After Only 20 minutes of Deliberation, San Antonio Man Found Guilty of Compelling Prostitution
Written by admin, Oct 4, 2009, 0 Comments
Courtesy Monica Garcia,
The Office of District Attorney Isidro Alaniz reports that the jury in 406th District Court has returned a verdict of Guilty on all counts against Jose Antonio Martinez of San Antonio.
Martinez is now facing up to twenty years in prison for having beaten his fifteen year old girlfriend with a hammer and forcing her into prostitution on three separate occasions.
According to trial testimony, Martinez and his girlfriend were staying at the Loma Alta Motel on San Bernardo Avenue in late March and early April 2009. Soon after arriving in Laredo, the pair ran out of money, which led the defendant to seek out “Johns” for his girlfriend and force her into prostitution. While on the stand, the young female victim testified that the defendant would beat her when she disobeyed him and in order to “toughen her up” for the life they were going to make for themselves in Mexico.
As part of the punishment phase of the trial, the District Attorney’s Office called a San Antonio Police detective to testify about charges pending against Martinez in Bexar County. According to the detective, Martinez is charged with capital murder in San Antonio after having allegedly shot and killed Mehrdad Khalilzadeh and dumping his body in McAllister Park. Martinez’ bond was set at one million dollars.
Prosecutors are asking jurors for the maximum penalty of twenty years in prison.
