DA weighs death penalty in Padron case

AUSTIN (KXAN) - More than three weeks after the murder of Senior Police Officer Jaime Padron, the accused remains in jail awaiting whether Travis County District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg will seek the death penalty against him.

"You're not going to have a decision for a while," said Criminal Defense Attorney and KXAN News Legal Analyst Mindy Montford. "They want to know if they seek the death penalty, this is an air-tight case."

Montford spoke about what the District Attorney's Office is considering when it comes to deciding whether the death sentence will be pursued.

“It is an incredibly hard decision. It’s a huge case," said Montford. "All eyes are going to be on that office.”

In a county where the death penalty is rarely sought, Montford said officials will be weighing the community outrage over the officer's killing, the grand funeral procession, the arrangements and the amount of people moved over the entire incident in the community -- among many other things.

"It's going to be really hard to take a look back and say, 'We're not seeking the death penalty,'" said Montford.

And it's a big decision Lehmberg will first run through a committee of trusted advisors within her office who have been there for years -- people with differing views and some who even oppose the death penalty itself.

Steps before a decision is made

• Office will review all evidence
• Officials will talk to Austin Police Department thoroughly, including detectives who will explain all the evidence
• Authorities will talk to Padron's family, though that won't be the deciding factor. Montford said there have been cases, however, where families sometimes don't want to seek the death penalty but the DA's office goes ahead with pursuing it.
• DA's office will review previous cases where the death penalty has been sought, analyzing what the jury did.

And while there will be a big discussion surrounding whether or not the death penalty will be possible, Montford was quick to point out a key factor:

"At the end of the day, it will be her [Lehmberg's] decision alone," said Montford.

Likely defense stance

Because Daniel was reportedly drinking and on Xanax when the murder happened, many have wondered about a plea of temporary insanity.

It's one that Montford said is not a valid defense, adding that while voluntary intoxication is not a defense to your conduct.

The defense, however, may be able to get into that slightly once a verdict is returned, as a mitigation of conduct -- though still not as a defense to the conduct itself.

The defense may be able to use it to explain -- putting into perspective for the jury -- and in an effort to try to get some sympathy from the jury. Defense attorneys would argue that because of the voluntary intoxication, this is not the way that the suspect normally acts.

In addition, Montford noted that while Daniel does have a criminal history, it does not include any violent offenses. It's likely, then, that the defense will pose to the jury that something went terribly wrong that night -- making sure the jury knows that the person Daniel was on the morning he allegedly shot Padron dead was not the person Daniel typically was.

Background, history and all sorts of other varying information will all play into the trial.

Along those same lines, prosecutors will bring up for the jury the legacy Padron left behind, in addition to his two young daughters and family members.

Capital murder suspect's court hearing

Expected to be in court Friday morning, Brandon Montgomery Daniel, 24, was not physically present for a hearing surrounding his February DWI charge. The DWI court hearing for Daniel has been reset for May 25 and will now include his capital murder charge.

He is accused of gunning down the 40-year-old officer at the Walmart off Interstate 35 near Parmer Lane.

Six days before a previous court hearing for that DWI charge was set, Daniel allegedly shot Padron inside that North Austin Walmart.

Daniel is charged with capital murder in the shooting death, and he is no stranger to law enforcement.

Records show that Daniel lived in an apartment complex at 3401 West Parmer Lane near the Walmart beginning in February 2011. Before that, he had several addresses in Colorado dating back to 2005. His Facebook page shows he attended Colorado State University in Fort Collins, and that he attended high school in Parker, Colo.

Several squad cars and a crime scene unit were at the North Austin complex on April 6. Neighbors interviewed said they did not know Daniel but some were unnerved about hearing of the events at Walmart.

Chief Art Acevedo said on the early morning of April 6 when he spoke to the media that he was pushing for the murder charge.

"We'll all work together to put together a case to present to a grand jury in this community and hopefully to a jury that will hold this person accountable for taking the life of an officer who was simply trying to do his job and keeping this community safe," said