A San Marcos man was sentenced to 75 years in prison late last month after a Hays County Jury convicted him of murdering his roommate in 2016.
Esaia Kemuel Morris, 24, was convicted for the murder of Francisco Sierra, 20, after a confrontation between the two men on Feb. 5, 2016. Francisco was found lying on his back, shot in the head through a pillow that was placed over his face.
Morris’ punishment, which was handed down Nov. 27, came after a lengthy two-week trial, which included a six-day recess due to the Thanksgiving holiday.
According to Hays County officials, Morris confessed to killing his roommate to a coworker the day after the murder. He then threw the murder weapon in a nearby pond, which was later recovered by police. The weapon matched bullets collected from the autopsy.
Morris pled guilty to the crime and admitted he murdered Sierra, but said he was under the influence of “sudden passion.” However, Morris gave conflicting versions on how the murder occurred, according to a Hays County press release.
“Morris claimed that he had snapped immediately after an unwanted sexual encounter with Sierra, but the jury heard other evidence suggesting that Morris had initiated the encounter,” according to the release. Authorities said Morris had been “aggressive and threatening after the encounter,” and that the murder occurred hours later.
After three hours of deliberation, the jury rejected Morris’ plea for a finding of sudden passion and handed down a sentence of 75 years in prison and a $100,000 fine.
