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Instead Of A Trial, Waco Murder Defendant Opts For Guilty Plea
Facing a mandatory 40-year-sentence if convicted, a 19-year-old Waco capital murder defendant opted for a guilty plea to a lesser charge Tuesday, just before his trial was to have started.
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Steve Kelly, 19, Accused of Murder
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WACO (April 28, 2009)--Security was tight Tuesday morning at the McLennan County Courthouse as Steve Kelly, 19, pleaded guilty to murder in the shooting death of 21-year-old Robert Nevarez.
Kelly accepted a plea deal just before the start of his capital murder trial Tuesday of 40 years in prison for a guilty plea to the lesser charge of murder.
Prosecutors also waived retaliation charges that stemmed from threats against several people who cooperated with the investigation.
He must serve at least 20 years before he's eligible for parole.
Had he been convicted of capital murder, he would have received a mandatory life sentence with no possibility of parole.
Nevarez was found shot in the head after an attempted robbery in August 2008.
Two other men, Keith Caufield, 20, and Larry Waits, 21, are also charged in connection with the August shooting death.
Their cases are pending.
Latest Comments
When you work with these little criminals, it's hard to say throw the book at them until you see them mentally manipulate their way around staff and students WHILE THEY'RE LOCKED UP!! SB, I too believe everything you're saying b/c I'm a true lover of Christ; however, I'm torn b/c this demeanor and evil is deeper than just receiving help. I promise you that at this point, there's almost no turn around and I'm saying that b/c I've seen it over a decade for myself. Some WANT to change, trust me, but that's so much easier said than done. What needs to happen is we need to start helping indigent families WHO REALLY WANT TO CHANGE so their children can avoid the stigmas & problems that go along with being poor and uneducated/unexposed to life, that causes children to begin the whole idea of "you give or I'll take" in the first place. After a certain point, the criminal mentality is so deep, you can't touch it...
I have a frim believe in rehabilitation but when it comes to people that murder or that comment a molestation I feel that they can not change and can not be rehabilitated
I am a STRONG BELIEVER in FORGIVENESS. and Eric if it were my child I can't say how I would feel. But no matter what the situation I WOULD NOT want to see this young child be sentenced to death or even life w/o parole as some of the other posters. I totally so do not agree with what he did but IF there is a slight chance he can redeem himself and do something with what is left of his life after prison, I am praying for the best
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