TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — An Arizona jury says the leader of an anti-illegal-immigrant group convicted in a deadly 2009 home invasion robbery is eligible for the death penalty.
Pima County Superior Court jurors reached their decision Tuesday after 45 minutes of deliberations. They now will hear several days of mitigating evidence from defense attorneys on why Shawna Forde’s life should be spared.
The 42-year-old Forde was convicted Monday on two counts of first-degree murder and other charges in the May 2009 home invasion in Arivaca (ayr-uh-VAH’-kuh), a desert community about 10 miles north of Mexico. Killed in the robbery were 29-year-old Raul Flores and his 9-year-old daughter Brisenia.
Forde is the leader of the Minutemen American Defense, a small border watch group. Prosecutors say she planned the attack to help fund its anti-immigrant operations.
