On Monday, a Pima County Arizona jury convicted Shawna Forde of two counts of first-degree murder in the 2009 killing of Raul Junior Flores and his 9-year-old daughter, Brisenia.
Forde was also convicted of attempted first-degree murder in the shooting of Flores’ wife, Gina Gonzalez, and counts of aggravated assault and robbery.
The jury deliberated for seven hours over the course of two days and will now decide if the death penalty should be considered for Forde.
Forde’s alleged co-conspirators, Jason Bush and Albert Gaxiola, will go to trial in the coming months.
As previously reported by La Plaza, Forde has been involved in anti-immigrant circles long before she targeted the Flores family. Prosecutors argued she robbed them in order to fund her group, the Minutemen American Defense, which claims it is their civil duty to take up arms and patrol the Mexican border.
Forde and her two accomplices entered the Flores home on the night of May 30, 2009, falsely claiming to be law enforcement officials and opened fire on the family.
If jurors determine the facts presented in the case merit the death penalty, both sides will begin presenting evidence in support of or challenging the decision.
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