July 5, 2007
Arrest Made in Juneteenth Murder
After an intensive manhunt to find the perpetrators of the Juneteenth murder of David Rivas Morales, Austin Police announced on Tuesday that they've arrested the man believed to have delivered the fatal blow that left Morales unconscious.
Kurtiss Colvin, a 20-year-old former high school athlete, has been charged with manslaughter—a second-degree felony—as well as several lesser charges. His bail has been set at $215,000.
Morales was leaving a Juneteenth celebration when the Ford Taurus he was riding in accidentally struck a young boy in an East Austin parking lot. After the collision, a group of men approached the car and began assaulting the driver. Morales intervened in an attempt to help his friend, and in the ensuing chaos became the primary target of the mob.
"During the assault on Morales, he was struck to the ground," reads the press release (.pdf file) issued by the Austin Police Department (APD). "While he was on the ground, Morales was assaulted again."
Morales was pronounced dead after paramedics transported him to the nearest hospital.
With national and international media scrutinizing this case, APD has been careful to describe it as anything but racially-motivated.
"This wasn't a hate crime. This wasn't a racist crime," said APD Homicide Unit Commander Harold Piatt. "There is absolutely no reason to think that race had anything to do with this."
According to the Statesman, Colvin is an amateur division boxer and was previously a track and field star at McCallum High School. A 2004 article in the Statesman characterized him as "loud, bold and gregarious." Colvin reportedly admitted that he was "angry" and a "troublemaker" when he first entered high school; it was the athletic outlets that allowed him to "focus more." A homemade video on his Myspace page shows Colvin confidently shadow-boxing in front of the camera.
As the investigation is still ongoing, APD detectives request than anyone with information that may be relevant should contact the Homicide Tip Line at 512-477-3588, or Crime Stoppers at 512-472-8477.
Photo and video from Colvin's Myspace page
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There is something troublesome here in that he is being charged only with manslaughter rather than murder. We have already been told that the perpetrators were not involved with Juneteenth and that this was not a hate crime. There is evidence and the suspect has been charged with robbing the victim of his wallet. Isn't Texas like most states where a homicide in which another felony is committed by definition a murder? If not, it should be. I hope that this guy, if guilty, does not get off lightly. What does everyone make of the link on his MySpace webpage denouncing snitches.
From my understanding, there were so many people involved in the beating that the police can't pinpoint one person as being chiefly responsible for Morales' death. I think the manslaughter charge is the most severe that they could argue for.
I think he watched one too many gangsta movies or listened to one too many 50 Cent cds. Its amazing how people who have something going for them are so quick to make bad decisions in the name of street cred.
In other Texas cities & counties, the guy who puts air in the tires of the getaway car for a liquor store hold-up gone wrong gets charged and convicted of capital murder, and gets the needle.
In Austin, they don't think a murder charge will stick on a guy that (allegedly) used his trained fists to pummel a guy to death and steal a wallet? I don't really want "tough on crime" politicians around here (because they end up being tough on everyone, not just the crooks), but c'mon.
Amen to that, Scooby.
His profile song is by Z-Ro (a rapper who is supposed to get out of jail on Monday July 9th)? Isn't it ironic? Don't you think?