A man sentenced to death for kidnapping, sexual assault, and murder, Ramiro Gonzales, has just become the eighth death row inmate executed in the US this year.
Ramiro Gonzales was given a lethal injection and pronounced dead at 6:50 p.m. CDT at the Texas State Penitentiary in Huntsville, about 70 miles north of Houston. He’s been on death row for 17 years for killing 18-year-old Bridget Townsend.
Ramiro Gonzales has been fighting against his death sentence, launching a barrage of legal challenges and a plea for mercy. He has been reaching out to Republican Texas Governor Greg Abbott and the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles, begging for a reduced sentence or more time. This was rejected and the execution went on as scheduled.
Bridget’s mother, Patricia Townsend, was there to witness the execution with a sense of relief, telling USA TODAY before the event that it would be a “joyful occasion” for her loved ones. “When they told me June 26, I started crying, crying and crying,” she added. “That’s her birthday.”
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David Townsend, the uncle of the victim, wrote: “Our family seeks not revenge, but closure and a measure of peace after years of heartache – a quest that is hindered, not helped, by decisions that allow the perpetrator of our pain to remain in the public eye.”
Gonzales claims he’s undergone a spiritual transformation and is “deeply sorry” for his past actions.
The tragic end to Bridget Townsend’s life came to light in October 2002, two years after she vanished. Ramiro Gonzales, who was already imprisoned for kidnapping and sexual assault, led the police to a remote area in Southwest Texas where he had disposed of her remains.
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Now 41, Gonzales received the death penalty for the cold-blooded murder of Townsend, which occurred after he stole drugs and cash and kidnapped her from a home in Bandera County, northwest of San Antonio, in January 2001. He took her to his family’s ranch in Medina County, where he committed the sexual assault and murder.
Gonzales’ defense team made an urgent appeal to the US Supreme Court to stop his execution in the last few weeks, arguing that he has shown remorse and taken responsibility for his crimes. Furthermore, they pointed out that a prosecution expert, whose testimony previously suggested Gonzales would be a future danger key factor in securing the death penalty, has now acknowledged his assessment was wrong.
Gonzales’ lawyers argue that the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals has violated his constitutional rights by declining to review his claims that a prosecution expert, psychiatrist Edward Gripon, wrongly asserted Gonzales would be a future danger. After re-evaluating Gonzales in 2022, Gripon said his prediction was wrong.
“He [Gonzales] has earnestly devoted himself to self-improvement, contemplation, and prayer, and has grown into a mature, peaceful, kind, loving, and deeply religious adult. He acknowledges his responsibility for his crimes and has sought to atone for them and to seek redemption through his actions,” Gonzales’ lawyers wrote Monday in their petition. A group of faith leaders have also asked authorities to stop Gonzales’ execution.
“I just want (Townsend’s mother) to know how sorry I really am. I took everything that was valuable from a mother,” Gonzales, who was 18 years old at the time of the killing, said in a video submitted as part of his clemency request to the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles. “So, every day it’s a continual task to do everything that I can to feel that responsibility for the life that I took.”
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As a boy, Gonzales endured physical and sexual abuse throughout his childhood, often at the hands of relatives, and was the epitome of an “unwanted child,” clinical psychologist Kate Porterfield says in a clemency video submitted to the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles on June 4.
This month, a group of 11 evangelical leaders from Texas and beyond reached out to the parole board and Governor Greg Abbott, urging them to stop Gonzales’ execution and consider clemency, citing his transformation and support to fellow inmates through a faith program.
“We are writing as Christians calling for you to spare the life of another Christian, Ramiro Gonzales. Ramiro has changed. Because he has changed, we believe the circumstances surrounding him should change as well,” they pleaded.
Despite these appeals, the parole board was unanimous in their decision on Monday, opting not to commute Gonzales’ death sentence or delay the execution with a six-month reprieve. Prosecutors depicted Gonzales as a remorseless sexual predator who, despite Townsend’s desperate pleas, admitted to his heinous acts. They insisted that the jury’s decision to sentence him to death was justified by his extensive criminal past and apparent lack of remorse.
“The State’s punishment case was overwhelming,” the Texas Attorney General’s Office proclaimed. “Even if Dr. Gripon’s testimony were wiped from the punishment slate, it would not have mattered.”
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Only an intervention by the U.S. Supreme Court or a gubernatorial pardon from Gov. Greg Abbott, a staunch supporter of what he calls “Texas justice,” could have halted Gonzales’ execution. Since assuming office in 2015, Abbott has presided over 73 executions and has commuted a death sentence only once.
Bridget Townsend’s brother, David Townsend, remains unconvinced and has been vocal on Change.org, slamming any attempts to soften the image of Gonzales, insisting he is nothing but a “convicted murderer” who committed “unforgivable acts.” He firmly believes the death penalty should be executed.
“He doesn’t deserve mercy. His childhood should not have anything to do with it. I know a lot of people that had a hard childhood … He made his choice,” the mother of the victim, Patricia, stated emphatically.