HOUSTON — There was a lot of emotion on both sides after jurors delivered a guilty verdict Monday in the capital murder trial of a Houston man who ran over and killed a 71-year-old woman during a 2021 robbery.
Andrew Williams was one of three men arrested in the death of Martha Medina. She was followed from a bank to a McDonald's where the robbers grabbed her purse and then ran over her in the parking lot.
The victim's family was furious when they learned Williams was out on bond for a 2019 capital murder case when Medina was killed.
“The callousness of this crime shocked the community because it was a premeditated and planned robbery that ended with a woman dying after being run over in broad daylight,” District Attorney Kim Ogg said. “No family should have to hear that their loved one was targeted after leaving a bank and then mercilessly killed.”
Both families emotional
Prosecutors didn't ask for the death penalty so Williams was automatically sentenced to life without parole. He asked Medina's family for forgiveness before the sentencing.
"I felt a lot of relief to know that finally, finally justice has been served," Lourdes Medina, the victim's daughter, said. "I really do feel for his family. I felt some sincerity coming from him when he apologized. I pray to God to help me, in time, forgive it continues to be hard.
She said sitting through the trial and listening to details of their mother's horrible death has been really tough for the family.
"It's been very, very hard, very emotional because we're having to relive the whole tragedy, the whole emotions come with it. It's been hard hearing all the evidence because a lot of it, it's the first time hearing it."
Williams' family wept outside the courtroom after the verdict. His attorney said he will appeal the verdict.
"A lot of the folks caught up have a good side and they have a side they struggle with. Unfortunately, his mother did not raise him that way. He saw differently and took different actions," defense attorney Arthur Washington said.
'It frustrates me and angers me'
Williams was featured in a 2021 KHOU 11 Investigates story about capital murder suspects being freed on bond. A judge freed Williams on a $150,000 bond in the 2019 case and he posted just a fraction of that.
“It frustrates me and angers me,” Lourdes Medina told us then. “This could have been prevented, had the right decisions been taken it totally could have been prevented.”
Medina's family joined others in the fight for changes to Harris County's revolving door bond system. The public outcry and media attention put pressure on the bail bond board and they voted to require defendants to post 10% of the total bond.
Lawrence Earl Thomas was also charged with capital murder in Medina's death after his arrest last August. Felton Ford was charged with engaging in organized crime in connection with the case. Prosecutors said he was the lookout during the robbery. Both men are awaiting trial.