Lizbeth Iniguez Medina (March 28, 2007 – December 5, 2023) was a 16-year-old American girl from Edna, Texas who was stabbed to death in a bathtub. Jacqueline Medina discovered her daughter's body in their family apartment after Lizbeth failed to appear to perform with her school cheerleading squad at a Christmas parade. Perpetrator Rafael Govea Romero, an undocumented immigrant, was arrested and later pled guilty to the crime, prompting national attention to the case from critics of illegal immigration.
| Murder of Lizbeth Medina | |
|---|---|
 Photograph of Lizbeth Medina, courtesy of her aunt Ana Medina | |
| Location | Edna, Texas, U.S. |
| Date | December 5, 2023 (CST) |
| Target | Lizbeth Medina |
| Weapons | Knife |
| Deaths | 1 |
| Victim | Lizbeth Iniguez Medina (aged 16) |
| Perpetrator | Rafael Govea Romero |
| Verdict | Guilty |
| Convictions | Murder; aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon; burglary of a habitation |
Background
editLizbeth Iniguez Medina was born on March 28, 2007, in Grand Island, Nebraska.[1] A year before Lizbeth's murder, her family moved to Edna, a small city approximately 25 miles northeast of Victoria, Texas.[2] Lizbeth was a student and cheerleader at Edna High School. "She loved everybody. She cared for everybody," Jacqueline, Lizbeth's mother, told reporters at her school's football game days after the murder.[2] [3]
Rafael Govea Romero was a 23-year-old man from Mexico who had entered the United States on a work visa in 2018 but later he overstayed.[4] In October 2022, he was charged with felony burglary in Schulenburg. In April 2023, less than eight months before Medina's murder, he entered a no-contest plea and was placed on five years of probation.[5]
Murder
editOn the evening of December 5, 2023, Jacqueline Medina grew concerned when her daughter failed to appear at a Christmas parade in Edna. Lizbeth was scheduled to perform with the Edna High School cheer squad. Returning to the family's apartment at the Cottonwood Apartments on North Wells Street, she found Lizbeth stabbed to death in the bathtub of the rear bedroom. Officers from the Edna Police Department responded at approximately 6:55 p.m.[6] Medina died from stab wounds.[7] A GoFundMe page established by Lizbeth's aunt Ana in Grand Island raised over $21,000 to cover funeral expenses and return her remains to Nebraska.[3]
Investigation
edit
Investigators from the Edna Police Department, the Texas Rangers, the Jackson County Sheriff's Office, and the Texas Department of Public Safety treated the case as a capital murder.[2] Surveillance video from the night before the murder showed a silver Ford Taurus driving through the Cottonwood Apartments complex at approximately 10 p.m. The following morning, a man was captured on surveillance footage running toward his vehicle near the apartment building at around 10:15 a.m. A nearby resident reported hearing two loud sounds and then the sound of a shower running inside the Medina apartment at approximately 10:03 a.m.[6]
On December 8, police released photographs of a male person of interest. He was described as possibly bearing a tattoo behind his right ear and wearing a black Volcom hooded sweatshirt, along with images of a silver Ford Taurus.[8] Police identified Romero as a suspect and tracked him to Schulenburg through a tip on December 9. Officers located him at a private residence with family. Edna Police Chief Rick Boone said he was "100 percent confident" Romero had killed Medina, and that Romero had confessed to the crime.[5]
Romero had exhibited stalking-like behavior toward Medina the weeks before her death. Officials determined that he was responsible for a burglary at the same apartment on November 13, 2023, approximately three weeks before the murder. Romero stole Medina's cell phone from the scene of the killing. Police later used the phone's location data to assist in tracking him.[9] Romero was arrested on December 9, 2023, and booked into the Jackson County Jail. A magistrate set his bond at $2 million. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement placed a detainer on him due to his immigration status.[5]
Legal proceedings
editA Jackson County grand jury indicted Romero on February 5, 2024, on capital murder charges, alleging that he committed the murder during an attempted burglary, robbery, or aggravated sexual assault.[6] In late 2024, Romero's legal team filed a motion for a behavioral health evaluation to support an insanity defense. Jacqueline rejected the attempt, telling reporters that he "knew what he was doing."[10] [11] In February 2025, a Jackson County judge found Romero mentally able to stand trial.[12]
On September 25, 2025, Romero pleaded guilty to murder, aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon, and burglary of a habitation. He was sentenced to two concurrent life terms for the murder and robbery charges, and an additional 20-year sentence for the burglary. He is eligible for parole after 30 years. As part of this agreement, Romero waived all appellate rights.[13]
