El Paso Walmart prosecutor Ron Banerji passes away at 49
A prominent state prosecutor working on the El Paso Walmart mass shooting trial passed away over the weekend, district attorney officials said.
Ron Banerji, 49, passed away unexpectedly Sunday, Sept. 10, at his home, El Paso District Attorney Bill Hicks said. No information was released on a cause of death.
He is survived by his wife Amanda and children, Samantha and Alex, an obituary posted in the El Paso Times states.
Banerji was an assistant district attorney working as an appellate attorney for the El Paso District Attorney's Office's Appellate Division. He was one of three prosecutors working on the El Paso Walmart mass shooter trial.
"His loss is a professional loss as well as a very deep personal loss," Hicks said. "It's hard to say what he meant to the DA's office because he was not only an assistant district attorney, I counted him as one of my friends. He was just a really good, genuine, very nice guy. He was an excellent appellate attorney. Very, very intelligent, very sharp."
Banerji was born in Khewra, Pakistan and immigrated to the U.S. with his parents as a child, his obituary states.
He received a bachelor's degree in biochemistry at the University of Illinois Champagne-Urbana and then went on to graduate cum laude with his juris doctor degree in 2002 from the University of Notre Dame. He had lived in El Paso since 2010.
Banerji has worked in various legal fields in El Paso, including as an El Paso District Attorney's Office assistant district attorney and assistant attorney for the U.S. Attorney Office for the Western District of Texas.
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He worked as an attorney for the Ray Peña McChristian Law Firm, before returning to the El Paso District Attorney's Office under Hicks' administration.
Banerji was one of the three main state prosecutors trying the largest criminal case in El Paso history — the El Paso Walmart shooting death penalty case.
"Obviously, we were counting on him to be the appellate arm of our strike force for the Walmart case," Hicks said. "He had already been providing the appellate support and research for all of the work and spreadsheet that we had been doing for the Walmart case and our Walmart team, and how we were approaching it and the different strategic decisions that we'd been discussing."
As the DA's Office mourns the loss of Banerji, discussions are being held on who will now fill the seat on the Walmart prosecutor team, Hicks said.
"We will assign another attorney," Hicks said. "We have already kind of been discussing that, but we will not make that announcement until later."
El Paso legal community mourns the loss of a dedicated public servant
Since the announcement of his death, the El Paso legal community has shown an outpouring of love and support for Banerji.
"He had dealt with various members of the criminal defense bar in both federal and state prosecutions and was very well respected across the line," Hicks said. "He was well known for being honorable and level headed. He was tough. He wouldn't back down. Whatever he said was the bottom line.
"But at the same time, he was fair and respected for that. That's why you saw such an outpouring from the legal community across the board. He was very well respected."
El Paso County Judge Ricardo Samaniego held a moment of silence for Banerji, along with the victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, during the Sept. 11 El Paso County Commissioners Court meeting.
"We lost one of your own, a county employee from the district attorney's office," Samaniego said. "It is really tough. We have a good family. We feel for each other and so this has been impactful to go through this situation."
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Several prominent El Pasoans have expressed their admiration for Banerji on a Facebook post Hicks' posted announcing Banerji's death.
"We too are saddened by this news," Samaniego replied in the Facebook post. "We profoundly pray for Ron and his family. We believe in our county family and this of course will impact all of our employees."
El Paso lawyer Brock Benjamin replied, "Ron was a good friend, colleague and 'opposing counsel.' He was a great guy. I'm floored and will keep his family in my thoughts and prayers."
El Paso County District Clerk Norma Favela Barceleau replied to Hick's announcement, "My sincerest condolences to his family and to you and your team."
Visitation for Banerji will be held from 5-9:00 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 18, 2023, at Sunset Funeral Home West, 480 North Resler Drive, with a reception at 6:30 p.m. followed by a eulogy at 7:00 p.m., according to Banerji's obituary.
Aaron Martinez may be reached at amartinez1@elpasotimes.com or on Twitter @AMartinezEPT.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: El Paso Walmart state prosecutor Ron Banerji passes away at 49
