“Latin Kings” gang sign in court as killer pit bull owners are sentenced

Was the gang sign a threat to witnesses,  gesture of defiance,  or meant to protect convicted killer pit bull owner’s butt?

SAN ANTONIO, Texas––Texas State District Judge Velia Meza on September 20,  2024 hit former pit bull owners Christian Moreno and Abilene Schnieder Moreno,  both 32,  with two of the stiffest sentences for a fatal dog attack since San Francisco lawyers Marjorie Knoller and Robert Noel were sent to prison for life and ten years,  respectively,  on murder and manslaughter charges after their two Presa Canarios on January 26,  2001 killed St. Mary’s College lacrosse coach Diane Whipple,  33.

(See Diane Whipple died for the sins of dangerous dog advocacy.)

Plea bargain

Moreno and Schnieder might have hoped for more lenient sentencing,  after in August 2024 pleading guilty to lesser charges than they initially faced for the mauling death of retired U.S. Air Force veteran Ramon Najera Jr.,  81,  and severe mauling injuries suffered by his widow,  Juanita “Janie” Najera,  75,  on February 24,  2023.

(See Pit bull mauling death of Ramon Najera, 81, shocks San Antonio.)

Explained San Antonio Express News staff writer Peggy O’Hare,  “Moreno and Schnieder pleaded guilty to dangerous dog attack causing death,  a second-degree felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison.  Charges of recklessly causing injury to an elderly person were dismissed as part of a plea bargain with the Bexar County District Attorney’s Office.”

18 & 15 years,  respectively,  & no more dogs

But Judge Meza came close to throwing the book at both defendants,  to the extent of Texas sentencing guidelines.

Christian Moreno,  ordered to serve 18 years in the Texas State penitentiary system and fined $5,000,  turned toward the courtroom audience and flashed a “Latin Kings” gang sign,  using the fingers of his right hand,  holding the hand high with his left hand and wrist.

Abilene “Abby” Schnieder Moreno drew 15 years in prison plus a $5,000 fine.

“Under state law,  Moreno and Schnieder will become eligible for parole after serving one-fourth of their sentences,”  O’Hare said.

That would be five years.

“Under Meza’s sentencing orders,  if they are granted parole,  both will be prohibited from owning dogs.”

Witness intimidation

Among the courtroom audience to see the “Latin Kings” gang sign from Christian Moreno were widow Juanita Najera,  stepson Raymond Najera,  other relatives,  and several witnesses who testified about the fatal attack on the Najeras and earlier incidents involving the Morenos’ pit bulls.

In that perspective,  the “Latin Kings” gang sign might be interpreted as attempted intimidation of the witnesses and the surviving members of the Najera family,  in a case already having spun off attempted witness intimidation charges against Destiny Marie Cardona,  28,  sister of Abilene Schnieder.

“Police said Destiny Cardona allegedly yelled at a witness and threatened to kill the witness and their family member,  according to an arrest affidavit,”  reported KSAT courthouse reporter Erica Hernandez.

Animal abuse links to child abuse

Cardona was reportedly already facing theft charges.

Then in May 2024,  Cardona told KSAT viewers,  “police were called to a local hospital after a staff member was concerned about abuse and neglect involving a juvenile,  who “was in surgery for a broken humerus bone but had bruises all over the body;  possible second-degree burns on the forearms,  back, and legs;  and a severed frenulum injury.

“The police report stated Cardona didn’t realize the juvenile’s arm was broken,  but X-rays revealed the bone was broken about three weeks prior and had begun to heal.

“Cardona also told police the burns were from the victim grabbing a cake pan from the oven, but the report said it appeared the burns were over a month old,  were deep wounds,  and no medical treatment was sought at the time of injury.  The burns on the back and legs also appeared to be cigarette burns.

Burns & neglect

“The information the San Antonio Police Department provided also noted that the victim had missing and rotting teeth.”

Cardona blamed some of the injuries on her boyfriend, Michael Aguilar,  37,  Hernandez continued,   who said the “child had fallen from the monkey bars at the playground.

“Aguilar,  a convicted felon,  is in jail and facing two charges:  injury to a child––serious bodily injury by omission,  and injury to a child with intent [to cause] bodily injury.

“Bond has been set at $75,000 for Cardona and $125,000 for Aguilar,”  Hernandez finished.

At sentencing for Christian Moreno and Abilene Schnieder Moreno“Security in the courtroom was tight,  with four sheriff’s deputies on hand rather than the usual two,”  noted Express News staff writer Peggy O’Hare.

“Leave her alone! Leave her alone!”

“The Najeras,  who lived in Leon Valley,”  north of San Antonio,  near several animal sanctuaries,  “went to the West Side to visit a friend,”  Angie Ramirez,  “a seamstress who lived next door to Moreno and Schnieder,”  O’Hare continued.

“They planned to drop off trousers for the friend to hem.  They were part of Ramon Najera’s uniform for his new job as a security guard.

“Their friend wasn’t home,”  O’Hare wrote,  paraphrasing witness testimony.

