SAN ANTONIO -- The capital murder trial began for 41-year-old Luis Antonio Arroyo. He's accused of killing two people and injuring another person after an argument about cigarettes.
Assistant criminal district attorney Scott Simpson detailed the incident on January 21, 2016 during his opening statement. He said it all began at Tandylyn Jackson's home on the 3800 block of Sherill Brook Road on the northwest side. Simpson said Jackson was good friends with Arroyo. He said they would do drugs together and hang out at the home.
"Tandalyn would cook for him. Sometimes he refer to her as mom or Sue," he said.
On that day, he said Jackson noticed her cigarettes were gone and believed Arroyo took them. She confronted Arroyo at his home down the street. During her testimony, Jackson testified that Arroyo kept denying that he stole her cigarettes. She told him he was banned from coming back to her house.
"Mom, I didn't steal your cigarettes. I didn't steal your cigarettes. I said: 'yes you did,'" she recalled.
Jackson testified that after she left, Arroyo stopped by her home twice. The first time, she denied him entry. The second time, she said Arroyo kicked down her door. She said he shot her daughter, Quitha, and stabbed her. Jackson said she got stabbed but doesn't remember getting shot in the stomach.
She recalled how she called police for help. The state replayed the 911 audio recording in court. Jurors heard Jackson screaming in pain and her cries of desperation.
"I called the police when he started stabbing. After Quitha got shot and I got pushed to the floor. I took it and dialed 911 and laid the phone on the side of me," Jackson said.
Jackson shared that she was unable to go to her daughter's funeral because she was still recovering at the hospital. She broke down in tears as she recalled the day she heard Quitha didn't survive. Arroyo was seen wiping away tears during Jackson's testimony.
He is accused of shooting and killing another person, Rodney Spring, at Jackson's home. The state said ballistic and DNA experts will testify about the evidence they found at the crime scene during the trial.
Arroyo is one of three inmates who tried to escape the jail back in March. The Bexar County Sheriff's Office said the group escaped through a jail window using bed sheets and a female accomplice picked them up in a car. They were captured at a Sonic fast food restaurant.