Jacqueline Medina stated that she had not been consulted about the plea agreement and had hoped for a sentence of life without parole or the death penalty. "They lied completely," she said. "They lied to my attorney, they lied to me and they lied to the judge."[13] The Jackson County District Attorney's Office contested this claim, issuing a press release stating that the agreement "was the only offer ever discussed or conveyed" and had been communicated to all relevant parties for more than six months.[14] Assistant District Attorney Stephen Tyler drew public criticism after appearing to justify the decision not to pursue the death penalty on financial grounds in a comment on a local news Facebook page, writing that a capital case would cost "several millions of local dollars from arrest to grave." District Attorney Pam Guenther later apologized for the comments and stated that finances played no role in the charging decision.[15]
Political reactions
edit
On February 24, 2026, President Donald Trump recalled Medina's murder during his 2026 State of the Union Address. Jacqueline Medina came to the address, and sat in the House gallery as his guest. Trump described the killing in detail to call for stricter immigration enforcement.[16] Trump did not mention that Romero had entered the country through a legal port of entry, nor that the perpetrator was already convicted and sentenced to prison before Trump gave the address.[4] Immigration restrictionist groups across the United States, including The Remembrance Project, had previously drawn attention to the case.[17]
Jacqueline Medina accepted Trump's invitation not as a political endorsement, but solely to honor her daughter. "My daughter, Lizbeth Medina, was not a headline. She was my child," she said. "I accepted the invitation because I made a promise to her."[18]
See also
editReferences
edit- ↑ Bartlett, Paige (December 8, 2023). "Texas teen murder victim was from Grand Island". KSNB Local 4. Archived from the original on July 26, 2025. Retrieved March 10, 2026.
- 1 2 3 "Suspect jailed on $2 million bail in fatal stabbing of Texas high school cheerleader". ABC News. December 11, 2023. Retrieved March 10, 2026.
- 1 2 "Plea deal reached for man charged with capital murder in Edna cheerleader's 2023 death". KHOU. September 25, 2025. Retrieved March 10, 2026.
- 1 2 "The immigration stories Trump told in the State of the Union". America Magazine. February 26, 2026. Archived from the original on February 26, 2026. Retrieved March 10, 2026.
- 1 2 3 "16-year-old Texas cheerleader was stabbed to death; man charged with murder reportedly confessed". KSAT. December 11, 2023. Archived from the original on July 23, 2025. Retrieved March 10, 2026.
- 1 2 3 "Rafael Romero pleads guilty in murder of Lizbeth Medina, 16". Crossroads Today. September 25, 2025. Archived from the original on March 2, 2026. Retrieved March 10, 2026.
- ↑ "Jackson County: Man pleads guilty, gets two life sentences in death of Edna 16-year-old". FOX 26 Houston. September 25, 2025. Archived from the original on March 4, 2026. Retrieved March 10, 2026.
- ↑ "Person of interest sought after mom finds teenage daughter dead in their apartment". ABC News. December 9, 2023. Archived from the original on June 16, 2025. Retrieved March 10, 2026.
- ↑ "Edna cheerleader death: Capital murder suspect Rafael Romero to take plea deal in murder of 16-year-old Lizbeth Medina". ABC 13 Houston. September 25, 2025. Archived from the original on February 9, 2026. Retrieved March 10, 2026.
- ↑ "Trial in Edna murder case delayed". Victoria Advocate. November 26, 2024. Retrieved March 10, 2026.
- ↑ Peel, Corley (December 3, 2024). "I feel heartbroken': Trial delay leaves mother seeking justice for murdered Edna HS cheerleader". KPRC 2. Archived from the original on September 24, 2025. Retrieved March 10, 2026.
- ↑ Peel, Corley (February 6, 2025). "Man found competent to stand trial in Edna HS cheerleader capital murder case". KPRC 2. Archived from the original on October 4, 2025. Retrieved March 10, 2026.
- 1 2 "Life sentence: Romero pleads guilty to 2023 murder of Edna cheerleader Lizbeth Medina". Victoria Advocate. September 25, 2025. Archived from the original on October 27, 2025. Retrieved March 10, 2026.
- ↑ Peel, Corley (September 26, 2025). "'It's in God's hands now': Former Grand Island teen's mother reacts to killer's double life sentence". KSNB Local 4. Retrieved March 10, 2026.
- ↑ "Rafael Romero to spend life in prison for Edna cheerleader's murder". KPRC 2. September 25, 2025. Archived from the original on October 10, 2025. Retrieved March 10, 2026.
- ↑ "Read Trump's full 2026 State of the Union address". PBS NewsHour. February 24, 2026. Archived from the original on March 6, 2026. Retrieved March 10, 2026.
- ↑ Galvan, Jaime E. (February 25, 2026). "A Texas cheerleader's death enters Trump's State of the Union speech". KHOU. Retrieved March 10, 2026.
- ↑ "Medina mentioned in State of Union speech". Jackson County Herald-Tribune. March 2026. Retrieved March 10, 2026.