LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) – A Lubbock judge will decide the punishment for a man who admittedly carjacked a 78-year-old woman back in January 2024.
19-year-old Zion Perez entered an open plea Tuesday morning for charges of aggravated robbery, a first degree felony.
Prosecutors say he and another teen attacked Carolyn Batteas outside a church at gunpoint, hitting her with a blunt object and trying to steal her car.
Court records show Paul Curran, a witness to the attack, was trying to stop the two teens when Perez fired a gun at him.
Perez’s attorney claims he’s changed his life around and is asking for leniency. Meanwhile, prosecutors have witnesses and a 911 call showing multiple people saw the crime unfold.
Judge Trey McClendon of the 137th District Court will determine his sentence. Perez faces up to life in prison.
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