Sentencing hearing for suspect in deadly Travis Co. fentanyl dealing case
AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Luis Guajardo will face a judge Thursday related to the May 2022 death of 38-year-old John Salem. He's charged with manufacturing and/or delivering a controlled substance that caused death or serious bodily injury.
According to Guajardo's affidavit, he sold counterfeit Percocet pills to Salem, and the investigation revealed the pills contained fentanyl.
In May, Guajardo pled guilty, but the plea was not part of a plea deal. Instead, he opted to forego the guilt and innocence portion of the trial and instead move forward with the punishment phase. Judge Dayna Blazey will listen to testimony and then determine his sentence.
KXAN will update this story as court proceedings continue.
More about John Salem, family testifies
Salem's mother Libby Pender and older brother Stewart Mann testified first.
Pender said Salem graduated from Texas A&M and had been working as a business developer. He was on the brink of closing the biggest deal of his career when he passed.
“John was the funniest, friendliest person you could ever imagine, the kindest, big-hearted,” Pender said when we spoke with her back in May. “He didn’t care what walk of life you were in. He was your friend.”
While on the stand, both Pender and Mann looked through photos of Salem and the family.
"Conley's on John's shoulders," Mann said, describing a picture of him, Salem, their third brother, and Mann's children. Conley was Salem's nephew. "John was his godfather."
Mann and Pender found Salem dead in his New Braunfels home.
"I see Stewart flying out the door yelling 'Call 911, call 911, he's cold already," Pender testified. "I saw him lifeless in bed. I kept shaking him saying 'Wake up, wake up.'"
The family has attended court hearings for almost three years, hoping to see the case move forward.
State: Guajardo not taking process seriously
The State addressed social media posts of Guajardo outside of the courthouse mocking the judicial process he's going through following his arrest.
Pender said Guajardo displayed a "complete disregard" for Salem's life.
Guajardo's attorney Robb Shepherd argued Salem sought out the drugs. Pender said Salem was not a consistent drug user, and he did not know fentanyl was in the pills.
“The lightheartedness my family had is no longer there.”
Stewart Mann, victim's brother
According to Guajardo's arrest affidavit, Guajardo specifically told Salem the pills he sold him did not contain fentanyl.
Harsher penalties for fentanyl dealers, manufacturers
In 2023, Gov. Greg Abbott signed a bill that allowed prosecutors to seek murder charges for fentanyl dealers or manufacturers when a recipient dies as a result of the drug.
The law went into effect Sept. 1, 2023. For context, Guajardo’s case happened before the law went into effect, Habbit’s happened after.
The law states a suspect must know they’re dealing fentanyl for murder charges to be possible.