McALLEN, Texas — A former Catholic priest was convicted for the murder and assault of a teacher and former beauty queen in 1960. Information that surfaced in the trial indicated a possible conspiracy to cover up the crime.
After a week of testimony, jurors in South Texas issued a verdict against John Feit, finding him guilty of murder. Jurors are expected to decide his fate.
Irene Garza, a former beauty queen and teacher in McAllen, went to confession in 1960 and was never heard from again. For more than 55 years, the crime went unpunished until in February 2016 when authorities arrested John Feit, a former priest in at the time Garza was murdered.
Authorities arrested Feit in Arizona after leaving the church and extradited him to South Texas for trial, Breitbart Texas reported.
For a week, jurors heard evidence from individuals who knew Garza and journalists who covered the story at the time. As Breitbart Texas reported, Darrel Davis, a former TV reporter, testified that he had spoken with the district attorney at the time about a deal with church leaders where Feit would plead guilty to assaulting another woman in a separate case in exchange for not being prosecuted for murder. Feit pleaded guilty to attacking another woman in 1960 and received a $500 fine.
Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart Texas. He co-founded the Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and Stephen K. Bannon. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook.
Brandon Darby is managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded the Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and Stephen K. Bannon. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at bdarby@breitbart.com.
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