Jury Selection Begins For Death Row Punishment Retrial
By Stephanie Valle
EL PASO — A man convicted of strangling a teenage girl and cutting off her fingertips to eliminate DNA evidence sat on death row until recently.
Irving Alvin Davis was convicted for the murder and mutilation of then 15-year-old Melissa Medina. Her nude body was found in the playground of Anthony Elementary School in 2001.
Davis later confessed to sexually assaulting and strangling the girl, then cutting off her fingertips to hide any DNA evidence that could be found under her fingernails. Davis was sentenced to death after being convicted, but now that may change.
Davis won an appeal for retrial of the punishment phaseonly. Wednesday, jury selection began in the new sentencing trial. Little further information was given as the judge hearing the new trial issued a gag order to all parties involved.
The state is again seeking death and the jury has the option to return Davis to death row, but the re-trial isn’t scheduled to begin until February. Officials say it all depends on how quickly a jury of Davis’ peers is finalized.
