Man sentenced to life for killing child and stepfather while on bond.
A Cold-Blooded Ambush: Gang Member Sentenced to Life in Prison for Double Murder
A documented gang member has been sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole after a Texas jury convicted him earlier this week of capital murder for the fatal shooting of a teenage boy and his stepfather while out on bond for another murder that occurred years earlier.
“A little boy with his whole life ahead of him was murdered because of a cold-blooded ambush in broad daylight,” Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg said in the statement. “This was a capital murder, and the appropriate sentence is life in prison without parole.”
At the time of the shooting, Mr. Hawkins was free on bond for a capital murder that happened on Oct. 10, 2016. In that case, he was arrested for fatally shooting John Pye while he was robbing him. The DA’s office noted that the two men knew each other.
Mr. Hawkins was then released on bond with a GPS ankle monitor, which he was reportedly wearing when he killed the 11-year-old child and his stepfather.
A week before the double murder, Mr. Solomon had reported to police that an unknown man he had never seen before tried to kill him by shooting at him while parking his car in the driveway of his home.
Mr. Solomon told police that he did not know why he had been targeted.
On the day of the murder, Mr. Hawkins’s GPS ankle monitor showed that he was waiting near Mr. Solomon’s residence before cutting a hole into a chain-linked fence in order to approach his victim faster. The suspect waited at least three hours for Mr. Solomon to come home to carry out the killing, according to the DA’s office.
As Mr. Solomon backed into his driveway with his stepson in the passenger seat, prosecutors said Mr. Hawkins emerged from the hole in the fence, shot the 11-year-old twice, and then shot Mr. Solomon four times, killing them both.
“The defendant laid in wait for three hours, during the light of day to execute a young boy and his stepfather,” said Nancy Ta, a prosecutor in Harris County assigned to the DA’s office specialized homicide division.
“Hawkins made a decision to end Dominic’s life before the boy could even turn 12, and now 12 citizens of Harris County have decided how Hawkins will spend the rest of his,” she added.
Ms. Ta also pointed out that the time of the broad daylight murder and the fact a hole was cut into the fence to gain easy access to the victims were “evidence of a premeditated ambush.”
Besides Mr. Hawkins’s GPS ankle monitor records, surveillance footage from nearby cameras also showed that the suspect ran toward the murder scene wearing his ankle monitor.
The motive as to why Mr. Hawkins targeted Mr. Solomon and his stepson remains unclear.
Christopher Condon, another prosecutor in Harris County assigned to the DA’s office specialized homicide division, also said that he believes the murder was “an orchestrated hit” based on all of the available evidence.
“The jury did the right thing in handing down a conviction for capital murder.” Mr. Condon said.
Officials said the jury listened to all of the presented evidence during a two-week trial before convicting Mr. Hawkins of capital murder on Sept. 18. He was automatically sentenced to life in prison and will never have a chance for parole.
What steps can the Harris County District Attorney’s Office take to prevent similar incidents of individuals committing crimes while on bond?
Harris County District Attorney’s Office. During this time, Mr. Solomon and his stepson, Dominic Sumicek, arrived home. As they entered the driveway, Mr. Hawkins emerged from his hiding spot and opened fire on them, fatally shooting both victims.
The brutal and calculated nature of the crime shocked the community. It was a cold-blooded ambush carried out in broad daylight, targeting an innocent child and his stepfather. District Attorney Kim Ogg emphasized the severity of the crime, stating that the appropriate sentence for such a capital murder is life in prison without the possibility of parole.
What makes this case even more chilling is the fact that Mr. Hawkins was out on bond for another murder at the time of the double murder. In 2016, he had been arrested for fatally shooting John Pye during a robbery. Despite this, he was released on bond with a GPS ankle monitor. Tragically, this monitoring device did not prevent him from carrying out the heinous act.
The events leading up to the double murder are equally disturbing. Just a week before the crime, Mr. Solomon had reported to the police that an unknown man had attempted to kill him by shooting at him while he was parking his car in his driveway. Mr. Solomon claimed that he did not know why he was targeted.
On the day of the murder, Mr. Hawkins’s GPS ankle monitor indicated that he had been waiting near Mr. Solomon’s residence. He had cut a hole in a chain-linked fence to approach his victim more quickly. The suspect had been waiting for at least three hours for Mr. Solomon to return home before carrying out the killing.
The tragic loss of young Dominic Sumicek and his stepfather is a stark reminder of the dangers posed by gang violence and the need for a strong criminal justice system. It also sheds light on the flaws in the current bail system, as Mr. Hawkins was able to commit another murder while out on bond for a previous offense.
The sentencing of Mr. Hawkins to life in prison without parole serves as a measure of justice for the victims and their grieving families. However, it cannot bring back the lives that were senselessly taken. It
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