In this2018 file photo he sits in Judge Dick Alcalas courtroom to address his other pending pending cases. Personal Life, Parents and Family Details : Your email address will not be published. In halting sobs, Benavidesapologized and asked for forgiveness as he testified. RJ Marquez has been at KSAT since 2010. Please be fair. Benavides forced six women he had represented in prostitution or drug cases to have sex with him in return for legal help. "I'm asking you to have mercy and give me the minimum," Benavides said while crying. Murder-suicide at upscale apartment complex:Tania Rendon-Santiago was killed at her apartment complex in the 1800 block of Broadway Street in an apparent murder-suicide on March 12. Former clients who were victimized by him are asked to call Morales at 210-335-0701. She further testified, Sometimes he would ask me my name, how old I was, and ask, What are you going to do? Her reply was, Im going to f*** my lawyer., During cross-examination, defense attorney Monica E. Guerrero suggested that the interactions were friendly even after his arrest. Anyone who feels they were forced to take a plea deal by Benavides is urged to contact the Bexar County Public Defenders Office at 210-504-6216. Calling him a master manipulator and liar, prosecutors had asked the jury to send Benavides to life in prison for having sex with clients in exchange for legal services. Mark W Benavides, born Circa 1969 Reyes survived for two weeks before being pronounced dead. I felt like he was coming on to me, and I didnt like it.. He's covered a variety of stories and events across the San Antonio area, and is the lead reporter for KSAT Explains. Some of our partners may process your data as a part of their legitimate business interest without asking for consent. But he's a good person. It took the panel about six hours to decide on the sentences for the six counts of continuous trafficking of persons. But Benavides said he believed the encounters were consensual and testified that trading sex in exchange for legal services was never discussed. The trial against former San Antonio attorney Mark Benavides began Tuesday with a graphic start. There are women we did speak to that did not want to participate," said Meredith Chacon, a prosecutor. It took the panel nearly four hours to find Benavides, 48, guilty on all six. Benavides was arrested in November 2015 while he was running for Bexar County District judge, and was indicted in April 2016. "" 11-23; 09-29; 09-29; 2021 09-17 "" . She told jurors Feb. 1, 2018, that she and Uresti would have sex in his law office. A 51-year-old victim of now-disbarred Mark Benavides goes through paperwork at her San Antonio home on June 18, 2020. Mark Benavides looks back at his wife and parents Friday as he is escorted out of the courtroom after being sentenced to 80 years for continuous trafficking of persons. It's an understatement to call it cheating if its a criminal act, Norton replied. When questioned by prosecutor Jay Norton about whether she thought her husband had committed a crime she replied: 'I am not aware of what has happened, except what I heard on the news. When prosecutor Jay Norton asked her if her husband committed a crime, Benavides said she couldnt say, because she was not allowed to hear testimony. The case was later dismissed for a lack of evidence and Elkhaliny was set to be released from county jail without having to pay bail. He cheated. He is accused of having sex with his clients in exchange for legal services. Mark Steege, a sex therapist, testifies Friday during the punishment phase of the trial of Mark Benavides in Floresville. So far, two women represented by Benavides have had their convictions overturned and their records expunged. The sexual encounters would take place in his law office, his car, at motels, or at the courthouse. Six women he had represented in prostitution or drug cases testified he coerced them into having sex to keep them out of jail or lessen their legal troubles, and videotaped the encounters, which were shown to the jury. The women state they employed Benavides as their lawyer for their prostitution cases but that he would coerce them into having sex in exchange for their legal problems being lessened, including dismissal of their cases. Benavides, a former San Antonio lawyer, was convicted Tuesday of trafficking and having sex with clients in exchange for legal services. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate. More: Uresti, Cain found guilty on all charges in end to salacious month-long fraud trial. Marisol Morales, a case manager at the Public Defenders Office, has been working with the two women and others Benavides abused. Benavides was found guilty Tuesday on six counts of continuous trafficking of persons. "I'm so sorry. At the time he had been running as a candidate as a state district judge. We are no longer accepting comments on this article. The cases stretch back to 2000. A member of the jury collapsed after watching some of the images on the first day of the trial. Its not fair for them to live in any kind of guilt. The case is being heard at the Wilson County under a change of venue from Bexar County, with Senior District Judge Dick Alcala presiding. The juror was replaced by an alternate. He was so resistant to the idea he had done anything wrong, Steege said. He isfacing the possibility of life in prison. According to court documents, the district attorney's office cited