Defense Attorney of Accused Child Murderer Requests Witness Files

The sounds of chains rattled the quiet courtroom in Judge Ben Woodward's 119th District Court Monday afternoon as two County Sheriff deputies led Isidro Delacruz Jr., 24, to a chair next to one of his defense lawyers, Robert Cowlie. Delacruz sat back in his chair nonchalantly and stared ahead as his lawyer and state attorneys discussed the defense’s request for a series of witness and agency files related to the case during a pre-trial hearing. The discussion was a follow-up to the May 11, 2015 hearing.

Delacruz is facing the death penalty for the murder of 5-year-old Naiya Villegas on Sept. 2, 2014. The 24-year-old is the ex-boyfriend of Naiya’s mother, Tanya Bermea, and is accused of breaking into her home and slitting her daughter’s throat.

The hearing, which lasted 31 minutes, included follow-up to the request of an addendum to a previously issued order that provides an itemized list of “biological evidence,” or DNA analysis, submitted to the DPS Crime Lab in Lubbock for testing. It also included updated specific requirements placed on the district attorney’s office in order to meet the defense’s motion, which includes criminal backgrounds of all state witnesses, as well as civilian witnesses.

At the previous hearing, 51^st District Attorney Allison Palmer stated she would willingly comply with the defense’s motions if the judge ordered it; however, it could be a daunting task. Therefore, she requested a specific set of criteria, which Cowlie provided at Monday’s hearing.

Although the new requests may still be a daunting, Palmer did not object to any of the motions presented to Judge Ben Woodward. She did make sure, however, the defense understood she could only work with local and state agencies that could provide information she could compare with the NCIC/TCIC (National Crime Information Center and Texas Crime Information Center).

As for the addendum, Cowlie said he wanted more specific information on what was being tested by the crime lab in Lubbock, and requested access to full disclosure of NCIC/TCIC Reports.  

“There is a lot involved,” Palmer stated. “If the reports are exclusive, we’ll provide those to the defense counsel. The reports, however, are sometimes unclear, so the defense will have to follow up with the state in regards to the items listed.”

Additionally, Cowlie requested access to civilian witness files, police investigations conducted “in a sloppy manner” and other evidence reports generated during the investigation. These files should also contain civilian witness names and files that consist of any “falsehoods,” or questionable testimony provided by witnesses in Delacruz’s case.

“I want to make sure these civilian witnesses have been evaluated and if they are deemed as unreliable,” Cowlie explained to Woodward.

Unreliability also includes witnesses who underwent polygraph tests and showed indication of substance abuse. This would also include witness convictions, juvenile arrests and warrants. The defense also requested any consent documents or warrants signed by Delacruz during the investigation.

As for state witnesses, Cowlie specifically has requested prior arrest history, any showing of leniency in criminal actions, monies paid to witnesses, a request for memos or emails that relate to the case, camera inspections of Delacruz, an existence of identification of witnesses who have testified in front of a grand jury with regards to similar offenses, discovery files of lab workers and law enforcement assigned to the case.

Another pre-hearing is set for Nov. 3, and Woodward said it will last the entire day. At that time, both the state and defense attorneys will review the items discussed Monday, and the jury questionnaire will be passed out to potential jurors.

Woodward expects the actual trial will start as scheduled on Jan. 11, 2016.

After calling the hearing to an end, Delacruz’s assigned officers shackled his arms and legs, and led him outside the court. On his way out, the accused murderer had a smirk on his face, which tends to be a common reaction for the man whose life is dependent on a jury of his peers.

According to a complaint filed by San Angelo police investigator Carlton T. Kolbe, 23-year-old Isidro Miguel Delacruz, entered the residence of his ex-girlfriend, Tanya Bermea through a back window shortly before committing the murder and refused to leave early in the morning of Sept. 2, 2014.

At the time of the break-in, only Bermea and her daughter, Villegas, were in the house, however shortly thereafter Bermea exited to call her mother, Jesusita Bermea and the two returned, but Delacruz refused to let them back inside.

Bermea then drove to Delacruz’s mother’s house, located in the 3100 block of Lindell St., to seek assistance in removing Delacruz from the residence. When she returned, her daughter’s throat had been slit and Delacruz was covering the wound with paper towels, the complaint states.

“Tanya Bermea said that when she walked into the residence the defendant got up and punched her several times, then pushed her outside onto the sidewalk and started choking her,” Detective Kolbe wrote.

[[{"fid":"7674","view_mode":"preview","type":"media","attributes":{"alt":"5-year-old Naiya Villegas (Facebook)","title":"Photo/Facebook","height":"960","width":"716","style":"float: left; margin: 0px 20px 20px 0px; width: 30%;","class":"media-element file-preview imgbody"}}]]Responding officer Marcus Rodriguez reported that he had been dispatched to the scene for a civil disturbance, and upon arrival found Bermea in the front yard and observed Delacruz walking into the residence. (Left: 5-year-old Naiya Villegas (Facebook))

Once inside, Rodriguez observed Villegas lying on the living room floor and Delacruz holding paper towels to the victim’s throat.

Kolbe’s walk-through of the residence turned up a horrific scene, with blood on the walls, blinds, floor and Villegas’ bedroom, as well as in the kitchen mixed with water. Crime scene photos of Delacruz revealed a laceration on the back of his left upper arm. 

The suspected murder weapon was found underneath a vehicle parked at the end of a walkway, where blood visibly marked the area.

Following their arrival on scene, police immediately took Delacruz into custody and transported him to the county jail, where he was booked for murder.

Below, a video of Police Chief Tim Vasquez describing th murder case against Delacruz: