In late November, the Dallas County District Attorney’s Office announced that it would not seek the death penalty in the prosecution of Yordanis Cabos-Martinez, the man accused of beheading his co-worker at a Dallas motel earlier this year.
While prosecutors added that they “reserve the right” to change course — a decision that will need to be finalized in early January — it wasn’t exactly a surprising move. Cabos-Martinez is an undocumented resident, which can complicate capital punishment proceedings. (Earlier this year, Texas Sen. John Cornyn was one of a dozen Republicans who signed on to legislation that would make it more straightforward for prosecutors to go after undocumented immigrants who harm U.S. citizens.)
But even beyond that, capital punishment has not been a hallmark of Dallas County District Attorney John Creuzot’s tenure. In May, Creuzot announced that his office would seek the death penalty in a separate case, his first time doing so since taking office in 2019. In Texas, executions are set by a judge at the request of an elected district attorney…