insufficient evidence in dropping the charges. Senior District Judge Dick Alcala confers with prosecuting and defense attorneys after watching sex tapes of former San Antonio lawyer Mark Benavides in the Wilson County Courthouse on Tuesday, March 27, 2018, in Floresville, TX. We know there are women that that did not want to talk. More: Urestis wife files for divorce following salacious trial. So, I did.. More: Jury find woman who killed nephew guilty of murder, Ronald Cortes, for the San Antonio Express News, Marvin Pfeiffer, Staff / San Antonio Express-News, More: Jury'sguilty verdict sends convicted killer into frenzy in San Antonio courtroom, William Luther, Staff / San Antonio Express-News, psychologist at upscale apartment complex near downtown, Kin Man Hui, Staff / San Antonio Express-News. Man cleared in River Walk death: A judge issued a ruling Thursday, March 8, 2018, that prevented a manslaughter trial of Mark Daniel Lewis (left), accused of causing transgender woman Kenne McFadden to drown along the River Walk last year. SAN ANTONIO Former attorney Mark Benavides has been sentenced to 80 years for six counts of continuing trafficking of persons. A witness described the crime scene as a "horror move" in testimony. Mark Benavides, a former San Antonio attorney, is accused of having sex with his clients in exchange for his legal services Prosecutors in a Texas court played footage of Benavides forcing. SAN ANTONIO -- The former lawyer convicted of exchanging legal services will be heading to prison after additional cases against him were dropped on Tuesday. 'You're hurting me Don't be so rough.'. She was incredulous. Benavides was arrested in November 2015 and charged with compelling prostitution in cases involving at least nine female clients. The evidence against Benavides included portions of 246 videos the lawyer recorded of himself having sex with his clients. He paid more attention; we spent a lot more time with the kids, she told the court. Benavides admission of the DVDs' existencewas recorded at police headquarters in November 2015, when detectives interviewed him. Copyright 2023 KSAT.com is managed by Graham Digital and published by Graham Media Group, a division of Graham Holdings. More: San Antonio woman gunned down by estranged relativedies two weeks after shooting. The San Antonio attorney is accused of coercing clients into having sex with him in exchange for money or legal services. This jury understood that., RELATED: S.A. company responds after woman finds 'teeth' in barbacoa. Mark Henry Benavides was convicted Tuesday of continuous trafficking of persons for having sex with clients he represented on prostitution or drug cases. More: Urestis alleged ex-mistress admits to relationship with his business partner. 'It's an understatement to call it cheating if it's a criminal act,' Norton said. Paul Venema is a courthouse reporter for KSAT with more than 25 years experience in the role. When she asked why he was filming, he said it was just for him, she told the court. FLORESVILLE, Texas Closing arguments were set to begin Friday afternoon in the punishment phase of the trial for former San Antonio attorney Mark Benavides. Officials have not mentioned Santera, but those arrested were reportedly practitioners of that religion. Under cross-examination, Norton asked Steege whether he reviewed police reports and videos Benavides took of sexual encounters with his clients. Six women he had represented in prostitution or drug cases testified he coerced. Benavides' wife, Linda, took the stand on Friday and asked the jury to "please be fair." She said she knew Benavides cheated, but said the couple have two children and she still supported. Benavides attorneys declined to comment on the verdict or sentencing. "I'm asking you to have mercy and give me the minimum," Benavides said while crying. Benavides attorneys declined to comment on the verdict or sentencing. Investigators seized 246 mini DVDs that contained hundreds of videos of Benavides and the former clients engaged in various sex acts, in which he could be heard directing the women and telling them what to do and say. Marisol Morales is a licensed counselor with the Bexar County Public Defenders Office and may be reached at 210-335-0701. After the judge ruled the evidence was insufficient, the victims mother collapsed in the courtroom. Dahlberg and Young want more of Benavides victims to come forward to have their cases reviewed. Its an understatement to call it cheating if its a criminal act, Norton said. Read more of her stories here. The Express-News generally does not identify victims of sexual assault. Linda Benavides (front), who is the wife of Mark Benavides, and his mother, Olga Benavides, are emotional after he was given 80 years after being convicted for continuous trafficking of persons on Friday. He is a calculating and manipulating liar, she told the jury. Former attorney Mark Benavides was in court Thursday for a pretrial hearing. His sentences will run concurrently, and he will be eligible for parole in 30 years. She claims he forced her to have anal sex. | [email protected] | @elizabeth2863, Connect with the definitive source for global and local news. Her parents, Abdulah Fahmi Kala Al Hishmawi, 34, and Hamdiyah Sabah Al Hishmawi, 33, were arrested on Friday, March 23, 2018. It took the panel about six hours to decide on the sentences for the six counts of continuous trafficking of persons. When you