New testimony might free Fort Worth man, 24 years after false evidence convicted him
Robert Aguirre was 16 when he was interviewed by police about his friend’s involvement in a shooting. He didn’t have an attorney present. His parents weren’t in the room. He was alone. He recalls feeling pressured to tie the shooting to gangs. When he testified about the shooting in 1997, he said he felt pressured to make certain false and misleading statements.
Looking back on his signed statement, Aguirre said Thursday that he would not have used that language as a teenager.
Aguirre, now in his 40s, testified again in the case of James Aaron Dyson, this time in a hearing that could lead to Dyson’s eventual release from prison almost 25 years after he was convicted of organizing in criminal activity related to a shooting in downtown Fort Worth.
Dyson, 40, was sentenced to 50 years in prison when he was 17 for shooting Joe Cruz, who had killed his best friend. While Dyson admits the shooting occurred, prosecutors at the time presented false evidence that Dyson was a member of the R-13 gang, which enhanced the charge and sentencing guidelines. Cruz, who was convicted of murder, was sentenced to 30 years in prison for his crime.
In August, Steve Conder with the Tarrant County District Attorney’s Office Conviction Integrity Unit, reviewed Dyson’s case and confirmed that Dyson was not a gang member. Conder found that Dyson was overcharged and his sentence was too long.
Tarrant County District Attorney Sharen Wilson, Sheriff Bill Waybourn and State District Judge Mike Thomas signed a letter to the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles that asked it to reduce Dyson’s sentence to time served. But Gov. Greg Abbott denied Dyson’s clemency petition.
In an attempt to reopen Dyson’s case, Wilson and Conder wrote to the appeals court in January. They asked it to reconsider its decision to uphold Dyson’s conviction.
The court agreed.
On Thursday, Dyson’s attorney, Chris Self, who is a professor with the Thurgood Marshall School of Law Juvenile Lifers Program, presented testimony that he says proves the shooting was not related to gangs.
Aguirre, the man who provided the false testimony in 1997, said he felt compelled to testify again to show that his words were misconstrued by the prosecution when he was a teenager.
“Their absolute goal was to make Aaron a gang member and they in some way used me to help make that narrative,” he said. “It’s so far from the truth and Aaron’s legal team in 2001, 2018 and 2021 is saying the same thing. Aaron was not in a gang, this was 100% nothing gang related.”
During Dyson’s 1997 trial, Aguirre said he was terrified. He had mentioned that Dyson jokingly flashed gang signs, but didn’t give the context that Dyson was just acting foolish and mocking R-13, which one person in their friend group was a member of.
“It was more of trying to look cool and be silly,” Aguirre clarified. “We were kids.”
Ramon Munoz, their friend who was a member of R-13, also testified that Dyson was not part of the gang. Dyson was not involved in gang business and would have never been accepted into the gang because he’s white. Dyson never tried to become a member, Munoz said.
He described the gang as a group of 15 Mexicans. Now the gang is “dead and gone.” Munoz said he never saw Dyson flash gang signs.
He, Aguirre and their friend Laticia Florez testified that the shooting happened because Dyson was distraught over the death of his friend, Omar Alvarado, 17. Cruz shot Alvarado after the two fought over a girl.
In 2017, Cruz wrote to the Board of Pardons and Paroles on Dyson’s behalf and asked that he be released.
Testimony will resume on Friday morning with at least two other witnesses. The goal of the hearing is to prove that Dyson is entitled to relief based on the wrongful conviction. The evidence will then be sent to the appeals court, which will decide if it agrees with Dyson’s position.
“The desired outcome is for Aaron’s story to be heard and the appropriate charge to be applied,” attorney Chris Self said previously. “He is taking responsibility for what he did do and a maximum sentenced for that — aggravated assault — is 20 years.”
