60 Year Sentence Handed Down In Retrial Of 2012 Shooting Death

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas (AP) — A South Texas man has been sentenced to 60 years in prison over the 2012 shooting death of his ex-girlfriend whose body was found by a fisherman.   

Lawrence Mireles of Aransas (uh-RAN'-zuhs) Pass was convicted of murder in his retrial in the death of 16-year-old Jenna Hernandez.

A Nueces County jury last November deadlocked in the case. Another jury in Corpus Christi on Wednesday found the 20-year-old Mireles guilty in the slaying of the Aransas Pass teen, whose body discovered near Stedman Island.

Prosecutors previously said the victim had been set to testify against one of the defendant's friends in an assault case.

Police later arrested two men on obstruction/retaliation charges for allegedly threatening witnesses before the first trial. Police say those two men were known to associate with gangs.