A Texas man was executed Wednesday for the murder of an 18-year-old woman who was raped, fatally shot and dumped in a field. He used his last words to apologize to the young woman’s family.
Ramiro Gonzales, 41, was executed by lethal injection at 6:50 p.m. CT, according to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. He became the second inmate put to death in the state this year and the eighth in the nation.
Gonzales was convicted of the rape and murder of 18-year-old Bridget Townsend, who was just starting out in life, working full time at a resort and anxiously waiting to hear about an application to a nursing school.
“I cannot express in words the pain I have caused you, the hurt, what I have taken away and cannot give back,” Gonzales said just before his last breath, according to a transcript provided by the Texas Department of Justice. Justice
Bridget’s mother, Patricia Townsend, told USA TODAY that she would be among the witnesses to the execution and that it would be a “joyful occasion” for her family: “He doesn’t deserve pity. »
Here’s what you need to know about the execution, the case and the victim.
Ramiro Gonzales Apologizes to Family, Tells Principal ‘I’m Ready’
The last words Ramiro Gonzales spoke were to the Townsend family, apologizing for the pain he had caused them, according to a transcript provided by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
Gonzales told the Townsends that he used his time on Earth to work to take responsibility for his actions in an effort to “give it all back” and that he loved the Townsends.
“I have never stopped praying for all of you. I have never stopped praying that you will forgive me and that one day I will have the opportunity to apologize. I owe you all my life and I hope one day you will forgive me,” Gonzales said. “To all your family, I’m sorry.”
He also thanked his family and friends for the support they have given him over the years.
He ended his last words with: “God bless you all. Guardian, I’m ready. »
The man put to death was a “different person”
Texas executed Gonzales for a crime he committed when he was 18, Gonzales’ lawyers told USA TODAY after his death.
“The man put to death for these acts was a different person,” they said. Gonzales “floundered” as an abused and neglected child and adolescent, never knowing the “tools, support, or guidance” that many take for granted. some “made poor choices” and “sought escape through drugs” due to these circumstances, they said.
“And he has caused irrevocable harm.” He killed Bridget Townsend and attacked “another woman”, they said. “We mourn these women and their families. He does too.”
“The Ramiro” who left the world was “a deeply spiritual, generous, patient and intentional person, full of remorse, someone whose driving force was love.”
“Ramiro knew he had taken something from this world that he could never give back. He lived with this shame every day, and it shaped the person he worked so hard to become,” according to the statement. “If this country’s legal system was meant to encourage rehabilitation, it would be an example. Ramiro is growing up. Ramiro has changed. May we all strive to do the same. »
Bridget Townsend murdered and abandoned
Bridget Townsend was spending the night at her boyfriend Joe Leal’s house the night Ramiro Gonzales came knocking. Leal was selling drugs and Gonzales went to his house to steal cocaine, finding Bridget there alone.
After Gonzales entered and stole money, Bridget began calling Leal. That’s when Gonzales overpowered her, tied her up and drove her to her grandfather’s ranch, where he raped and shot her before dumping her body in a field, according to court records .
When Leal arrived home later that night, Bridget’s truck, purse and keys were in their usual places, but he couldn’t find her anywhere and called the police.
For almost two years, no one except Gonzales knew what had happened to Bridget. One day, while serving a life sentence for the rape and kidnapping of another woman, Gonzales decided to confess to Bridget’s murder, leading authorities to her remains in a field in Bandera, a small town located 65 kilometers northwest of San Antonio.
Bridget’s mother rejects excuses and apologies
Patricia Townsend told USA TODAY that Gonzales’ childhood “should have nothing to do with this.”
“I know a lot of people who had difficult childhoods,” she said Saturday, four days before her execution. “He made his choice.”
Gonzales contacted Bridget’s family over the years to express his “deep remorse,” an apology that his family rejected.
“She was a beautiful person who loved life and people,” Townsend said. “She didn’t deserve what she got.”
She said she found some comfort when she learned Gonzales was set to leave the world the same day Bridget arrived.
“When they told me on June 26, I started crying and crying and crying,” she said. “It is his birthday.”
News Source : www.usatoday.com
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