By The Associated Press
A man was sentenced to life in prison Thursday after being convicted of fatally shooting two workers at a Dallas hospital last year while arguing with his girlfriend, who had just given birth to their child.
Nestor Hernandez, 31, was convicted of capital murder in the October 2022 deaths of Jacqueline Pokuaa, 45, a social worker, and Katie Annette Flowers, 63, a nurse, at Dallas Methodist Medical Center. Hernandez received an automatic sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole. Prosecutors did not seek the death penalty.
Photo provided by the Dallas County Jail shows Nestor Hernandez, who was arrested Saturday, Oct. 22, 2022, in the fatal shooting of two Dallas Methodist Medical Center employees.
Defense attorneys had asked jurors to consider a lesser charge, acknowledging that while Hernandez opened fire, he did not intend to kill anyone. Taking the stand at the trial, Hernandez admitted to shooting the two women, but said it was an accident.
Dallas County District Attorney John Creuzot told jurors that Hernandez went to the hospital that day with "rage, resentment, anger and a plan to kill." Prosecutor George Lewis said Hernandez was motivated by the belief that his girlfriend had cheated on him and that he was not the baby's father. During the trial, prosecutors presented evidence that it was.
Hernandez's girlfriend, Selena Villatoro, testified that he accused her of infidelity and beat her with a gun. She also said he threatened to kill her, himself and anyone who entered the room, and when Pokuaa entered, Hernandez shot him.
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Hernandez testified that while he and Villatoro were fighting, Pokuaa tried to intervene and the gun missed. He said he then panicked and darted into the hallway and punched Flowers.
Hernandez was shot in the thigh by a hospital police officer who arrived at the scene.
At the time of the shooting, Hernandez was on probation for aggravated robbery and had been granted permission to be in the hospital with an ankle monitor.
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence or the threat of domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline for help at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233), or go to www.thehotline.org for anonymous and confidential chats, available in English and Spanish.
Individual states often have their own domestic violence hotlines as well.