mark benavides wife

He lied to you, sitting here. Reyes survived for two weeks before being pronounced dead. Benavides was convicted Tuesday of continuous trafficking of persons and faces 25 to 99 years or life in prison. She said she knew Benavides cheated, but said the couple have two children and she still supported him. More: S.A. teen who refused arranged marriage suffered 6 months of beatings, search warrant shows. Former clients who were victimized by him are asked to call Morales at 210-335-0701. Texas Democrat, Attorney Mark Benavides, has been found guilty on six counts of sex trafficking and torture by a judge in San Antonio. More: Urestis wife files for divorce following salacious trial. Benavides, a former San Antonio lawyer, was convicted Tuesday of trafficking and having sex with clients in exchange for legal services. When Norton asked if he saw a change in Benavides from his testimony, Steege said he did. She told jurors Feb. 1, 2018, that she and Uresti would have sex in his law office. Mark Benavides was scheduled to appear . W&P Porter bowl review: A container that makes office 10 beach essentials to pack for a spring break vacation, HOKA dropped a brand new version of their most popular shoe, You can still overpack the smaller Monos check-in suitcase. Officials said the women were. But the experience left her deeply scarred. Jurors were shown a video recorded by one of Benavides alleged victims showing a violent sexual encounter. Its an understatement to call it cheating if its a criminal act, Norton said. More: Jury find woman who killed nephew guilty of murder, Ronald Cortes, for the San Antonio Express News, Marvin Pfeiffer, Staff / San Antonio Express-News, More: Jury'sguilty verdict sends convicted killer into frenzy in San Antonio courtroom, William Luther, Staff / San Antonio Express-News, psychologist at upscale apartment complex near downtown, Kin Man Hui, Staff / San Antonio Express-News. I looked at you three times, sir, and you were asleep, Norton told Steege. He will serve at least 30 years before he is eligible for parole. When you drill down deeper and what weve seen in the cases, its actually extortion, said lead Bexar County Public Defender Michael Young. Linda Benavides testifies Friday during the punishment phase of the trial of her husband, Mark Benavides, in Floresville. She was later excused and replaced with an alternate. The jury entered deliberations at 1:18 p.m. Under cross-examination, Norton asked Steege whether he reviewed police reports and videos Benavides took of sexual encounters with his clients. Jury deliberations begin in Mark Benavides trial. To read more from Elizabeth, become a subscriber. But Benavides said he believed the encounters were consensual and testified that trading sex in exchange for legal services was never discussed. Linda Benavides, wife of ex-SA attorney Mark Benavides, asks jury to please be fair. A witness described the crime scene as a "horror move" in testimony. Steege said he had not. Read more of her stories here. Ex-SA lawyer's mother defends convicted son on witness stand. Boshoy Mina Elkhaliny, was arrested on Jan. 8, 2018 for allegedly beating, raping and holding Kaila Kutzik captive for days. Benavides wife, Linda, took the stand on Friday and asked the jury to please be fair.. Mark Benavides, 48, is charged with continuous trafficking of persons, accused of having sex with clients in prostitution cases in exchange for legal services. Salacious Uresti testimony: Denise Cantu, a Harlingen woman whom Uresti helped obtain a $2.5 million legal settlement over the deaths of two of her children in a 2010 vehicle wreck, told jurors that the lawmaker became her financial adviser, confidante, friend and eventually lover. More: Uresti, Cain found guilty on all charges in end to salacious month-long fraud trial. He wanted to meet up.. Mark Benavides (center) confers with defense attornies Monica E. Guerrero (right) and Liza Rodriguez (left) during his trial in the Wilson County District Court and Justice Center in Floresville on Thursday. Dahlberg and Young want more of Benavides victims to come forward to have their cases reviewed. In her closing argument, defense attorney Liza Rodriguez said Benavides is not the person jurors saw only in the snippets of video the state put together for them to watch. Benavides was convicted in 2018 for six counts of human trafficking for trading sex for legal services. I thought I was alone. He also covers the Spurs for on-air and digital platforms. If you need help with the Public File, call 210-351-1241. He also covers the Spurs for on-air and digital platforms. Investigators seized 246 mini DVDs that contained hundreds of videos of Benavides and the former clients engaged in various sex acts, in which he could be heard directing the women and telling them what to do and say. Defense attorney Monica E. Guerrero said Benavides admitted he lost his moral compass, and although he deserves to be punished, she asked for mercy. Benavides texted and called her, describing in explicit terms the sex acts he wanted her to perform. Several of clients claimed that Benavides promised them he'd help them, and even get the cases thrown out altogether if they slept with him, according to an arrest warrant affidavit. Benavides was convicted Tuesday of continuous trafficking of persons and faces 25 to 99 years or life in prison. Elizabeth Zavala is a San Antonio Express-News staff writer. Animal sacrifice unveiled at San Antonio home: It was creepy, throwing advances like that, and he wants me to put out for him to help me. He transported, coerced, threatened and made