Evidence showed defendant planned second robbery after 2020 South Lubbock shooting
Prosecutors told jurors on Friday they needed to handed down a lengthy prison sentence to protect the community from a 24-year-old Lubbock man who shot and paralyzed another man during a drug robbery three years ago.
Jurors deliberated for about 50 minutes before returning with a verdict sentencing Luis Munoz to 99 years in prison for an Aug. 25, 2020 shooting that left Aaron Assiter paralyzed from the chest down.
Munoz's charge stems from a Lubbock police investigation that showed Munoz and two other men planned to rob Assiter, who at the time had been selling small amounts of marijuana to friends and family.
Investigators believe Munoz's co-defendant, Tanner Stone, 19, reached out to Assiter on Snapchat asking to buy marijuana and convinced him to meet at the Drug Emporium in the 5100 block of 82nd Street. There, Munoz would hold Assiter at gunpoint while Stone stole his drugs and money. A third co-defendant, Rodrick Estrada, 27, who supplied Munoz the silver .38 caliber revolver he used to shoot Assiter, was the getaway driver.
Munoz is the first defendant in the case to stand trial. Stone and Estrada remain held at the Lubbock County Detention Center as they await trial.
Jurors watched Munoz's interview with police during which he confessed to his role in the shooting. On Thursday, jurors found Munoz guilty of aggravated robbery, a third-degree felony that carries a punishment of five years to life in prison.
'Our whole lives have changed'
Before deliberating on Munoz's punishment, jurors heard from Assiter's mother, Melissa Nye, who told jurors about the struggle her family has endured since her son's shooting.
Just two days before the shooting, Aaron, was on the cusp of adulthood and had moved into his his own apartment. Now, Melissa said, her once active and athletic son requires constant care to make sure he doesn't fall ill to the multitude of maladies, from pressure sores to urinary tract infections, that are the causes of death for paralyzed people.
"Our whole lives have changed," she said. "He's at risk for everything."
She said her son paid a higher price than anyone in the case.
"He didn't deserve this whatsoever," she said. "It's almost worst than death -- death's easier by far. Death would have been a lot easier on all of us, especially my child."
Prosecutors also presented to jurors Munoz's criminal history, which includes juvenile arrests for theft, engaging in organized crime, assault and burglary. As an adult he was placed on probation in 2016 for a burglary of a building, which was revoked and he was sentenced to 150 days in jail. Records show he failed to report to his probation officer, failed to keep a job and failed to pay his probation fees.
A Lubbock police detective assigned to the Texas-Anti Gang unit told jurors that Munoz was a documented member of the North Lubbock Crazies, a hybrid criminal street gang influenced by Northern California prison gangs.
Jurors saw evidence of Munoz's social media posts that indicated after Assiter's shooting he planned another armed robbery, this time targeting people claiming to be gang members.
Meanwhile, jurors also heard from Munoz's older sisters, who testified about his struggles in school and at home where he one of seven children. Their mother worked two jobs and their step-father often traveled for work, leaving the older siblings taking care of the younger ones.
"It was a kids raising kids type thing," said, Alyssa Munoz, who is about two years older than her brother.
Diagnoses of Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and Dyslexia required him to be pulled from class for one-on-one tutoring. He was also prescribed medications he refused to take, Munoz's sisters told jurors.
Because of his learning disabilities, their brother was often bullied and friendless.
Alyssa told jurors she often came to her brother's defense.
"I was the one who stood up for him," she said. "I fought his battles "
One sister told jurors that his criminal actions were a way of fitting in and being accepted by other people.
After finishing the eighth grade, Luis Munoz never returned to school as he didn't want to take the medications prescribed for his learning disabilities.
However, Alyssa said her brother also struggled to find stable employment.
"He has a hard time focusing," she said.
She said at home, she remembers her brother would spend most of his time playing video games.
However, Munoz's siblings told jurors they were unfamiliar with his criminal history.
Munoz's defense attorney Marvin Williams asked jurors in his closing argument to consider his client's background that showed his actions stemmed from a need to be accepted.
"He just wanted to belong," he said.
Assessing blame
Williams recalled to jurors his client's words during his interview with a police detective in which he admitted to shooting Assiter during the robbery. The detective could also be heard telling Munoz he didn't believe he meant to shoot Assiter.
"(Munoz) says, 'I'm sorry for what happened' and 'I ask for forgiveness for what happened,'" Williams said.
While Williams said he wasn't minimizing Assiter's condition and the way his life has changed, he told jurors Assiter shares the blame for what happened that night.
"He knows he was partly responsible for what took place that night," Williams said. "He knows. He assumed the risk."
Prosecutor Jessica Gorman told jurors in her closing arguments that Munoz deserved a hefty sentence to punish him for his actions that night and to send a message to other bad actors that these crimes will not be tolerated in the community.
"This (requires) a high sentence regardless of this defendant's past," she said.
Gorman argued the evidence showed Munoz was given an opportunity to turn away from a life of crime when he was placed on probation for the burglary charge. Instead, she said Munoz rejected the help he was given, which resulted in the revocation of his probation.
"He's indicated with his actions, behavior and words that he had every intention of leading a life of crime," she said.
Prosecutor Cassie Nesbitt told jurors it was offensive to put any blame on Assiter foe what happened to him, saying it was Munoz who bears all the responsibility.
"He has already given Aaron the absolute worst punishment he could have ever received," she said.
She told jurors the evidence in the case, from Munoz's criminal history, to his gang ties and his social media posts showed a escalating pattern of criminal behavior that showed the threat he posed to the community.
She said Munoz has shown no remorse for his actions that night.
"It is because he is a violent man," she said. "That is who is sitting across from you today, that is who you need to protect the citizens of Lubbock County from."
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Prosecutors
