Partial Reprint of the Statesman article:

"After a Travis County jury late Friday found Luis Sanchez Vallejo guilty of murder in a 1997 Northeast Austin shooting, state District Judge Charlie Baird sentenced Vallejo to 8 years in prison.

As is his right under Texas law, Vallejo, 60, opted to have Baird assess his sentence. He faced a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Prosecutors believe he fled to his native Mexico after the shooting but at some point he returned to the Austin area. Acting on a tip, the U.S. Marshal Service-led Lone Star Fugitive Task arrested him last year."

Full article here:
http://www.statesman.com/blogs/content/shared-gen/blogs/austin/courts/entries/2009/04/20/convicted_of_murder_man_gets_8.html

That seems like a short sentence for murder. Maybe they felt forry for him. The linked story says the killer is already 60 years old.

It's not "they" - it's Judge Baird just bein' himself.

I know it was a short discussion with the defense attorney and his client on whether to go to the judge or jury for punishment.

An eight-year sentence allows Hizzoner to avoid the nagging (and costly) manifestations of sentence-remorse.

A judge in Travis County sentenced a 19-year-old man Wednesday to six years in prison for shooting his 1-year-old daughter in the foot last year.

Details.

I'm shocked he didn't get deferred from the Honorable Court.

But John, it was an accident. He wasn't trying to hurt his daughter, he was just trying to kill her mother. C'mon, cut the guy some slack! He probably already feels bad enough that he missed.

Today Judge Baird found defense attorney Edmund "Skip" Davis in contempt of court for cursing within earshot of the jury and then lying to him about it. Baird ordered Davis released from custody on personal bond until the end of the trial, at which time he will be ordered to jail. Davis declined to comment.

[note to self: never, ever practice law in the funny farm known as Austin]

So, Skip will do more time than his client.

And the article I read indicated that the defendant was out eating a sandwich when the verdict came in. Apparently, Judge Baird didn't even wait for her to return to court. That can't be legal.

Verdict in absentia?