndrome from alcoholism. Toni said Blas was a good provider, but he drank too much. The last time she saw him, he could not remember what he had just eaten, or that he had just eaten. His mind is gone.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 19:54:26–19:56:31 (“[M]y mom was tired after having all those kids”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Karen Boudrie-Evers, Corpus Christi Television Reporter, in Dallas, Texas (Feb. 28, 2005) at 03:24:20–03:25:12 (reading from a letter written to her by Carlos DeLuna written in early December 1989):

I will go ahead and tell you a little bit about my childhood. Maybe you will be able to understand me a little more. I grew up in a big family. There were nine of us. My real father left when I was only an infant, about five or six months old, and my mother brought us up. I think I was about five or six years old when she married my stepfather. He was a good man but he was an alcoholic. He drank a whole lot. But he always did support us, and he was a good person. But he never really cared, I guess, a whole lot about us. My mother, she was 40 years old when she had me. And she was old, and I guess she was tired of raising kids. But she did try her best. I can’t take anything from her.

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Vicky Gutierrez, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Garland, Texas (Feb. 27, 2005) at 00:05:54–00:06:30 (“[W]hen [the DeLuna kids] were little, we used to take care of them. We used to buy them clothes. . . . And we would dress them, buy them clothes, feed them . . . .”); see also Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Toni Peña, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 25, 2004) at 2–3 (noting that Toni had gotten married and moved out around the time the oldest of the DeLuna children was born; “Toni said that [her younger sisters] Mary (Arredondo), Becky (Gutierrez) and Vicky Marquez could tell me more about Carlos growing up, because they took care of him.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Vicky Gutierrez, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Garland, Texas (Feb. 27, 2005) at 00:07:10–00:07:53, 00:08:35–00:08:58 (“Manuel was my favorite. I don’t know why, but Manuel was my favorite when I used to take care of him. . . . Mary would pick Carlos and I would pick Manuel.”; “Carlos was her [Mary’s] favorite, and Manuel was my favorite . . . I’m saying that because that’s who I [would] take care of. And Becky was [in charge of] Rosemary. It was just like that, I don’t know how. That’s the way it was. We took care of them like that.”); Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Mary Arredando, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 26, 2004), at 2 (“Mary said that she, Vicky and Becky took care of Manuel, Carlos and Rose when they were little.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Vicky Gutierrez, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Garland, Texas (Feb. 27, 2005) at 00:08:00–00:08:19 (“They were very nice kids. They would listen to us. We would take them to the movies, anywhere we wanted to go we would take them. They behaved. They were well-behaved.”); Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Mary Arredando, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 26, 2004) at 3 (“Mary remembered when she, Vicky and Becky were dating. They couldn’t leave the little kids alone, so each sister would pick one child and take them on her date. She laughed about this and said it wasn’t that bad. She often picked Carlos. Mary remembered Carlos as a good boy that was kind and gentle and loving.”); see also Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Toni Peña, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 25, 2004) at 3 (Carlos’s half-sister “Toni remembered Carlos as very loveable.”); James S. Liebman’s Notes on Interview with Manuel DeLuna, Brother of Carlos DeLuna (Aug. 17, 2004) at 1–2, 4 (“I know how Carlos got in this bad circle; it was because of Ida Sosa. . . . Ida Sota (Sosa) was to blame for his down fall.”; “Carlos DeLuna as kid: good kid, until met Ida Sosa. Then life changed.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Vicky Gutierrez, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Garland, Texas (Feb. 27, 2005) at 00:07:10–00:07:53, 00:05:54–00:06:30:

Every time they would pay us, paycheck time, we would buy them [the DeLuna children] something, some clothes. That’s the way we were raised, to help my mother. When we got paid, we would give the check to my mom and she would give us just so that we could spend something and go buy us something. But it was a habit we had that, every paycheck, we had to go buy something for our brother. It’s just like he was our responsibility, something like that. . . . When I was growing up? Well, when they [the DeLuna kids] were little, we used to take care of them. We used to buy them clothes. We worked to help my mother, because, like I told you, my mother was like a dad and a mom. So we would work. My mother even—I had to get out of school to help my mother with the kids. And we would take care of them. And I would have to work, me and Mary. And we would dress them, buy them clothes, feed them, help my mother.

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Mary Arredando, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 26, 2004) at 2 (“[Mary], Vicky and Becky took care of Manuel, Carlos and Rose when they were little. Sometimes they would have to stay home from school to do so.”).

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Mary Arredando, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 26, 2004) at 2 (“The school got after Margarita for this [keeping her kids out of school], but she just ignored them. One day, Mary was called into the office and asked why she had so many absences. She explained that her mother needed money and had to work outside the house. Someone had to take care of the littlest children. After that, the school gave Mary a job in the school cafeteria, and also found babysitting jobs for her, so that she could contribute to the family income.”).

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Mary Arredando, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 26, 2004) at 2 (“The school got after Margarita for this [keeping her kids out of school], but she just ignored them. One day, Mary was called into the office and asked why she had so many absences. She explained that her mother needed money and had to work outside the house. Someone had to take care of the littlest children. After that, the school gave Mary a job in the school cafeteria, and also found babysitting jobs for her, so that she could contribute to the family income.”).

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Mary Arredando, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 26, 2004) at 2 (“The school got after Margarita for this [keeping her kids out of school], but she just ignored them. One day, Mary was called into the office and asked why she had so many absences. She explained that her mother needed money and had to work outside the house. Someone had to take care of the littlest children. After that, the school gave Mary a job in the school cafeteria, and also found babysitting jobs for her, so that she could contribute to the family income.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Vicky Gutierrez, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Garland, Texas (Feb. 27, 2005), at 00:02:00–00:03:49, 00:12:17–00:12:46 (“[My mother] used to take care of us because she was like a mother and dad to all of us. She would work and, you know, do whatever she did to be able to take care of us. We were a family of nine.”; “When she was with [Joe DeLuna], it was ok. But after he left her, it was kind of hard because she had to work more because we were now more, more kids that she had to take care of. It was kind of hard for her, it was kind of hard, you could say that, to be able to take care of us.”); Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 19:46:25–19:48:11:

Our life wasn’t easy as kids, my mom, like I said. She was—My mom had a total of ten kids. So it was really hard for our mom to raise us last three kids. So it was pretty much taking care of ourselves, and looking after ourselves. I’m not saying that my mom was a bad mom, but our step dad was an alcoholic. And it was really hard living in that lifestyle. And they weren’t, my parent’s weren’t parents that encouraged you to finish school. That wasn’t their lifestyle. They had a totally different lifestyle. Education wasn’t one of [their priorities].

See also Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Toni Peña, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 25, 2004) at 2:

In 1961, [Toni] dropped out of Ray High School in the eleventh grade and got married. Toni and Jose Peña got married in Holy Family Church. Toni was the only one of the family to get married in church, and Margarita was very happy about it, although it was her dream that all her children would do so. Toni said she later got a GED and went on to attend DelMar Junior College, where she got associate degrees in early childhood development and cosmetology. When she said ‘cosmetology,’ Toni covered her face and laughed. Belinda said that Toni had done all the hours of training necessary to get the cosmetology degree, and then never used it.

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 5 (“There was no loving, no hugs, no ‘good mornings.’ Margarita just wanted the kids married and out of the house. It did not seem to bother her that Vincent left and never came back. What mattered was that he was out of the house.”).

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 5; see Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 1–2 (“All of the six were close to their mother except Vincent. He did not come to their mother’s funeral.”; “Rose has only seen Vincent, the oldest, two times in her life. Vincent left and never came back. He took care of himself. . . . Rose heard that he changed his name, got married and had a family.”); see also Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Toni Peña, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 25, 2004) at 2–3 (“The oldest child of Margarita and Francisco Conejo was Vincent. He was a good student who won awards and . . . went into the army at 17 or 18 years old and went to Vietnam. He might have stayed in the army as a career. No one has seen or heard of him in . . . years.”).

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 3 (“Becky is the youngest of the six. She was the rebellious one, who would leave the house and stay out until late. She got pregnant at a young age, and Margarita kicked her out.”).

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Mary Arredando, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 26, 2004) at 2 (“Margarita’s attitude was, ‘Hey, I didn’t tell you to get pregnant.’ However, Mary said that Margarita didn’t kick Becky out . . . . Becky left on her own.”).

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 5 (“Manuel dropped out of Tom Brown [Junior High School] in the 8th or 9th grade”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Vicky Gutierrez, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Garland, Texas (Feb. 27, 2005) at 00:07:10–00:07:53 (“Manuel was my favorite. I don’t know why, but Manuel was my favorite when I used to take care of him.”). On Manuel’s connection to Garland and nearby Dallas, see James S. Liebman’s Notes on Interview with Manuel DeLuna, Brother of Carlos DeLuna (Aug. 17, 2004) at 4:

My mother died because of this shit (CDL’s [Carlos DeLuna’s capital murder] arrest and conviction). I was in Dall[a]s working . . . . I had no[] funds. I was married to Yolanda and we had a kid or two. I told mom, that he’ll [Carlos DeLuna will] be out again very soon giving you hell. Don’t worry about it. I felt bad (not going back to CC [Corpus Christi] as mom asked), but I had responsibility and I was barely hanging on by my fingernails in Dallas, so I never went back to CC. Now is the first time in my life I can breathe. No worries about money, and some left over.

James S. Liebman’s Notes on Interview with Manuel DeLuna, Brother of Carlos DeLuna (Aug. 17, 2004) at 4 (“1980–81, he [Manuel DeLuna] goes to Dallas.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Vicky Gutierrez, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Garland, Texas (Feb. 27, 2005), at 00:04:30–00:05:19:

I got married with my husband, Alberto Gutierrez. We moved to Garland because what he was making over there [in Corpus Christi] wasn’t enough money. So we moved to Garland, and he found a job here at Kraft Foods, which they were paying better. Then, after that, I told my sister, Mary Arredando, my husband could find her husband a job here. Which he did, so Mary came along and moved over here to Garland, and he found a job there at Kraft Foods, too. But, poor Mary, her husband had an accident and died in a car accident. Then, I guess we all talked to Becky, Danny, and everybody sort of followed me, so they all moved over here.

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Mary Arredando, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 26, 2004) at 3 (“After Hurricane Celia [August 3, 1970], Mary wanted out of Corpus Christi. The family moved to Garland, Texas, where her husband got a job at the Kraft Foods plant.”).

Judgment, Texas v. Manuel DeLuna, No. 80-CR–147-C (Nueces Cty., 94th Dist. Tex. May 20, 1980) (sentencing Manuel DeLuna to five years’ probation for the unauthorized use of a motor vehicle); R. Yatu, Investigating Officer, City Vehicle Accidents (Jan. 13, 1980) (noting that Manuel DeLuna had backed a van into a city vehicle legally parked at Casino Club); Judgment, Texas v. Manuel DeLuna, No. 95-CR–4273-G(81) (Nueces Cty., 319th Dist. Tex. Feb. 17, 1998) (sentencing Manuel DeLuna to three years imprisonment for burglary); James S. Liebman’s Notes on Interview with Manuel DeLuna, Brother of Carlos DeLuna (Aug. 17, 2004) at 4 (describing Manuel’s criminal record: “1973–1974: arrested for unauthorized use of MV and gets three years probation; 1980–81, he goes to Dallas. For years, he never reported to probation. Got stopped in 1986 for expired inspection sticker . . . and gets arrested after they ran NCIC on him; warrant on him from back in 70s. Goes to jail; CC picks him up and sent me up for ‘10 years.’ . . . ‘I don’t want to talk about that.’”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 19:52:42–19:56:31 (“So she [Margarita] was raising us three, plus two of my sisters. Which is Mary and Becky lived in the house with her helping raise us as little kids. And then they got married and moved out, and I believe that is when my mom met my step-dad. . . . I think she met my step dad, I must have been, I know I wasn’t in kindergarten yet. I must have been four or maybe as young as three and a half or maybe five when he came into the picture.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 19:54:26–19:56:31 (“So that was me growing up, getting up early in the morning, making sure if I wanted to go to school, I had to make sure the house was cleaned up. I had to make sure breakfast was done for Manuel and Carlos because we grew up together.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 19:54:26–19:56:31:

She [Margarita] was harder on us girls, as far as stricter, and expected more from the girls than the guys. And that’s pretty much normal in the Mexican generation, the moms tend to be easier on the men than they tend to be on the women. They tend to be harder on the women. So my mom was really hard on us, as far as the guys, she pretty much let them do what they wanted to do. So that was me growing up, getting up early in the morning, making sure if I wanted to go to school, I had to make sure the house was cleaned up. I had to make sure breakfast was done for Manuel and Carlos . . . .

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 19:56:43–19:57:37:

[M]y mother was strict on, very strict on me. My. . . . when I got up in the morning, like I said, I had to make sure all these things were done before I went to school. And then I had to get home right as soon as I got out of school. There wasn’t any sports. You couldn’t do any sports, at all. You get straight home. I would get home and help her start . . . [getting] ready for . . . cleaning up, dinner, whatever need to be done. As far as Carlos and Manuel, those are my two brothers that lived at home. She pretty much let them do whatever they wanted to do. Come and go as they wanted.

