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Post by rayozz on Aug 24, 2015 19:13:52 GMT -6
Bernardo Aban Tercero's execution is scheduled to occur at 6 pm CDT, on Wednesday, August 26, 2015, at the Walls Unit of the Huntsville State Penitentiary in Huntsville, Texas. Thirty-seven-year-old Bernardo is convicted of the murder of 38-year-old high school teacher Robert Keith Berger on March 31, 1997, in Houston, Texas. Bernardo has spent the last 15 years of his life on Texas’ death row.
Bernardo was born in Chinadega, Nicaragua. He dropped out of school following the seventh grade and came to the United States at the age of 17. Bernardo had previously been convicted on two counts of theft in the United States. Prior to his arrest, he worked as an auto mechanic and laborer.
A couple of interesting points. People are demonstrating outside the Nicaraguan consulate in Houston. I believe Texas have executed nationals from other countries before, so it probably will not help. What's more interesting is that Tercero has two Nicaraguan birth certificates. One shows him being under the age of 18 at the time of the murder; the other that he was over 18. Don't know how they resolve that issue.
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Post by whitediamonds on Aug 24, 2015 21:21:41 GMT -6
I would "assume" he was tried as an adult whatever his real age.
If the crime was serious & had a past record, in TX anyone over 13 or 14 can be tried as an adult under those circumstances. When tried as an adult at least you can have a jury trial, not just a judges decision.
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Post by rayozz on Aug 24, 2015 22:53:16 GMT -6
I would "assume" he was tried as an adult whatever his real age. If the crime was serious & had a past record, in TX anyone over 13 or 14 can be tried as an adult under those circumstances. When tried as an adult at least you can have a jury trial, not just a judges decision. If he was under 18 at the time of the murder he cannot be sentenced to death, 18 or over he can. I think that is the issue.
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Post by whitediamonds on Aug 25, 2015 8:06:06 GMT -6
I would "assume" he was tried as an adult whatever his real age. If the crime was serious & had a past record, in TX anyone over 13 or 14 can be tried as an adult under those circumstances. When tried as an adult at least you can have a jury trial, not just a judges decision. If he was under 18 at the time of the murder he cannot be sentenced to death, 18 or over he can. I think that is the issue. I see lots of talk about two birth certificates, I do not know, seems important enough to have been an issue during the trial 15 yrs ago no? I see he is listed being 19 at the age of offense, received at the age of 23.
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Post by rayozz on Aug 25, 2015 16:32:39 GMT -6
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Post by whitediamonds on Aug 27, 2015 10:18:08 GMT -6
Key points of interest appear to be, failing to notify Tercero of his right to contact the Nicaraguan consulate. Counsel failed to investigate pertinent information about Terceros childhood, which may have had a different bearing on whether the jury would have sentenced him to death.
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Post by kma367 on Sept 2, 2015 21:19:06 GMT -6
Jose Medellin tried that in 2008 and was not successful.
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