José Manuel Martínez (serial killer)
José Manuel Martínez (born 1962), dubbed El Mano Negra ("The Black Hand") is a Mexican-American former self-described drug cartel hitman.[2] Martínez confessed to an estimated 36 murders and was sentenced to life in prison after being convicted of murder in multiple states.
José Manuel Martínez | |
|---|---|
 Undated mugshot of Martínez taken by Tulare County Sheriff Department | |
| Born | 1962 (age 60–61) Fresno, California, U.S. |
| Other names | El Mano Negra |
| Years active | 1978–2013 |
| Conviction(s) | First-degree murder (12 counts) Attempted murder (1 count) |
| Criminal penalty | Ten life sentences |
| Details | |
| Victims | 12 convicted (36 claimed) |
| State(s) | Alabama, California and Florida (convicted) 9 others (claimed) |
Date apprehended | May 17, 2013[1] |
Crimes
Martínez was arrested in May 2013 for the murder of Jose Ruiz, a friend of his daughter's boyfriend.[3] During his interrogation by Alabama authorities, Martínez confessed to killing 36 people across at least 12 states.[1] All of his victims were adult men, with the exception of one attempted victim that was a 17-year-old boy.[4] Martínez said that most of his murders were related to debts to Mexican drug cartels. He may have killed more than 30 people in over 32 years.[5]
Trials
In Alabama, Martínez pled guilty to one count of murder for the death of Jose Ruiz in March 2013 and was sentenced to 50 years in prison.[6] In California, he pleaded guilty to nine counts of murder in October 2015, and was sentenced to life in prison without parole.[7]
The June 2019 trial in Florida for two counts of murder lasted three weeks. The jury deliberated for three hours before deciding that Martínez would not face the death penalty which was sought by the state prosecution, and would instead face two consecutive life sentences.[8] Over a dozen of Martínez's family members testified on his behalf, sharing stories describing the sacrifices he made to protect his siblings, and trips to Disneyland where he took his children and grandchildren.[4] His defense lawyer for his Alabama court case, Thomas Turner, described him as "polite and a likeable individual",[3] and another lawyer, John Spivey, said that it came down to two visions of Martínez, the "cold killer" vs the "truly dedicated father, uncle, grandfather,"[4] and that in the end, "the human side outweighed the monster side".[4]
References
- Garrison, Jessica (2018-05-17). ""I Killed Them All." The Life Of One Of America's Bloodiest Hitmen". BuzzFeed News. Retrieved 2019-12-10.
- "Jose Martinez, The Hitman Who Confessed To Killing Three Dozen People, Avoids The Death Penalty". BuzzFeed News. Retrieved 2019-12-05.
- "Hitman charged with nine murders claims he killed 30 more people". The Independent. 2014-04-10. Archived from the original on 2022-06-17. Retrieved 2019-11-14.
- Marcum, Diana (2014-04-09). "Alleged hit man confesses to more than 30 killings, 9 in California". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2019-12-10.
- Gerber, Marisa; Gold, Scott; Marcum, Diana (2014-04-10). "Arrested in 1 killing, man says he was a cartel hit man for decades". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2020-09-04.
- Grass, Jonathan. "Alleged cartel hit man pleads guilty to murdering Decatur man". www.al.com. Retrieved 2020-08-03.
- "Man who says he was cartel enforcer pleads guilty to murders". www.sfexaminer.com. Retrieved 2020-08-03.
- Miller, Austin L. "Life in prison for drug hitman". www.ocala.com. Retrieved 2020-08-03.
Further reading
- Garrison, Jessica (2020). The Devil's Harvest: A Ruthless Killer, a Terrorized Community, and the Search for Justice in California's Central Valley. Hachette Books. ISBN 978-1-5491-0589-0. OCLC 1183400969.