Capital Murder Trial Postponed By Scheduling Conflicts

SAN ANGELO, TX – This afternoon District Attorney Allison Palmer and Defense Council Fred Brigman stood before Judge Jay Weatherby as they discussed the trial date for 18-year-old Gilberto Salvador Reyes. Reyes was indicted on Capital Murder of Zane Lopez and Juan Guerrero in March of last year.

Judge Weatherby began the proceedings by asking both parties if they had reached a date to begin trial. D.A. Palmer stated that even though they had both discussed the matter, she believed they would not agree on the same time frame. She went on to say that in order to allow the lab to finish testing evidence, she estimated the state would be ready to proceed towards the end of May.

For Brigman this time frame seemed undoable, especially since he is in the process of finding a co-council to assist with the trial. The summer months were also problematic because Brigman said he will be attending training and going away for vacation during the month of June. In July the district attorney’s office will began its criminal trial against Isidrio Delacruz, who is also being convicted of capital murder.

As the court contemplated the possibility of beginning in August, Brigman advised he would be unavailable the last two weeks of the month because he would be traveling out of state for personal reasons. He stated that between the searching for co-council and his previous engagements that he didn’t see how he can be ready before September.

As the attorneys discussed the options they had, Judge Weatherby made it clear he wanted to “set the date and stick with it.”

Overall, today's Pre-Trial had quite the audience. Several audience members sat on opposite sides of the courtroom. On the right side sat a group of approximately 11 people, and five individuals sat on the left side of the courtroom. As the Pre-Trial progressed, several of the people sitting on the left side were visibly distressed. Between both parties were two TGCSO deputies who stood positioned between the aisles of the courtroom. When the Pre-Trial proceedings were adjourned, the court instructed one side of the courtroom to leave first, and, after a few minutes, the other side was allowed to exit.

As of now, the trial has been set to begin on August 14 with jury selection; court proceeding will have to break since the defense attorney will be out of town. Additionally, monthly pre-trials have been set, but at this moment, the dates were not stated in court.

To learn more about the murders of Lopez and Guerrero, click here, here and here.