“As Janie Najera walked back to her car,  where her husband was waiting,”  O’Hare narrated,  “a pit bull belonging to Moreno and Schnieder scaled a chain-link fence,”  attacking Janie Najera,  who screamed for help.

Ramon Najera “bolted from the car, grabbed the dog and struck the animal with his right hand,  yelling,  ‘Leave her alone! Leave her alone!’” O’Hare detailed.

Firefighters came under attack too

The first pit bull turned on Ramon Najera,  immediately joined by a second pit bull,  and then a third.

“I was screaming,  ‘Somebody please help us!’ Nobody would come out,”  testified Janie Najera,  who survived the attack in critical condition.

Silvia Paola Hernandez,  37,  posted video clips to Facebook immediately after the attack,  taken from inside a nearby home,  showing two pit bulls circling the fallen Najera,  who lay face down on the ground.

Five firefighters holding fire axes and pipes tried to get the pit bulls away from Najera,  only to come under attack themselves.

Legend

A solid thump to the head with the pointed end of a fire axe had no visible effect on one of the pit bulls,  named Legend,  as he lunged up at a firefighter who sought safety on the hood of a small red car.

A bystander futilely tried to distract the three pit bulls by squirting them with a garden hose.

The pit bulls ran in and out of their supposedly securely fenced yard at will.

“There are multiple open cases and reports and no one did anything,”  Hernandez lamented.

“Eventually,”  wrote O’Hare,  “the seamstress’ grandson emerged with a rake and struck one of the dogs in an attempt to end the attack,”  but he too was bitten.

A fire captain was bitten on his leg.

“It was terrifying. I felt helpless.”

KENS-5 reporter Sarah Duran obtained video of the fatal attack made by another witness,  Belinda Rodriguez,  from her car.

“It was terrifying. I felt helpless,”  Rodriguez told Duran.  “I just wanted to get out of the car and do something,  but I just couldn’t,  there was no way.  I wasn’t carrying anything with me,”  Rodriguez said.

“These dogs are always on the loose and we’ve made multiple reports about these dogs,”  Rodriguez added to Duran.

Resumed Duran,  “Rodriguez said she has tried to speak with the Morenos about her concerns, but was met with backlash.”

Updated Cody King of KSAT,  “The San Antonio Police Department said they received several tips that claimed Schneider and Moreno were training the dogs to be ‘aggressive with meat.’”

All three pit bulls were euthanized within 24 hours by San Antonio Animal Care Services.

“Unspeakable horror was preventable”

“What happened to Mr. Najera was an unspeakable horror that is going to resonate in our community for a very long time,”  said Judge Meza before pronouncing sentence on Moreno and Schnieder,

“Unlike other cases I have presided over,  this one is different,” Meza observed. “It is different because we are not dealing with an intentional act.  It was a case of criminally negligent behavior.

“This was preventable.”

Meza was also critical of the lackadaisical response of San Antonio Animal Care Services to previous incidents involving the pit bulls who killed Ramon Najera.

“I had a stream of blood going down my leg”

David Avila,  29,  who lived across the street from Christian Moreno and Abilene Schnieder testified that their pit bulls came onto his property,  injuring him,  several months before they attacked Janie and Ramon Najera.

“I had a stream of blood going down my leg,”  Avila said.

“He said the fence around the dog owners’ yard was in poor repair,  had gaps at ground level and was tied together with string or wire in places.  A gate at the driveway sometimes was left wide open,”  paraphrased O’Hare.

“Moreno’s dogs attacked two other individuals in the neighborhood before on two separate occasions,”  News4 San Antonio reported after the attack on the Najeras.  “Animal Care Services has been called to report the dogs’ violent behavior multiple times in the past.

Impounded but returned

“At least two of the dogs in the deadly attack [on Najera] were involved in bite cases that resulted in moderate or mild injuries,”  in September 2021 and in January 2023,  respectively,  News4 revealed.

“The dogs completed the state-required quarantine before their owners reclaimed them, and the individuals involved declined to file [the affidavit required for] a dangerous dog designation.

“In November 2022,  police also responded to a dog-related call at the property,  during which an officer told the owner that the dogs must be kept in the yard.  Neighbors have also called the animal shelter to report dogs at the property that were astray and neglected,”  then-Animal Care Services director Shannon Sims recounted.

Eventually,  News4 said,  “Animal Care Services required [Christian] Moreno to use a dog harness and tether in the yard and was also asked to sterilize both dogs,  which he did.”

Abilene Moreno boasted that pit bull litter made her a grandma

Abilene Schneider Moreno,   told News4 that she had “been scared of the dogs since they were sterilized because they have been more aggressive,”  and had been “attacking each other in the yard.”

If the Moreno pit bulls were sterilized,  it was after birthing at least one litter that Abilene Schneider Moreno boasted on Facebook made her a “grandma.”

Jorge Aristotelidis,  defense attorney for Christian Moreno and Abilene Schnieder Moreno,  argued that San Antonio Animal Care Services “enabled this to happen by releasing the dogs three times,”  after previous impoundments for running at large and biting neghbors.

