Jose Felicano Casanova v. the State of Texas

CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedApril 8, 2025
Docket01-24-00308-CR
StatusPublished

This text of Jose Felicano Casanova v. the State of Texas (Jose Felicano Casanova v. the State of Texas) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Jose Felicano Casanova v. the State of Texas, (Tex. Ct. App. 2025).

Opinion

Opinion issued April 8, 2025

In The

Court of Appeals For The

First District of Texas ———————————— NO. 01-24-00308-CR ——————————— JOSE FELICIANO CASANOVA, Appellant V. THE STATE OF TEXAS, Appellee

On Appeal from the 25th District Court Colorado County, Texas Trial Court Case No. 21-153

MEMORANDUM OPINION

A jury found Jose Feliciano Casanova guilty of felony murder for his role in

a drive-by shooting that caused the death of Keaton Hancock.1 The trial court

assessed Casanova’s punishment at confinement for life.

1 See TEX. PENAL CODE §§ 12.32, 19.02(b)(3), (c), 22.05(b)(2). In his sole issue on appeal, Casanova contends that the evidence is legally

insufficient to establish his identity as the shooter or as a party to the offense.

We affirm the trial court’s judgment.

Background

Prior to the Murder

On September 8, 2021, two days prior to the murder at issue in this case, Eagle

Lake Police Department (“ELPD”) officers responded to a report of gunfire at the

residence of Hector and Heather Flores on North Walnut Street in Eagle Lake, Texas.

ELPD Officer D. Weatherall testified that numerous people were at the scene

when he arrived—including Heather’s brother, Casanova, who was living at the

house, and Heather’s son, Ethan Dulaney. According to Casanova, he and others

were in the front yard when Daegan Mendoza, Dontrae Johnson, and Dante Stevens

arrived. Daegan and Dontrae, who thought Casanova had “stole[n] some dope,”

approached the house with AR-15 rifles. As Daegan and Dontrae began firing at the

house, Casanova “took off running.”

There were no injuries, but the gunshots caused property damage. Daegan’s

parents came to the scene, and a heated argument ensued with Casanova—requiring

officers to physically restrain him.

ELPD Officer G. Ocot also testified that “a lot of people on the scene were

very, very angry and upset,” and he noted that Casanova threatened to retaliate.

2 At 10:30 p.m. the next night, September 9, 2021, Officer Ocot conducted a

traffic stop on an older-model, silver Infiniti sedan with a paper license tag. The car

was driven by Casanova’s nephew, Ethan, and registered to Andrew Segura. During

the stop, Officer Ocot heard gunshots coming from the vicinity of the Eagle Lake

Funeral Home—located behind the Flores residence—and went to investigate.

At the funeral home, Officer Ocot observed window damage and spent

casings. He circled the block and saw Casanova, Hector, and Cairo Ruvalcaba, Jr.,

standing outside the Flores residence. They told Ocot that someone had been

shooting at them and that one of the shooters from the day before had posted online

a photo of himself at the funeral home. Officer Ocot testified that Casanova and

Cairo were “very upset and angry.” Casanova had a “long barrel rifle slung across

his neck,” and he again threatened to retaliate, stating, “They’re dead, bro.”

The Murder

Less than four hours later, the murder at issue in this case occurred. Dante’s

cousin, Keaton, was shot and killed on the front porch of his house on Martin Luther

King Street in Columbus, Texas.

Keaton’s mother, Kelly Venghaus, testified that Keaton had gone out to the

porch to smoke a cigarette. After Kelly and her husband heard a “loud thump,”

Kelly opened the front door and saw Keaton deceased on the front porch. Kelly

3 noted that Keaton was very close with his cousin Dante and that Dante had spent

considerable time at their house.

Ashleigh Bidales, a neighbor on Martin Luther King Street, testified that, at

approximately 2:05 a.m., she was headed outside to smoke a cigarette when she

heard gunshots. She looked outside and “heard a [car] engine picking up speed.”

She then saw a four-door, silver-gray car pass her house at “faster than a normal

speed” and run a stop sign. She called Keaton’s brother and then called Dante.

Dr. J. Dierksen of the Travis County Medical Examiner’s Office testified that

Keaton’s death was caused by two gunshot wounds to his head and neck.

The Events After Keaton’s Murder and the Investigation

One hour and 40 minutes after Keaton’s murder in Columbus, another murder

occurred back in Eagle Lake—at the home of Shelly Casanova2 and her sons,

Andrew and Jonathon Segura. Officer Ocot testified that he arrived at the scene

shortly after 3:45 a.m. and that, minutes later, Cairo and Casanova’s brother,

Charlie—who is Jonathon’s step-father—arrived. Andrew was on the front porch

holding Jonathon, who had gunshot wounds. Andrew explained that Jonathon was

sleeping on a couch near the front door when men kicked in the door and began

shooting. Andrew fired back, and Jonathon died on the porch. Columbus Police

2 It appears from the record that Shelly is Casanova’s sister-in-law.

4 Department (“CPD”) Captain W. Alley opined that Jonathon’s murder appeared to

be related to, or in retaliation for, Keaton’s murder.

CPD Officer C. Mayfield testified that “several” bullet fragments were

recovered at the scene of Keaton’s murder. No shell casings were found. He

testified that the lack of casings suggested that the “shooter was more than likely in

a vehicle.” And CPD Officer K. Daniel testified that the numerous bullet holes in

Keaton’s house indicated that the weapon was fired “from a moving object, across a

wide range,” going west to east, “like a drive-by shooting.”

Based on an anonymous tip, Captain Alley viewed surveillance video taken

at a Buc-ee’s store in Eagle Lake on the night of the murder. The trial court admitted

videos and still photographs into evidence. These show a silver, four-door Infiniti

with a paper license tag driven up to a gas pump at 1:37 a.m. Captain Alley testified

that Ethan is shown driving, Casanova is shown in the front passenger seat, and Cairo

is shown in the back seat. Casanova, who bears distinctive facial tattoos, is shown

entering the store at 1:38 a.m. And the Infiniti left the store parking lot at 1:41 a.m.

Captain Alley further testified that surveillance video from the Farris Hotel in

Eagle Lake shows a silver-gray, four-door vehicle coming from the direction of

Buc-ee’s and turning north onto FM 102 towards Columbus. The trial court admitted

the video into evidence. Captain Alley noted that the distance between the Buc-ee’s

5 in Eagle Lake and Keaton’s residence in Columbus was about 18 miles and that the

drive would take about 23 minutes.

The trial court also admitted surveillance video of Keaton’s house, taken on

the night of the murder from the school campus across the street. The video depicts

a light-colored car turning under a streetlight onto the street in front of Keaton’s

house at 2:05 a.m. The car slows in front of Keaton’s house and quick flashes of

light—“several bursts of muzzle flash,” according to Captain Alley— emanate from

its passenger side before driving away.

Captain Alley opined: “The Infiniti four-door vehicle that’s on the Buc-ee’s

video is the same vehicle that’s in the Farris Hotel video” and “the same vehicle

that’s in the [school] video.” She testified that the videos show an older model,

silver-gray, four-door sedan with similar hood and trunk lines, low profile tires, fog

lights under the headlights, “quarter panel side lights,” and “rear quarter panel

lights.” And the shots were fired from the passenger side of the vehicle, where

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Jose Felicano Casanova v. the State of Texas, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/jose-felicano-casanova-v-the-state-of-texas-texapp-2025.