El Paso Man Appeals Death Sentence; Says His Satanism Shouldn’t Have Been Brought Up At Trial

The man who raped and killed a 15-year-old Anthony girl in 2001, cut off her fingertips to destroy evidence and left her body at an elementary school, is appealing his death sentence – again.

Irving Alvin Davis, 27, was convicted of murdering Melissa Medina in 2002 and sentenced to death. He appealed in 2008, but was sentenced to death again. In his latest appeal, Davis asked for his death sentence to be thrown out, arguing jurors shouldn’t have been told about his new religion – satanism.

“In a death penalty case, nothing surprises me,” El Paso County District Attorney Jaime Esparza said.

Esparza shrugged off the grounds for Davis’ latest attempt to save his own life. But Davis claims when the prosecution brought up his allegiance to the Church of Satan in his latest appeal, it violated his free exercise of religion and prejudiced jurors against him.

“I think it’s our duty to present to the jury a clear picture of who is before them when making such a serious decision,” Esparza said.

But Davis’ El Paso-based attorney, Ruben Morales, wrote in his legal briefs for the appeal, “the state’s attempt to place Davis is an bad light with the jury was nothing less than a ‘witch hunt.’ This is precisely the risk that society runs when it attempts to distinguish between good and bad religions.”

Esparza disagrees.

“I don’t think it’s a question of whether the religion is good or bad,” he said. “The question really goes to the defendent’s character and his propensity to commit violence.”

And because of that, Esparza, who has witnessed two executions, expects Davis to eventually die for his crime, despite his latest appeal.

“I think it’s all very relevent to trying to predict what the defendent will do in the future, which is the basis of a death penalty case,” Esparza said.

Morales was not available for further comment.

Esparza pointed out that defense attorneys – in attempts to save the lives of their clients – often use pictures of them at communion or with the bishop, which is exactly what attorneys for convicted child-killer David Renteria did a couple years ago.

So if that’s the case, Esparza wants to know why anyone would question prosecutors pointing out that Davis is a practicing satanist.