14 January 2017 :

The Arizona Supreme Court threw out the death sentence for Joel Escalante Orozco because court did not allow defense to say that the defendant would not be set free if not sentenced to death. The case was returned to Maricopa County Superior Court for a new sentencing trial because of a precedent set by another Arizona murder case that was knocked down by the U.S. Supreme Court in June (see Shawn Lynch, 31/05/2016). On February 28, 2013 (see), a Maricopa County jury unanimously sentenced Orozco, 42, hispanic, to death. He was convicted of 1st-degree murder, burglary and sexual assault in the March 10, 2001 death of Maria Garza-Rivera. Authorities say Orozco fled to Mexico after the killing of Garza-Rivera and was arrested 6 years later in Idaho.