Jury returns swift guilty verdict in murder trial

Faustino Vasquez found guilty of killing Pete Gonzales

SAN ANTONIO – It took a jury just half an hour Tuesday to return a verdict of guilty in the murder trial of Faustino Vasquez.

Vasquez shot and killed Pete Gonzales, 45, outside the 210 Kapone nightclub on the night of March 16, 2015.

Gonzales was standing outside the club with a group of people when Vasquez, 34, drove by, stopped his car and fired off several shots.

Vasquez had just been ejected from the club following a fight.

“This grown man, probably drunk, got his feelings hurt and he got mad,” prosecutor Julie Wright told the jury during closing arguments. “In the end, he decided to settle the score with a gun.”

Vasquez’s lawyer, Theresa Connolly, suggested that it was just a wild shot and that her client did not intend to kill Gonzales.

“He was very careless and reckless,” she told the jury. “I don’t think the evidence, at any point, shows that he had the intent to seriously injure, and certainly not to kill.”

Vasquez has elected to have Judge Raymond Angelini set his punishment. The punishment range is from five to 99 years to life in prison.

Sentencing is scheduled for next week following a pre-sentencing investigation.
 


About the Author:

Paul Venema is a courthouse reporter for KSAT with more than 25 years experience in the role.