Joseph Angel Alvarez sentenced to life, plus-20 years in shooting of Kaufmann family

A man was sentenced to spend the rest of his life in prison in the fatal shooting of an El Paso lawyer who he believed was part of a group of residents performing satanic abortion rituals at Memorial Park.

Joseph Angel Alvarez received the life sentence Monday, Oct. 23, on a murder charge in the death of Georgette Kaufmann. He was also sentenced to 20 years on aggravated assault with a deadly weapon charge for wounding Kaufmann's husband, Daniel Kaufmann, in the shooting.

The sentences will be served concurrently.

Daniel Kaufmann wiped away tears after the sentence was read. Family hugged prosecutors after the judge dismissed jurors and the court was recessed.

Alvarez had no visible reaction.

A jury of seven women and five men reached a decision on the sentencing after deliberating for less than three hours.

The same jury convicted Alvarez Friday, Oct. 20, on the murder and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon charges, rejecting his legal team's claim that he was not guilty by reason of insanity.

Alvarez was described by prosecutors as a radicalized anti-abortionist who studied the Bible and read other religious texts to come up with his bizarre motive for attacking the Kaufmanns in November 2020.

More: 'She was kind, sweet and helpful': Mother, son recall Georgette Kaufmann's life

After the verdict was read and the jury was released, Daniel Kaufmann fought back tears as he addressed the man who killed his wife.

He will see his wife again one day, while Alvarez will face the ultimate punishment, Daniel Kaufmann said in his victim impact statement.

"Now she's gone," he said. "Over these last three years, especially in the last week and today, I've found solace in two facts. Two realities that I believe with every ounce and fiber of my soul and my being. The first is that I know that whenever I die, I will be reunited with my wife in heaven for the rest of eternity. The second is that the person who murdered my wife, who has been convicted of murdering my wife, will spend the rest of his life, eternity burning in hell and completely denied God's love and peace and understanding."

Daniel Kaufmann sat on the witness stand about 20 feet away from the man who killed his wife as he gave his victim impact statement.

Alvarez sat in the jury box and stared at Daniel Kaufmann, showing no emotions.

Georgette Kaufmann brought love to the world, Daniel Kaufmann said as he wiped tears from his eyes.

"One of Georgette's favorite songs, there's a line in the song, 'the measure of a life is the measure of love and respect,'" Daniel Kaufmann said in his victim impact statement. "I can't think of a greater summary for Georgette's life than those two words. She had a passion, a zeal, for not only her life, but the life of everybody she met. And that was readily apparent within moments of meeting her. She was the most sincere person I've ever met in my life."

After the trial, Alvarez's attorney, Greg Anderson, said the shooting and trial was painful for everyone involved.

"Very difficult," Anderson said after the trial. "Like I said in my opening (statements), it was tragic, violent and sad for all sides — for the victims, their families and Mr. Alvarez."

Key testimony from the trial was from Alvarez himself. During his testimony, he went on long religious rants about abortions, demons and satanists. He also testified he would not have gone through the shooting if police officers had been in the area.

This testimony showed jurors that while Alvarez suffers from mental illness, it did not justify or excuse his actions, state prosecutor Ray Duke said after the trial. Duke and Raoaa King tried the case for the El Paso District Attorney's Office.

"I think from a defense standpoint, I could see why Mr. Anderson put him (Alvarez) out there on the stand, so that he could speak and let the jurors know his beliefs because that certainly does sound insane," Dukes said. "But the legal definition is, in spite of his mental health, does he know the difference between right and wrong? And the answer to that is yes. He knows the difference."

El Paso District Attorney Bill Hicks, who knew and worked with the Kaufmanns, said "justice was served."

"It is truly a tragedy that this happened at all, and our hearts go out to the Kaufmann family," Hicks said. "They are a beautiful family, and we can only wish them peace and that they're able to find peace moving forward."

In closing arguments during the sentencing phase of the case, state prosecutors asked the jury to sentence Alvarez to life in prison or at least 60 years.

"I'm asking you not to misplace your mercy," Duke said in his closing arguments. "Mercy should have been given to Georgette Kaufmann. You'll recall the cold, cold testimony of the defendant. No remorse whatsoever. Zero. Did he check on her? No. Did he check to see if she had a pulse? Did he call 911? No. Zero mercy. Zero mercy for Daniel …His (Alvarez) intention is very, very clear. His intention was to go into that house and murder everybody that's in that house."

Anderson asked the jury for a lenient sentence of 30 years in prison because of his client's mental health issues.

"The state will say, what mercy did Mr. Alvarez show Georgette Kaufmann?" Anderson said in his closing arguments. "That's where I circled back to the fact that Mr. Alvarez has shown to you by his testimony that he has a serious mental illness and that's what caused him to show no mercy when he killed Georgette Kaufmann."

More: Accused gunman testifies faith-driven 'execution' beliefs led to El Paso lawyer's slaying

He added, "Your judgment today will be a sign for how we as a society should treat our people with severe mental illness … I ask that you take into account or at least give consideration that mercy or grace will put at least some small amount of goodness to be shown to those with severe mental illness."

The murder trial started Monday, Oct. 16, in the 210th District Court at the Enrique Moreno County Courthouse in Downtown El Paso. Judge Alyssa Perez presided over the trial.

Unfounded beliefs of satanic rituals

Alvarez testified he committed the ambush attack after receiving "revelations" from God about satanic abortion rituals being performed by residents living near Memorial Park in Central El Paso.

He claimed he received signs from God that he needed to stop the abortions by killing the people he believed were conducting the rituals.

Alvarez did not know the Kaufmann family. He claimed he chose the Kaufmann house because trees in the park pointed to their home.

He testified the trees were misshapen because aborted fetuses were buried in the park's ground. Alvarez believed benches, tables and an area under a bridge were altars used in the rituals. He testified trolls and demons would take the babies who weren't buried in the ground.

Cold-blooded shooting of the Kaufmanns

Alvarez testified he was praying in his car to God for answers on how to stop the abortions when he saw Georgette Kaufmann driving her car without its headlights on. He claimed this was a sign from God to kill her.

He exited his car with a gun hidden in a pizza box, walked up to her as she got out of her car and shot her three to four times. She was later found dead by police in her garage.

He then heard Daniel Kaufmann inside the house and shot at him at least six times through a wrought iron door. Daniel Kaufmann suffered serious injuries but survived the attack.

Daniel Kaufmann fled the house and went to a neighbor's house for help.

Alvarez fled the home. Months later, police used controversial geofence warrants to track cellphones in the area at the time of the shooting, which led them to Alvarez.

Police found an email Alvarez wrote, which prosecutors called a manifesto, about satanic rituals being performed across the U.S., including at Memorial Park. The email was sent to several military email addresses.

More: Defendant testifies on religious beliefs in El Paso lawyer fatal shooting trial

He also sent emails about his claims of satanic abortions to political leaders in Texas and other states.

During his trial, two psychologists testified and agreed Alvarez suffered from a "severe mental illness."

Dr. James Schutte, who testified on behalf of the defense, claimed Alvarez suffered from schizoaffective disorder. He claimed the mental illness led Alvarez to commit the shooting.

Dr. Timothy Proctor, who testified on behalf of state prosecutors, said he diagnosed Alvarez with delusional disorder and did not believe Alvarez suffered from schizoaffective disorder. He added Alvarez was not insane and knew he was committing a crime when he shot the Kaufmanns.

Aaron Martinez may be reached at amartinez1@elpasotimes.com or on Twitter @AMartinezEPT.

This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Convicted killer sentenced to life in fatal shooting of El Paso lawyer