Texas death row inmate convicted in 1996 triple-murder of El Paso teens dies in prison

A Texas death row inmate convicted of killing three El Paso teenagers more than two decades ago has died in prison.

Ignacio Gomez, 49, died of cardiac arrest Sunday at a hospital after being on death row for more than 20 years, the Houston Chronicle reported.

Gomez was convicted in the murders of 16-year-old twin brothers Michael and Matthew Meredith and 19-year-old Tolbert "Toby" Hatheway Jr. in 1996.

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Gomez, who had a ninth-grade education, was a Mexican citizen living legally in El Paso whose lawyers claimed that he had been deprived of his rights under the international Vienna Convention.

Gomez's lawyers argued he should have been advised of his right to seek legal help from a Mexican consulate.

At 5:31 a.m. Sunday, Gomez was found unresponsive in his cell at the Polunsky prison in Livingston, which is north of Houston, Jeremy Desel, spokesman for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, said in an email.

After an attempt to save his life, Gomez was taken to the hospital in Livingston and was pronounced dead at 6:50 a.m., Desel said. The preliminary cause of death was listed as cardiac arrest.

1996 desert deaths

The victims lived near the Montana Vista area and were students at Montwood High School. Hatheway had returned to school after dropping out. 

Gomez was 26 years old when the murders took place on the night of Nov. 23, 1996.

According to El Paso Times archives, the teens were taking a shortcut along a dirt road near their homes when they were confronted by Gomez and several companions riding in an SUV.

Gomez believed the teens had broken into his mother's home, frightening her badly by breaking windows, according to a death row case summary by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice and newspaper archives.

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After a fight broke out, Gomez took out a .357-caliber handgun and opened fire, according to archives.

Gomez shot one of the teens in the head, fired again and shot the second victim.

After reloading, the third teen was tracked down as he tried to flee before being shot in the head. The bodies were then taken away and buried.

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When the teens missed their 11 p.m. curfew, their families went to look for them, El Paso Times archives show.

The next day, family members searching the desert found one of the twin's hat and comb, as well as bullets. There also were signs of a struggle and what appeared to be trails of two bodies dragged to a pickup.

The bodies of the teens were later found in shallow desert graves in far East El Paso in what was then the eastern boundary of Fort Bliss.

'Just went out of control'

Gomez's companions, including Gomez's brother and brother-in-law, turned themselves in and confessed to El Paso County Sheriff's Office detectives, leading investigators to Gomez, Times archives show.

In his confession, Gomez admitted he made "the last guy ... sit next to his friends" and then shot him in the head and "shot him some more," according to Times archives that cited court documents.

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Gomez said he "just went out of control" because his mother had been frightened when the windows at her home were broken.

The boys had nothing to do with the incident at Gomez's mother's home, El Paso County District Attorney Jaime Esparza said after the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals denied an appeal by Gomez in 2008.

Gomez was mentally ill and spent much of his time in a prison psychiatric ward, the Houston Chronicle reported, adding that his lawyer claimed he wasn't competent to be executed. 

Daniel Borunda may be reached at 546-6102; dborunda@elpasotimes.com; @BorundaDaniel on Twitter.