Thread: TX: ICE puts hold on Pearland suspect (update)

Originally Posted by AngryTX

Look at the smug look on this criminaliens face.....think he feels nothing will happen to him??

Yes folks, Pearland was a nice white agricultural community just south of Houston. No crime, no problems until illegals started moving into the area. Yes, this is what happens to good communities after illegals start moving in and taking over.

Related:
Pearland, TX Murder suspect here illegally, official says
http://www.alipac.us/ftopicp-1142167.html#1142167

By Erin Mulvaney | January 16, 2013
chron.com

The jury that will decide the fate of the 21-year-old man accused of killing a Pearland teen in 2010 will be selected Wednesday in a Brazoria County court.

Hermilo Moralez was charged with murder in the beating death of his missing classmate. The dumped, partially burned remains of 18-year-old Josh Wilkerson were discovered in a Fort Bend County field with bound hands and feet.

In November 2011, it was determined that Moralez was not competent to stand trial, and he was transferred to a state mental hospital. At a hearing last year, jurors heard from two psychiatrists who testified that Moralez was well enough to stand trial.

Brazoria County District Attorney Jeri Yenne is trying the case against Moralez. She would not comment on the upcoming trial.

The week before Thanksgiving 2010, Wilkerson disappeared after leaving Pearland ISD’s Pace Center campus the week. His parents notified police when they found his truck in a strip mall parking lot later that evening. After an extensive search by authorities and volunteers, the teen’s body was found the next day across the county line.

Authorities said Moralez, then 19, admitted beating Wilkerson to death with a wooden rod. At the time of his arrest, the Belize citizen did not have legal status in this country, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. He also faces charges of tampering with physical evidence and trying to take a weapon from a police officer.

Moralez’s attorney Crespin Linton said the trial may last several weeks, and he hopes because of media coverage there are no preconceived notions about his client’s guilt or innocence.

“It’s going to be a lengthy trial, and we want to make sure all the evidence is heard before a judgment is made,” Linton said. “People can be quick to judge.”

Jury selection begins in Pearland teen

By Carol Christian | January 29, 2013 | Updated: January 29, 2013 4:27pm
68 comments



A 21-year-old man has been found guilty in the 2010 slaying of a Pearland teen.

A Brazoria County jury on Monday convicted Hermilo Moralez, who was charged with murder in the beating death of his missing classmate, Josh Wilkerson. The trial began after jury selection Jan. 16 in the 300th State District Court.

The punishment, or sentencing, phase of Moralez' trial started Monday afternoon, officials with the Brazoria County District Attorney's Office said.

Wilkerson's partially burned remains were discovered in a Fort Bend County field, where his body had been dumped with his hands and feet bound.

The week before Thanksgiving 2010, Wilkerson disappeared after leaving the campus of PACE Center, Pearland school district's alternative high school.

His parents notified police later that evening when they found his truck in a strip mall parking lot. After an extensive search by authorities and volunteers, the teen's body was found the next day across the county line.

In November 2011, Moralez, a Belize national, was transferred to a state mental hospital after it was determined that he was not competent to stand trial.

At a hearing last year, jurors heard from two psychiatrists who testified that Moralez was well enough to go through the judicial proceeding.

Brazoria County District Attorney Jeri Yenne tried the case against Moralez.

Authorities said Moralez, then 19, admitted beating Wilkerson to death with a wooden rod. At the time of his arrest, he did not have legal status in this country, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

21-year-old immigrant convicted in beating death of former Pearland classmate - Houston Chronicle