Jose Acuna-Valenzuela – Latino, age 22
Sentenced to death in Maricopa County, Arizona
By: a jury
Date of crime: 08/3/2011
Prosecution case/defense response: Jose Acuna-Valenzuela shot and killed Edgar Sigala, 24, and critically injured another person outside a Baskin-Robbins ice cream shop. Valenzuela and the pair were in an argument in the shop before Valenzuela left and returned with a gun.
Sources: Arizona Republic 8/4/11; arizonacentral.com 8/4/2011
By: a jury
Date of crime: 08/3/2011
Prosecution case/defense response: Jose Acuna-Valenzuela shot and killed Edgar Sigala, 24, and critically injured another person outside a Baskin-Robbins ice cream shop. Valenzuela and the pair were in an argument in the shop before Valenzuela left and returned with a gun.
Sources: Arizona Republic 8/4/11; arizonacentral.com 8/4/2011
Bryan Hulsey—age 34, white
Sentenced to death in Maricopa County, Arizona
By: a jury
Date of crime: February 2007
Prosecution case/defense response: On Presidents Day in 2007, Hulsey was a passenger in a vehicle when Glendale police officer David Goitia initiated a traffic stop. Officer Anthony Holly later arrived on scene to assist. As Officer Holly attempted to conduct a search, Hulsey reacted violently—he pulled out a .357 Magnum, aimed it, and fired it at Officer Holly, killing him. Following a four-month trial, the jury reached the decision to impose the death penalty. As the verdict was read, Husley said in open court “well done, well done.” Hulsey was an individual who suffered from mental issues and, according to the prosecution, a deep dislike of authority, turning him into a “hate-filled murderer” who showed only contempt and never remorse.
Sources: The Arizona Republic, August 29, 2014
By: a jury
Date of crime: February 2007
Prosecution case/defense response: On Presidents Day in 2007, Hulsey was a passenger in a vehicle when Glendale police officer David Goitia initiated a traffic stop. Officer Anthony Holly later arrived on scene to assist. As Officer Holly attempted to conduct a search, Hulsey reacted violently—he pulled out a .357 Magnum, aimed it, and fired it at Officer Holly, killing him. Following a four-month trial, the jury reached the decision to impose the death penalty. As the verdict was read, Husley said in open court “well done, well done.” Hulsey was an individual who suffered from mental issues and, according to the prosecution, a deep dislike of authority, turning him into a “hate-filled murderer” who showed only contempt and never remorse.
Sources: The Arizona Republic, August 29, 2014
Dauntorian Sanders—age 23, black
Sentenced to death in Maricopa County, Arizona
By: a jury
Date of crime: 8/31/09
Prosecution case/defense response: When police responded to the residence of Susan Witbrach and Dauntorian Sanders, they discovered three-year-old Schala Vera savagely beaten to death while attempting to hide behind a toilet in a bathroom. “Crimes against children, as alleged in this case, cannot be tolerated and must draw a strong response from prosecutors,” said Maricopa County Attorney’s Office in its newsletter.
Sources: Maricopa County Attorney’s Office, September 5, 2014; The Arizona Republic, September 6, 2014; Phoenix New Times, September 10, 2009
By: a jury
Date of crime: 8/31/09
Prosecution case/defense response: When police responded to the residence of Susan Witbrach and Dauntorian Sanders, they discovered three-year-old Schala Vera savagely beaten to death while attempting to hide behind a toilet in a bathroom. “Crimes against children, as alleged in this case, cannot be tolerated and must draw a strong response from prosecutors,” said Maricopa County Attorney’s Office in its newsletter.
Sources: Maricopa County Attorney’s Office, September 5, 2014; The Arizona Republic, September 6, 2014; Phoenix New Times, September 10, 2009