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 5 (“[Rose] had to get up at 4 a.m., make breakfast for Manuel and Carlos and herself and clean up the house before she could go to school.”); Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 5–6:

Margarita favored the boys. The girls had to do exactly as they were told, or “we got the crap beat out of us, literally.” Margarita hit them with a belt, slapped them and pulled their hair. Rose said, “I had really long hair. It hurt.” The girls had to scrub the floors and walls, and wash clothes by hand. If Carlos or Manuel got into trouble, they would get hit and have to do some cleaning, but three hours later Margarita would be giving them ice cream. If they wanted to go out, she would let them. Rose remembered mowing and raking the lawn, while Carlos and Manuel were in the house watching TV, even after they’d started getting into trouble. Rose thought this was normal, that this was the way everybody lived.

See also Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Toni Peña, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 25, 2004) at 2 (recounting that Margarita “was very strict with the children. Toni said that Margarita was more strict with her original six children than with the three she had later on (Manuel, Carlos and Rose). Toni then said that Rose would probably disagree with that.”); see Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Linda Perales Ayala, Step-Mother of Pricilla Hernandez Jaramillo and Ex-Wife of Manuel DeLuna (July 24, 2004) at 2–3 (“Linda went to Manuel’s [Manuel DeLuna’s] house twice [during junior high or high school]. She thought their mother was mentally abusive to them. The mother was especially hard on Rose, who had to do all the cooking and cleaning for Manuel and Carlos.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 19:54:26–19:56:31:

She [Margarita] was harder on us girls, as far as stricter, and expected more from the girls than the guys. And that’s pretty much normal in the Mexican generation, the moms tend to be easier on the men than they tend to be on the women. They tend to be harder on the women. So my mom was really hard on us, as far as the guys, she pretty much let them do what they wanted to do. So that was me growing up, getting up early in the morning, making sure if I wanted to go to school, I had to make sure the house was cleaned up. I had to make sure breakfast was done for Manuel and Carlos . . . .

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 5 (Rose “had to get up at 4 a.m., make breakfast for Manuel and Carlos and herself and clean up the house before she could go to school.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 19:56:43–19:57:37 (“[W]hen I got up in the morning . . . I had to make sure all these things were done before I went to school. And then I had to get home right as soon as I got out of school. There wasn’t any sports. You couldn’t do any sports, at all. You get straight home. I would get home and help her start . . . [getting] ready for . . . cleaning up, dinner, whatever need to be done.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 19:56:43–19:57:37.

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:12:12–20:14:13, 20:26:00–20:28:40 (“And [Carlos] wanted to be in sports, which my mother allowed him to play football.”; “I know for sure what hurt Carlos the most was when he was kicked out of football. When he was kicked out of football, he gave up. . . . I really didn’t know what position [Carlos played]. I know Manuel would know what position because Manuel was also in football.”); see also Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Toni Peña, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 25, 2004) at 3 (“[Carlos] liked football, basketball and riding bikes. She thought he had played on the school football team. . . . Manuel . . . had been on the football team.”).

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 4 (“Education was an annoying burden to Margarita, because it required her to buy clothes and supplies for the kids. She did not think education was important at all. Rose was certain that, had there not been a law requiring children to go to school, none of them would have attended.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 19:46:25–19:48:11, 19:54:26–19:56:31 (“And they weren’t, my parent’s [sic] weren’t parents that encouraged you to finish school. That wasn’t their lifestyle. They had a totally different lifestyle. Education wasn’t one of [their priorities]. . . . It was a hard thing, my parents didn’t believe in education. Especially my mom, she didn’t believe in education, that’s just one thing she didn’t encourage us in.”; “[T]he only reason why my mom allowed us to go to school is she was forced by the [law]—If you don’t go to school, you get in trouble. So that’s the only reason why we were able to go to school, because of that law. If that law wasn’t in place we wouldn’t be going to school.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 19:48:14–19:49:25, 19:54:26–19:56:31 (describing how the DeLuna kids got to school [after they moved out of the projects]: “[I]f we wanted to go to school, we had to take to take the city bus, from the city bus, take the school bus, and from the school bus get to school.”; “take the city bus and from the city bus take the school bus and from the school bus go to school.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 19:48:14–19:49:25:

[Margarita] never went to school. My mom couldn’t read or write or speak any English. She totally depended on us kids to help her on everything as far as translating everything for her. That was part of my duty, to help her with all the translation, and so I grew up pretty fast. I had to learn pretty fast how to be an adult quickly. Because of the situation we lived in, because she wasn’t educated. . . . And as far as money-wise it was really hard for them. Because my mom cleaned houses, my step dad was a construction worker, so money was really tight. So if we wanted anything we had to work for it.

See also Pre-Disposition Investigation for Carlos DeLuna, Al R. Reyna, Intake Coordinator, Probation Dep’t (June 27, 1978) at 3 (reporting that Margarita was uneducated and illiterate in Spanish and English); Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Toni Peña, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 25, 2004) at 2 (“Toni remembered her mother worked for HEB, a grocery store chain, and also cleaned houses.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:12:12–20:14:13 (“[Y]ou have to understand, [Margarita] never went to school. So I don’t blame her. That’s just the way she was brought up, and a lot of old generation, Mexican generations, that’s how it is. You don’t go to school. Their thoughts are, when you are old enough to get a job you should be out there working, and that’s just the way it is in the Mexican generation.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Vicky Gutierrez, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Garland, Texas (Feb. 27, 2005) at 00:12:46–00:13:09, 00:18:05–00:18:20:00, 00:18:20–00:18:40, 00:19:20–00:19:35 (“Oh, God. She loved Carlos. That was her pride and joy. She would do anything for Carlos, anything. She loved us all, but Carlos, he was her love, he was. She would do anything for him.”; “Consentido? Yeah, I think so. Carlos was her consentido.”; “She loved us all, like I told you. [But with] him, I don’t know why, it was more.”; “It was like he was his favorite son, my mother’s favorite son. She loved him very much.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Vicky Gutierrez, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Garland, Texas (Feb. 27, 2005) at 00:12:46–00:13:09, 00:18:05–00:18:20:00, 00:18:20–00:18:40, 00:19:20–00:19:35.

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Vicky Gutierrez, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Garland, Texas (Feb. 27, 2005), at 00:13:09–00:13:50:

Maybe [Margarita loved Carlos best] because he started getting in trouble with the law or something like that. That’s what I think. A mother is a mother, even if you are bad. You do bad things, your mother is going to love you. It’s something in a mother that when your son does something wrong to her, she don’t [feel] no wrong. I’m a mother, and that’s the way I feel. My kids are angels to me. Even if they do something wrong, to me, they don’t do no wrong.

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 3–4 (“Carlos looked like Joe DeLuna, and was their mother’s favorite.”); see also Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:28:54–20:30:42 (“She [Margarita] loved Carlos so much.”); Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Mary Arredando, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 26, 2004) at 2 (“Carlos resembled Joe DeLuna.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:28:54–20:30:42 (“She loved Carlos so much. And there again, I did ask her, why all this special attention to Carlos? You have to understand how the other siblings felt. I always happened to be the outspoken one.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:26:00–20:28:29 (“Any time he [Carlos] did something that he wasn’t supposed to be doing, she [Margarita] was there, helping him, constantly.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) (“I know my mom knew there was something wrong, because she was always helping him. Any time he did something that he wasn’t supposed to be doing, she was there, helping him, constantly.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:05:52–20:08:01:

[Margarita] said “. . . [P]icture a little bird with a broken wing. That’s your brother. Your brother is the little bird with the broken wing. And the other little birds can take care of themselves; they’ve flown out of the nest. They know how to take care of themselves, so I don’t have to worry about them. But your brother is the one with the broken wing, and he needs help until that broken wing can heal. Then hopefully things will be better for him. And that’s the reason why I am always there for him. Because he’s the little bird with the broken wing.”

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005), at 20:28:54–20:30:42:

She loved Carlos so much. And there again, I did ask her, why all this special attention to Carlos? You have to understand how the other siblings felt. I always happened to be the outspoken one. That’s what she told me. That’s the example she gave me, him having that broken wing, and that’s the reason why. She knew she didn’t have to worry about the other little birds. She knew the other little birds will make it on their own. They’re going to be ok, but this one cannot make it on his own.

See also Transcribed Videotape Interview with Vicky Gutierrez, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Garland, Texas (Feb. 27, 2005) at 00:13:09–00:13:50 (“Maybe [her Carlos was her mother’s favorite] because he started getting in trouble with the law or something like that. That’s what I think. A mother is a mother, even if you are bad. You do bad things, your mother is going to love you.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:26:00–20:28:20 (“My mom raised eight kids, and when you have that many kids, nine kids total, and you see each kid, you know that there’s something wrong with one. So I believe that my mom, even though she never said it—maybe she didn’t know how to say it—she knew that Carlos had a disability issue. She knew that he was slower than the others.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:26:00–20:28:20.

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:26:00–20:28:29 (“[M]y mom, even though she never said it—maybe she didn’t know how to say it—she knew that that Carlos had a disability issue. She knew that he was slower than the others. . . . [M]y mom knew there was a problem there with him. She knew that he wasn’t learning the way he should be learning.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:14:13–20:16:05 (“Could [Carlos] talk to you like we’re talking right now? Yes. If you look at him and talk to him, do you think there is something wrong with him? No. But if you actually give him something to read, then you would see he had an issue, a learning disability. He did have an issue on that.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:25:07–20:25:30 (“Q. I know it’s a very hard word to use, but do you think he was retarded? A. He was slow. He was slow. As far as manual work, and stuff like that, he would watch you do something, and pick it up. But if you would ask him, read this and do it, he couldn’t do it.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:14:13–20:16:05, 20:25:10–20:25:20 (“[I]f you actually give him something to read, then you would see he had an issue, a learning disability. He did have an issue on that.”; “[I]f you would ask him, read this and do it, he couldn’t do it.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:26:00–20:28:29 (“My mom raised eight kids, and when you have that many kids, nine kids total, and you see each kid, you know that there’s something wrong with one. So I believe that my mom, even though she never said it—maybe she didn’t know how to say it—she knew that Carlos had a disability issue.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:28:54–20:30:42:

So when Carlos was convicted for this murder, my mom was . . . . That was it. She knew, deep in her heart, that there wasn’t . . . . She didn’t know how to get him out of it. If she could, she would. . . . I believe she believes she let him down, knowing that he was that broken wing, and she gave up. She gave up when Carlos was convicted for this murder. That’s what killed my mom. I believe that. She was tired. She was tired. She just did not know what else to do.

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:28:54–20:30:42, 20:43:57–20:45:42 (“She was the witness that Carlos did call her to come pick him up from the skating rink.”; Margarita “didn’t [get to testify for Carlos]. And that would have helped Carlos. I believe it would have helped him, somehow. But he did call the house.”); see Blas Avalos, Stepfather of Carlos DeLuna, Trial Test., Texas v. DeLuna, No. 83-CR–194-A (Nueces Cty., 28th Dist. Tex. July 18, 1983) at 402–07 (“Then my wife told me Carlos wanted us to give him a ride [to the Gulf Skating Rink] . . . well about 7:00, something like that. . . . He called about 8:00 or 8:15 for us to pick him up. . . . [but] I told my wife to tell him to take a taxi to come home because I was drunk.”); see also George Aguirre, Witness to Events Outside Shamrock Gas Station, Trial Test., Texas v. DeLuna, No. 83-CR–194-A (Nueces Cty., 28th Dist. Tex. July 18, 1983) at 227 (“I got in my van and I got on SPID. . . I got off and I went to . . . the skating rink. . . on Kostroyz [and SPID].”); Map from 2602 South Padre Island Dr., Corpus Christi, Tex. 78415 (the gas station) to 3215 South Padre Island Dr., Corpus Christi, Tex. (the skating rink), Google Maps, http://maps.google.com/maps?saddr=2602+South+Padre+Island+Dr.%2C+Corpus+Christi%2C+TX+78415+&daddr=3215+South+Padre+Island+Dr.%2C+Corpus+Christi (last visited May 3, 2012) (indicating that the distance between the two locations is 1.3 miles). Archived at: http://perma.cc/Q748-698E.

Carlos DeLuna, Defendant in Killing of Wanda Lopez, Trial Test., Texas v. DeLuna, No. 834-CR–194-A (Nueces Cty., 28th Dist. Tex. July 19, 1983) at 410–11 (“Q. Back on February the 4th, 1983, were you working for Triarch Corporation? A. Yes, sir, I was. Q. And how were you able to get that job? A. By my father, stepfather. Q. And what’s his name? A. Blas Avalos. Q. And prior to getting that job, where had you been? . . . A. I was in prison, sir. . . . Q. From the time of your release [on December 21st, 1982] or at the time of your release, where did you go? A. Home, sir. To my stepfather’s house, 2046 Rockford. Q. And was it after that that you were able to get a job? A. After that, sir, yes, sir.”); see supra notes 47–49.

Blas Avalos, Stepfather of Carlos DeLuna, Trial Test., Texas v. DeLuna, No. 83-CR–194-A (Nueces Cty., 28th Dist. Tex. July 18, 1983) at 403 (“Q. Were you and Carlos working together for Triarch? A. Yes, sir. Q. Okay. Did you help him get that job? A. Yes, sir.”); Carlos DeLuna, Defendant in Killing of Wanda Lopez, Trial Test., Texas v. DeLuna, No. 83-CR–194-A (Nueces Cty., 28th Dist. Tex. July 18, 1983) at 410 (“Q. Back on February 4, 1983, were you working for Triarch Corporation? A. Yes, sir, I was. Q. And how were you able to get that job? A. By my father, stepfather. Q. And what’s his name? A. Blas Avalos.”). Carlos’ birthday was March 15, 1962, making him 20 years old at the time of the Lopez murder. See Pre-Disposition Investigation for Carlos DeLuna, Al R. Reyna, Intake Coordinator, Probation Dep’t (June 27, 1978) at 1; Carlos DeLuna, Defendant in Killing of Wanda Lopez, Trial Test., Texas v. DeLuna, No. 83-CR–194-A (Nueces Cty., 28th Dist. Tex. July 18, 1983) at 410.

