Murder suspect tells judge why he removed ankle monitor twice

David Hinojosa on trial for 2017 murder of Joseph Torres

SAN ANTONIO – Not once but twice, a man on trial for murder took off his GPS monitor while out on bond.

David Hinojosa is charged with shooting and killing Joseph Torres outside a Southeast Side bar in 2017.

Defense attorneys on Monday tried to have any evidence of him being a flight risk not mentioned in front of a jury. A motion was filed, and a hearing was held without the jury present.

Hinojosa took the stand to explain why he cut his monitor off to the judge. The first time was in May 2018, after an argument with his girlfriend.

“She threatened to call the police, so I was thinking I was going to jail anyway. So I decided to cut the monitor rather than go at that moment,” Hinojosa said.

After he cut his monitor, he said he took his kids on a trip to Corpus Christi and then made a trip to Houston, but after that had every intention to turn himself in.

While driving downtown with his mom to turn himself in, he was arrested at a Bill Miller restaurant.

In February 2020, Hinojosa again took off his monitor because he said he was receiving threats.

“I was having problems over there at my mother’s as far as, like, people going by there,” Hinojosa said. “I had reason to believe they were either friends or relatives of the deceased. So I didn’t want to be the reason why my mother or my sister received any type of harm.”

The defense attorney argued that Hinojosa never intended to flee the country and wasn’t a flight risk. That argument wasn’t enough.

Judge Jennifer Peña of the 290th District Court denied the motion, allowing the state to mention Hinojosa as a flight risk in the trial.

The trial is expected to resume Tuesday morning. If found guilty, Hinojosa faces 5 to 99 years or life in prison.

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About the Authors:

Erica Hernandez is an Emmy award-winning journalist with 15 years of experience in the broadcast news business. Erica has covered a wide array of stories all over Central and South Texas. She's currently the court reporter and cohost of the podcast Texas Crime Stories.

Misael started at KSAT-TV as a photojournalist in 1987.