SAN ANTONIO – The year got off to a slow start as the pandemic forced the courts to begin 2022 with no in-person proceedings or trials.
But once the courts fully opened in March the dockets were full and trials began.
Here’s a look at some of the top moments that took place in Bexar County courtrooms in 2022.
Read more stories wrapping up 2022 here.
Justice for Dianna Lowery
A cold case from 1987 finally came to a close.
After roughly six hours of deliberation, a Bexar County jury found Larry Moore guilty of capital murder.
Moore was accused of murdering 25-year-old Dianna Lowery in 1987. An autopsy revealed she was strangled and sexually assaulted.
It took years to build the case against Moore. He was first arrested for the crime back in 2005, but the case was later dismissed. Moore was charged again after the case was reopened in 2018.
Moore, 69, was sentenced to life in prison. He will be eligible for parole after serving 40 years.
Two-week murder-for-hire trial filled with drama
Angelica Navarro-DePaz was on trial for hiring an undercover cop to try to kill her boyfriend’s sister.
But there was so much more to the story that involved her husband, their company and the cartels.
In the end, a jury found her guilty and she was sentenced to 20 years in prison.
Medical Center Rapist takes plea deal
Already serving 99 years in prison, Anton Harris was back in court on four remaining cases in May.
For more than a year, Harris terrorized the Medical Center area as several women were robbed and raped inside their apartments. The crimes were committed when Harris was in high school.
Instead of going to trial again, Harris took a plea deal for 35 years.
Rare exoneration hearing
In 1991, Melvin Quinney was accused by his son, who was 10 at the time, of being in a Satanic cult and sexually abusing him and his sister.
He was found guilty and sentenced to prison.
Now, more than 30 years later, his son recanted his story in an exoneration hearing.
Currently, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals has the case and they will rule in or not in favor of exoneration. If they rule in favor it goes back to the trial court to officially order the exoneration.
Double murder cold case ends with surprise plea deal
The death penalty trial for Jose Baldomero Flores was set for the 2005 murder of Heather Willms and the 2011 murder of Esmeralda Herrera.
At the last minute, Flores took a plea deal.
Flores was given two consecutive life sentences on two first-degree murder charges.
Brutal details revealed in Rafael Castillo trial
It took a jury about an hour to sentence Rafael Castillo to 70 years in prison for a brutal attack on a woman in November of 2020.
Castillo attacked Nicole Perry, 31, by severing her hands with a machete and then hitting her over the head with an ax.
Perry and Castillo were all staying in a known drug house off West Harlan Avenue when the attack occurred.
Castillo will be eligible for parole after serving 30 years.
Justice for Sebastian
For the first time, the teen responsible for the murder of 17-year-old Sebastian Vasquez Carpio was seen in a courtroom after he was ruled as an adult.
A transfer/release hearing took place for Edgar De La Cruz, 18, in September.
A judge ended up decided that De La Cruz would be transferred to adult prison to serve the remaining of his sentence.
He is eligible for parole in 12 years.
De La Cruz surrendered to the police in October 2020 as they were investigating the death of Carpio. His body was found inside a burned-out car in west Bexar County the month prior.
Never-ending trial of former constable
In a longer-than-expected trial, Former Precinct 2 Constable Michelle Barrientes Vela was found guilty on two felony counts of tampering with records.
Barrientes Vela requested that Judge Velia Meza to decide her sentence.
As of right now, the sentencing phase will continue the first week of January.
Barrientes Vela is eligible for probation. She could face a maximum punishment of up to 10 years in prison.
Beatrice Sampayo plea deal
The remaining defendant involved in the scheme to hide baby King Jay Davila in 2019 took a plea deal this year.
Beatrice Sampayo, the baby’s grandmother, has been ordered to make a $1,000 donation to Child Safe in addition to paying a fine of $1,500. She also agreed to 10 years of probation.
Sampayo, the mother of Christopher Davila — King Jay’s father, was arrested six days after the boy disappeared. She was charged with tampering with evidence, a third-degree felony.
Border Patrol Serial Killer trial
The year wrapped up with a high-profile case from Webb County that was moved to Bexar County.
The Juan David Ortiz trial started right after Thanksgiving and ended a week and a half later.
More than a dozen witnesses spoke about the details of the murders of four women in Webb County. Also, the jury saw a video confession of Ortiz describing how he killed the women.
In the end, after about five hours a jury found Ortiz guilty and he was sentenced to life in prison with no chance for parole.