A juror from the Shawna Forde trial talks about the case
When juror Angie Thomas woke up on the second day of the Shawna Forde capital murder trial, she didn’t want to go back to court.
Thomas forced herself to return. And yesterday she talked to the news media about how difficult it was to both convict Forde for the murders of Brisenia Flores, 9, and Raul Junior Flores, 29, and yesterday’s jury decision Forde should be executed for what she did.
Thomas said Gina Gonzalez’s testimony on the first day of trial had been heartbreaking and the mother of two wasn’t sure she could handle anymore.
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The jury met privately with Gonzalez afterward to ask her questions and extend their sympathies, Thomas said.
“There wasn’t a dry eye” in the room during the meeting, Thomas said.
The 31-year-old ITT Tech student said the case was on her mind “every second of every day” since jury selection. She worries her grade point average has suffered and could result in the loss of her scholarships.
She said at least half the jury inquired about post-trial recovery counseling, a service not provided in Pima County.
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Brisenia Flores and her father, Raul Junior Flores, were killed in May 2009. Shawna Forde was convicted of murder in their deaths. Photo: COURTESY OF FLORES FAMILY
