Roberto Girón and Pedro Castillo

Roberto Girón Mendoza, 49, and Pedro Castillo, 39, were two Guatemalan men convicted of murder and executed,[1] with their deaths by firing squad occurring on 13 September 1996. It was the first official firing squad execution in Guatemala since 1983.[2][3] It was also the first execution to occur in Latin America, with the exception of Guyana and the Caribbean, in a span of over ten years.[4]

The executions occurred outside of the Canada Penal Farm (Granja de Canadá),[1] in Escuintla, Guatemala.[5] The men had raped and murdered four-year-old Sonia Marisol Álvarez García on 19 April 1993, for which they were convicted of aggravated murder and aggravated rape.[6] The execution was broadcast on live television.[7]

The men survived the initial volleys of bullets, so after a doctor had confirmed they were alive, a squad leader killed each man by firing a bullet into their heads. The resulting controversy caused the Guatemalan legislature to change the method of execution to lethal injection.[2]

Their executions were filmed by the press and featured in the 1998 shockumentary film, Banned from Television.

See also

Other executions:

References

  1. ^ a b "1st Official Firing Squad Since '83 Kills 2 Convicts". Orlando Sentinel. September 14, 1996. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved March 3, 2016.
  2. ^ a b Harrell, William (1997-01-01). "Field Report: The Death Penalty and Due Process in Guatemala". Human Rights Brief. 4 (2). The Center for Human Rights and Humanitarian Law at Washington College of Law, American University. Retrieved March 3, 2016.
  3. ^ "GUATEMALA: TWO MEN EXECUTED BY FIRING SQUAD | AP Archive". www.aparchive.com. Retrieved 2022-03-30.
  4. ^ "Guatemala carries out first execution by lethal injection". Hürriyet Daily News. February 12, 1998. Archived from the original on March 6, 2016. Retrieved March 3, 2016.
  5. ^ "Ejecutan a asesinos de industrial en Guatemala" [Industrialist's killers executed in Guatemala]. La Prensa (in Spanish). June 30, 2000. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved March 3, 2016.
  6. ^ "Fusilamiento terminó el "viacrucis" de los enjuiciados" [Execution ended the "Way of the Cross" for those on trial]. La Nación (in Spanish). September 14, 1996. Archived from the original on March 6, 2016. Retrieved March 3, 2016.
  7. ^ Galicia, Néstor (September 9, 2017). "1996: el último fusilamiento en Guatemala" [1996: The last shooting in Guatemala]. Prensa Libre (in Spanish). Retrieved October 20, 2018.
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