Busy Day in District Court; Convicted Stabber Appears Confused and Blames Meds

SAN ANGELO, TX -- A 26-year-old San Angelo man pled guilty today in Judge Brock Jones court after seeming to be confused and having a difficult time keeping up with the proceedings.  

Gabriel Thurman Prince pled guilty to stabbing Willie Bowman with a knife on January 31, 2016 in exchange for a ten year prison sentence with credit for almost two years served in the Tom Green County jail.  

At one point, the judge asked Prince if he was entering a plea of guilty or not guilty.  Prince said, “Not guilty ‘cause he tried to get me first.”  His attorney then advised Prince that the judge wasn’t asking about details of the assault, but was asking about his plea.  Prince then said, “I take medicine.  (I plead) Guilty.”  

Prince’s court appointed attorney Rudy Taylor then asked judge Jones to put his client on the record.  Jones agreed and Taylor helped  Prince to tell the court that after he was arrested and while he was in the Tom Green County Jail that Prince was evaluated by a psychologist and put on medication.  Prince told the court he had been on medication, “for over a year.”  Prince actually went to a state mental hospital.

In the end, the judge accepted the plea deal reached between Prince’s attorney and the District Attorney’s office.  He was sentenced to ten years in prison with credit for time served.  He will be eligible for parole in three years.  

It was a busy day at the Tom Green County courthouse.  Down the hall on the second floor from the Prince plea hearing, Miguel Angel Davila was attending a pretrial hearing.  

Davila stands accused of sexual assault of a child and indecency with a child by sexual conduct on May 22, 2014.  Court records identify the female as a child younger than 17 years of age.    

Defense and prosecuting attorneys presented motions before District Judge Brad Goodwin in preparation for a jury trial set for Monday September 18.   

Davila’s initial trial was set for August 15, 2016.  Court records indicate his court appointed attorney at the time was not ready for trial.  He was appointed a new defense attorney, Stephanie Goodman.  

Also on Tuesday, 30-year-old Daniel Armenta was sentenced to six years in prison for sexually assaulting a child younger than 17.  

There are dozens of pretrial hearings and plea hearings set for Wednesday at the courthouse including Noah Shaw charged with sexual assault of a child, Austin Carpenter charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, Michael Sanchez indicted for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon causing serious bodily injury, and Geovanni Severin charged with online solicitation of a minor.