On Thursday, October 7, 2010, a Bexar County jury rejected the death penalty for Keith Evans, who was convicted of the capital murder of Mohammed “Moe” Omar during a failed robbery attempt of a convenience store in San Antonio. Evans had admitted his guilt in the attempted robbery and murder, but testified that he had not intended to shoot and kill Mr. Omar.
This is the third case in 2010 in which a Texas jury has rejected the death penalty and opted instead for the sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole. In 2009, a Bexar County jury rejected the death penalty for Russell Knowles in a similar case involving a botched robbery of a convenience store.
There have been six new death sentences to date in Texas in 2010.
Read more about this case in the San Antonio Express-News.