Michael Anthony Lopez

Case identifiers

• Name: Michael Anthony Lopez
• TDCJ Number: 999318
• Date of Birth: 4/28/1981

Background

• Michael Anthony Lopez was Hispanic, male.
• His hair color was Brown.
• His height was 5' 3".
• His weight was 120.
• His eye color was Brown.
• His race was Harris Texas Laborer.
• His prior prison record was None.
• His prior occupation was Laborer.
• His age was 17 at the time of the offense.
• His age was 18 when he was received.
• His education level was 8.

Timeline

• 09/29/1998 — Lopez was involved in the killing of Harris County Deputy Constable Micheal Eakin after fleeing during a vehicle stop in Houston, Texas.
• 06/23/1999 — Lopez was sentenced to death.
• October 1999 — The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals reviewed the case.

The offence

• On 09/29/98, during the early morning hours, in Houston, Texas, a 26 year old white male deputy constable was on routine patrol duty when he stopped a vehicle bearing several persons.
• The deputy was questioning one of the passengers when Lopez bolted and ran away with the deputy in pursuit.
• Lopez and the deputy ran out of sight of the other passengers in the stopped vehicle.
• Shortly after Lopez and the deputy disappeared from sight of the remaining passengers, two or more gunshots were heard by the remaining passengers.
• Other police officers arrived on the scene and took the remaining passengers into custody.
• The body of the deputy was found in a grassy field about 300-400 yards from the stopped vehicle.
• The deputy died as a result of a gunshot entering the front of his neck.

People

• Defendant: Michael Anthony Lopez (Juvenile on Texas Death Row)
• Victim: Harris County Deputy Constable Micheal Eakin (white male deputy constable; age 26)
• Co-defendants: None

Trial

• Michael Anthony Lopez Jr. was described as looking about 14 as he sat in a Houston courtroom in May 1999, on trial for his life for killing Harris County Deputy Constable Micheal Eakin.
• Lopez was 17 when he killed Eakin on Sept. 29, 1998.
• Prosecutors sought the death penalty.
• Jurors gave it after six hours of deliberations.
• State District Judge Ted Poe branded Lopez a "street terrorist".

Appeals

• The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals reviewed the case in October.
• One of the judges commented to appellate attorney Stanley Schneider: "Your client is a mean little guy."
• Stanley Schneider argued that Lopez was too young to be put to death and that Texas' law on capital punishment was unconstitutional as it applied to 17-year-olds, who were considered adults in such cases.
• Schneider referenced that nationwide, among people who otherwise believed in capital punishment, just 26 percent said they would support executing someone who was a juvenile at the time of offense.
• Schneider referenced that support was weaker in Harris County, where just one in four respondents approved of executing juveniles.
• A poll did not define whether a 17-year-old was considered a juvenile, and Schneider said the only poll that counted for Lopez was the vote of 12 that occurred in Judge Poe's jury room in 1999.
• Schneider said the case should never have reached that point.
• Schneider said: "(Lopez) is just a kid,"
• Schneider also said: "If you look at his record and look at him, there are some real questions about his maturity and home life. There are questions about the opportunities this kid has had and whether he ever had a chance."
• Schneider said Texas law was not prepared to deal with these questions.
• Schneider argued that most Texas laws designated 18 as the year of adulthood and that 17-year-olds were considered children in more than 300 Texas statutes.
• Schneider said that at 17, Texans could not vote, could not join the Army on their own, or drink legally.
• Schneider said a 17-year-old girl was not considered mature enough to choose to have an abortion without parental permission unless a judge consented.
• Schneider said: "But a 17-year-old commits a crime and they're thought to be mature enough to face the death penalty,"
• Schneider said: "We all know 17-year-olds, many of them don't have the sense to come in out of the rain. We all know that 17-year-olds are mature one moment and act as children in the next. They don't understand the nature of their conduct. "
• Schneider said: "At what point does a child become an adult? Is it by virtue of their birthday?"
• Schneider said Texas should have maturity hearings, change the age of criminal responsibility to 18, or at the least have judges specifically tell jurors that they may consider the victim's youth a mitigating factor when considering whether to give a life sentence.
• Schneider said: "This is a question of someone being executed or someone living,"
• Schneider said: "This is a debate that's been going on for a long time, and executing juveniles puts us in a great group of countries -- Iraq, Somalia."

Sentencing

• On 06/23/1999, Lopez was sentenced to death.
• Jurors gave the death penalty after six hours of deliberations.
• Lopez’s sentencing included references to his youth and home life.
• After sentencing, Lopez pitched a childlike fit in court.

Outcome

• Lopez’s death sentence was commuted to life in prison.

Other details

• Lopez was received at age 18 with education level 8.
• Lopez’s case reflected an incident in Harris County, with the offense county listed as Harris and the native state listed as Texas.