Blas Avalos, Stepfather of Carlos DeLuna, Trial Test., Texas v. DeLuna, No. 83-CR–194-A (Nueces Cty., 28th Dist. Tex. July 18, 1983) at 402–07 (“Then my wife told me Carlos wanted us to give him a ride [to the Gulf Skating Rink] . . . well about 7:00, something like that. . . . He called about 8:00 or 8:15 for us to pick him up. . . . [but] I told my wife to tell him to take a taxi to come home because I was drunk.”).

Blas Avalos, Stepfather of Carlos DeLuna, Trial Test., Texas v. DeLuna, No. 83-CR–194-A (Nueces Cty., 28th Dist. Tex. July 18, 1983) at 405 (“About 5:00 . . . my foreman and I, after we got off the job, we [Blas and the foreman] went to cash our checks and get a beer.”).

Blas Avalos, Stepfather of Carlos DeLuna, Trial Test., Texas v. DeLuna, No. 83-CR–194-A (Nueces Cty., 28th Dist. Tex. July 18, 1983) at 402–07 (“Then my wife told me Carlos wanted us to give him a ride [to the Gulf Skating Rink] . . . well about 7:00, something like that. . . . He called about 8:00 or 8:15 for us to pick him up. . . . [but] I told my wife to tell him to take a taxi to come home because I was drunk.”); Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:28:54–20:30:42 (“Carlos did call her to come pick him up from the skating ring. I believe strongly, my mom blames herself for that, for not going out there and trying to get him. I believe she believes she let him down, knowing that he was that [child with a] broken wing, and she gave up. She gave up when Carlos was convicted for this murder. That’s what killed my mom.”); Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:42:15–20:43:31:

My mom had a problem in seeing, driving late at night. There again, my step-dad was an alcoholic. As soon as he got paid on Friday . . . he drank ‘till Sunday evening. That’s all he did, was drink Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, all day long, from the time he would wake up to the time he would pass out. There again, my mom didn’t see that well at night, so when Carlos called her and asked her for a ride, I don’t know if she—She must have probably known something. My step-father must have asked her or told her something, Carlos called, let him find his way or get his transportation back to the house. I think that’s where my mom blames herself. If she would have just went for him. If she would have just got in that car and went and picked him up, he would not have been in the situation that happened.

See also Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Toni Peña, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 25, 2004) at 3 (“Toni remembered that Carlos had called Margarita and Blas and asked them to pick him up that night [of the Lopez murder], but they were old and did not want to go out at that time of night. It [the crime] happened after that.”).

Blas Avalos, Stepfather of Carlos DeLuna, Trial Test., Texas v. DeLuna, No. 83-CR–194-A (Nueces Cty., 28th Dist. Tex. July 18, 1983) at 407 (“Q. Did you, in fact, go and pick up Carlos? A. No, I told him—I told my wife to tell him to take a taxi to come home because I was drunk.”); Carlos DeLuna, Defendant in Killing of Wanda Lopez, Trial Test., Texas v. DeLuna, No. 83-CR–194-A (Nueces Cty., 28th Dist. Tex. July 18, 1983) at 417–18 (“Q. Why did you call your stepfather? A. To ask him for a ride, sir, to come pick me up . . . . [I]t was close to 8:00.”).

See Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Toni Peña, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 25, 2004) at 4 (“I asked about Blas Avalos, Toni and Carlos’s stepfather. Toni did not know where he was living now. He is in very bad shape. He has organic brain syndrome from alcoholism. Toni said Blas was a good provider, but he drank too much. The last time she saw him, he could not remember what he had just eaten, or that he had just eaten. His mind is gone.”). See generally Peso Chavez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (April 5–6, 2004) at 2 (“According to [Rose], after her mother’s death the family became distant and they rarely ever communicate with each other.”).

See Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:28:54–20:30:42, 20:43:57–20–45:42 (“She [Margarita] was the witness that Carlos did call her to come pick him up from the skating rink.”; Margarita “didn’t [get to testify for Carlos]. And that would have helped Carlos. I believe it would have helped him, somehow. But he did call the house.”); see also Oral Argument on June 20, 1983 Motion for Continuance, Texas v. DeLuna, No. 83-CR–194A (Nueces Cty., 28th Dist. Tex. June 20, 1983) at 3:

[Defense Counsel] Lawrence: We intend to prove, Your Honor, that on the date in question, that [Margarita] can place him at the home and with her doing a few errands prior to the time the deceased was killed. Also—she also would testify to the fact that she took him to the Gulf Skating Rink and at some time later that he made a phone call to her and all of this evolves very close to the time that this alleged murder took place.

The Court denied Defendant’s Second Motion for a Continuance, which sought a delay based on his mother’s medical conditions and the importance of her testimony. See Oral Argument on June 20, 1983 Motion for Continuance, Texas v. DeLuna, No. 83-CR–194A (Nueces Cty., 28th Dist. Tex. June 20, 1983) at 99 (discussed supra note 3); Criminal Docket, Texas v. DeLuna, No. 83-CR–194-A (Nueces Cty., 28th Dist. Tex. Feb. 17, 1983) at 3.

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:05:17–20:05:48 (“I believe my mom gave up. That’s what I believe. My mom was tired, and she gave up. She just got tired.”); Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:28:54–20:30:42:

So when Carlos was convicted for this murder, my mom was—That was it. She knew, deep in her heart, that there wasn’t—She didn’t know how to get him out of it. If she could, she would. . . . Carlos did call her to come pick him up from the skating ring. I believe strongly, my mom blames herself for that, for not going out there and trying to get him. I believe she believes she let him down, knowing that he was that broken wing, and she gave up. She gave up when Carlos was convicted for this murder. That’s what killed my mom. I believe that. She was tired. She was tired. She just did not know what else to do.

See also Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Toni Peña, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 25, 2004) at 4 (“Toni did not attend the trial, but her sister Mary went every day. A couple of times, Mary took [Toni’s daughter] Belinda with her.”).

See sources cited supra note 88.

See sources cited supra note 88.

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:28:54–20:30:42 (“Carlos did call her to come pick him up from the skating rink. I believe strongly, my mom blames herself for that, for not going out there and trying to get him. I believe she believes she let him down, knowing that he was that [child with the] broken wing, and she gave up. She gave up when Carlos was convicted for this murder. That’s what killed my mom.”); Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:42:15–20:43:31:

My mom had a problem in seeing, driving late at night. There again, my step-dad was an alcoholic. As soon as he got paid on Friday . . . he drank ‘till Sunday evening. That’s all he did, was drink Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, all day long, from the time he would wake up to the time he would pass out. There again, my mom didn’t see that well at night, so when Carlos called her and asked her for a ride, I don’t know if she—She must have probably known something. My step-father must have asked her or told her something, Carlos called, let him find his way or get his transportation back to the house. I think that’s where my mom blames herself. If she would have just went for him. If she would have just got in that car and went and picked him up, he would not have been in the situation that happened.

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Toni Peña, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 25, 2004) at 3 (“Toni found out about Carlos when he called her and told her he had been arrested, and they were not going to let him go. He did not seem to understand what had happened to him.”).

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Toni Peña, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 25, 2004) at 4.

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005), at 20:42:15–20:43:31 (“I think that’s where my mom blames herself. If she would have just went for him. If she would have just got in that car and went and picked him up, he would not have been in the situation that happened.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:05:17–20:05:48 (“I believe my mom gave up. That’s what I believe. My mom was tired, and she gave up. She just got tired.”); Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:28:54–20:30:42:

So when Carlos was convicted for this murder, my mom was . . . That was it. She knew, deep in her heart, that there wasn’t—She didn’t know how to get him out of it. If she could, she would. . . . She gave up when Carlos was convicted for this murder. That’s what killed my mom. . . . She gave up when Carlos was convicted for this murder. That’s what killed my mom. I believe that. She was tired. She was tired. She just did not know what else to do.

See also James S. Liebman’s Notes on Interview with Manuel DeLuna, Brother of Carlos DeLuna (Aug. 17, 2004) at 2:

My mother died because of this shit (CDL’s [Carlos DeLuna’s capital murder] arrest and conviction). I was in Dall[a]s working . . . I had no[] funds. I was married to Yolanda and we had a kid or two. I told mom, that he’ll be out again very soon giving you hell. Don’t worry about it. I felt bad (not going back to CC [Corpus Christi] as mom asked), but I had responsibility and I was barely hanging on by my fingernails in Dallas, so I never went back to CC. Now is the first time in my life I can breathe. No worries about money, and some left over.

Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 6 (“Rose stated that, for a long time, she blamed their mother for Carlos getting the death penalty.”); see also Transcribed Videotape Interview with Karen Boudrie-Evers, Corpus Christi Television Reporter, in Dallas, Texas (Feb. 28, 2005) at 03:24:20–03:25:12 (reading from a letter written to her by Carlos DeLuna written in early December 1989):

I will go ahead and tell you a little bit about my childhood. Maybe you will be able to understand me a little more. I grew up in a big family. There were nine of us. My real father left when I was only an infant, about five or six months old, and my mother brought us up. I think I was about five or six years old when she married my stepfather. He was a good man but he was an alcoholic. He drank a whole lot. But he always did support us, and he was a good person. But he never really cared, I guess, a whole lot about us. My mother, she was 40 years old when she had me. And she was old, and I guess she was tired of raising kids. But she did try her best. I can’t take anything from her. But one of my sisters does blame my mother. I don’t know why, but she does.

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:30:42–20:32:34 (“As I remember, recalling, my mom died in 1983, and this was in August 1983 when my mom passed away. Carlos was, I believe it was in February of ’83, that they claimed that Carlos committed this crime. My mom passed away in August of ’83.”).

See sources cited infra note 99 and accompanying text.

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:30:42–20:32:34:

I saw her three days before she died. And she did ask me one thing—she didn’t ask any of the other siblings. But she did ask me, because she knew Carlos and I were very close. She did ask me. She said, “I want you to do something for me.” I asked her, “What’s that?” “Promise me you’ll always look out for Carlos, promise me that.” I told her, “Ok, I’ll look after him.” And I couldn’t help him. I did not know how to help him. And I know he didn’t commit this crime. And I blame myself because I wasn’t educated enough to learn about all these words they were saying in the trial, and the paperwork. I didn’t understand it.

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:48:24–20:49:41, 21:17:23–21:18:30 (“I just did not know how to help him. I didn’t know. I didn’t know what to do.”; “I blamed myself for the longest time. How could I have helped him? If I could have been just a little bit—If I could have been smarter and more educated I could have helped him. I just did not know how to help him. I did not know what to do.”).

See sources cited supra note 99 and accompanying text.

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005), at 20:32:36–20:33:28:

He [Carlos] told me he didn’t do it. I asked him, “Carlos, did you do this?” I asked him when he was in Death Row. I asked him, “Did you do this?” He said, “No, I didn’t do it. If you would just go to Corpus, this is where this guy lives. His name is Carlos Hernandez.” He committed the crime. Manuel, my older brother, knows this Carlos Hernandez. I kept saying that over and over to the attorney, I kept saying that over and over, and they were saying that that was a lie, there was no Carlos Hernandez, that they hired private investigators. There was no Carlos Hernandez, it was a made-up name, there’s no such thing.

See also Transcribed Videotape Interview with Vicky Gutierrez, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Garland, Texas (Feb. 27, 2005) at 00:23:17–00:23:52 (Carlos “was always saying he didn’t do it. That they were going to execute him. That’s all he would say, he said that he didn’t do it.”); Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005), at 20:48:24–20:49:41 (“At the end, Carlos . . . said, ‘Whatever happens, happens. But I did not commit this crime. I want you to know that.’ I told him, ‘Oh, I know that.’ I just did not know how to help him. I didn’t know. I didn’t know what to do.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 19:59:44–20:02:58, 21:26:52–21:27:45 (“Carlos DeLuna is not the person they said committed this crime. My brother Carlos could not do such a crime. I know that for a fact and still believe that. I believe that my brother was executed wrongfully. He wasn’t given a chance. And he didn’t commit this I know that. Could he lie? Yes, he lies, he lied. Could he steal? Yeah, he stole. Could he do drugs? Yeah, he did drugs. I know all that. But he could never hurt anyone. Not kill anyone.”; “[M]y brother did not commit that crime. Carlos didn’t commit it. I know that.”); see also Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:38:57–20:39:50 (“But [Carlos had] another side too, as far as stealing, and lying, and sniffing paint.”).

See sources cited supra note 102 and accompanying text.

