Rodrigo Hernandez Executed in Texas

Rodrigo Hernandez, Texas

Texas executed Rodrigo Hernandez on January 26, 2012. Rodrigo was pronounced dead at 6:19 pm local time, inside the Wall Unit execution chamber at the Huntsville State Penitentiary in Huntsville, Texas. Rodrigo was 38 years of age. He was executed for the sexual assault and murder of 38-year-old Susan Verstegen, on February 19, 1994, in San Antonio, Texas. Susan’s murder remained unsolved until 2002 when Rodrigo’s DNA was entered into a national database.  His DNA matched with DNA from Susan’s crime scene. Rodrigo eventually confessed to the crime. He spent the last seven years of his life on death row in Texas.

Rodrigo previously served three-and-one-half years in prison for nearly beating a man to death in Michigan. It was upon release for that crime that he was linked to Susan’s death. His DNA also matched evidence collected from the 1991 rape and murder of 77-year-old Muriel Stoepker, a homeless woman in Michigan. Rodrigo attended school through the 10th grade and worked as a roofer, stocker, and laborer before his arrest.

Please pray for peace and healing for the families of Susan Verstegen, Muriel Stoepker, and any others who may have suffered from Rodrigo’s actions. Please pray for the family of Rodrigo.

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