July 7
TEXAS:
Sentencing hearing resumes for cop killer
A witness testified about cop killer Wesley Lynn Ruiz's criminal history
during his sentencing hearing that resumed this morning.
A Dallas County jury last month found the 28-year-old guilty of capital
murder in the death of Dallas police Senior Cpl. Mark Nix.
Cpl. Nix, 33, was killed after a March 2007 chase that ended in Dallas.
After Mr. Ruiz spun out and crashed in front of a house, Cpl. Nix got out
of his police car and tried to beat the front passenger window of the car
Mr. Ruiz was driving.
Mr. Ruiz shot Cpl. Nix in the chest as he used 2 hands to swing his baton
at the window.
Mr. Ruiz testified during his trial that he believed officers fired at him
first and that he was simply firing back in self-defense. But the jury
rejected that notion.
The jury will consider whether Mr. Ruiz should be sentenced to death or
life in prison without the opportunity for parole.
(source: Dallas Morning News)