them feel they had no choice. SAN ANTONIO Officials from the Bexar County District Attorneys Office and the Bexar County Public Defenders Office are urging potential sex crime victims of a disbarred San Antonio lawyer to come forward. The 48-year-old former attorney is accused of continuous human trafficking and having sex with clients in prostitution cases in return for legal services. Apparently, this has been going on for virtually his entire legal career, here. Benavides has applied for probation. Before Benavides was taken away, the judge increased his bail to $150,000 on each of the remaining four cases pending against him. Woman held captive in Stone Oak home: What started as a theft investigation quickly became a violent sex assault case. A 51-year-old victim of now-disbarred attorney Mark Benavides pauses during an inteview at her San Antonio home on June 18, 2020. Charges against ten of eleven people arrested for animal cruelty in March, involving what one official described as some sort of unknown ritual involving dismembered goats and chickens, were later dropped. His kids love him so much,' she told the jury while crying. Rodriguez MARVIN PFEIFFER/mpfeiffer@express-news.net, Marvin Pfeiffer, Staff / San Antonio Express-News, More: Jury find woman who killed nephew guilty of murder, Ronald Cortes, for the San Antonio Express News, More: Jury'sguilty verdict sends convicted killer into frenzy in San Antonio courtroom, William Luther, Staff / San Antonio Express-News, psychologist at upscale apartment complex near downtown, Kin Man Hui, Staff / San Antonio Express-News, Texas chain with San Antonio bakeries files for bankruptcy, How a viral chicken fried steak briefly closed down Mr. Juicy, Puerto Rican restaurant finds new life in former Rosario's spot, Report: San Antonio Rep. 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The trial started last week and included testimony from all six accusers. I started caring for him as a person because I didnt have anybody at the time. Six women he had represented in prostitution or drug cases testified he coerced. I am not aware of what has happened, except what I heard on the news, she said. Fundraiser honors San Marcos child who was struck, killed CPS Energy sells circular Villita Assembly Building. Benavides will serve 80 years for each count but the time will. Investigators seized 246 mini DVDs that contained hundreds of videos of Benavides and the former clients engaged in various sex acts, in which he could be heard directing the women and telling them what to do and say. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate. More: Jury deadlocks in murder case involving San Antonio man whose remains were grilled. Marisol Morales is a case manager with the Bexar County Public Defender's Office working with victims of now-disbarred attorney Mark Benavides. She agreed to tell her story on the condition that she not be . Women who employed him as their lawyer in prostitution cases told police that Benavides coerced them into having sex to help lessen their legal problems or to get their cases dismissed, an arrest warrant affidavit filed before the original indictments states. A 29-year-old woman who testified for the state that Benavides forced her to have anal sex and recorded the encounters sat with her hands over her face and cried as the jury heard her plead for Benavides to stop. Uresti was found guilty of defrauding investors in the now-defunct company FourWinds Logistics, which bought and sold sand used in fracking for oil production before it collapsed in 2015. Former attorney Mark Benavides was in court Thursday for a pretrial hearing. The two agencies, normally on opposing sides, are working together to ensure justice for the victims of disbarred lawyer Mark Henry Benavides, who was once a candidate for state district judge. Shes pleased that the conviction is now off her record, thanks to the DAs and public defenders offices. S.A. animal sacrifice was Santera practice, but was it illegal? Your email address will not be published. "We know there are women we could never ID. The jury found him guilty of crimes, not cheating.. The defense has already filed an appeal. Share your thoughts with us in the comments below. One of thevideos was so graphic that a female juror fainted as the panel left the courtroom last week. The evidence against Benavides included portions of 246 videos the lawyer recorded of himself having sex with his clients. the woman, 29, cried on the video. Benavides was sentenced to 80 years in prison on each of the six counts of continuous trafficking of persons against him. Defense expert Mark Steege, a sex therapist who testified he has treated hundreds of sex offenders in 35 years, said he evaluated Benavides in April 2017. Mark Benavides (right) and defense attorney Liza Rodriguez are in court Thursday during the punishment phase of his trial in Wilson County District Court and Justice Center in Floresville. Linda Benavides said that although he was unfaithful, she didn't leave her husband of nearly 11 years after his arrest because she supports him. "" 11-23; 09-29; 09-29; 2021 09-17 "" . It took the panel nearly four hours to find Benavides, 48, guilty on all six counts. Steege said he saw a dramatic change in Benavides, from arrogant and entitled when they first met, to humble and treatable. Her parents, Abdulah Fahmi Kala Al Hishmawi, 34, and Hamdiyah Sabah Al Hishmawi, 33, were arrested on Friday, March 23, 2018. It dragged on for nearly four years. He is now treatable.. }] When she asked why he was filming, he said it was just for him, she told the court. Six women