17 year old gets 40 year prison term

By Neal Putnam
The Alpine Sun

  
     SAN DIEGO--It was a full house with at least 50 Border Patrol agents in uniform who attended the sentencing of the 17-year-old boy who got 40 years in federal prison on April 29 for killing Border Patrol Agent Robert Rosas, Jr. in Campo on July 23, 2009.
     Some agents afterwards said they wished Christian Daniel
Castro-Alvarez would have received a life sentence in prison, since that would serve more as a deterrent. If Castro-Alvarez were to serve all of the 40-year term, he would be paroled at age 57.
The sentencing took place in the largest courtroom that was available in the U.S. District Court in San Diego which had at least 100 seats. Judge M. James Lorenz heard from Rosalie Rosas, the widow of the victim, who has two small children in their home in El Centro.
     Rosalie Rosas said the slaying devastated their family. Robert Rosas, 30, was shot nine times while on routine patrol on July 23 near the Shockey Truck Trail in Campo, with many of the shots to the head late at night, according to court records.
     The defendant, who is also known as Danny Castro, pleaded guilty Nov. 20 to murder of a Border Patrol agent during a robbery while he was on duty. He had been ordered to stand trial as an adult.
Many of the agents indicated they felt frustration with not only the sentence, but that others who also fired shots at their comrade are still free.
     His attorney, Ezekiel Cortez, said his client did not fire the fatal shot. According to the teen-ager, he was part of a group of men who wanted to rob a Border Patrol agent of his gun. Rosas was ambushed and disarmed, according to court records.
     Castro-Alvarez told authorities Rosas tried to grab a gun that the teen-ager was holding, and the teen fired one shot, which missed hitting Rosas, according to his lawyer. Castro-Alvarez then called out for help, and others fired bullets into Rosas' back and even some shots were fired while he was already on the ground.
One bullet struck Castro-Alvarez in the hand, and he wrapped up his bloody hand with a shirt. He surrendered to authorities in August, and Castro-Alvarez said he didn't know the names of the others with him that night.
In a letter to the judge, Rosalie Rosas said the death of her husband "changed our lives forever" and she is left with "too many questions as to why this horrific act had to take place."
     "We've placed our faith in the Lord that all involved in his murder will be held accountable," wrote Rosalie Rosas.
"The Bible tells us we must forgive, which my children and I will, but we find comfort in also knowing that the Bible also says justice must be served," the widow wrote.
     The victim's sister, Arlene Brambila, wrote a letter about how they could not have an open casket funeral due to the gunshot wounds to his head. She wrote the agent's mother has been hospitalized and is severely depressed.
The defendant's attorney said in court papers his client had only a sixth grade education, and his father abandoned the family at an early age. Cortez wrote that his mother vanished when he was around 12, and no one ever knew what happened to her. Castro-Alvarez was raised then by an older sister.
     The judge ordered Castro-Alvarez to pay a $100 penalty assessment fee.
     "Although Mr. Castro-Alvarez has well earned this long custodial sentence, his punishment will never repay the debt he owes to those he has affected and who grieve the murder of Agent Rosas," said Acting Chief Patrol Agent Richard Barlow in a statement released by the Border Patrol's San Diego sector.
     "Agent Rosas was a brave man who gave his life defending our nation's borders," said FBI Special Agent in a news release afterwards. "Without thoughtful investigative work and cooperation of law enforcement agencies on both sides of the border, today's sentencing would not have come."
     "Agent Rosas was tragically murdered in the line of duty as he protected the border and our nation," said U.S. Attorney Karen Hewitt in a statement. "His proud career as a federal law enforcement officer stood for seeking justice and upholding the rule of law.
     "Because of today's sentence of imprisonment, the next 40 years the defendant serves in prison shall also echo those important principles--justice and the rule of law--for which Agent Rosas paid the ultimate sacrifice," Hewitt concluded.

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