By USA Daily Now 
A Texas man convicted of the brutal murder of a young mother over two decades ago was executed by lethal injection on Wednesday evening. MOISES SANDOVAL MENDOZA, 41, was pronounced dead at 6:40 p.m. at the Huntsville state penitentiary, according to The Associated Press.
Mendoza was found guilty in the March 2004 killing of 20-year-old RACHELLE O’NEIL TOLLESON, a mother of a 6-month-old daughter. The Texas Department of Criminal Justice stated that Mendoza attended a party at Tolleson’s Farmersville home days before the murder. On the day of the crime, he choked and sexually assaulted Tolleson, then dragged her into a field, stabbed her in the throat, and later set her body on fire in a rural Collin County dirt pit to destroy evidence. Her body was buried under a brush pile.
Tolleson’s daughter was discovered the following day by her grandmother. Mendoza’s friend alerted authorities after learning of the crime, and Tolleson’s body was identified using dental records. Mendoza later confessed to the murder, though the motive remains unclear. Prior to this crime, Mendoza had a history of violence, including attacks on female family members and the sexual assault of a 14-year-old girl, according to The Associated Press.
The U.S. Supreme Court denied Mendoza’s request for a stay of execution and a petition for a writ of certiorari on Wednesday. The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles also declined to commute his death sentence earlier this week. The Texas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty (TCADP) noted that Mendoza had transformed during his two decades in prison, becoming an empathic man of faith who positively influenced those around him, including guards and chaplains. He earned certificates in self-improvement and faith-based programs and maintained strong family relationships.
Mendoza was the third person executed in Texas this year and the thirteenth nationwide.
[Source: The Associated Press](https://apnews.com)
[Source: Texas Department of Criminal Justice](https://www.tdcj.texas.gov)
[Source: Texas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty](https://www.tcadp.org)