he had represented in prostitution or drug cases testified he coerced them into having sex to keep them out of jail or lessen their legal troubles, and videotaped the encounters, which were shown to the jury. Several additional indictments have been added since. A recent review off the case showed the arrest wasn't supported by evidence and her conviction has been overturned based on Benavides' ineffectual counsel. More: San Antonio woman gunned down by estranged relativedies two weeks after shooting. Benavides' wife, Linda, took the stand on Friday and asked the jury to "please be fair." She said she knew Benavides cheated, but said the couple have two children and she still supported. Its a very important function and a priority in our office, said District Attorney Joe D. Gonzales. It's an understatement to call it cheating if its a criminal act, Norton replied. Both told their stories to the Express-News, on condition their names not be published. She hired attorney Mark Benavides, who she said began demanding sex, threatening that if she didn't "play with him" he would ensure she and her son, who had an unrelated case in another court, would be send to prison. Copyright 2023 KSAT.com is managed by Graham Digital and published by Graham Media Group, a division of Graham Holdings. Benavides is accused of having sex with his clients in exchange for legal services. District Judge Dick Alcala noticed that the jurors were looking distraught so he ordered a break. When prosecutor Jay Norton asked her if her husband committed a crime, Benavides said she couldnt say, because she was not allowed to hear testimony. Early life. It took the panel nearly four hours to find Benavides, 48, guilty on all six. Mark Henry Benavides was convicted Tuesday of continuous trafficking of persons for having sex with clients he represented on prostitution or drug cases. He wasnt playing around. | ezavala@express-news.net | @elizabeth2863, Benavides sentenced to 80 years for coercing clients into having sex, Man dies following hit-and-run on San Antonio's Westside, Canyon Lake animal shelter faces claims of neglect, abuse. Benavides, 50, was convicted in 2018 of six counts of human trafficking and coercing his clients to have sex with him. But hes a good person. Marvin Pfeiffer /For the San Antonio Express-News. They found him guilty of force, fraud and coercion, Norton said. Each case is expected to be tried separately. Rodriguez argued that Benavides did not kill someone and should not be sent away for life. More: Man accused in death of trans woman wont face trial. Murder-suicide at upscale apartment complex:Tania Rendon-Santiago was killed at her apartment complex in the 1800 block of Broadway Street in an apparent murder-suicide on March 12. A member of the jury collapsed after watching some of the images on the first day of the trial. Benavides, a former San Antonio lawyer, was convicted Tuesday of trafficking and having sex with clients in exchange for legal services. Prosecutors said Benavides' conviction has tainted some 5,000 cases and convictions he was involved in. Prosecutors said Benavides will be back in a courtroom to face additional charges. I knew he was serious. But he's a good person. Mark Henry Benavides, 48, broke down in tears on Friday as he heard the sentence and mouthed 'I love you' to his wife, who is still staying with him. Norton told the jury that this wasnt Benavides trial alone, that it was shared with every single person who took the stand and told their stories. Linda Benavides, who is the wife of Mark Benavides, receives his belt and necktie Friday from a sheriffs deputy after he was sentenced to 80 years as punishment after being convicted for continuous trafficking of persons. She claims he would pick her up at her home and take her to the River Inn Motel downtown on Guadalupe and South Frio streets. The women said the alleged encounters took place at his law office, motels, his car and the courthouse, according to the affidavit. Lopez was found guilty of the murder by the jury on June 5, 2018 and struggled against deputies moments after being convicted of the 2014 killing of Menchaca. According to court documents, the district attorney's office cited insufficient evidence in dropping the charges. If you would like to change your settings or withdraw consent at any time, the link to do so is in our privacy policy accessible from our home page.. Mark Benavides is currently serving an 80-year prison term after he was convicted in 2018 of trading sex for legal services from women he was representing. The woman who had been charged with drug possession encouraged victims to make that call. The woman in the video later explained to the court that she felt she had to sleep with her lawyer because 'he said he would help me get my son back.'. Please be fair. A Texas jury sentenced former San Antonio lawyer Mark Benavides to 80 years in prison April 6 for coercing clients to have sex with him in exchange for legal services. Your lawyer is supposed to help you, not hurt you.. He did. Linda Benavides (front), who is the wife of Mark Benavides, and his mother, Olga Benavides, are emotional after he was given 80 years after being convicted for continuous trafficking of persons on Friday. The Express-News generally does not identify victims of sexual assault. Anyone who feels they were forced to take a plea deal by Benavides is urged to contact the Bexar County Public Defenders Office at 210-504-6216. Former San Antonio woman gunned down by estranged relativedies two weeks before being pronounced dead Mark... 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