Convicted killer Arthur Brown Jr to be executed in March 2023, judge says

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- A convicted killer who's been on death row for nearly 30 years will be executed in 2023, a judge ruled on Wednesday.

Arthur Brown Jr., appeared virtually in court where a judge signed for his execution to be on March 9, 2023.

Brown is convicted of the 1993 execution-style killings of four people, including a pregnant woman, in southwest Houston. The shooting happened during what police said was a drug purchase.

The victims were identified as Jose Guadalupe Tovar; Jessica Quinones, Tovar's 19-year-old daughter-in-law who was seven months pregnant; Frank Farias, and Audrey Brown, a neighbor of the family.

Two other people were also shot, but they survived.

Despite Brown's execution date being set, family members who have been showing up for multiple court hearings, waiting for a judge to set a date, said they wish it were sooner.

"We have to wait until next year. Most of the time, when you're waiting, they can honestly appeal or put any kind of appeal or continue like it has for 30 years," Rachel Tovar, whose husband was killed, said.

Rachel Tovar is one of the survivors who were shot that day. After the execution date was set, she said this is not over yet.

"This is not something that, 'Yes, that's it.' This is still something that we have to wait until next year," she said.

Prosecutor Joshua Reiss also said they will fight with the court of criminal appeals because they feel the judge violated the Texas constitution in delaying this.

"We had to come here three times to get this done. It should've been done months ago," Reiss said. "It definitely took far too long to get this done."