Death penalty in Houston ‘honor killings’
HOUSTON — A Jordanian immigrant was sentenced to death on Tuesday after being convicted in what Texas prosecutors described as the honor killings of his daughter’s American husband and her friend who was an Iranian women’s rights activist.
Ali Mahwood-Awad Irsan was found guilty of capital murder last month in the 2012 fatal shootings of his son-in-law, Coty Beavers, and his daughter’s friend, Gelareh Bagherzadeh.
The Harris County jury deliberated for just 35 minutes — after five weeks of testimony — before reaching the verdict in Houston.
The same jury deliberated about nine hours before sentencing him to death for the killings, which occurred about 11 months apart. When the jury’s punishment verdict was announced, Irsan slumped.
Families of the victims cried, hugged and took pictures together after Irsan was led out of the courtroom.
Prosecutors alleged that Irsan, a 60-year-old conservative Muslim, became enraged after his daughter married Beavers, a 28-year-old Christian, and converted to Christianity. Investigators said Bagherzadeh had encouraged her friend to marry Beavers.
Irsan’s wife, Shmou Alrawabdeh, testified at trial that her husband tried to “clean his honor” with the killings. She told jurors her husband also intended to kill their daughter, Beavers’ twin brother and Beavers’ mother.