FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NEW BEXAR COUNTY APPELLATE DIVISION CHIEF APPOINTED

San Antonio, Texas: November 18, 2009:

Bexar County District Attorney Susan D. Reed is pleased to announce the appointment of a new Appellate Division Chief, Enrico B. Valdez to replace current Division Chief Alan E. Battaglia, who is retiring at the end of this month.

Mr. Battaglia has been an Assistant District Attorney in Bexar County for over twenty-six years and has been a licensed attorney for the last thirty-seven years. Alan has served under five different District Attorneys and has been Appellate Division Chief under four. He has proudly worked for District Attorney Susan D. Reed for the last eleven years. Over the course of his career he has handled the appeals of numerous high profile cases, including the capital murder appeals of Donald Gene Franklin, Javier Cruz, and Rodrigo Hernandez.

Mr. Valdez has been an appellate prosecutor in the District Attorney’s Office for over twelve years. Among the many significant appeals he has successfully handled are the capital murder death sentence convictions of Frank Garcia and Manuel Garza, and the murder conviction of Ray Gonzalez. Frank Garcia was convicted of murdering San Antonio Police Officer Hector Garza when Garza responded to family violence disturbance call. Manuel Garza murdered San Antonio Police Officer Rocky Riojas as the officer attempted to take him into custody. When affirming Ray Gonzalez’s conviction, he convinced the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals to adopt a new constitutional evidentiary rule. He is a San Antonio native and graduated from Highlands High School in 1988. He attended the University of Texas at Austin, graduating in 1993, and graduated from the University of Texas School of law in 1996.

For more information, contact Susan D. Reed, Criminal District Attorney, at 335-2342.