SeferinoBautista-Renteria

A Smith County auto shop owner was found guilty of murder Friday for shooting and killing 19-year-old Rawly “Eli” Sanchez on the Fourth of July last year.

Seferino Bautista-Renteria was convicted of murder in connection with the shooting that killed Sanchez. The jury returned their verdict after about two and half hours of deliberations.

The courtroom was packed with loved ones of both Sanchez and Bautista-Renteria. On the side where Sanchez’s family was, people raised their hands upward in praise of the verdict, and cries could be heard from the other side.

The sentencing phase of the trial will begin Monday morning.

Documents state Sanchez was shot in the back of the head while he and his friends were making a U-turn near Bautista Auto Sales to correct a previous wrong turn.

Smith County Assistant District Attorney Kasey Sirianni told the jury Bautista-Renteria’s actions were inexcusable. In the eyes of Bautista-Renteria, making a wrong turn near his business is a death sentence.

Bautista-Renteria was calm and collected when the truck was coming to make a U-turn. He started shooting his rifle as the truck Sanchez was in was leaving the area.

Sirianni told the jury the Bautista family had an “Easter egg hunt” for bullet casings after the shooting, and they did not call 911. She said a person is responsible for every shot they fire when using a gun, and this is not a case of self-defense.

Smith County Assistant District Attorney Emil Mikkelsen told jurors nothing made sense from the defense’s statements. Mikkelsen said Bautista-Renteria had enough lighting in the area to see where he was shooting.

Bautista-Renteria got on the stand Thursday to say he was scared for himself and his children, and Mikkelsen said that was a lie. Bautista-Renteria claimed to be concerned about what could’ve happened, but Mikkelsen said these possibilities he mentioned are not justification.

Bautista-Renteria and his family hid from law enforcement when they arrived after the shooting, and he had his wife, Corina Bautista, run damage control by moving the Ford Explorer that was shot and give police a certain story.

The truck was well on its way out of the road when Bautista-Renteria started shooting, Mikkelsen said.

Eli had just finished Tyler Junior College and he had his whole life ahead of him. While on the stand, Bautista-Renteria did not show any remorse for what happened to Eli, Mikkelsen said.

“He took Eli away from all of us and he does not care,” Mikkelsen said.

Defense attorney Mishae Boren told the jury Bautista-Renteria being a Spanish-only speaker and requiring translation hindered the defense. She explained Bautista-Renteria was aiming at the tailgate and tires of the truck, and his intent was to stop it.

Bautista-Renteria didn’t know what the people in the truck were intending to do. He was shouting at the truck to stop but the vehicle kept going, Boren said. She said in his eyes, the truck was coming down the road near his business “menacingly.”

Boren told jurors what the driver and passengers of the truck that Sanchez was in were doing earlier in the day, such as drinking alcohol at the lake, hitting a tree near Interstate 20 and not hearing Bautista-Renteria say stop, is important to know.

What matters most is what was going on in Bautista-Renteria’s mind at the time, Boren said. She noted how the state brought up evidence showing he and his family experienced gruesome threats in the past.

Defense attorney Bobby Mims said on the night of July 4, 2024, circumstances came together that led to Sanchez’s death and no one was at fault for those circumstances coming together. Mims said nothing can be done to bring Sanchez back.

The whole incident happened quickly within 79 seconds. Investigators found nothing illegal while searching Bautista-Renteria’s business, Mims said. He added Bautista-Renteria’s mind was impacted from past threats against his family.

Mims theorized the shot that hit the back window and hit Eli was a ricochet bullet, while the other bullets were aimed at and directly hit the bottom of the truck.