Justice for Steven López

Last November, Puerto Ricans and the LGBT community at large were horrified when the body of 19-year-old Jorge Steven López Mercado was found burned, beheaded, and dismembered on the side of a road near his home. The killer, Juan Antonio Martínez Matos, was arrested five days later and quickly enhanced his confession with a Trans Panic Defense.

Jorge Steven López Mercado
1990 - 2009

Last week, exactly six months after brutally murdering Steven, Martínez unexpectedly pleaded guilty in a court hearing just days before his trial was to begin.

Edge‘s Michael Lavers filed this report.

Juan José Martínez Matos, who had been scheduled to go on trial for Jorge Steven López Mercado’s death on Monday, May 17, confessed to the crime during a hearing in Caguas on Wednesday, May 12.

Martínez told the court he understood the consequences of his actions, and Judge Miriam Camila Jusino immediately sentenced him to 99 years in prison.

Primera Hora reported López’s parents, Myriam Mercado and Jorge López, hugged prosecutor Yaritza Carrasquillo after the hearing. Mercado told the newspaper, however, Martínez’s confession was bittersweet for her and her family.

“We are able to find a bit of peace in this aspect, but it still not going to return Steven,” she said. “But at least there is justice in Puerto Rico.”

Jorge López evoked his faith.

“I want to send a message to Juan (Casper) and tell him there is hope in Christ,” said López with tears in his eyes. “The Lord has forgiveness for him, [regardless] of what has happened. God has a plan for him if he opens his heart to Christ. God will forgive him also.”

Pedro Julio Serrano of the National Lesbian & Gay Task Force, who was in Caguas when Martínez confessed to López’s murder, told EDGE there was not a dry eye in the courtroom. He added López’s family remains a source of inspiration for him and other LGBT Puerto Ricans.

“The family is sending a powerful message to the world of the love that conquers hate,” said Serrano.

He further stressed his work on behalf of LGBT Puerto Ricans will continue.

“It was very emotional and it brings some closure, but those wounds will never heal,” added Serrano as he further described Martínez’s confession. “And we just have to work to ensure this does not happen again.”

Please continue to keep Steven’s family and friends in your thoughts and prayers. This may have put a merciful end to the court case against his killer, but they will continue to feel his loss for years to come.