Following a presentation to a Fort Bend Grand Jury, two of the men involved in the Stafford Ice House shooting have been no-billed.
After hearing testimony that included statements from the mother of two of the victims, the members of the Grand Jury ruled that Joe Marin and Tony Marin should not face criminal charges for their involvement in the shooting.
Joe Marin, Michael Marin and Tony Marin were with Francisco Marin when the four returned to the Stafford Ice House around 2 a.m. Dec. 17 after they were ejected from the bar following an altercation with another group.
Jessica Mejorado, the mother of Jacob Mejorado and Oscar Mejorado Jr., said Francisco Marin pulled out a gun and began shooting.
She said Frankie Pena was the first to get shot, trying to get the gun away from Francisco Marin. She said he continued to shoot as Oscar Mejorado, Jr., Joe Nava and Jacob Mejorado “tried desperately to disarm him.”
Oscar Mejorado, Jr., was shot and killed, and his brother Jacob Mejorado was shot in the mouth. Johnny Cruz and John Montoya were also shot.
Jessica Mejorado said Francisco Marin jumped in the bed of his truck, driven by his girlfriend, and continued shooting as she sped away. She said one of the rounds hit Elias Cruz.
In the end, Oscar Mejorado, Jr., and Frankie Pena were killed, and Jacob Mejorado, Juan Cruz, Alex Elias Cruz and John Montoya were injured.
Following the shooting, Michael Marin turned himself in to authorities, followed by brothers Joe Marin and Tony Marin. Francisco Marin was captured in Brownsville in January by U.S. Marshals.
He has since been indicted on capital murder charges.
Jessica Mejorado, along with friends and family members, has protested outside the Fort Bend County courthouse after learning that Michael Marin was released and Tony Marin and Joe Marin might not face charges.
District Attorney John Healey has said previously that he understand the family’s frustration, but that as far as the law in concerned, if those with Francisco Marin did not know he intended to shoot the victims, they are not responsible.
“We have been an open book with them,” he said. “We told them what the law required as far as being responsible as a party or accomplice. We have been straight with them, we will not sugar coat. We aren’t going to paint everything is rosy colored glasses. Sometimes it’s difficult to accept the law as it is.”
This is not justice, these men knew exactly what their intentions were when they went back…They took innocent lives, injured others,they were accomplices in this crime….So now they are free to kill again?? What kind of Judge would allow this hideous crime to go unjustified… So now the parents are left with a bigger wound in their hearts, if justice would have prevailed, this could of brought alot closure to their pain…so many victims in this crime, those who witnessed and were in attendance, NO assistance for them, their lives forever changed and the MARINS get to go back to their normal life, no lost life on their part….pathetic !!
It is easier for the district attorneys office to prosecute one individual for a super sentence on Capital Murder which carries a Life sentence or Death Penalty versus trying to convict three people that may possibly lie to help a brutha out and cost our money hungry county extra dollars out of their pockets to make justice for the victims family, American! It looks better on the prosecutors records prior to entering private practice. Oh Hey, I know you! We would really hate for the Fort Bend County Judicial System to have to take a pay cut for this family that is not elite in Fort Bend County. I bet if they lived off of Palm Royale and were members of Sweetwater Country Club they would have indicted all suspects. Stereotypical Grand Jury action when fair should be fair. They are of course going to settle for public defenders, whom you and I pay for in taxes. An “open book”? The getaway driver girlfriend? And she didn’t get an indictment? Really Healey? I think we need to go back and study Texas Codes of Criminal Procedures. It’s black and white! And it is the law, which is based on fact.
They have to be able to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that all parties were aware that one of them had a firearm. The shooter is guilty unless his counsel can magically come up with a reason where he is incompetent to stand trial. I am pretty sure that all of the accused were aware that one of them went somewhere after they were kicked out to obtain a handgun. Our district attorney doesn’t want to take the time to put together the circumstantial evidence and bring the others to justice because of the budget that it is going to take to get a guilty judgment. We are going to see more and more people getting away with murder as we are more and more teachers losing their jobs. It is common sense that these culprits were all kicked out, went and got a weapon, and came back looking for trouble. They all stuck with the same story and weren’t aware that their brother was in possession of a handgun? One of the deceased made a plea for his life. Why didn’t the other brothers plea with their sibling, the shooter, to put the gun down. Outstanding job to the Fort Bend County District Attorneys Office!!
FIRST OF ALL JAMIE MOCK THIS ARTICLE YOU WROTE IS VERY CONFUSING, YOU ALMOST CAN NOT TELL THE BAD GUYS FROM THE GOOD GUYS. SO AFTERREADING THIS I HAVE TO AGREE WITH THE OTHER MEMBERS COMMENTS “HOW UNFAIR”. WHEN YOU ARE A MACHO GUY AND YOUR FRIEND HAS A GUN YOU SURE KNOW WHAT HI INTENTIONS ARE. “USUALLY” IN THE STATE OF TEXAS IF YOU ARE WITH THE ONE WHO MURDERS SOMEONE YOU CAN BE CHARGED WITH THE SAME CRIME. SO THE 3 OTHER MARLIN BOYS GOT VERY LUCKY ! MY QUESTION IS FRANCISCO MARLIN THE ONLY ONE THAT WILL GO TO JAIL FOR THE MURDER ? AT LEAST THAT IS HOW I READ IT ? THANKS
1. Dude, stop yelling! This ain’t 1998!
2. The story wasn’t confusing at all; I’m not sure where you get that from.
3. We don’t know if ANYONE will go to jail in the end (no telling how a trial will go, even if evidence is overwhelming). All this story says is two of the murderer’s cousins aren’t being charged.
LURKER: I agree completely with the liquor store analogy and wish that FBCDA’s office would have presented a more persuasive case to the Grand Jury.
Why? Persuasive? No way! One potential Capital Murder conviction versus three possible 1st degree murder convictions. This makes the prosecution look superhero! This isn’t about justice! This family can’t afford high profile counsel and the courts do not want to cut staff behind getting the victims family what they deserve. Justice! This case is cut and dry! Go figure!
So these two guys had absolutely noidea Francisco Marin had a gun when they decided to go back up to the icehouse???
Apparently not…..and since it would too “hard” to prove so or sway a jury (which is 90% of trials), Healey isn’t too concerned about it.
If three guys rob a liquor store and the one with the gun decides to shoot the clerk, all three can be charged with murder even if they didn’t know the one with the gun was going actually shoot him. It’s a shame the grand jury decided not to OK charges in this case and they are getting off scott free.
I think Francisco picked them up from MHMRA before they initially went to Stafford Ice House. This is the role our district attorneys office is playing. In a nutshell they said screw these Mexicans protesting on Hwy 90/Ave H in front of our courthouse. Who do they think they are, watch this. We will no bill the killers so they can victimize more Fort Bend County residents and people abroad. Justice or vendetta? Can we recalculate the chain of events here? It is a no-brainer.