A Texas couple appealed their prison sentence just weeks after admitting to allowing their pit bulls to attack an 81-year-old veteran to death.
Christian Moreno and his wife Abilene Schnieder were sentenced to a total of 33 years in prison on September 20 after a pack of dogs, including two pit bulls, broke free from their San Antonio backyard and killed Ramon Najera.
Moreno was sentenced to 18 years, while Schnieder was sentenced to 15 years. The couple was also fined $5,000 each by 226th District Court Judge Velia Meza.
Newly filed paperwork indicates the couple plans to ask for reconsideration of their sentences.
Christian Moreno and his wife Abilene Schnieder were sentenced to 33 years in prison on September 20 after a pack of dogs, including two pit bulls, broke free from their San Antonio backyard and killed Ramon Najera.
Ramon Najera, 81, was killed by a pack of dogs after getting out of a car with his 74-year-old wife in San Antonio
Moreno's lawyer, Jorge Aristotelidis, had previously said the couple planned to do so after the sentencing.
'It's always been a difficult case,' said lawyer Fox Santo Antônio.
DailyMail.com has reached out to Aristotelidis for comment.
Najera died from his injuries while trying to protect his wife, Juanita Najera, 74, from the ferocious animals after they broke free from a backyard and began attacking in February 2023.
Police were told the dogs were trained with meat to encourage aggression.
Christian Moreno and his wife Abilene Schnieder pleaded guilty to charges of dog attack resulting in death
The animals called Snow, King and Legend have already been the target of numerous complaints from neighbors and have attacked people twice before.
They were confiscated by authorities before his children begged them to return them.
The deadly incident occurred on February 26, 2023, and saw Najera beaten to death, while his wife and two other men were injured.
Firefighters were forced to use metal poles and pickaxes to try to fend off the dogs when they arrived at the scene.
'When your dog attacked me, I could barely walk. My whole body would shake. I could barely get out of bed without help. I needed help every day,” Juanita Najera said during the couple’s sentencing.
'You could have done something. You could have realized those dogs needed to be euthanized.
'You two took a huge part of my life. You took my better half away. I feel like you're serving what you deserve for the crime you committed.
Snow, in the photo with her puppies, 7 males and 2 females. Snow was involved in two previous attacks
Christian Moreno and his wife Abilene Schnieder were sentenced to 18 and 15 years respectively for allowing the savage attack to occur due to poor control of the dogs.
The victim's son told the court the couple showed no remorse for the death. As he left the court, Moreno was seen making a nonchalant gesture with his hand toward the public gallery.
“I still haven't heard from you that you're sorry for our family,” said the son with shaking hands. 'You are disgusting and remorseless individuals. Disrespectful, you don't deserve to be released as free people in our city.'
Judge Meza called the tragedy “preventable” as she admonished the pair for not being better property owners.
“To repeat what most, if not all, witnesses testified, this was avoidable,” Meza said.
Firefighters were forced to use pickaxes and metal poles to combat wild animals
“(Owning a dog) is about not just taking care of your dog, but ensuring the safety of people in our neighborhoods, in our communities and you failed at that.”
Animal control seized the dogs weeks before the deadly attack, but their owners paid to have them removed 10 days later.
Moreno previously described the horrific scene he encountered upon returning home.
“We were coming back and I saw the dogs behind the gate, but they were full of blood,” he told local channel KENS5.
'It's traumatizing to see my dogs that I raised from puppies do this to someone.'
Police said they received reports that Moreno and Schnieder “are breeding the dogs and training them to be aggressive towards meat.”
Emergency services are seen at the scene of fatal dog attack in San Antonio
Investigators said the pit bulls easily escaped from their yard through a hole in the fence.
According to the arrest report, video footage from a witness showed that the dogs were not wearing collars or harnesses – a requirement of Animal Control Services (ACS). Moreno told investigators that he complied with the instructions.
Police said they received reports that Moreno and Schnieder “are breeding the dogs and training them to be aggressive towards meat.”
An affidavit states that Schnieder also had “recorded conversations with her husband about how dangerous dogs have become.”
The animals were euthanized and “multiple reports of violent behavior by the dogs” emerged after the deadly attack.
After the incident, and before her arrest, Schnieder claimed that her husband was not responsible for the attack and that they had taken care when breeding the dogs.
