Texas inmate executed for murder of ex-classmate

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Death row inmate Moises Mendoza was executed Wednesday for the murder of a former high school classmate in 2004, becoming the third man executed by Texas this year.

Mendoza, 41, was executed by lethal injection and pronounced dead at 6:40 p.m., according to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office. In his final statement, Mendoza told his loved ones he was at peace and apologized to the family of Rachelle Tolleson, whom he killed in 2004.

“I am sorry for having robbed you of Rachelle's life,” Mendoza said. “I know nothing that I could ever say or do would ever make up for that. I want you to know I am sincere, I apologize. Thank you for being here today.”

Mendoza confessed to killing 20-year-old Tolleson in a small town outside of Dallas, before his 2005 trial. According to court documents, Mendoza took Tolleson from her Farmersville home, where she was alone with her 5-month-old daughter, and sexually assaulted the woman before killing her and leaving her body in a field.

Mendoza later moved Tolleson’s body to a more remote location and burned it, where a man found it six days later, according to court records. Mendoza has contested the sexual assault, claiming Tolleson left willingly with him, however, he did admit to killing her.

Collin County District Attorney Greg Willis released a statement after the execution, memorializing Tolleson and claiming justice was “finally carried out.”

“Nothing can undo what Rachelle’s loved ones have endured. But justice is not about erasing the past — it’s about honoring the life that was taken,” Willis said in the statement.

Mendoza’s lawyers filed several appeals, including one to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, alleging prosecutors had used false testimony during Mendoza’s sentencing to convince jurors he would be violent while incarcerated. Those appeals were struck down April 15.

Mendoza’s lawyers subsequently filed for a judicial review of the Texas court’s decision to the U.S. Supreme Court, as well as a stay of execution. Paxton’s office filed a responsive brief, and the review and stay were denied Wednesday by the court.

A clemency request from Mendoza also was denied by the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles on Monday.

The Supreme Court previously heard another Texas death row inmate’s case in February, as Ruben Gutierrez seeks to be able to sue prosecutors to test DNA on evidence he says will prove his innocence. A ruling is expected in his case in the coming weeks.

Mendoza’s execution was Texas’ third this year. Inmates Steven Nelson and Richard Tabler were put to death in February. In March, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals granted a stay of execution for David Wood and a federal appeals court tossed Brittany Holberg’s death sentence because prosecutors did not disclose the primary trial witness was a paid informant.

The judge who presided over the case of death row inmate Melissa Lucio also recommended in 2024 that her sentence and conviction be overturned after the district attorney’s office who prosecuted her admitted they withheld evidence.

Texas currently only has one other execution scheduled. Matthew Johnson, whose execution is set for May 20, was convicted of killing a Garland convenience store employee by setting them on fire. The Supreme Court declined to hear Johnson’s case in 2024.

If no other executions are scheduled and carried out, it will be the seventh year in a row since Texas has executed less than 10 people, a continued slowdown after a record number of executions 20 years ago.

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