Convicted Of First Degree Murder - Newschannel 6 Now | Wichita Falls, TX

A Lawton man was convicted of murder Monday in connection to the beating and shooting death of another man last October.

Jose Villanueva was charged with first-degree murder for the death of Charles Tyson.  Tyson was beaten and shot with a shotgun.

Villanueva chose to not have a jury trial, so Monday's testimony and evidence were considered only by the judge.  He reached the decision to convict without much deliberation.

Nearly 60 pieces of evidence were presented and the defendant chose to take the stand.  Among the evidence was a letter Villanueva wrote to his brother while in jail and a police interrogation video where he admitted to shooting Tyson.

It was a video that Villanueva's defense attorney tried having suppressed because he said Villanueva was under the influence of meth, Xanax, and other drugs and was not coherent enough for admission.  After hearing from several witnesses about Villanueva's personality that day the judge denied the request.

In the interrogation, Villanueva admitted to shooting Tyson, but for two different reasons.  One being that Tyson was trying to rob him of a gun, and the other being that Tyson had murdered his friend Omar Morales.  Detectives later said Tyson was never a suspect for the open investigation of Morales' murder.

When Villanueva took the stand, he said he does not remember the interrogation or any statements he made.

He was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole. This means he will have to serve 38 years before he can be considered for early release.