Uvalle GUILTY of Capital Murder in Gangland Execution Trial

After 45 minutes of deliberation, a jury of seven men and five women found Daniel Uvalle guilty of capital murder at roughly 4:15 p.m.

Family members of both victims, 22-year-olds Tabitha Freeman and Alvaro Carrillo, Jr., leapt from their seats in the corridors of the courthouse on Thursday afternoon, one loud voice calling out, "we have a verdict!"

As the mothers, sisters and other close family members of the victims quickly moved to the front of the mass outside the wooden double doors, a bailiff ushered them in slowly, the courtroom gradually filling in the rows behind the district attorney.

Terry Duarte, mother of Alavaro Carrillo, sat beside her sister and another family member with their hands clasped together and fingers interlaced. Behind her, Duarte's daughter and her only son's twin, Elvira, wrapped her arms around her mother's shoulders, leaning forward in her seat.

On the row in front of them, Karen Freeman, mother of Tabitha Freeman, sat in a torquoise shirt, shaking as she clutched a winged heart necklace containing ashes from her only daughter.

As Judge Tom Gossett read out the jury's verdict, the tension rose and Duarte closed her eyes, Freeman held out her necklace, pendant facing the judge. At the word "guilty" a loud sigh of relief reverberated through the courtroom, many letting out quick cries as the judge continued to address the jury and thank them for their service.

After the jury was dismissed, Alvaro Carrillo's sister, Amanda, approached the state's table to provide a victim impact statement, during which she described how her brother's death affected her. 

"My brother, Alvaro Carrillo, was kind, sweet, very respectful and very helpful," she began. She told the court how close her children were to their uncle and what he meant to her sister and mother, then explained how it had affected Elvira Carrillo, her sister and her brother's twin.

"She's not as open as she used to be," she said. She told of how her brother would call her mother on a daily basis and how her family has difficulty trusting people now because Johnny Garcia, Uvalle's co-defendant, was supposed to be a family friend.

"I have trouble sleeping now," she said. "I wake up to nightmares. I'm crying constantly, even if it's at work."

After Carrillo spoke, Karen Freeman stood to tell the court how the death of her daughter has affected her life. 

"My life ended Sept. 1, 2013," she said. "My heart and my whole world was my daughter..."

She then addressed Uvalle, stating, "The things I want to say to you, no man should ever think."

She kept her testimony brief, but told the court she promised justice for her daughter, and now she's got half of it.

At the conclusion of the statements by Carrillo and Freeman, Judge Gossett sentenced Uvalle to life in prison. 

Uvalle, 18, was 17 years old at the time of the offense and was not eligible for the death penalty or for life without parole. He will be eligible for parole in 50 years. 

Johnny Garcia, the co-defendant in the murders, has not yet gone to trial. His court date is scheduled for May.

For more on the trial, please see these stories on San Angelo's gangland execution.