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 19:59:44–20:02:58 (“As growing up as kids, my brother was afraid of the dark. That tells you something about a person. He was afraid of the dark.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 19:59:44–20:02:58 (“And growing up as kids we had a paper route, he and I had a paper route. We rolled up papers and we would go throw them out early in the morning. He was afraid of a Chihuahua this big. 13-year-old boy afraid of a Chihuahua this big. So I know my brother couldn’t commit such a crime that they say that he did. I know that dead in my heart that he couldn’t commit such a crime.”); see James S. Liebman’s Notes on Interview with Manuel DeLuna, Brother of Carlos DeLuna (Aug. 17, 2004) at 1–2, 4 (“Carlos DeLuna as kid: good kid, until met Ida Sosa. Then life changed. Before that he played. Scared of dogs.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Vicky Gutierrez, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Garland, Texas (Feb. 27, 2005) at 00:06:30–00:06:55 (“I never thought that Carlos would do something like that. It was a shock to me when I heard what happened. I know he was a crazy kid that goes out with his friends and stuff like that. But killing? I don’t think he would. It was something I couldn’t believe.”); Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Mary Arredando, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 26, 2004) at 4 (“No one could believe it when Carlos was arrested for murder.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Vicky Gutierrez, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Garland, Texas (Feb. 27, 2005) at 00:08:00–00:08:19 (“They were very nice kids. They would listen to us. We would take them to the movies, anywhere we wanted to go we would take them. They behaved. They were well-behaved.”); Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Mary Arredando, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 26, 2004) at 3 (“Mary remembered when she, Vicky and Becky were dating. They couldn’t leave the little kids alone, so each sister would pick one child and take them on her date. She laughed about this and said it wasn’t that bad. She often picked Carlos. Mary remembered Carlos as a good boy that was kind and gentle and loving.”); see also Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Toni Peña, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 25, 2004) at 3 (Carlos’s half-sister “Toni remembered Carlos as very loveable.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005), at 20:20:52–20:21:50:

Carlos was a follower. He was a follower. Carlos could never—You have different kinds of categories of people. Carlos was never the instigator. That was always my older brother, Manuel. He was always the instigator. . . . Carlos was a follower, Carlos followed people. . . . I’m not a follower, but when we were kids, I recall our older brother starting up, “We’re going to do this, we’re going to plan this, and you’re going to do this, Carlos, and Rose, you’re going to do this,” because my mom and dad worked. My mom cleaned houses, my dad, step-dad worked at construction. So we stayed home all day during the summer. We were home. And Manuel was the instigator. He would plan stuff and we would follow. So Carlos was a follower, Carlos followed people.

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:22:00–20:23:12 (“My mother, Manuel and Carlos, one Christmas, bought them bicycles. Manuel was the instigator, and they were going to take off from Corpus Christi, Texas, all the way to Dallas, Texas. I have brothers and sisters living in Dallas, older brothers and sisters living in Dallas, in Garland, Texas. Manuel planned that they were going to take these two bicycles, ride these two bicycles all the way to Dallas. They got caught, got thrown into juvenile . . . .”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:22:00–20:23:12:

Carlos would follow right behind [Manuel], constantly. And Carlos would always take the blame for Manuel, and then he [Manuel] would always blame us, [saying that] myself and my brother, Carlos did it. We’re the ones that did it, we’re the ones that set it all up, and we’re to blame. We would get in trouble, and Carlos would always take the blame. He would never say, “What. It was Manuel.” It was always Carlos taking the blame for Manuel, constantly.

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:22:00–20:23:12.

James S. Liebman’s Notes on Interview with Manuel DeLuna, Brother of Carlos DeLuna (Aug. 17, 2004) at 2 (“My brother was not a leader; he was a follower. He could be brainwashed to do anything. He was a good kid.”).

Eddie Garza, Corpus Christi Police Detective, Sentencing Test., Texas v. DeLuna, No. 83-CR–194-A (Nueces Cty., 28th Dist. Tex. July 21, 1983) at 11–12 (“Q. Are you familiar with the reputation he [Carlos DeLuna] enjoys in this community for being a peaceable and law-abiding citizen? A. [by Garza]: Yes, I am. Q. Is that reputation good or bad? A. It’s bad.”); see Transcribed Videotape Interview with Karen Boudrie-Evers, Corpus Christi Television Reporter, in Dallas, Texas (Feb. 28, 2005) at 02:59:38–03:00:38 (“I knew [Detective] Eddie [Garza]. He was a nice guy. He had a good reputation just as being a good guy and a good cop . . . . Paul [Rivera] and Eddie were like Batman and Robin. At that time, they were the greatest detectives ever.”); Transcribed Videotape Interview with Jon Kelly, Lawyer for Carlos Hernandez, in Corpus Christi, Texas (Dec. 9, 2004) at 06:22:16–06:24:02, 06:24:24–06:25:40 (“The two gentleman in the picture with Carlos [DeLuna] there, to his left and to the right of the picture [are] Eddie Garza, and just behind Carlos is Paul Rivera, now I believe Chief Deputy of the Nueces County Sheriff’s Office. They were the top murder investigators for the CCPD at that time”; “Eddie and Paul were conscientious. They were very good investigators. . . . They were the city’s top murder investigators. . . . [T]hey were tough, but in the end, they tried to be fair.”); Transcribed Videotape Interview with Jon Kelly, Lawyer for Carlos Hernandez, in Corpus Christi, Texas (Dec. 9, 2004) at 06:25:40–06:27:36:

The two gentlemen in the picture with Carlos Hernandez are, the first one is Eddie Garza, and the other officer behind Carlos [DeLuna] is Paul Rivera. Eddie and Paul were the two top investigators for the Corpus Christi Police Department. There were even people senior, but if you had a serious murder case, and you wanted it investigated seriously, you wanted Eddie and Paul. They were considered the top people. I mean, if there were others involved they usually were on the periphery, and Paul and Eddie would do the serious, on-the-ground investigation. They could, at times, be ruthless, but they had—Actually, I didn’t think they were violent men. I dealt with them in numerous cases. It wasn’t the stereotypical picture of hitting people or anything, they didn’t do things like that. Sometimes they had tunnel vision, and sometimes the forest for the trees was lost. But in the end, they would see the light, and their reputation was that they were fair men. And that, if shown, or if they came upon evidence that would harm their case, but actually, they thought, led to a different result, they wouldn’t hide it.

Tamara Theiss’s Notes on Interview with Olivia Escobedo, Corpus Christi Police Detective in Wanda Lopez and Dahlia Sauceda Cases (Feb. 27, 2005) at 1 (“I worked under [Detectives] Paul Rivera and Eddie Garza. . . . [T]hey taught me everything I know about how to work up a case. They really acted as my mentors . . . [and] taught me to go down every rabbit hole to see where it led, no matter what the result . . . [and] investigate every angle and every lead in a case, even if it didn’t pan out.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Eddie Garza, Corpus Christi Police Detective, in Corpus Christi, Texas (Dec. 6, 2004) at 00:27:32–00:27:59 (“We had a tendency, me and my partner, that we would stop and talk to all the people that were hanging around in that [Hispanic] area [ofr town near Staples and Mary Streets], try to identify who was hanging around with who, and who ran with who, in case later on there was a crime committed, we could actually pinpoint, by description of these individuals, who might be involved in these particular crimes that were committed in that general area.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Eddie Garza, Corpus Christi Police Detective, in Corpus Christi, Texas (Dec. 6, 2004) at 00:37:43–00:38:47:

Carlos DeLuna was sort of a slow thinker. I wouldn’t say he that he was a complete retarded person. He was just slow in thinking. And he wasn’t a violent person that I can remember. He was just a slow person, a follower, someone that, they would tell him “Go do this” or “Go do that” and the guy would follow what someone else told him. He wasn’t a person that would stand up and think on his own what he was going to do. Most of his habits was really intoxication and petty theft, but nothing in the violent part of . . . that you would say Carlos DeLuna is a very violent person. Never, never did I have anything dealing with any violence. Mostly it was just that he was a slow thinker . . . . He was just a slow thinker, a follower, not a leader.

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Eddie Garza, Corpus Christi Police Detective, in Corpus Christi, Texas (Dec. 6, 2004) at 00:37:43–00:38:47.

Duncan Ryan, Teacher, Corpus Christi Ind. Sch. Dist., Student Referral for Special Services (undated) at 1:

Name of Pupil: Carlos DeLuna. Age: 11. Grade: 6. It is suggested that the student be referred for: Psychological/Educational Evaluation. 1. Briefly Describe The Reasons for Referral: . . . Carlos is a discipline problem in class. If the teacher turns his back for a minute, Carlos has gotten up and moved. He interferes with his classmates’ learning. He can read but can’t comprehend. He is lost on abstract concepts such as fractions. He does pretty well one-to-one but can’t function in even a small group. His attention span is extremely short.

See Judy Braselton, Educational Diagnostician, Corpus Christi Ind. Sch. Dist., Psychological Report (Apr. 9, 1974) at 1–2 (“Tests Administered: Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (Bilingual administration); Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (Bilingual Administration); Illinois Test of Psycholinguistic Abilities (Revised); Bender-Gestalt Test of Visual Motor Skills; Benton’s Visual Retention Test; Wide Range Achievement Test; Wepman Auditory Discrimination Test.”).

Corpus Christi Ind. Sch. Dist., Medical Assessment Record for Carlos DeLUna (Feb. 26, 1976) at 4 (reporting that “Carlos was tested on 3–8–74” and found to have “language learning disorder LLD” and was recommended for assignment to the resource room).

Judy Braselton, Educational Diagnostician, Corpus Christi Ind. Sch. Dist., Psychological Report (Apr. 9, 1974) at 1–2:

See supra note 120.

See Judy Braselton, Educational Diagnostician, Corpus Christi Ind. Sch. Dist., Psychological Report (Apr. 9, 1974) at 2–3:

When he is being asked to learn and remember, it may help him if he can use both sight and hearing, as well as any other senses that could be involved. Also distractions in the class may prevent him from using his auditory memory skills to his best advantage. . . . Recommendation: The local Admission, Review, and Dismissal Committee might consider the following recommendations: . . . Placement in a resource room instructional setting.

See supra note 120 (documenting DeLuna’s deficits in reading and math that led to the special-education recommendation).

Review Committee, Corpus Christi Ind. Sch. Dist., Special Education: Admission, Review and Dismissal Committee Report (Apr. 9, 1976) at 1 (“Essential Information: Low average I.Q. Has been a discipline problem. Has weaknesses in abstract reasoning & visual memory; strengths in visual reception, . . . & auditory memory. . . . Summary and Recommendations from Committee: Placement: Initially, this student might benefit from 2–3 hours/periods each day in the resource room; . . . Recommended subject areas in resource room: recommend resource in history and science.”).

Corpus Christi Ind. Sch. Dist., Medical Assessment Record for Carlos DeLuna (Feb. 26, 1976), at 1; Review Committee, Corpus Christi Ind. Sch. Dist., Special Education: Admission, Review and Dismissal Committee Report (Apr. 9, 1976) at 1.

Review Committee, Corpus Christi Ind. Sch. Dist., Special Education: Admission, Review and Dismissal Committee Report (Apr. 9, 1976) at 1 (“Essential Information: Low average I.Q. Has been a discipline problem. Has weaknesses in abstract reasoning & visual memory; strengths in visual reception, . . . & auditory memory. . . . Summary and Recommendations from Committee: Placement: Initially, this student might benefit from 2–3 hours/periods each day in the resource room. . . . Recommended subject areas in resource room: recommend resource in history and science.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:12:12–20:17:56:

Carlos never did well in school, we knew that. He was always slower in education. We always had to help him in school. And there again, when your parents don’t encourage you to do, to do well in school. My mom just, for some reason, never encouraged—There again, you have to understand, she never went to school. So I don’t blame her. . . . And we knew that Carlos had a learning issue. Did we ever bring it up? No. Because it was one of those things, well he didn’t need education. He can grow up and get a job. He doesn’t—What’s the education for? So you have to understand that part of the lifestyle. I knew Carlos had education issues, that’s why he gave up in school. Because he was tired of kids making fun of him cause he couldn’t read that well. Or spell that well. Or do well in school. And he wanted to be in sports, which my mother allowed him to play football. And then he was dropped out of football because he wasn’t doing well in school. So, when your kicked out of a sport, because you’re not doing well in school and you know you have a disability. He knew he had an issue in school. . . . I think he went into a depression situation as far as, “Hey, I’m not good at school. I can’t even play a sport. Who cares I’m just going to hang out and do whatever.” If you don’t have parents encouraging you to do something with your life and improve yourself, then what choices do you have? To hang out and do things you’re not supposed to be doing. And I think, in some kids as far as my case, in my situation, with me not being encouraged not to go to school. . . . I also think that if you have a learning disability, if there is something not right there with you, I think you’re just going to go on the path, like “I don’t care what happens to me.” In my situation, I cared, I didn’t want to live like that. I didn’t want to have ten or fifteen kids, from all these different men and be on welfare. So I was looking ahead. Do I want to live like this? Do I want to live like the way my mom lives? Not saying that she had fifteen kids from all these different men, I’m not saying that. I’m just saying I just looked ahead of—Do I want to be like this? Do I want to grow up to be with all these kids and not educated, and not do this and not do that? I mean, I’ve had some bumps in my life. But I also picked myself up and moved on to improve my life. I think Carlos gave up because he was laughed at, at school. And he knew he had a disability problem. And he just didn’t know where to go to get the help that you could get help. And a lot there again my mom just really didn’t care, not care, that really wasn’t an issue. So what if you can’t read or write. So what? You can always go work, you can always get a job and work. But I think Carlos didn’t want that, and I think that’s where he gave up. He just gave up.

