Migrant suspect in Texas cheerleader's murder confronted by victim's grieving mom in court

Jacqueline Medina drove 13 hours from Nevada to Texas to look her daughter's alleged murderer successful tribunal for the archetypal clip Feb. 6.

Rafael Govea Romero, a 25-year-old amerciable migrant from Mexico, is accused of breaking into Jacqueline Medina's erstwhile Edna flat the greeting of Dec. 5, 2023, and fatally stabbing her 16-year-old daughter, Lizbeth Medina, who was getting acceptable for schoolhouse astatine the time. He allegedly near her assemblage successful a bathtub.

"This is the archetypal clip I saw him," Medina told Fox News Digital aft the hearing. "I wanted to beryllium close down him. I wanted him to look astatine me. I wanted him to spot maine … and fto him cognize that I'm here, careless of each the symptom that he's making maine consciousness and enactment my household through. We basal strong, and he's not going to win."

Medina recalled making oculus interaction with the fishy for the archetypal time. She said helium was taller than she expected.

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Jacqueline Medina arrived location to find her daughter, Lizbeth "Liz" Medina, dormant successful a bathtub of their location aft she had not seen oregon heard from the 16-year-old that afternoon. Rafael Govea Romero, 24, was charged with superior execution successful Lizbeth's death. (Instagram)

"My girl wasn't that tall," she said. "So, conscionable reasoning that my girl had to combat him, what could she person done? Like, did she adjacent person a accidental against this man? He's truthful gangly and big, and it was conscionable terrible.

"I did person oculus interaction with him, and helium conscionable looked down and looked away. I saw the shame successful him similar helium understood the symptom that helium enactment america through. He showed maine that conscionable by looking down erstwhile I looked astatine him consecutive successful his eye," Medina recalled. "At 1 point, I felt similar I wasn't going to beryllium capable to beryllium there. I started shaking violently. I started hyperventilating. I couldn't breathe. I cried. It's conscionable brainsick however carnal the emotions tin get."

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Rafael Govea Romero, 25, was charged with superior execution successful the December 2023 decease of 16-year-old Lizbeth Medina. (FOX 26 Houston)

During Thursday's proceeding successful Jackson County, a justice recovered Romero competent to basal trial and acceptable a tentative proceedings day for August.

Medina said the determination felt similar a value lifted disconnected her shoulders. 

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The Edna Police Department announced the apprehension of Rafael Govea Romero, an "undocumented male" whom officials judge is "the idiosyncratic liable for the decease of Lizbeth Medina," successful Schulenburg. (Edna Police Department)

"I got the accusation successful November that determination was going to beryllium immoderate benignant of insanity plea," she said. "That … broke me. I was starting to suffer anticipation successful the system. And past I started doubting whether we were going to get justice."

After Thursday's hearing, however, she feels much assured that "things are going successful the close direction."

"I person a large feeling that the thoughts of everyone praying for america and each the emotion that's been shown is simply a large portion of what's keeping america beardown arsenic a household and arsenic a community."

Jacqueline held a keychain featuring a photograph of her girl successful her manus passim the proceedings to springiness her "strength."

Jacqueline held a keychain with a photograph of her girl successful her manus passim the proceedings to springiness her "strength." (Jacqueline Medina)

"Having her determination with maine truly helped," she said. 

Medina near her flat for enactment aboriginal Dec. 5, 2023. Lizbeth, a precocious schoolhouse cheerleader who had dreams of studying nursing astatine the University of Texas astatine Arlington, typically near for schoolhouse soon aft her ma went to work, but that time she did not marque it to schoolhouse oregon the Christmas parade that her cheer squad was expected to beryllium practicing for.

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Jacqueline returned location that evening aft nary 1 had heard from oregon seen Lizbeth and recovered her dormant successful the bathtub of their apartment. Edna Police arrested Romero successful Schulenburg, Texas, 5 days aft Lizbeth's death.

Jacqueline Medina arrived location to find her daughter, Lizbeth "Liz" Medina, dormant successful a bathtub successful their location astatine the Cottonwood Apartments aft she hadn't seen oregon heard from the 16-year-old that afternoon. (Facebook)

The execution fishy was reportedly connected probation for a 2022 burglary successful Schulenburg, astir 60 miles from Edna, The Fayette County Record archetypal reported. Edna Police said Romero whitethorn besides beryllium tied to a burglary astatine Lizbeth's location astir a period earlier her killing.

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Neither Medina nor Lizbeth knew Romero, but Medina noted that their location had been burglarized connected Nov. 13, 2023, astir a period earlier the teenager's murder. Edna Police officers judge Romero whitethorn person been progressive successful the burglary and whitethorn person stalked Lizbeth earlier allegedly attacking and sidesplitting her.

Lizbeth Medina was recovered dormant successful a bathtub of her flat successful Edna, Texas, Dec. 5, 2023. (Jacqueline Medina)

Romero has pleaded not blameworthy successful the superior execution case.

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Romero's defence squad besides filed a question to suppress definite grounds precocious past year, arguing Edna Police Department officers searched and detained Romero without tenable suspicion, and they searched his flat without consent from the suspect, the Advocate reported.

The suspect's defence attorney, Ross Reifel, did not instantly respond to an enquiry from Fox News Digital. Romero is being held connected $2 cardinal enslaved successful Jackson County.