AUSTIN, Texas — Court proceedings continued Tuesday for accused serial killer Raul Meza Jr.
Meza is accused of killing Gloria Lofton in 2019 and Jesse Fraga in 2023. Police say he could be linked to up to 10 cold cases going back 25 years. He was previously convicted of the murder of 8-year-old Kendra Page in 1982.
On Tuesday, attorneys from both sides spoke with the judge and agreed on another pre-trial hearing set for Aug. 27 at 9 a.m. Meza will be required to appear for that hearing.
Back in April, Meza's lawyers requested a plea deal for him to serve 50 years in prison for Lofton's and Fraga's deaths. His defense attorney said at the time that Meza, "would like to avoid the necessity of dragging all the facts of that out into the open and talking about that and putting himself and the families through all the stress of trial."
But family members of the victims – including Christina Fultz, Lofton's daughter – say a plea deal is not enough.
As she has been throughout the legal process so far, Fultz was in the courtroom on Tuesday. She said she is hoping for a trial and said she plans to continue to be present for every hearing.
"I do it for them. That's my family. I think anyone would want to, for their family," Fultz said. "It's important he knows that I am not backing down. I am going to outlive that man."
Background on this case
Meza was arrested in May 2023 in connection with the murder of Fraga in Pflugerville and in connection with Lofton's death in Austin in 2019.
In August 2023, a Travis County grand jury indicted Meza for one count of capital murder and another count of murder in connection with Lofton's death, plus an indictment for murder and another for unauthorized use of a motor vehicle in connection with Fraga's death.
Meza was previously convicted of the murder of 8-year-old Kendra Page in 1982. Authorities have said he could be linked to up to 10 cold cases.
For Tracy Page, the sister of Kendra Page, a plea bargain is not enough.
"Just go straight to the death penalty. He deserves it. There's still 10, maybe even more cold cases out there that they're working on to connect him to. And it's just so upsetting that more and more keeps coming out," Tracy Page said.
Criminal defense attorney Marc Chavez said the proposed plea deal is strategic on the defense's part when it comes to parole eligibility. In the state of Texas, a defendant must generally serve half of their sentence to be eligible for parole.
"When it comes to parole eligibility, he would be eligible in 25 rather than the 30 years of the 60-year sentence," Chavez said.
Tracy Page said the proposed plea deal leaves herself and other grieving families sick to their stomachs.
"It kept me from not wanting to go up there and just choke him myself because of what he did to all these people and all these families that have to go through this," Tracy Page said.