 |
|
THE LAWN MOWER MAN
Killer's Daughter Challenged
Incestuous Affair Hinted At
As A Possible Factor In
Daine Tilly Murder
SAL Staff Archives 2006 |
16-year-old
Pearl Cruz, daughter of Ronnie
Joe Neal
-- the so-called Lawn Mower Man -- has testified
that she was "jealous and mad" after
she watched her father rape school teacher Diane
Tilly.
Tilly was
later shot dead in a muddy field in Guadalupe
County.
The
incident ocurred during a home robbery in
November, 2004; and defense attorney Joel Perez
used the opportunity to suggest it was Cruz, not
Neal, who fired the fatal shots.
Not likely
to be more than hinted at is an incestuous
relationship, and the fact that Cruz bore a son
by Neal, while in jail.
* * *
Cruz was also questioned
about a deal she made in exchange for her
testimony against Neal. Perez suggested Cruz had
actually pulled the trigger.
The teenager took a plea
bargain for a 30-year-term, but could actually be
out in just a few.
Perez called it a "sweet
deal."
Cruz agreed.
At one
point Perez asked the girl: "(There) are two
sides of you, (aren't) there?"
"Yes,"
she replied.
More to
follow.
- Developing -