drill down deeper and what weve seen in the cases, its actually extortion, said lead Bexar County Public Defender Michael Young. Benavides was first arrested in November 2015, charged with compelling prostitution from at least nine female clients. More: Couple get $8 million for loss of daughters body from San Antonio funeral home. Mark Benavides (left) sits beside defense attorney Liza Rodriguez during his trial in the Wilson County District Court and Justice Center in Floresville on Thursday. One of thevideos was so graphic that a female juror fainted as the panel left the courtroom last week. According to a criminal complaint, authorities alleged Mark Benavides pressured his victims everywhere from courtroom conference rooms to his office and hotels between 2009 and 2015. She was charged with possession of marijuana when police found the drug in a car she was riding in but she didn't have it on her person. Salacious Uresti testimony: Denise Cantu, a Harlingen woman whom Uresti helped obtain a $2.5 million legal settlement over the deaths of two of her children in a 2010 vehicle wreck, told jurors that the lawmaker became her financial adviser, confidante, friend and eventually lover. Steege said he saw a dramatic change in Benavides, from arrogant and entitled when they first met, to humble and treatable. Mark A. Cantu, III v. Commission for Lawyer Discipline . Lawyers are supposed to help you, not hurt you. A 32-year-old woman victimized by a local attorney recalls her ordeal from her early 20s. She told Benavides she did not want to have sex with him, but he still made me, she said. Prosecutors said Benavides' conviction has tainted some 5,000 cases and convictions he was involved in. Cruz, Abbott and others react to Castro's cancer diagnosis, Rep. Joaquin Castro diagnosed with cancer, undergoes surgery, San Antonio's first car elevator is ready to start accepting cars, Buc-ees planning new travel centers in Wisconsin, Florida. Former San Antonio attorney Mark Benavides is serving 80 years in prison for forcing former clients into having sex. Mark Benavides, 48, is charged with continuous trafficking of persons, accused of having sex with clients in prostitution cases in exchange for legal services. Benavides is facing a minimum sentence of 25 years and a maximum of life in prison on each count. He took me to a small room down a back hallway, and at that point he told me if I didnt perform a sexual act on him right then and there, he would not only kill my case, but try to worsen my case, she said, her voice trembling, even 12 years later. Someof the graphic and sexually explicit videos were played for jurors. Mark Henry Benavides will have to serve at least 30 years before he is eligible for parole. Officials said the women were. More: Uresti, Cain found guilty on all charges in end to salacious month-long fraud trial. A 51-year-old victim of now-disbarred attorney Mark Benavides pauses during an inteview at her San Antonio home on June 18, 2020. Mark Henry Benavides was immediately taken into custody Tuesday night in Floresville, where the trial was heard. attorney mark benavides wife. Calling him a master manipulator and liar, prosecutors had asked the jury to send Benavides to life in prison for having sex with clients in exchange for legal services. SAN ANTONIO Officials from the Bexar County District Attorneys Office and the Bexar County Public Defenders Office are urging potential sex crime victims of a disbarred San Antonio lawyer to come forward. She said Benavides told her to say 'bye' to the camera after they finished. Cayley Mandadi, a Trinity University cheerleader, died on Oct. 31, 2017 after falling unconscious in a car traveling to Houston. Texas ranch that's half the size of Rhode Island still S.A. developer buys hotel property near Market Square, UTSA, TaskUs swings to profit as it continues growing globally, Murder charge dropped in S.A. toddlers drive-by death, Strong storms ahead of cold front to bring severe weather risk, As avian flu endures, Texas farmers try to protect flocks. Mark A Benavides, born Circa 1971 Mark A Benavides was born circa 1971. FLORESVILLE A Wilson County jury on Friday sentenced a former San Antonio attorney to 80 years in prison on each of the six counts he faced for coercing clients into sex. Charges against ten of eleven people arrested for animal cruelty in March, involving what one official described as some sort of unknown ritual involving dismembered goats and chickens, were later dropped. Don't be so rough, as Benavides made sexually explicit commands and repeatedly told her, Come back here, as the woman sobbed. And so, I think its hard to know how many women out there were subjected to this kind of undue influence, Young said. He eventually started asking me for small stuff, meet up for lunch, stuff like that, the woman said. This is a carousel. He said he made amends to his family, and what does his wife tell you? He also covers the Spurs for on-air and digital platforms. The jury found him guilty of crimes, not cheating.. Benavides' wife of 11 years, Linda, appeared at the trial's sentencing phase to urge the jury to 'please be fair' as she announced she was staying with him, reported Express News. Trial was heard where the trial of Mark Benavides was arrested in November,... Benavides admission of the trial of Mark Benavides began Tuesday with a graphic start reportedly of. 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