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:17:56–20:18:39, 20:26:00–20:28:29 (“[Carlos] dropped out of school because people were making fun of him at school because he wasn’t doing well and he just gave up. I believe Carlos dropped out at 7th grade. And then he got a job.”; “As Carlos got older, he realized that he was different from Manuel, older brother, and I. He knew that. I know for sure what hurt Carlos the most was when he was kicked out of football. When he was kicked out of football, he gave up. I saw Carlos give up. That’s when he dropped out of school. He didn’t care anymore, just didn’t care.”); see also Pre-Disposition Investigation for Carlos DeLuna, Al R. Reyna, Intake Coordinator, Probation Dep’t (June 27, 1978) at 3 (“B. Education: Carlos DeLuna was attending the eighth grade at Tom Browne Junior High School in Corpus Christi, Texas and dropped out in 1977. He did not attend school for the entire school year of 1977–1978 [which would have been his ninth grade year].”); Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:28:30–20:28:40 (“I know Manuel would know what position [Carlos played] because Manuel was also in football”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005), at 20:12:12–20:14:13, 20:14:13–20:17:56, 20:17:56–20:18:39:

But did he ever bring it up? No, there again you have to understand, my mother wasn’t encouraging for us to do well in school. It was no big deal. That’s just the way she was brought up. So there was never any help given to Carlos like they have help now. If you know your kids are having some problems with learning, you can hire tutors to help your kids. That wasn’t the case with Carlos. So Carlos gave up. He just gave up. . . . Carlos never did well in school, we knew that. He was always slower in education. We always had to help him in school. And there again, when your parents don’t encourage you to do, to do well in school. My mom just, for some reason, never encouraged—There again, you have to understand, she never went to school. So I don’t blame her. . . . And we knew that Carlos had a learning issue. Did we ever bring it up? No. Because it was one of those things, well he didn’t need education. He can grow up and get a job. He doesn’t—What’s the education for? So you have to understand that part of the lifestyle. . . . [And] again my mom just really didn’t care, not care, that [Carlos’s dropping out] really wasn’t an issue . . . . [Carlos] dropped out of school because people were making fun of him at school because he wasn’t doing well and he just gave up. I believe Carlos dropped out at 7th grade. And then he got a job.

See infra note 183 (noting that Carlos worked at the Whataburger).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:12:12–20:14:13:

But did he [Carlos] ever bring it up [his difficulties in school and the teasing [because of it]? No, there again you have to understand, my mother wasn’t encouraging for us to do well in school. It was no big deal. That’s just the way she was brought up. So there was never any help given to Carlos like they have help now. If you know your kids are having some problems with learning, you can hire tutors to help your kids. That wasn’t the case with Carlos. So Carlos gave up. He just gave up. . . . I knew Carlos had education issues, that’s why he gave up in school. Because he was tired of kids making fun of him cause he couldn’t read that well. Or spell that well. Or do well in school. And he wanted to be in sports, which my mother allowed him to play football. And then he was dropped out of football because he wasn’t doing well in school. So, when you’re kicked out of a sport, because you’re not doing well in school and you know you have a disability. He knew he had an issue in school.

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:17:56–20:18:39, 20:23:24–20:24:25:

I think he went into a depression situation as far as, “Hey, I’m not good at school. I can’t even play a sport. Who cares I’m just going to hang out and do whatever.” If you don’t have parents encouraging you to do something with your life and improve yourself, then what choices do you have? To hang out and do things you’re not supposed to be doing. And I think, in some kids as far as my case, in my situation, with me not being encouraged not to go to school. . . . [Carlos] dropped out of school because people were making fun of him at school because he wasn’t doing well and he just gave up. I believe Carlos dropped out at 7th grade. And then he got a job. . . . I think a lot of that had to do that Carlos didn’t feel good about himself. Carlos was not confident about him. He didn’t have the confidence. Even though Manuel, my older brother, got into some issues, but Manuel had confidence. Carlos never had confidence in himself. That’s the reason why he was so cocky. Carlos was very cocky. If you would have known Carlos from the beginning, he was very cocky, and always played this tough guy. In reality, he wasn’t anything like that. When you went one-to-one with him, he was the nicest person. You could not believe this person, Carlos, was convicted of such murder.

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:26:00–20:28:29 (“As Carlos got older, he realized that he was different from Manuel, older brother, and I. He knew that. I know for sure what hurt Carlos the most was when he was kicked out of football. When he was kicked out of football, he gave up. I saw Carlos give up. That’s when he dropped out of school. He didn’t care anymore, just didn’t care.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 19:44:14–19:45:15, 20:16:05–20:17:56, 20:20:52–20:21:50:

I moved to Dallas and from Dallas to where I met my husband. Got married, 2 kids, a daughter that’s 23 years old and a son that’s 21 years old. . . . In my situation, I cared, I didn’t want to live like that. I didn’t want to have ten or fifteen kids, from all these different men and be on welfare. So I was looking ahead. Do I want to live like this? Do I want to live like the way my mom lives? Not saying that she had fifteen kids from all these different men, I’m not saying that. I’m just saying I just looked ahead of—Do I want to be like this? Do I want to grow up to be with all these kids and not educated, and not do this and not do that? I mean, I’ve had some bumps in my life. But I also picked myself up and moved on to improve my life. . . . I’m not a follower, but when we were kids, I recall our older brother starting up, “We’re going to do this, we’re going to plan this, and you’re going to do this, Carlos, and Rose, you’re going to do this” . . . .

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:37:01–20:39:58 (“We had free lunch tickets. You fill out the paperwork—I forget how it works—and you get free lunches. That’s real embarrassing, when you’re a teenager, and you have to go stand in line and get your free lunch ticket. . . . That was a big deal for me, not having to be embarrassed, going to school every day and having to stand in that line for the free ticket.”); Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 4 (“Rose loved school, because it got her away from the house. As a teenager, she took two busses to school. She had to get up at 4 a.m., make breakfast for Manuel and Carlos and herself and clean up the house before she coud go to school.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:14:13–20:17:56 (quoted supra note 128); see Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:26:00–20:28:29 (“As Carlos got older, he realized that he was different from Manuel, older brother, and I. He knew that. I know for sure what hurt Carlos the most was when he was kicked out of football. When he was kicked out of football, he gave up. I saw Carlos give up. That’s when he dropped out of school. He didn’t care anymore, just didn’t care.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005), at 19:59:44–20:02:48, 20:23:24–20:24:25:

And I know he was very cocky, very showoff. When he would go to jail, my mother was there to bail him out all the time. And he would tell police officers, “you know, I’m going to be out here in 10–15 minutes. I’ll be out of here in an hour. Watch my mom walk in, and she’s going to get me out.” And that’s exactly what would happen. She would walk in and get him out. . . . I think a lot of that had to do that Carlos didn’t feel good about himself. Carlos was not confident about him. He didn’t have the confidence. Even though Manuel, my older brother, got into some issues, but Manuel had confidence. Carlos never had confidence in himself. That’s the reason why he was so cocky. Carlos was very cocky. If you would have known Carlos from the beginning, he was very cocky, and always played this tough guy. In reality, he wasn’t anything like that. When you went one-to-one with him, he was the nicest person. You could not believe this person, Carlos, was convicted of such murder.

See infra notes 132–140 and accompanying text (discussing Carlos’s attention to how he dressed and looked).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:23:24–20:24:25.

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 21:03:06–21:03:35, 21:39:27–21:40:00 (“Q. When Carlos became an adult, how did he dress? A. Carlos always dressed nice.”; “Carlos would never wear blue jeans. Carlos would never wear sneakers, T-shirts, flannel clothes, flannel T-shirts, sweats, flannel jackets, never. He always wore slacks, black, long-sleeved dress shirts. He always looked nice, dressed nice all the time.”); Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 1, 3–4 (“[Carlos] dressed neat. One thing—Carlos always wore dark slacks, large long-sleeved button up [shirt], unbuttoned.”; “Carlos never wore jeans. Never wore flannel shirts. Never wore sweatshirt. Carlos . . . wore shoes to make him taller.”; “Never saw Carlos in jeans and sweatshirt.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 21:03:37–21:04:34 (“He would wear the polyester pants, the pants that were kind of longer on the bottom of the legs, like bell-bottom pants.”); Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 3 (“One thing—Carlos always wore dark slacks, large long-sleeved button up [shirt], unbuttoned.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 21:04:55–21:05:12 (“You would never see [Carlos] but with black slacks. Black was his favorite, made him look thinner . . . .”); see Lucinda Garcia, Sentencing Witness Against Carlos DeLuna, Sentencing Test., Texas v. DeLuna, No. 83-CR–194-A (Nueces Cty., 28th Dist. Tex. July 21, 1983) (describing Carlos DeLuna’s clothes when he arrived at her home for a party he attended: “black slacks”; “long-sleeve . . . light blue dress shirt” made of “real fine material”); Connie Campos, Sentencing Witness Against Carlos DeLuna, Sentencing Test., Texas v. DeLuna, No. 83-CR–194-A (Nueces Cty., 28th Dist. Tex. July 21, 1983) at 34, 36 (giving similar description).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005), at 21:03:06–21:04:34 (“[Carlos] always wore platform shoes, the heels were always about that big (indicates about 5 inches with her fingers) . . . .”; “He wasn’t very tall man, so he always wanted to look taller.”); Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 3 (“Carlos . . . wore shoes to make him taller”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 21:03:37–21:04:45 (“Always had his shirt tucked in. Either tucked in or tucked out. If he was real heavy, he had it tucked out. If he was thinner, he had it tucked in. . . . He always wore . . . [dress shirts] with long collars and open shirts, long sleeves.”; “Q. And those shirts that he wore, were they T-shirts or were they— A. They were dress shirts. You never saw him in a T-shirt. Always had a dress shirt, always long-sleeved dress shirts, with the big collars around here (points to her wrists) and the long collars around here (points to her neck)Always had it three or four buttons down.”); Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 1, 3–4 (“[Carlos] dressed neat. One thing—Carlos always wore dark slacks, large long-sleeved button up, unbuttoned.”; “Carlos never wore jeans. Never wore flannel shirts. Never wore [a] sweatshirt.”; “Never saw Carlos in jeans and sweatshirt.”).

Sources cited supra note 137.

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 21:04:45–21:01:12 (“Q. You told me at one point that, if you went to his closet and looked in there you’d see, tell me what kind of clothes you’d see. A. He always had long-sleeved shirts, always nice shirts. You would never see him but with black slacks.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 21:03:06–21:03:35 (“He had longer hair, always kept it kind of bushy, wavy, longer, kept it neat. Always kept his appearance neat, always shaved and cleaned.”); infra notes 175, 181, 188–191 (describing the contents of Carlos’s pockets on the many occasions when he was arrested, which almost always included a comb).

Letter from Roland J. Brauer, Ph. D. to Martineau Juvenile Shelter Regarding Carlos DeLuna (June 27, 1978) at 1:

Tests Administered: Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revisited, Sentence Completion, Draw-A-Person, Bender-Gestalt, Cornell Medical Index, Jr.-Sr. High School Personality Questionnaire. . . . Test Results: . . . Results of the WISC-R indicate that Carlos is presently functioning within the dull-normal range on the verbal portion and within the average range on the [non]-verbal or performance portion of the test. . . . The difference between the verbal and performance scores is significant. It reflects the bilingual background that Carlos has as well as Carlos’ tendency to have minimally involved himself in scholastic areas. For example, his lowest scores were on tasks measuring long-term memory, information that is gained through reading and involvement in school related areas, and on verbal analogies, a task that measures both vocabulary and verbal fluency. He functioned within the bright-normal range on tasks measuring . . . social awareness and social reasoning.

Letter from Roland J. Brauer, Ph.D. to Martineau Juvenile Shelter Regarding Carlos DeLuna (June 27, 1978) at 1:

Test Results: . . . Almost from the time he first began to be tested, Carlos appeared to be attempting to “con” the examiner. For example, he said that he had some eye problems that caused him headaches and eye pain, and needed medical attention. . . . In general his behavior appeared to be quite manipulative. . . . Results of personality testing reflect a boy who exhibits massive denial as far as any serious problems are concerned. Most of his energies were geared to manipulate his way out of the unpleasant surroundings (detention). However, his manipulations tend to be very transparent. . . . He exhibits dull-thinking, is undemonstrative and generally appears easy going and sees himself as somewhat sensitive and serious. . . . He attempts to manipulate people in a fairly transparent fashion. If his manipulations weren’t so obvious, he could be a pleasant boy to be around.

Letter from Roland J. Brauer, Ph.D. to Martineau Juvenile Shelter Regarding Carlos DeLuna (June 27. 1978) at 1.

Dr. James R. Plaisted, Clinical Psychologist, Psychological Evaluation of Carlos DeLuna (June 15, 1983) at 1 (“Referral Source: District Court. . . . Reason for the Referral: Dr. Kutnick performed a court-ordered psychiatric examination of Mr. DeLuna on May 19, 1983 and had some questions of whether the patient was genuinely suffering from a mental illness.”).

Dr. James R. Plaisted, Clinical Psychologist, Psychological Evaluation of Carlos DeLuna (June 15, 1983) at 1, 3 (“Procedures Used: Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale—Revised; Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test—Revised; Human Figure Drawing; Bender Visual Motor Gestalt Test; Rorschach Inkblot Technique (Exner System); Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory; Wide Range Achievement Test; Review of the Patient’s Judicial File; Behavioral Observations and Clinical Interview.”; “Findings and Impressions: . . . Mr. DeLuna’s present level of intellectual function as measured by the WAIS-R is within the Borderline range (WAIS-R VIQ–72, PIQ–72, FSIQ–72.”)

