Sosa - Crime Details:
Pedro Solis Sosa, born December 27, 1951, was convicted in November 1983 for the shooting death of 55-year-old Ollie F. Childress Jr., a Wilson County, Texas deputy sheriff. Sosa, then age 31, and his nephew Leroy V. Sosa abducted Officer Childress on Texas Highway 16 and drove his patrol car, with the officer handcuffed and in the trunk, to the LaVernia State Bank, which they robbed of $51,038.
Police Officer Shot Execution Style:
The robbers then drove to a dirt road where Childress was shot once in the neck with his own .44-caliber revolver while handcuffed in the trunk.
Sosa Shoots Victim Twice:
Sosa and his nephew then fled in their own vehicle, but returned a short time later because they had forgotten to wipe the patrol car clean of their prints. Finding Childress still alive, Pedro Sosa reportedly shot him a second time in the neck. Leroy Sosa told police his uncle shot the officer because Childress had seen his face.
FBI Arrests Sosa and Nephew:
The two robbers drove to San Antonio after throwing the officer's gun and a shotgun used in the bank robbery into a creek. Pedro Sosa was arrested by three FBI agents, after his car was stopped on I-35 in San Antonio on Feb. 4, 1984.
Nephew Makes a Deal:
Sosa's nephew, Leroy V. Sosa pled guilty to a federal bank-robbery charge in exchange for his testimony against his uncle.
Attorneys Argue Legality of Execution:
Sosa was last scheduled for execution on October 25, 2005, but it was postponed while his attoneys argue if his execution is legal, based on a ruling in 2002 by the U.S. Supreme Court which held that executing the mentally retarded is a violation of the Eighth Ammendment which prohibits against cruel and unusual punishment.
22 Years on Death Row - Is Sosa's Time Up?:
Sosa has never been found to be mentally retarded by any court of law. A new execution date was set for April 25, 2006. Sosa has been imprisoned for 22 years at the Institutional Division of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
