Rafael Romero Sentenced to Life for Lizbeth Medina’s Murder

Rafael Govea Romero was sentenced in September 2025 for the murder of Lizbeth Medina, the 16-year-old Edna High School cheerleader found stabbed to death in her Texas apartment in December 2023. Under a plea agreement in Jackson County court, Romero received two concurrent life sentences for murder and aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon, plus a consecutive 20-year sentence for burglary of a habitation. He waived all appellate rights and could become eligible for parole after roughly 30 years.¹

What the Sentence Actually Means

Romero pleaded guilty on September 25, 2025, to three reduced charges. The murder count and the aggravated robbery count each carry a life sentence, and those run at the same time. The burglary of a habitation count carries 20 years and does not begin until the life terms are served.¹

David Maly, an attorney representing the Medina family, explained the parole arithmetic: Romero must serve 30 years on the concurrent life sentences plus a quarter of the consecutive 20-year term before he becomes eligible. Good-behavior adjustments within the Texas Department of Criminal Justice could shift the timeline, and parole eligibility does not guarantee release.²

Why the Charge Was Reduced From Capital Murder

A Jackson County grand jury had indicted Romero on capital murder on February 5, 2024, alleging he committed the killing while attempting burglary, robbery, or aggravated sexual assault. A capital conviction would have opened the door to the death penalty or life without parole. The plea agreement reduced that count to murder.³

Assistant District Attorney Stephen Tyler, the lead prosecutor, defended the deal on fiscal grounds. In public posts he wrote: “I work within the available resources to obtain what is the best outcome for the state. Would you agree to pay more taxes for capital defense and prosecution, or forego school or road improvements? We are talking several millions of local dollars from arrest to grave.”¹ The Jackson County Criminal District Attorney’s Office, led by District Attorney Pam Guenther, said the office “takes all crime seriously particularly crime against persons, and especially murder,” and called contrary media reports “at best premature.”³

Defense attorney Ross Reifel told reporters that “the state, defense and victim’s family all agreed to the plea deal.” Lizbeth’s mother, Jacqueline Medina, said afterward she was “heartbroken and in shock.”¹ At sentencing she read a victim impact statement, called Lizbeth her “best friend,” and asked the court to reject the deal and impose either life without parole or the death penalty. The agreement stood.² “The best option would have been life in prison without parole or the death sentence. But they have decided, and there’s really nothing else we can do,” she said. “My daughter’s value is way more than that.”⁴

The Killing

On December 5, 2023, Jacqueline Medina found her daughter dead in the bathtub of their apartment at the Cottonwood Apartments on North Wells Street in Edna, a small city in Jackson County. She discovered the body around 6:55 p.m., after Lizbeth failed to appear at a community Christmas parade where her cheerleading squad was scheduled to perform.³ A preliminary autopsy confirmed she had been stabbed to death.⁵ President Donald Trump later said during his State of the Union address that she had been stabbed 25 times.⁶

A neighbor reported hearing two loud thuds and a running shower around 10:03 a.m. that morning. Surveillance footage from the complex captured a silver Ford Taurus driving through the grounds the night before, and a man running to a vehicle near the building around 10:15 a.m. on the day of the killing. Authorities believed Romero had stalked Lizbeth before the attack.³

Arrest and Immigration Status

Investigators used cell phone location data to track Romero to a mobile home in Schulenburg, about 70 miles from Edna, where he was staying with family. The Edna Police Department and Texas Rangers arrested him on the night of December 9, 2023, four days after the murder. Then-Edna Police Chief Rick Boone said Romero confessed during questioning.⁷ He was initially held on a $2 million bond.⁵

Romero, a Mexican national, entered the United States in 2018 on a work visa that later expired. Early reports described him as “undocumented,” but authorities clarified he had overstayed his visa rather than entering without authorization.⁸ U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement placed a detainer on him after his arrest, and he remained in custody under that detainer throughout the pretrial period.¹

National Attention

The case drew national coverage after President Trump invited Jacqueline Medina to his State of the Union address and seated her in the gallery. “Her heartbroken mother is in the gallery to remind everyone in this chamber exactly why we are deporting illegal alien criminals from our country at record numbers, and we’re getting them the hell out of here fast,” Trump said during the speech.⁶

Jacqueline Medina told reporters afterward that “being there, it was like a dream.” Her sister-in-law, Ana Medina, called the political framing a “double-edged sword,” saying she opposed open border policy but was troubled by the tactics of immigration raids: “I don’t think anybody would want to say it’s okay for ICE to be continuing to do the things that they’re doing or doing the raids they’re doing, the way they are doing them.”⁹

Lizbeth Medina and the Family’s Response

Lizbeth was 16 at the time of her death, a cheerleader at Edna High School who had lived in Edna with her mother for about a year. Her mother described her as kind-hearted and driven, already obtaining certifications and working side jobs, and said Lizbeth had planned to become a nurse.³

After sentencing, Jacqueline Medina said she found some measure of closure in hearing the word “guilty” in court. “It’s something we’ve been waiting for over a year. Hearing those words — that’s what we needed to hear,” she told reporters. She said her worry now is parole. “My only hope and prayers are that he will stay there, and if he stays the rest of his life in prison, that’s in God’s hands now.”⁴

1
Click2Houston. Capital Murder Suspect Takes Plea Deal in Edna Cheerleader’s Death, Attorney Says
2
Jackson County News. Romero Receives Life Sentence for Murder of Lizbeth Medina
3
Crossroads Today. Rafael Romero Pleads Guilty in Murder of Lizbeth Medina
4
Click2Houston. It’s in God’s Hands Now: Edna Cheerleader’s Mother Reacts to Killer’s Double Life Sentence
5
ABC News. Arrest Made in Slaying of Texas High School Cheerleader Lizbeth Medina
6
FOX 26 Houston. Lizbeth Medina Murdered: Texas Teen Cheerleader Killed
7
KSAT. 16-Year-Old Texas Cheerleader Was Stabbed to Death; Man Charged With Murder Reportedly Confessed
8
Victoria Advocate. Lizbeth Medina: Police Give Cause of Death, Clarify Immigration Status of Rafael Romero
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Nebraska TV. Lizbeth Medina’s Family Speaks Out After President Trump’s SOTU Address