Themurder trial of a 23-year-old manaccused in a deadly April 2025 shooting at a north Lubbock club ended in a mistrial Wednesday after his attorneys told the court they needed more time to review the case
in light of untimely turned over video evidence.
A new trial for Victor Yanez is set for Aug. 24 in the 364th District Court.
Yanez, who has been held at the Lubbock County Detention Center since his April 15, 2025, arrest, is charged with murder in the April 14, 2025 shooting death of 38-year-old Joshua Rios at the El Santiago Club's parking lot in the 1800 block of Clovis Road.
Murder carries a punishment of five years to life in prison.
Investigators believe Yanez shot Rios from a vehicle as it was driving away, according to court documents.
Jurors were seated on Monday to hear the case.
However, the next day, before Yanez could enter his plea to the charge against him and attorneys could make opening statements, Yanez's attorneys asked the court for a mistrial, citing the 10 hours of video footage Lubbock police investigators turned over 12 days before the trial.
Under District Judge William Eichman's pre-trial discovery order in the case, prosecutors were required to turn over video evidence at least 15 days before trial.
Prosecutors, who received the video on July 15 and turned over the evidence to defense attorneys the same day, indicated to the court they did not plan to present the late disclosed video evidence during the trial.
Eichman denied the initial motion for a mistrial and gave defense attorneys the rest of the day to examine the footage.
However, on Wednesday, Yanez's attorney, Matt Morrow, re-urged his motion for a mistrial that would release the jurors and reschedule the trial.
"Upon receipt of new evidence, the law requires the defense to investigate further," he said after the court granted his request.
Under the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, the state is required to turn over to the defense all evidence, at least 30 days prior to a jury trial.
Gabriel Monte is the criminal justice reporter for the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal in Texas. Have a news tip for him? Email him at gmonte@lubbockonline.com.
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Late disclosure of video prompts mistrial in El Santiago shooting case
