.png?trim=0,0,0,0&width=1200&height=800&crop=1200:800 "A 16-year-old cheerleader was found dead in her Texas home. Her family is furious that her suspected killer is expected to take a plea deal – UK Times")
A Texas mother is furious after learning that the man accused of killing her 16-year-old daughter is set to take a plea deal in court on Thursday.
Lizbeth Medina, a cheerleader at Edna High School and an aspiring nurse, was found dead in the bathtub by her mother at their family home on December 5, 2023. The 16-year-old was a “loving, kind, and goofy” teenager, her mother, Jacqueline Medina, told The Independent.
Police arrested and charged Rafael Govea Romero with capital murder. Romero, who is from Mexico, was also placed on an ICE detainer because of an expired visa. His trial was set to start later this year, but Jacqueline says prosecutors in Jackson County have now offered him a plea deal that would result in two life sentences with the possibility of parole after 30 years.
While parole may never happen, Jacqueline said the possibility still concerns her.
“Hearing this plea deal made me understand that we can just throw it out, throw any case out, just give a plea deal…like if it was nothing,” she told The Independent.
Romero’s next hearing is scheduled for Thursday morning, during which he is expected to plead guilty, his attorneys told KPRC 2. Lizbeth’s family has planned a prayer vigil in her honor before the hearing,
“Lizbeth wasn’t just a name that everybody’s hearing,” Jacqueline said. “She was a person. She was my daughter. She was my everything, my world.”
Lizbeth’s mother says she ‘didn’t feel comfortable’ with the plea deal
Jacqueline first heard about the plea deal on Monday, she says. Jacqueline and her attorney then tried to meet with Assistant District Attorney Stephen Tyler and District Attorney Pam Guenther on Wednesday, but she claims they both refused to see her.
The Jackson County District Attorney’s Office did not respond to The Independent’s multiple requests for comment. Romero’s defense team declined to comment ahead of Thursday’s hearing. One of his attorneys, Ross Reifel, did confirm details of the plea deal to KPRC 2.
Tyler seems to have been vocal about the case online, however. The family noticed that Tyler, who identified himself as lead prosecutor, left several Facebook comments underneath a local news report about the plea deal on Tuesday.
In one comment, he responded to a user arguing in favor of the death penalty.
He wrote: “I work within the available resources to obtain what is the best outcome for the state. Would you agree to pay more taxes for capital defense and prosecution, or forego school or road improvements? We are talking several millions of local dollars from arrest to grave.”
“What’s the marginal benefit compared to increase cost? I don’t decide that, but someone must and we can hope they are a good steward of public resources,” he added.
Jacqueline said Tyler’s post about the cost of her daughter’s case “really hurt” her.
“Now I’m feeling like you guys are not fully prosecuting and going to trial because of, maybe, we don’t have the funds,” Jacqueline said. “It’s very disheartening.”
Elsewhere on the Facebook thread, Tyler commented that he met with Jacqueline “for over an hour” and she “agreed with the sentencing recommendation and was comfortable with the outcome.”
Jacqueline told The Independent that Tyler’s characterization of their conversation wasn’t accurate. She received a call on Monday afternoon informing her of the plea deal, but said she “didn’t feel comfortable” with the arrangement.
“Not one moment did they say, ‘Are you okay with this? Should we proceed?’ No, everything was done,” Jacqueline said.
Reifel told KPRC 2 that the state, defense and victim’s family all agreed to the plea deal.
Lizbeth remembered as a ‘loving’ person and ‘focused’ student
Lizbeth was an ambitious high school student who was “very focused” on her future and had aspirations of becoming a nurse, Jacqueline said. She also did her friends’ eyelashes and nails to earn money on the side, Jacqueline recalled.
“She had a list, and I wish I had those for you to see,” she said. “She also wanted to go into real estate at the same time.”
Jacqueline said she took Lizbeth to a college event shortly before her death.
Lizbeth had a “very loving, beautiful soul” and worked hard to help her mom, her aunt, Ana Medina, said. She was a “very responsible young lady” who did “very well with kids,” she added.
Jacqueline described Lizbeth as her best friend: “Our little motto was, ‘You and I against the world.’”
“It’s a daily battle without her, because I’m kind of on my own now, although I do believe she’s with me and spirit,” she said.
