CCA Rules Capital Murder Case Can Proceed
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DALLAS (KRLD) - The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals has cleared the way for Dallas County prosecutors to try a Dallas man for capital murder. Anthony Hill has already admitted his role in a March, 2012 crime spree that included a kidnapping, robbery and a shooting. He was sentenced to 45-years in prison.
But months after the shooting, victim Ryan Lusk died from lingering effects from the shooting injuries. Attempts to resurrect the case have met with appeals.
St. Patricks Day Crime Spree
The crime spree began just after midnight March 18, 2012 when a woman, who was sitting in her car on Vantage Pointe Drive in Lake Highlands, was approached by two men. The woman had been visiting friends for a St. Patrick's Day celebration. Hill and another man suddenly appeared next to her car, gun drawn.
For the next several hours, the two men forced the woman to drive around Dallas, collecting withdrawls from ATMs. During the trial the woman testified she was traumatized by the robbery and had to move from Dallas.
As the group continued driving around the Greenville Avenue area, they spotted Lusk sitting in his car with a friend. Again, Hill approached a car with robbery on his mind.
But this time, the intended victim tried to make a break. Lusk hit the gas and tried to drive away. Shots were fired. At first, Lusk didn't realize he was hit, then it sank in. "I was trying to push the gas, but I couldn't." He testified during a court hearing. "I felt like I was just floating."
The gunshot had gone through Lusk's spine and into his body cavity causing paralysis and injuries to his kidneys. The friend who was with Lusk testified he reached down and pushed the gas pedal with his hand as they tried to escape. The woman who had been kidnapped said Hill returned to car claiming he had just killed a man.
Hill was later arrested. He pleaded guilty to charges of aggravated robbery and aggravated kidnapping, leaving it up to former Dallas County State District Court Judge Larry Mitchell to decide punishment.
Lusk was able testify at the hearing, from his wheelchair. He told the judge he was still suffering from the injuries. Little did he know the injuries would take his life in the coming months.
Mitchell sentenced Lusk to 45 years in prison.
The Victim Dies The Case Changes
In November of 2013, five months after Hill was sent to prison, Lusk died from complications from the gunshot injuries. Prosecutors immediately filed motions to resurrect the case, this time as a capital murder charge, an accusation that carries a life prison term without any possibility of parole.
But defense attorneys raised the argument of double jeopardy, meaning a person cannot be tried for the same crime twice. They argued both the U.S and Texas Constitutions prohibit such actions. They said when Hill pleaded guilty, a move at the advice of his then-defense attorneys, he effectively ended all further prosecution.
Prosecutors said the law is settled, that when the result of a crime changes their ability to present a new and more serious case is allowed.
Mitchell did not buy the argument and on December 29, 2014 he threw out the capital murder charge.
The state appealed to the 5th Court of Appeals in Dallas. In a published opinion handed down in May of this year, the appeals court reversed Mitchell, finding "that Appellant could be prosecuted, convicted, and punished for the greater offense of capital murder, even after having been convicted of and sentenced for, the lesser included offense of aggravated robbery, because of a purported exception to double jeopardy protection created by the United States Supreme Court."
A motion for rehearing was denied. Defense attorneys took the case to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals.
Final Ruling
The notification from the High Court came without a written opinion. Rather, it said Hill's Motion for Discretionary Review Refused. Only Justice Lawrence Meyers would have allowed a review.
It is a moment Paula Montoya, mother of Lusk, has been waiting for. "It's been so long now, you know how long this has dragged out," she said. "We've not given up."
But she is also mindful that a new trial will bring back bitter memories and raw emotions.
"It's going to be hard, it's going to be tough reliving all of that. But it's for the justice of my son. So yes. We're ready."
Hill's attorney was reserving comment until he could speak with his client.
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