Dr. James R. Plaisted, Clinical Psychologist, Psychological Evaluation of Carlos DeLuna (June 15, 1983) at 3 (“Clinical Interview, Early Segment: . . . It appeared to me that [DeLuna] wanted me to believe that he could not remember anything. . . .”; “Clinical Interview, Late Segment: . . . In [the] later segment, after rapport had been established and Mr. DeLuna had become comfortable with answering questions and responding to standardized psychological test items, his memory seemed somewhat different. In this later clinical interview segment, the patient was able to tell me that he had been in school in the local area. . . .”).

Dr. James R. Plaisted, Clinical Psychologist, Psychological Evaluation of Carlos DeLuna (June 15, 1983) at 2–5:

Clinical Interview, Early Segment: . . . It appeared to me that [DeLuna] wanted me to believe that he could not remember anything. . . . Clinical Interview, Late Segment: . . . In [the] later segment, after rapport had been established and Mr. DeLuna had become comfortable with answering questions and responding to standardized psychological test items, his memory seemed somewhat different. In this later clinical interview segment, the patient was able to tell me that he had been in school in the local area. . . . It certainly struck this examiner that Mr. DeLuna was attempting to deceive, and that his memory loss was selective. . . . Mr. DeLuna used words which he claimed not to have knowledge of during the IQ testing, and he showed a knowledge of these words. For example, when he was asked “What is your sentence?” near the end of the examination session, Mr. DeLuna replied, “I don’t have one.” And when I asked “Do you see lots of arguments there in the jail house?”, the patient responded “Yes . . . you learn to live with it.” I also asked him at one point to look at the ceiling and he reflexively looked up. The words “sentence,” “argument,” and “ceiling” were among those that the patient claimed not to have knowledge of [during the written psychological testing]. . . .Findings and Impressions: . . . It is my opinion that the results of this [I.Q.] testing are a gross underestimate of this patient’s intellectual abilities. I believe that his intelligence is much higher than indicated by the quotients . . . . There was considerable evidence of faking . . . . Conclusions: It appears fairly obvious to this examiner that Mr. DeLuna was making a major effort to deceive me into thinking that he was suffering from a psychotic process.

Judgments on Plea of Guilty or Nolo Contendere Before Court and Waiver of Jury Trial, Synopsis of the Judgment, Texas v. Plaisted, No. 92-CR-1926-H, 92-CR-1927-H, 92-CR-1928-H, 95-CR-0325-H, 95-CR-3578-H (Nueces Cty., 347th Dist. Tex. Dec 7, 1995) (reporting that Plaisted pled guilty to four counts of aggravated sexual assault of children and was sentenced to 40 years).

Dr. Joel Kutnick, Psychiatrist, Psychiatric Evaluation of Carlos DeLuna (June 14, 1983) at 3–4 (“Specifically, I was interested in the background information in terms of how far this defendant got in school and whether there was a question of his being retarded. Mr. Schiwetz did not have this information, but stated he would try to supply it to me if he got it. So far I have not heard back from Mr. Schiwetz, and feel that this information is just not obtainable.”).

Dr. Joel Kutnick, Psychiatrist, Psychiatric Evaluation of Carlos DeLuna at 4 (June 14, 1983) (“Impressions: Axis I: Malingering”); see also James S. Liebman’s Notes on Interviews with Jon Kelly, Lawyer for Carlos Hernadez (Aug. 16, 18 and 20, 2004) (noting that Drs. Plaisted and Kutnick received $350 for each mental status evaluation performed for the local court or district attorney’s office and, noting with reference to their diagnoses, “‘malingering,’ yeah I heard that diagnosis a lot”); James S. Liebman’s Notes on Interview with Bill May, Corpus Christi Criminal Defense Lawyer and Former Assistant District Attorney (Jul., 13, 2004) at 2 (quipping that “the only diagnosis Kutnick knew was ‘malingering.’”).

See Letter from Jesus M. Chávez, Superintendent of Schools, Corpus Christi Ind. Sch. Dist., to William Belford (Aug. 3, 2004) at 1 (“Pursuant to your request of July 22, 2004, please find enclosed copies of the special education records on file with the Corpus Christi Independent School District regarding Carlos DeLuna.”); supra notes 117–125, 141–143 and accompanying text (discussing the mental status evaluation of DeLuna’s in his school and juvenile records).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:16:05–20:18:39, 20:18:46–20:19:36:

Now that I’m thinking back, my brother never hung out with guys. He started hanging out with this girl that was doing drugs. . . paint. When I say drugs it’s more sniffing the paint. That’s when Carlos started changing, changing completely. Carlos never had girlfriends. Until he met this girl Ida [actually Aida Sosa], can’t remember her last name. Until he met Ida, Carlos completely changed. He dropped out of school. . . . This is before he met Ida, he dropped out of school because people were making fun of him at school because he wasn’t doing well and he just gave up. I believe Carlos dropped out at 7th grade. And then he got a job. He met the girl Ida, and that’s when Carlos started getting into problems. . . . He lived in abandoned houses with this girl, Ida. As far as I know, this Ida was a street girl, just lived in abandoned houses with men. And she happened to meet my brother Carlos, and that was the first girlfriend Carlos ever had. That girl was trouble. She was a street girl. And that’s when Carlos got into all these issues as far as breaking into people’s houses and stealing.

Bruce Whitman’s Notes on Interview with Aida Sosa, Girlfriend of Carlos DeLuna (Sept. 27, 2004) at 1 (describing meeting Carlos DeLuna in 1978 at the Casino Club and believing he was older than he was; stating that the two lived in the garage of a friend who gave them food to live on; said they tried to sneak into Carlos’s room at his parents’ house but had to leave when his sister told her mom about it); see also Pre-Disposition Investigation for Carlos DeLuna, Al R. Reyna, Intake Coordinator, Probation Dep’t (June 27, 1978) at 3 (“Education: Carlos DeLuna was attending the eighth grade at Tom Browne Junior High School in Corpus Christi, Texas and dropped out in 1977. He did not attend school for the entire school year of 1977–1978”).

I will go ahead and tell you a little bit about my childhood. . . . I grew up in a poor neighborhood, and we were poor in many ways, but I’d still never gotten in any trouble, yet, with the Law. I think I was 15 years old when I first got in trouble with the Law. I was going out with this girl who was about two years older than me, and she had already been in trouble with the Law before. But I truly did love her, or I thought I did. So you know how that goes, when they say “love is blind,” I do honestly believe that. But I met her brother and his friends, and that’s where all the trouble started.

See also James S. Liebman’s Notes on Interview with Manuel DeLuna, Brother of Carlos DeLuna (Aug. 17, 2004) at 1–2, 4:

I know how Carlos got in this bad circle; it was because of Ida Sosa. . . . Ida Sota (Sosa) was to blame for his down fall. . . . Carlos DeLuna as kid: good kid, until met Ida Sosa. Then life changed. Before that he played. Scared of dogs . . . . Then the spray [paint]; stupid things in the street. My mother didn’t want him hanging around with that girl (Sosa), so she kicked him out. Then she begged him to come home, and then took him and the girl into her home, so he wouldn’t live on the street. He would go for 2 to 3 weeks and she couldn’t find CDL [Carlos DeLuna] Man[ue]l would let Carlos in thru the back window . . . .

I will go ahead and tell you a little bit about my childhood. . . . I grew up in a poor neighborhood, and we were poor in many ways, but I’d still never gotten in any trouble, yet, with the Law. I think I was 15 years old when I first got in trouble with the Law. I was going out with this girl who was about two years older than me, and she had already been in trouble with the Law before. But I truly did love her, or I thought I did. So you know how that goes, when they say “love is blind,” I do honestly believe that. But I met her brother and his friends, and that’s where all the trouble started.

Carlos left the house. I was still in junior high when Carlos left the house, because my mom was getting tired of him getting into all this trouble. He wanted to bring this young lady to come and live in our house, Ida. And my mom said no. So he said, “fine, if you don’t let her come in, I’m going to move out.” And he left, and that’s when he started living in abandoned houses. And I didn’t see Carlos for a while. He was living in these abandoned houses, stealing, sniffing paint, drinking, getting in trouble with the law.

See Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 3 (“Toni said Carlos broke into her house and stole some stuff.”).

see also Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Toni Peña, Half-Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 25, 2004) at 3 (“Toni remembered when Carlos and Manuel started getting into trouble. Margarita would worry about them and go looking for them when they did not come home.”).

Pre-Disposition Investigation for Carlos DeLuna, Al R. Reyna, Intake Coordinator, Probation Dep’t (June 27, 1978) at 1–2, 3 (“Previous History . . . . B. Juvenile Department: 1. Runaway—9–23–77—This was Carlos’s first referral to this department and the case was assigned to Mr. Carl Barker to work with Carlos as a runaway. However, according to Mr. Barker, Carlos never cooperated and therefore no help could be offered.”; “Education: Carlos DeLuna was attending the eighth grade at Tom Browne Junior High School in Corpus Christi, Texas and dropped out in 1977. He did not attend school for the entire school year of 1977–1978”).

see also Juvenile Field Interrogation for Carlos DeLuna, Sgt. Askarst, Arresting Officer (Mar. 28, 1978) at 1 (“Narrative: [Carlos DeLuna] was implicated in a Burglary at Villarreal Motor Co. 1114 So. Port Ave.”). Villarreal’s Motor Company, at 1114 South Port Ave., was across the street from the Club Casino, at 1001 South Port.

II. Previous History . . . B. Juvenile Department: . . . 4. Burglary, Auto theft, Runaway—6–1–78—The police report indicated that Carlos DeLuna had run away to Garland, Texas and that there he had stloen [sic] a car. He had also broken into his mother’s house and stolen a TV set and other items. However, The mother refused to press charges against him and the Garland Police Dep’t has never sent the auto theft report from Garland, Texas as was requested from them by this department. Technically this case is still pending against Carlos DeLuna.

See also Arrest Sheet No. C08973 for Carlos DeLuna, Corpus Christi Police Dep’t (May 31, 1978) at 1:

Location of the Arrest: 1001 So. Port. . . . Violation: Auto Theft, Burglary . . . Narrative: Sub. Was arrested at the Club Casino, 1001 So. Port for Auto theft + Burglary. Sub in possession of a 1969 Ford, Tex. L.P. GUL604 stolen out of Garland, Tex. Also wanted for a burglary. Hold + Notify Sgt. P. Gutierrez. Sub arrested, transported to city jail. Booked on above charge. . . . Summary of Details of Theft/Recovery: As officer Garcia #194 was arriving to work security at Club Casino, 1001 S. Port, he saw above described vehicle backing out of the parking lot and the officer recognized it as a vehicle which had been reported as stolen out of Garland, Texas. The driver of the vehicle was Carlos DeLuna, 16 years of age. Subject was also sought by Sgt. Gutierrez, reference a burglary. The front seat passenger was a runaway female, Aida Sosa. The rear seat passenger was Ricky Hernandez and Manuel DeLuna. On the front seat of the vehicle, between the driver and the passenger was as small transistor radio, white in color, and an expensive looking camera . . . .

Juvenile Call Sheet for Carlos DeLuna, Juvenile Dep’t, Case #7147 (June 1, 1978) at 1 (“Subject arrested at 1000 Blk. So. Port. Wanted for Burglary by Sgt P Gutirrez and Auto Theft out of Garland, Texas. Booked at citybjail [sic] on above charges.”).

II. Previous History . . . B. Juvenile Department: . . . 4. Burglary, Auto Theft, Runaway—6–1–78—The police report indicated that Carlos DeLuna had run away to Garland, Texas and that there he had stloen [sic] a car. He had also broken into his mother’s house and stolen a TV set and other items. However, The mother refused to press charges against him and the Garland Police Department has never sent the auto theft report from Garland, Texas as was requested from them by this department. Technically this case is still pending against Carlos DeLuna. . . . 6: Auto Theft—Carlos was arrested in Abilene, Texas in a stolen vehicle along with other suspects. The Abilene Juvenile Department stated that Carlos had stolen a car in Garland, Texas. It was later learned that the car belong to an uncle of one of the suspects that was with Carlos and that this uncle refused to press charges. Therefore the case was dropped against Carlos.

The items stolen from Carlos’s house probably belonged to his half-sister Antonia. See Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:18:46–20:19:36 (“Breaking into people’s houses and stealing. He was breaking into people’s homes, he broke into my sister’s home that lives in Corpus. Her name is Toni, her husband’s name is Joe, last name is Peña. He broke into their home and stole a lot of stuff.”); Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 19, 2004) at 3 (“Toni said Carlos broke into her house and stole some stuff.”).

