The nation’s highest court affirmed a 60-year sentence in a 2015 San Antonio murder case after hearing arguments from a Bexar County prosecutor.
SAN ANTONIO — A Bexar County murder conviction is now backed by the highest court in the country.
The U.S. Supreme Court has unanimously upheld the conviction of David Villarreal in the 2015 stabbing death of Aaron Estrada inside their shared San Antonio apartment.
Villarreal was found guilty by a jury and sentenced to 60 years in prison. On appeal, he argued his Sixth Amendment right to counsel was violated when a trial judge instructed his attorneys not to discuss his testimony with him during an overnight recess.
Both the 4th Court of Appeals and the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals ruled in favor of the State before the case moved to the nation’s highest court. In October 2025, Assistant District Attorney Andrew Warthen stood before all nine justices, a rare moment for a local prosecutor.
The Supreme Court ultimately affirmed the conviction.
“I am incredibly proud of the outstanding work Andrew did in presenting our case, and I am grateful that the Supreme Court saw it our way with a unanimous decision,” Bexar County District Attorney Joe Gonzales said. “Watching one of our own stand before the highest court in the country to see justice served for our community was a moment I will never forget.”
Warthen has served as an appellate attorney with the District Attorney’s Office for more than a decade.
The ruling brings the years-long appeals process in the case to a close.