Relatives of a convicted killer tried to convince a jury to spare his life Wednesday. Last Friday, that jury convicted 32-year-old Areli Escobar of capital murder and sexual assault. Now it must decide whether to send him to death row, or give him life in prison.
In May 2009, Escobar raped and fatally stabbed 17-year-old Bianca Maldonado, a high school student and the mother of a toddler.
Wednesday morningthe defense called witnesses who describedEscobar as a family man.
Three sisters and one brother took the stand. They described him as a good father who took his children fishing and to Chuck E. Cheese.
They claimed he did everything from financially helping relatives down on their luck, to taking his brother to cross country practice every morning at 5 a.m.
Then, the oldest of Escobar's five children testified. The sixth-grade girl was asked about her studies. When she was dismissed, she walked down the isle crying in her mother's arms.
As they testified, the defensepassed around photos of Escobar through the years. One of them showed him in histeen years in a school football uniform.
Wednesday afternoon a forensic psychologist testified about Escobar's mental state. He performed an assessment on Escobar and determined that he has a 1.8 percent chance of committing a violent act in prison.
The psychologistdiagnosed Escobar as suffering from a borderline personality disorder. He said Escobar idolizes some people and devalues others -- primarily those he has intimate relationships with including wives and girlfriends. The doctor testified that Escobar would treat those people like dirt and display homicidal rage.
The doctor believes Escobar was upset with his girlfriend the day of the murder and took out his rage on 17-year-old Bianca Maldonado.
On Thursday the defense will rest. After closing arguments, Escobar's fate will be in the hands of 12 jurors.