Victim: Laningham, Bonnie . . . . Age: 78. . . . . Suspect 1: Deluna, Carlos; Suspect 2: Sosa, Ida . . . . Narrative: Met victim at her home who advised that on this date witness Arturo Sosa brought her billfold to her less the afore listed items [$10 dollar bill; thirty dollars’ worth of food stamps]. Arturo Sosa advised that his sister, Ida and Carlos DeLuna went to victim’s residence to use the phone. Carlos sat and talked with victim in the living room. The four young people left and upon getting home Arturo saw Carlos pull a lady’s purse from his belt. Carlos then took out the money and food stamps and threw the billfold aside. Carlos took victim’s personal checkbook, tore it into pieces and threw the pieces away. Carlos and Ida then left with the money and food stamps. At approximately 8:49 PM we received a call to 504½ Flood. We were admitted by Arturo. Upon arrival into the house we observed Ida standing by the bed looking down. There was also a very strong odor of spray paint. We asked Ida if Carlos was there and she said “Carlos who?” We looked under the bed and found Carlos and ordered him out. Ida was handcuffed as was Carlos as soon as he got up. Carlos had silver paint on his hands and paint fumes on his breath. Under the bed was a schiltz can with wet silver paint. A spray can of silver krylon paint was found yet later destroyed. Carlos and Ida were advised of the [illegible] and put in our unit [squad car]. The area within their reach was searched with no results. Carlos was also frisked without result. Food stamps and money are [not?] located at this time. Carlos and Ida are currently co-habitating.

Juvenile Field Interrogation Report for Carlos DeLuna, I. Loa and Sgt. Bible, Arresting Officers (June 19, 1978) at 1 (p.12 of set) (“Above subject was I.D. by victim as being the subject inside 522 Flood, where a wallet containing $19.99 cash, and $30.00 in Food Stamps was stolen. Subject was hiding under the bed at 504½ Flood when officers arrived. Subject also had a can of Krylon paint and had a strong odor on his body w/bloodshot eyes. Subject turned over to Juv.”); Officer Rodriguez, Corpus Christi Police Officer, Supplementary Report (undated, June 19 or 20, 1978) at 1:

The above two subjects were arrested at 504½ Flood after being identified as the two subjects who had stolen ten dollars in cash and $30.00 in food stamps from a victim living at 522 Flood. Both subject were booked and then transferred to Martineau [Juvenile Shelter]. Both parents were notified. Subject # 1 [Carlos] shows 6 arrests. Subject #2 [Ida] shows 7 arrests.

Pre-Disposition Investigation for Carlos DeLuna, Al R. Reyna, Intake Coordinator, Probation Dep’t (June 27, 1978) at 1–2:

Reason for Hearing: Theft 6–19–78. On above mentioned date Carlos DeLuna was referred to this department for the fifth time on a charge of theft from a residence. According to the police report, Carlos together with other suspects broke into the residence of Mrs. Bonnie Laninghim of 522 Flood Street in Corpus Christi, Texas. Taken in the burglary was $10 in cash and approximately $30 in food stamps. The Police were tipped off that Carlos had been involved in this theft and they went to his residence at 504½ Flood Street where they found him hiding under the bed. They also found the stolen merchandise in his apartment. . . . . II. Previous History: . . . B. Juvenile Department: . . . 5: Theft—6–19–78—This case has been set for June 30, 1978.

At approximately 8:49 PM we received a call to 504½ Flood. We were admitted by Arturo [Sosa]. Upon arrival into the house we observed Ida standing by the bed looking down. There was also a very strong odor of spray paint. We asked Ida if Carlos was there and she said “Carlos who?” We looked under the bed and found Carlos and ordered him out. Ida was handcuffed as was Carlos as soon as he got up. Carlos had silver paint on his hands and paint fumes on his breath. Under the bed was a schiltz can with wet silver paint. A spray can of silver krylon paint was found yet later destroyed. Carlos and Ida were advised of the [illegible] and put in our unit [squad car]. The area within their reach was searched with no results. Carlos was also frisked without result. Food stamps and money are [not?] located at this time. Carlos and Ida are currently co-habitating.

Sergeant J.D. Johnson, Corpus Christi Police Officer, Supplementary Report (June 20, 1978) (“Sgt. F. Gutierrez # 124, of the Criminal Investigative Division, went to 504½ Flood Street with Carlos DeLuna. Carlos DeLuna showed us where the food coupons were hidden beneath the wash stand in the bathroom. He got them and gave them to Sgt. J. O. Johnson. The food coupons book . . . had $27.58 worth of food coupons in it . . . .”).

Carlos DeLuna was born in Corpus Christi, Texas on March 15, 1962. He has lived in this area all of his life and prior to this court hearing he was living in an apartment by himself at 504½ Flood Street [Aida Sosa’s residence]. He has been on his own for several months having refused any supervision from his natural mother and working off and on at odd jobs . . . . Carlos DeLuna has expressed very little concern over the situation in which he finds himself and has stated to his counselor that he does not understand why he is being held or for that matter why he is going to court. One moment he is admitting that he is at fault and the next moment he wants to sue everyone connected with his case. It is this counselor’s opinion that Carlos has very little conscience and he is only sorry that he got caught by the police regarding this case. It is doubtful whether Carlos DeLuna will cooperate with this department or with the Texas Youth Council if he were to be committed.

Recommendation: A. It is respectfully recommended that Carlos DeLuna be committed to the care and custody of the Texas Youth Council in order that he can be worked with on a daily basis. B. Justification for Recommendation: It is felt that commitment to the Texas Youth Council is necessary for the following reasons: 1. Carlos DeLuna is currently completely out of control and is in need of a structured and controlled environment in order that his antisocial behavior can be corrected or at least controlled. 2. Carlos DeLuna is in need of counseling services in the area of self-control and self-discipline and needs to be taught the value of respecting authority and discipline. 3. Carlos needs to be watched very closely and needs a very stable environment in order that he can be worked with effectively. It is obvious that probation would not work with Carlos and there is every indication it would continue to promote his antisocial and delinquent behavior.

Impression: . . . It is my impression that Carlos has not learned to develop adequate controls over his impulses. He could benefit from a more structured environment, and one in which rules of behavior are reinforced. His present living situation in which he is free to roam and do as he pleases is totally inadequate. Unless a more structured environment is provided, it is anticipated that more delinquent behavior will be exhibited.

[On July 15, 1978),] Officer received a call to Sam Houston Elementary school reference suspicious subjects. As officers drove up to the portable buildings, observed one subject running behind the buildings in the rear of the school. Officer apprehended subject and found him to have a half can of Kaylon silver spray paint on hi[m] and observed also to have a coke can with paint in it. Subject also had his hands and mouth with silver spray paint. Subject placed under arrest for paint sniffing and when taken back to the front of the portable buildings, apprehended the other two subjects with assistance by Unit #127, Sgt. Featherstone. The other two subjects [including Aida Sosa] also had silver spray paint on their hands and mouth and also were in possession of coke cans with silver spray paint in them. All three subjects were arrested and transported to City Jail and booked: #1—Carlos DeLuna . . . . #3 Ida Sosa.

Juvenile Call Sheet for Carlos DeLuna, Juvenile Dep’t, Case #7147 (July 19, 1978) (“Above subject [Carlos DeLuna] arrested at Sam Houston Elementary on above charge [Inhaling Toxicants] after observing him with silver spray paint on his hands and mouth.”).

Violation: Drunk @ Wreck Scene. Narrative: on 30 Nov. 79 approx 9:15 PM my partner officer Benavides # 58 and I received a call in reference to a minor accident at the above stated location. Upon arrival my partner and I observed a red Toyota compact car which had run into a section of chain link fence belonging to the U-Haul Corporation. Officer Flora Emp # 427 of unit #106 was present at the scene and stated that he observed the above stated subject [Carlos DeLuna] behind the subject vehicle. He stated that subject was apparently trying to back out of the fence. Subject was asked to depart his vehicle. My partner extracted subject and subject had a strong odor of alcoholic beverage coming from his breath. My partner asked subject to recite the ABC’s and subject could not say them correctly. Subject swayed from side to side as he stood on smooth asphalt. Subject placed under arrest drunk at a wreck scene and transported to city jail. . . . Subjects [sic] vehicle impounded to city pound . . . .

James S. Liebman’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 11, 2004) at 4 (“Before that he [Carlos DeLuna] lived with Manuel, until M [Manuel] kicked him out. Carlos borrowed Manuel’s truck, got drunk and totaled it. M kicked him out.”).

Floyd Bieniek, Corpus Christi Police Officer and Character Witness Against Carlos DeLuna, Corpus Christi Police Dep’t Motor Vehicle Report (Jan. 2, 1979) at 1:

Summary of Details of Theft/Recovery: Officer Rickey Benavides, El Campo, Texas Police Department stopped this vehicle and arrested Carlos DeLuna date of birth 3–15–61 for no driver’s license. The subject posted bond and was released. The vehicle was not entered into NCIC as stolen because the owner did not know the VIN. After being released on bond the subject DeLuna drove the vehicle into a ditch and got stuck. The vehicle was towed to Franks Wrecker Service in El Campo. The subject DeLuna has attempted to get the car out twice because he has no money. He even offered to bring in a pick up truck and to leave it in place of the car. Owner notified . . . .

D.G. Harrison, Corpus Christi Police Officer, Corpus Christi Police Dep’t Arrest Sheet, for Carlos DeLuna (Jan. 12, 1979) at 1.

see also Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Linda Perales Ayala, Step-Mother of Pricilla Hernandez Jaramillo and Ex-Wife of Manuel DeLuna (July 24, 2004) at 2–3 (“Linda . . . remembered Carlos getting into trouble and going to juvie, and some kind of boot camp.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:37:01–20:38:57 (“Manuel was the mean one, Carlos wasn’t. As I recall, when he was working. When Carlos dropped out of school, Carlos worked at Whataburger. There would not go a day if Carlos, when he got out of work, would bring hamburgers.”); see Arrest Sheet No. C31988 for Carlos DeLuna, Corpus Christi Police Dep’t (Feb. 6, 1980) at 1 (“Occupation: busboy. Place of Employment: Andy’s Restaurant.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:35:50–20–36:33:

Q. There was a club in Corpus Christi called the Casino Club. Did you ever hear of that? A. Yes, I did. Q. Did you ever go to the Casino? A. No, never. Q. Do you know anyone that did go to the Casino? A. My brother, Manuel, went there constantly, to the Casino Club. And Carlos went there, too, to hang out. Q. So if, let’s say, Carlos Hernandez hung out at the Casino Club, that might be a place where your brother, Manuel, knew him. A. Yes, yes. Manuel hanged [sic] out a lot at the Casino Club. Yes, that was his favorite place.

James S. Liebman’s Notes on Interview with Manuel DeLuna, Brother of Carlos DeLuna (Aug. 17, 2004) at 1–2 (noting that Manuel frequented the Casino Club starting in 1976, when he was fifteen and that the club was “weird and wild”); Susan Montez’s Notes on Interview with Linda Perales Ayala, Step-Mother of Pricilla Hernandez Jaramillo and Ex-Wife of Manuel DeLuna (July 24, 2004) at 2 (“Linda knew Carlos DeLuna because she liked and hung out with his brother Manuel. . . . Linda remembered Carlos as being ‘real hyper.’ He talked fast and drank a lot. They all hung out at the Casino Club. Linda loved that place. She loved to go there and dance.”); see infra Chapter 6, notes 17–21, 26 and accompanying text.

Violation: Drunk & Disorderly. Narrative: Above subject [Carlos DeLuna] was involved in a disturbance at the above location. On contacting the subject he became unruley [sic] and verbal. Subject was found to be intoxicated by evidence of the strong odor of alcoholic beverages, bloodshot eyes and unsteady on his feet. Subject involved in an argument with his parents using loud and profane language. . . . Property Record: 1. Billfold. 1. Comb [no weapon].

Location of arrest: 1001 S. Port Street [the Casino Club] . . . . Violation: Minor Consuming Alcoholic Beverages. Narrative: Subj. was at the above location and was told to leave because officer knew he was a minor. Subj. left and later returned and somehow entered the club and was drinking beer. It is unknown who bought the beer for him. . . . Property Record: 1 Billfold and 1 Comb [no weapon] . . . . Total Cash: [$].06. . . . Time Served: 5.00 (hours). Total Fine: 175.50. Rel[ative]. to Pay: 50.00.

Location of Arrest: 2000 Blk. Rockford. . . . Type of Premises: Public Street. . . . Violation: Drunk. . . . Narrative: Above subject was involved in a disturbance at the above location. Upon arrival subject was in the middle of the street, when speaking to subject; subject had blood shot eyes, slurred speech and breath smelled of some type of alcoholic beverage. Subject was arrested for the above charge and was transported to city jail. . . . Property Record: 1 billfold. 1 comb. . . . Total Cash: .02¢ [no weapon] . . . Rel[ative] to Pay: 20.00 Due Date: 4–30–80.

see Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 19:59:44–20:02:58 (“And I believe that Carlos pissed off a lot of people in Corpus. He just, burned a lot of bridges. I believe strongly that a lot of those officers would say, ‘give him enough rope and one of these days he’s going to hang himself.’ That’s what I believe.”); see also Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rosie Esquivel, Girlfriend of Carlos DeLuna While He Was on Death Row, in Garland, Texas (Feb. 27, 2005) at 23:44:30–23:45:28 (stating that Carlos DeLuna had “been in a lot of trouble there in Corpus and the cops wanted to get rid of him. And since he was around the incident, this was the best way to stick Carlos DeLuna with this crime, to get him out of the way.”).

Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 20:55:00–20:55:50:

I’m very angry, still, about the way justice was given to my brother. I believe that all these things that he did before that made all these people mad does not give them the right to allow to have someone executed for being innocent. Carlos was, to them, he was like a piece of paper that just was crumpled and thrown in the garbage. They didn’t care. They didn’t care because they were sick of him. They didn’t want to help. And I didn’t know how to help. I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t know what needed to be done.

