Ivan Cantù is executed in Texas after his appeal was rejected

• Ivan Cantù was executed in Texas.
• His last appeal was denied.
• New evidence raises questions about his guilt.

The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals rejected the last appeal filed in an effort to prove Ivan Cantù’s innocence.

He faces the death penalty after being convicted of the murder of his cousin and his fiancée.

Ivan Cantu was executed on Wednesday, February 28 in Texas, despite alleged new evidence that was presented in his appeal.

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The appeal sought to highlight alleged false statements by witnesses during the trial and argued that the court-appointed attorneys were ineffective in defending Cantù.

However, the Court of Criminal Appeals decided not to grant an additional review of the case, according to the EFE agency.

Ivan Cantu was sentenced to death in 2001 for the 2000 murder of his cousin, James Mosqueda, 27, and Amy Kitchen, Mosqueda’s 22-year-old fiancée.

Over the years, Cantù’s execution has been postponed twice — in 2012 and 2023.

Bad news for Ivan Cantù

Cantù’s defense requested a new hearing last week, supported by a MoveOn.org petition with over 150,000 signatures.

The petition was presented to Collin County District Attorney Greg Willis and the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals.

Congressman Joaquín Castro joined the cause, urging that the case be reopened and arguing that Texas should not rush to execute a potentially innocent man.

Cantù’s lawyer, Gena Bunn, and podcast producer Matt Duff claim to have found new evidence that questions the testimony of the prosecution’s main witness, who is now deceased.

Did he get a fair trial?

In addition, they point out errors made by a defense attorney who did not request DNA or ballistics tests, among other omissions, and did not call any witnesses during the trial.

In his final argument, Cantù’s then-lawyer admitted his client’s guilt against his will, according to infobae.

This led him to interrupt the trial and request to represent himself. However, his request was denied.

The case has also attracted the attention of the public and celebrities such as Kim Kardashian, Jane Fonda and Martin Sheen, who have called for Cantú’s sentence to be reviewed.

Ivan Cantù was executed in Texas

Ivan Cantù, 50, was scheduled for execution on April 26 of last year.

But the judge stayed the execution, saying further review of his new claims was needed.

This is the third time that Ivan Cantú faced his death sentence. However, due to legal technicalities, the previous two were suspended.

Ivan Cantú was executed by lethal injection at 6:47 pm on February 28, 2024 in Texas

The night of the murder

On November 3, 2000 at 11:30 pm, Cantú left his girlfriend’s apartment and told her he would return later. He didn’t say where he was going. Hours later he returned with blood stained pants.

On November 4, 2000, Amy Kitchen’s family called police to ask them to do a welfare check because she wasn’t answering her phone.

A Dallas Police officer forced entry into the home and found James Mosqueda and Amy Kitchen shot to death.

Mosqueda’s car was not parked outside his house and the police later found it at Ivan Cantú’s house. That led to his arrest.