Judge Meza agreed that after listening to the “very persuasive and compelling” testimony of Avila and multiple other victims and witnesses,  she found the explanations of San Antonio Animal Care Services for repeatedly returning the pit bulls to Christian Moreno and Abilene Schnieder Moreno “very difficult to believe.”

“It’s not about a missing affidavit”

“What I do believe is the people from the West Side neighborhood,” Meza emphasized,  but explained that,   “The City of San Antonio is not on trial here.  They will have their day in court,”  responding to a federal lawsuit brought by the Najera family,  “but in this case,  I will say,  it’s not about a missing affidavit.”

“You both took a big part of my life away!” raged Janie Najera in a victim impact statement.  “You took my better half away.”

Janie Najera testified,  O’Hare of the Express News wrote,  that “she was reduced to a state of utter dependence on her children for months after the attack.  She moved in with her daughter,  who bathed her,  fed her,  and took her to all her appointments.  A son who lives in California put his life on hold for two months to help care for her.”

The four children of Christian Moreno and Abilene Schnieder Moreno “will be placed with Schnieder’s mother,  Sara Cardona of San Antonio,  according to previous testimony,”  Express News reporter O’Hare finished.

San Antonio bad record has not improved

San Antonio over the 10 years preceding the fatal attack on Ramon Najeras led all U.S. cities in human fatalities from dog attacks,  all of them involving pit bulls.

San Antonio over the preceding five years also had consistently been among the cities with the most dog attacks on U.S. Postal Service letter carriers,  and led the U.S. in 2014 in fatal dog attacks on other dogs,  according to data tabulated by ANIMALS 24-7.

A San Antonio city Audit of Animal Care Services Dispatching & Operations released on March 13, 2015 identified critical deficiencies in animal control officer “compliance with guidelines related to aggressive and dangerous dogs,  bites,  and permits.”

The records of many other cities are now markedly worse,  but despite the 2015 audit,  the San Antonio record has not improved.

Recent attacks include another fatality

In August 2023,  San Antonio resident Max De Los Santos, 76,  was attacked on his own property by pit bulls running at large.  He lost both legs and barely survived.

Another pit bull running at large after escaping from a neighbor’s yard in September 2023 killed Paul Anthony Striegl Jr., 47.

Three pit bulls running at large after escaping from a fenced yard in November 2023 randomly attacked a passer-by.  She lost an ear and suffered multiple other injuries to her face,  head,  and arm.

“It is estimated that over 88,000 animal-related calls were placed to 311 during fiscal ear 2022,”  San Antonio resident and ANIMALS 24-7 reader Kelly Reid Walls charged,  following the attack on Ramon and Janie Najeras.

Calls “ignored by Animal Care Services”

“A large number of those calls for stray,  aggressive,  and dangerous dogs were ignored by Animal Care Services,”  Walls said.

City council members Melissa Cabello Havrda and Jalen McKee-Rodriguez even drafted a proposed resolution,  Walls continued,  that “sought to reduce the number of pets euthanized due to ‘aggressive’ or ‘dangerous’ designations.”

“Responding to all critical calls isn’t even on the table,  at least not this year,”  reported Sam Owens for the San Antonio Express-News in April 2024.

“The agency has a three-year plan to reach 100%.

“Animal Care Services officials have also set a goal of investigating each of the 3,500 animal bite cases they hear about each year,”  Owens said,  but after three-quarters of the fiscal year,  the agency had investigated only 1,827 bites.

55% compliance with dangerous dog rules

“At the start of the fiscal year,”  Owens continued,  “55% of dangerous dog owners were in compliance with the rules” for keeping their dogs securely.

“As of this month,”  Owens wrote,  “the rate is up to 76%.  The goal is 80%.”

This was achieved with a 33% Animal Care Services budget increase,  enabling the department to hire eight more animal control officers and “seven other staffers to investigate dog bites and ensure that owners of dangerous dogs obey regulations,”  Owens said.

Shannon Oster-Gabrielson,  assistant to then-Animal Care Services director Shannon Sims, who retired a month later,  told Owens that “The department has issued nearly 1,900 criminal citations this year,  a 333% increase over last year.”

More bureaucracy, less enforcement

But Sims told Owens earlier that boosting compliance with dangerous dog regulations to 100% “wouldn’t be feasible because the agency has too few vehicles and too few people to train employees.”

Despite inability to enforce the existing dangerous dog registry requirements,  San Antonio Animal Care Services in June 2004 added an Aggressive Dog Registry,  increasing the paperwork requirements for the department without actually doing anything to take dangerous dogs out of the community.

Texas state house representative Liz Campos meanwhile responded to the Najera fatality by filing a bill to increase the penalty for allowing a dog attack from a Class C misdemeanor to a Class B misdemeanor.

The bill would have done nothing,  however,  to prevent attacks from occurring in the first place.

The bill passed,  but meaningless as it was,  Texas governor Greg Abbott in June 2023 vetoed it anyhow.

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