Wheels of Justice Slowly Turn in Ray Zapata, John Young Perjury Cases

SAN ANGELO, TX – Today, Ray Zapata, 55, and John Young, 56, both facing allegations of theft, forgery and perjury of $200,000 or more from the Estate of John Sullivan or the Lawful Heir of John Sullivan, appeared in the 119^th District Court this morning for a Pre-Trial Hearing.

Both Mark S. Snodgrass, attorney for Zapata, and Daniel W. Hurley, attorney for Young, agreed to set a Pre-Trial for January 30, 2017. The Pre-Trial will begin at 10:00 a.m., and Judge Ben Woodward said the entire day will be available for the pre-trial. 

Additionally, Snodgrass requested a proposed order for an expert witness who has the expertise on the topics of wills and estates. This pre-trial will not include a jury. 

A  trial, to include a jury, will be set on the 30^th and is slated to be schedule sometime in the spring.

The last Pre-Trial was in April 2016, which focused on a request for handwritten documents to be sent to Austin for analysis (see story here).

Zapata faces one count of Theft of Property >= $200,000 or more, a first degree felony; one count of Aggravate Perjury, a third degree felony; and two counts of Forgery Financial Instrument, both state jail felonies.

Young faces Theft of Property >= $200,000 or more, a first degree felony; one count of Aggravate Perjury, a third degree felony; Misapplication by Fiduciary, a first degree felony; and Forgery, a state jail felony.

In July 2015, “No Deception Indicated” was documented in bold below five questions posed in two polygraph examinations, during which Attorney Young denied allegations of forgery and perjury. For more on that story and others related to this case, click here, here and here.

Capital Murder Case Moves Forward

In another important case today, 16-year-old Nicholas Abel Rodriguez appeared in Judge Jay Weatherby’s 340^th District Court for a bond hearing. Rodriguez faces Capital Murder of Multiple Persons, and is being tried as an adult.

According the the indictment, Rodriguez, along with co-defendants Fred Garcia, Gilberto Reyes, and Erick Ramos, on or about March 26, 2016, “knowingly caused the death" of Juan Julio Gonzalez Guerrero and Zane Lopez at a residence in the 1100 block of East 22^nd Street (for more, visit here and here).

In a previous Certification Hearing where Judge Gossett presided, Rodriguez’s bond was set at $250,000 despite the State’s strong opposition and request of a $500,000 bond. Since then, the defendant has been living with his family under 24/7 supervision.

Today, the defendant’s attorney, Tom Davidson, argued to the court that Mr. Rodriguez is a non-flight risk; has cooperated with his legal council; has strong family ties and should not be tried as adult. Instead, Davidson argued Rodriguez should be sent to a juvenile detention center instead because he fears for Rodriguez’s safety, and the teen risks physical, psychological and sexual abuse should he be tried as an adult.

The State, however, stood firm to its recommendation for bond to be set at $500,000, and for proceedings to move forward.

Amanda Rodriguez, mother of Nicholas, was brought forward as a witness to testify on behalf of her son. In an emotional statement, Amanda told the court her son has been residing at her parents’ home, and she and her 9-year-old daughter have moved to a separate home. She also said Nicholas spends his time either at her parents’ house, on occasion her own house, and at church. She claimed her son has no cell phone, and is not allowed to have access to social media since those were regulations set previously. She also insisted that she and her family are willing to do everything it takes for her son, and understands that he has done wrong, but believes he is doing everything he can to learn from his mistakes. 

Judge Weatherby assured the court that the purpose of a bond hearing is to “assure the presence at a hearing,” not to find someone guilty or not-guilty. Weatherby deferred back to Judge Gossett’s set bond of $250,000 with the same requirements, reiterating that Nicholas Rodriguez is to have no contact with the victims’ families, and is secluded to three locations: his grandparents’ house, his mother’s house and his church.

Note: Maura Ballard contributed to this story.