[W]e were real poor. We had free lunch tickets. You fill out the paperwork—I forget how it works—and you get free lunches. That’s real embarrassing, when you’re a teenager, and you have to go stand in line and get your free lunch ticket. Everybody knew this, everybody in the school lunch knew that you were standing there to get your free meal, to get your ticket. . . . And he would always, any time I wanted a soft drink to drink, he would go to the store, buy it, and bring it home. That was a big deal. He would give me money to go to school with, the school bus. He would give me lunch money. . . . It was a big thing when Carlos would give me money and say, ‘Here, take this, buy your school lunch so you won’t have to stand in the free ticket lunch line. . . . That was a big deal for me, not having to be embarrassed, going to school every day and having to stand in that line for the free ticket. . . . Manuel worked, Manuel never did that. He never gave me money to go get a soft drink. To this day, my brother Manuel has never bought me a soft drink. But Carlos was always kind, a kindhearted person. If he had money and you asked for money, he would reach in his pocket and give you whatever. If you needed ten dollars, if he had it, he’d give you the ten dollars. That’s the kind of person Carlos was.

True Bill of Indictment at 1, Texas v. De Luna, No. f80–10406 MQ (Tex. Dist. Ct. July 7, 1980) (reciting “that one Carlos De Luna hereinafter styled Defendant, on or about the 26 day of July in the year of our Lord One Thousand Nine Hundred and 80 . . . did unlawfully, intentionally and knowingly operate a motor-propelled vehicle, namely: a van, without the effect consent of John William Jones, the owner thereof.”).

Waiver of Indictment at 1, Texas v. De Luna, No. f80–8598mq (Tex. Dist. Ct. Sep. 25, 1980):

[W]aiver of Indictment—Plea of Nolo Cotendere . . . . Now comes defendant in the above cause, and would respectfully show the court that he stands accused by information of the following felony offense: attempted rape and Defendant avers that he understands his rights to be prosecuted by indictment herein, and voluntarily waives this right therein and agrees and consents to prosecution herein by information . . . and now voluntarily enters his plea of guilty to the charge herein . . . .

See also United States Dep’t of Justice, Federal Bur. of Investigation, Identification Division, Identification record for Carlos De Luna based on FBI or SID identification number (May 25, 1983) at 1 (reflecting 1980 convictions for attempted rape and unauthorized use of a vehicle).

Marta Aguirre, Untitled Witness Report, Statement to Garland Police Dep’t (1980):

Testify that she was followed by defendant onto the YWCA parking lot by the defendant. That he grabbed her by the hair pulled her toward some parked vans and tore her clothes off. That he threatened to kill her if she did not submit and quit resisting. That she would’n’t [sic] open her legs so the defendant could make penetration. That the defendant got up and left when the witnesses walked up toward she and defendant. That she went to her apartment, told her brother Pedro and they both went to find the defendant. . . .

Alvina Hernandez & Maria Ramirez, Untitled Witness Report, Statement to Garland Police Dep’t (1980) (“(Both) Testify that they were walking home and as they came to the YWCA parking lot, they saw the defendant struggling with complainant who was nude. That they went toward them and the defendant got up and walked away. That they went with complainant to her apartment. That later the officers asked if they had seen the defendant with complainant. That they made identification of the defendant in custody of police.”).

Officers R. McCollum & H.G. Cunningham, Untitled Witness Report, Statement to Garland Police Dep’t (1980) (“Testify that they were called to 4619 Ross Ave. where they took the information from complainant and complainant brother Pedro. . . . That they [the officers] went to 4627 Munger where Pedro had lost defendant. That the defendant was found in the bushes and arrested and identified by complainant and later by witnesses. . . .”).

Alvina Hernandez & Maria Ramirez, Untitled Witness Report, Statement to Garland Police Department (1980) (“(Both) Testify that . . . later the officers asked if they had seen the defendant with complainant that they made identification of the defendant in custody of police.”).

This is the Complainant. He can testify that sometime between 10:30 PM, on July 25, 1980, and 6:45 AM, on July 26, 1980, some unknown person(s) took his 1969 yellow Ford Van from in front of his residence at 2413 Westway in Garland, Texas; to not giving anyone permission to take and operate this vehicle; to being notified by the Garland Police Department that the Dallas Police Department had recovered the vehicle; to going to that location where his vehicle was released to him; and to not giving this defendant or any other person permission to take and operate his vehicle.

Prosecution Report for Carlos De Luna, City of Garland Police Dep’t (July 26, 1980) (witness statement of T.K. Elliott) (“Officer Elliot is the arresting officer. He can testify that on July 27, 1980, at 2:00 AM he did stop the Complainant’s stolen vehicle in the 400 block of South Beckley in Dallas, Texas, after it had travelled through a red light and failed to stop; that upon his investigation, he found the vehicle to be reported stolen out of Garland, Texas; and to placing the Defendants under arrest for ‘Unauthorized Use of a Motor Vehicle.’”).

Waiver of Indictment—Plea of Nolo Contendere . . . . Now comes defendant in the above cause, and would respectfully show the court that he stands accused by information of the following felony offense: attempted rape and Defendant avers that he understands his right to be prosecuted by indictment herein, and voluntarily waives this right therein and agrees and consents to prosecution herein by information . . . and now voluntarily enters his plea of guilty to the charge herein . . . .

Plea of Nolo Contendere, Texas v. De Luna, No. f80–8598mq (Tex. Dist. Ct. Sep. 25, 1980):

The defendant having been indicted on the above entitled and numbered cause for the felony offense of Attempted Rape, a Third Degree Felony . . . entered his plea herein, the defendant was duly arraigned and in open Court pleaded Nolo Contendre to the charge contained in the indictment . . . . It is therefore considered adjudged by the court that the said Defendant is guilty of the felony offense of Attempted Rape . . . and that he be punished by confinement in the Texas Department of Correction for 3 years . . . .

Sentence, Texas v. De Luna, No. f80–8598mq (Tex. Dist. Ct. Sep. 25, 1980):

This day this cause being again called, the state appeared by her Criminal District Attorney, and the Defendant Carlos De Luna . . . and whose punishment has been assessed by the Court at confinement in the Texas Department of Corrections for 3 years be delivered by the Sheriff of Dallas County, Texas . . . . [A]nd said Defendant shall be confined in said Texas Department of Corrections for not less than 2 years nor more than 3 years . . . . [A]nd that the Defendant is granted credit for time served beginning on date of July 28.

see also Criminal History for Carlos De Luna, Texas Dep’t of Public Safety (May 25, 1983) (reporting that Carlos was received by the Texas Department of Corrections on Oct. 9, 1980 from Dallas County with a 3-year sentence for attempted rape and Unauthorized Use of a Motor Vehicle, was paroled on February 23, 1982, returned to prison on June 22, 1982 for the violation of the parole which was subsequently revoked, and paroled again into the mandatory supervision of Nueces County on December 30, 1982).

Juanita Garcia, Sentencing Witness Against Carlos DeLuna, Sentencing Test., Texas v. DeLuna, No. 83-CR–194-A (Nueces Cty., 28th Dist. Tex. July 21, 1983) at 23, 24–25 (testifying that the first time she met DeLuna he wore “[a] light blue shirt and a black pants”; describing DeLuna’s shirt as “a light blue shirt . . . it was [the] silky one that he had been [wearing] before”); Lucinda Garcia, Sentencing Witness Against Carlos DeLuna, Sentencing Test., Texas v. DeLuna, No. 83-CR–194-A (Nueces Cty., 28th Dist. Tex. July 21, 1983) at 12–14:

Q. I am going to ask you if you have a brother named Marcos Garcia. A. I do. Q. Where does Marcos live now? A. He’s in the penitentiary. . . . Q. Now, direct your attention back to May the 14th—May the 15th—May the 14th of 1982 and ask you if you saw your brother on that day. A. Okay. We picked him up in Houston on a Friday. Q. Okay. And where did—where was he coming from? A. From Houston. Q. Had he just gotten out of the penitentiary? A. Yes. Q. Where did you take him? A. I took him home to Corpus. Q. And where was he going to be staying in Corpus? A. With my mother [Juanita Garcia]. . . . Q. [D]id the family have a little get together for Mr. Garcia, for Marcos? A. Yeah. Well, everybody was there, uh-huh. Q. Now, did any people who were not members of the family come over there that day? A. He was supposed to meet Carlos De Luna there at the house. Q. Did Carlos De Luna come over to the house? A. Yes, his parents brought him over. . . . Q. Do you recall what he was wearing? A. A blue shirt, I can’t exactly tell you what color pants they were.

Q. And tell the court how it was that you came to see Carlos De Luna.

A. Okay. I was sitting there and then I saw him come up to the house. He went to the back of the house, well, I guess somebody was telling him, and then he came back up, he just opened the door and he walked in . . . Q. Okay. Were there any lights on in the house? A. The front porch and where I’m sitting in my front yard, you can see—through the window you can see the bathroom light, and that was on. And then about—I would say about fifteen minutes after he got in, the light went off and then I heard something drop on the floor. It was about 1:00 o’clock when he came out. He came out with his shirt unbuttoned, he—well, when he walked in, his shirt was pulled in and it was pulled out and it was open from the front and he ran towards—there’s an elementary school, Rose Shaw Elementary School.

Upon investigating this complaint it was determined that there was no rape or attempted rape that was prosecutable in this case, however, there was a class A assault that could be prosecuted. Upon discussing this with the victim a copy of the report was furnished for victim to file a restraint order on the individual being Carlos De Luna and also I took the complaint to the Municipal Court [which handles misdemeanor charges] where charges of assault were filed on this same individual in connection with this complaint. Case Closed: Filed Municipal Court.

Criminal History for Carlos De Luna, Texas Dep’t of Public Safety (May 25, 1983) (reporting that Carlos DeLuna was returned to prison on June 22, 1982 after being arrested in Smith County on a parole violation with no new criminal charges being filed). Carlos was picked up in Smith County, which is in east Texas, about 400 miles from Corpus Christi.

see supra notes 196–197and accompanying text.

I had arrested this subject in the recent past for disorderly conduct at the Club Casino. . . . Approximately 3–4 weeks ago, the suspect entered the Casino and was very open about letting people know he had recently been released from the state penitentiary. At one point, suspect told my partner that he, the suspect, was in the pen when Sgt. Enrique Garcia got shot, but that he, the suspect, thought Garcia should have died. He used some obscene language in the course of saying this (I.E. mother fucker or son of a bitch to take the place of people’s names) . . . .

Carlos De Luna’s criminal records show that Officer Mylett arrested him on January 21, 1983. See Arrest Sheet No. 80508 for Carlos De Luna, Corpus Christi Police Dep’t (Jan. 21, 1983) at 1 (describing incident: DeLuna approached police working off-duty in the Casino Club nightclub and informed them that he knew Officer Rick Garcia, who was shot the prior year, and thought Garcia should have died; then DeLuna asked if the officer wanted to fight); Steve Mills & Maurice Possley, ‘I Didn’t Do It But I Know Who Did,’ New Evidence Suggests a 1989 Execution in Texas Was a Case of Mistaken Identity, First of Three Parts, Chi. Trib., June 25, 2006, available at http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-tx-1-story,0,653915.story?page=5 (“Almost immediately [after being paroled], he [DeLuna] was arrested for public intoxication. During the arrest, De Luna allegedly laughed about the wounding of a police officer months earlier and said the officer should have been killed.”). Archived at: http://perma.cc/8RXT-AM68.

supra Chapter 2, notes 255–261 and accompanying text.

Location of Arrest: 1001 S. Port [Casino Club]. . . . Violation: Public Intoxication. Narrative: while working off-duty the above subject asked me if he could talk to me. He then said if I knew Enrique Garcia the police officer that was shot last year. He then said that he was glad that the officer was shot and that officer Garcia should have been killed. While he spoke I noticed that his breath had a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage, he swayed from side to side as he stood and his speech was very slurred. Subject asked if I wanted to fight about the conversation he just had with me. I then had the subject step outside the night club and arrested him for public intoxication and for disorderly conduct. He was then transported to the city jail where he was turned over to the booking desk personnel. . . . Property Record: 1 billfold. 1 drivers license [no weapon].

Location of Arrest: 1001 S. Port [Casino Club]. . . . Violation: Public Intoxication. Narrative: while working off-duty the above subject asked me if he could talk to me. He then said if I knew Enrique Garcia the police officer that was shot last year. He then said that he was glad that the officer was shot and that officer Garcia should have been killed. While he spoke I noticed that his breath had a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage, he swayed from side to side as he stood and his speech was very slurred. Subject asked if I wanted to fight about the conversation he just had with me. I then had the subject step outside the night club and arrested him for public intoxication and for disorderly conduct. He was then transported to the city jail where he was turned over to the booking desk personnel. . . . Property Record: 1 billfold. 1 drivers license [no weapon].

James S. Liebman’s Notes on Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna (July 11, 2004) at 3 (“Carlos never carried a knife. He never carried a gun.”).

see Transcribed Videotape Interview with Rose Rhoton, Sister of Carlos DeLuna, in Houston, Tex. (Feb. 26, 2005) at 19:59:44–20:02:58:

As growing up as kids, my brother was afraid of the dark. That tells you something about a person. He was afraid of the dark. And growing up as kids we had a paper route, he and I had a paper route. We rolled up papers and we would go throw them out early in the morning. He was afraid of a Chihuahua this big. 13 year-old boy afraid of a Chihuahua this big. So I know my brother couldn’t commit such a crime that they say that he did.