Littlefield Community Reacts to Overturned Murder Convictions
By: Lisa Carr
Updated: January 25, 2008
Last week, a Texas Appeals Court reversed the convictions of the two men found guilty of killing a store clerk in Littlefield. The decison has left folks in the town wondering who the real killers are and what happens next.
Alberto Sifuentes and Jesus Ramirez were convicted in the shooting death of Evangelina Cruz in 1996. They've always maintained their innocence, and last week, a judge decided both men should get new trials because their original defense teams were inadequate. The original defense attorneys are accused of failing to find a key alibi witness who could place Sifuentes and Ramirez at a Lubbock nightclub at the time of the murder, among other wrongdoings. The Lamb County District Attorney will now have to decide if a retrial is necessary or if the men will be set free. Folks in Littlefield say they simply want justice for Ms. Cruz and her family.
The men's new defense team has asked for their immediate release so they can be free as they wait for the district attorney to make his decision on a retrial, but that request has not been granted, yet. We're told the state prison system is expected to hand the men over to Lamb County authorities in the next few weeks.
