A district court on Wednesday ordered this week’s execution of Ivan Cantu to be withdrawn after concerns arose that he was wrongfully convicted due to false testimonies and evidence not seen by jurors during the trial.
The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals must now determine whether the appeal can proceed, evaluating the new information and whether the defense counsel failed to perform its basic duties during the trial. Cantu will remain on death row until a decision is made.
In 2001, Cantu was convicted for the murders of his cousin James Mosqueda and Mosqueda’s fiancée Amy Kitchen in a Dallas suburb the year previous. The trial focused heavily on forensic evidence and testimonies from multiple witnesses, per The Texas Tribune.
Cantu claimed that he and his now-deceased fiancée, Amy Boettcher, left for a planned trip to Arkansas a few hours before the murders occurred, per The Texas Tribune.
But following the murders, clothing with blood on it that matched the victims’ DNA was found in a trashcan at Cantu’s home, and Mosqueda’s car was found outside Cantu’s apartment. Additionally, the gun used in the murders had Cantu’s fingerprints on the magazine but no other part of the gun.
During the trial, Cantu claimed he was framed and that Mosqueda was a drug dealer who could have been murdered by a rival. Despite Cantu’s assertions, he was found guilty and has been on death row for more than 20 years.
Cantu’s execution was initially scheduled for the coming Wednesday, but Judicial District Court Judge Benjamin N. Smith withdrew his order for execution after Cantu’s attorney filed a clemency petition, reported Houston Public Media.
The petition detailed developments in the case that came only after the trial, including a trial witness recanting his testimony and questions arising about another critical witness’ truthfulness on the stand.
Amy Boettcher, Cantu’s then-fiancée, testified against him during the trial, saying that he told her about the murders the night before the bodies were found, per The Texas Tribune. She contended that Cantu returned home later that night with a bruised face and blood-stained clothes, but no other witnesses recalled seeing Cantu that night with anything similar amiss.
Boettcher also claimed she saw Cantu throw Mosqueda’s watch out of the car on the night of the murders, but this detail was debunked in 2019, per The Texas Tribune. Boettcher further declared Cantu proposed to her with a diamond ring he stole from Kitchen, but those close to the couple said they got engaged and already had a ring a week before the murders, per The Texas Tribune.
The recanted testimony came from Boettcher’s brother, Jeff Boettcher. During the trial, Jeff Boettcher identified the murder weapon as Cantu’s gun and said Cantu told him about plans to commit the double murder, per Houston Public Media.
But after Amy Boettcher died in 2021, Jeff Boettcher went to the Collin County District Attorney’s Office and asked to recant his testimony, per Houston Public Media. Jeff Boettcher said his drug use during the time of the murders and trial led him to lie to investigators and in court.
The clemency petition also raises questions about the physical evidence, including whether a pair of bloody jeans eventually found in Cantu’s home were planted or even his, and asserts that Cantu’s defense attorneys provided ineffective counsel.
When this new information came to light, a woman who served on the jury that convicted Cantu in 2001 came forward, expressing concern about a verdict potentially predicated on falsehoods. Montra Marie Biggs released a statement regarding the new information and how it affected her feelings about the case.
“I am disturbed by the possibility that false testimony and evidence was presented to me and the other jurors at trial,” Biggs said, per Houston Public Media. “As a juror who served in this case, I do not want to see Mr. Cantu executed without getting a full hearing on this new information.”
After decades on death row, Cantu maintains his innocence.
“I have been here for more than 20 years, and to be honest, it’s been a blessing and a curse,” Cantu said during an April 12 interview with Beaumont Enterprise. “I have become closer to God, but I don’t want to die, I just hope one day the truth comes out.”
