Rene Monreal entered a plea to 15 years prison on Sexual Assault and requested sentencing from the judge from 5 to a maximum of 40 years on Aggravated Kidnapping. Following a presentence investigation, the court held a hearing to determine the appropriate sentence on the Aggravated Kidnapping charge. The victim, Mr. Monreal’s former wife, testified to previous instances of violence in their relationship and threats made to herself, her family members, and Safer Path Family Violence Shelter. She testified as to how the events of that evening have had a lasting impact on her and her children who were present during the commission of the offenses. The defense requested a 15 year sentence to track with his plea on the other charge. The State argued for the 40 year maximum. Following the hearing, Judge Russell Wilson sentenced Mr. Monreal to 15 years as agreed upon to the Sexual Assault and 40 years on the Aggravated Kidnapping, the maximum possible under the terms of the plea agreement. Monreal will be eligible for parole after serving half of his sentence. This would not have been possible without the hard work of the Poteet Police Department, including former Officer Marissa Cedillo, Cpl. William Permenter, and Lt. Noe Rodriguez. The Atascosa County Sheriff’s Office was also very involved in helping out victim and her family, Sgt. Investigator Albert Garza in particular. We also extend our gratitude to the staff at Safer Path for their dedication to serving survivors of domestic violence, and Sarah Barrera with adult probation for her thorough work on the presentence investigation for the court. I am proud of the hard work and dedication of Erika Price and Ryan Wright in seeing that justice was served, and victim assistance coordinator Katie Quinney for helping our victim through the difficult process of our criminal justice system.
