HOUSTON — Defense attorneys for Tony Earls, the man charged with murder in connection with the death of 9-year-old Arlene Alvarez on Valentine's Day in 2022, want the special prosecutor on the case removed.
A hearing is set to take place Wednesday, and Arlene's mother, Wendy, called the move a ridiculous delay tactic.
"My baby, I just miss her so much," Wendy Alvarez said while at her daughter's gravesite.
The Alvarez family's fight for justice has hit another painful speed bump.
"I just feel we're being bullied," Wendy said. "It's so sad that I'm mourning my daughter every day. This is our reality right here. For them, it's a case. This is my life. She was my best friend. She was my baby."
Earls' attorneys want Special Prosecutor Warren Diepraam removed. He was appointed by District Attorney Kim Ogg last February and in April secured a murder indictment in the 2022 shooting. In new court docs, the defense plans to argue he was hired to advance Ogg's personal political interests.
"It gets me so upset on the daily that they think it's political," Wendy said. "It's nothing political. I lost my daughter. I want to prove the way they killed my daughter was wrong."
Wendy said it took hard work and new evidence for the case to be reopened.
"He's my daughter's voice," Wendy said.
Diepraam gave her family renewed hope.
"It's about justice," she said.
She's hopeful the case can continue to move forward so a Harris County jury can have the final say.
"This is why we're still here," Wendy said. "We're not giving up on her."
Diepraam had made it clear he plans to take this to trial, and there will be no plea deal. Wednesday's hearing is scheduled for 1 p.m.