The city of El Paso reached an $8 million settlement with Daniel Villegas in his federal lawsuit, where he argued his constitutional rights were violated after he was wrongfully convicted of murder and forced to serve 18 years in prison.
The settlement comes after Villegas was arrested and wrongfully convicted of the 1993 murders of Armando “Mando” Lazzo and Robert “Bobby” England. He maintained his innocence for more than three decades as he spent 18 years in prison after being convicted of the murders before an appeals court ordered a retrial of the case in 2013. An El Paso jury found Villegas not guilty of the murders in 2018.
“After carefully evaluating the risks, costs and uncertainties associated with continued litigation, the city determined resolving this matter through mediation was in the best interests of the city and its taxpayers,” El Paso City Attorney Karla Nieman said in a statement. “This resolution brings finality to a case that has been in litigation for years while avoiding the additional expense and uncertainty of trial and potential appeals.”
The city announced the seven-figure settlement in a news release. Federal court records do not show that the settlement agreement has been filed with the court as of Tuesday, July 7.
City attorneys and Villegas and his attorneys agreed to mediation to avoid going to trial in August, the news release states.
The mediation resulted in the settlement of $8 million. Villegas was seeking $20 million in damages in the federal lawsuit he filed in 2015, before he was acquitted of murder.
“It’s a great victory for Daniel Villegas,” Russell Ainsworth, Villegas’ attorney, said. “He has fought for so long for the recognition that he received through this settlement that he was victimized as a child into confessing to a crime he did not commit. Daniel Villegas is very happy with the result. It allows him to finally get closure, move on in his life and be financially secure.”
He added, “This is the end. There is closure.”
The news release states it reached a settlement to eliminate “the uncertainty of a jury trial, the risk of a potentially much larger judgment, and the costs and delays associated with continued litigation, including post-trial motions and potential appeals.”
“This settlement is not an admission of liability or wrongdoing by the city of El Paso,” the news release states. “The city has a responsibility to manage public resources prudently while ensuring that legal matters are addressed appropriately. This resolution is consistent with the city’s ongoing commitment to responsibly manage taxpayer resources while resolving legal disputes in a manner that best serves the public interest.”
Senior U.S. District Judge David C. Guaderrama presided over the federal lawsuit case. The defendants named in the lawsuit were the city of El Paso, current and former El Paso police officers Carlos Ortega, Scott Graves, Ray Sanchez, and the estate of Alfonso Marquez, a former police detective who died in 2023.
The lawsuit claimed Villegas’ constitutional rights were violated multiple times including:
The settlement ends a more than three-decade saga that saw Villegas make national headlines as he fought to clear his name.
Daniel Villegas wrongfully convicted, sentenced to prison
Villegas, who was 16 years old at the time, was arrested and charged with capital murder in the 1993 shooting deaths of Lazo, 17, and England, 18.
He first went to trial in 1994, but an El Paso jury could not reach a verdict and the trial was declared a mistrial.
A second trial was held in 1995, where a different jury convicted him of capital murder. Villegas was automatically sentenced to life in prison since the El Paso District Attorney’s Office, then-led by Jaime Esparza, did not seek the death penalty.
Villegas remained in jail for 18 years as he fought to have an appeals court overturn the conviction. Villegas and his attorneys argued his confession to police was coerced and should not have been permitted to be used in the trial.
The Texas Eighth District Court justice upheld the guilty verdict, but the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, the highest criminal appeals court in Texas, overturned the conviction in 2013 and ordered a new trial to be held.
A third trial, which gathered national headlines, was held in 2018. Judge Sam Medrano presided over the trial. The jury hearing the case was sequestered because of the high publicity the case received.
An El Paso jury deliberated for more than eight hours over two days after hearing several days of testimony. The jury found Villegas not guilty, ending a 25-year saga of criminal trials, appeals and dozens of court hearings.
After Villegas’ acquittal, no one was ever charged in the case. Villegas’ supporters claim the suspected shooters were two brothers involved in gangs.
“Over the past three decades, the (El Paso Police) Department has implemented numerous improvements, including updated investigative procedures, body-worn cameras, supervisory review, expanded officer training, policy revisions and the use of modern technology to strengthen accountability and transparency,” the news release states.
“The allegations in this litigation concern events that occurred more than 30 years ago. The city continues to have confidence in the El Paso Police Department and its commitment to professionalism, constitutional policing, accountability and public service.”
Aaron Martinez covers the criminal justice system for the El Paso Times. He may be reached at amartinez1@elpasotimes.com.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: El Paso to pay $8M to Daniel Villegas in wrongful conviction lawsuit
Reporting by Aaron Martinez, El Paso Times / El Paso Times
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By Aaron Martinez, El Paso Times | USA TODAY Network
