SUGAR LAND, Texas (KTRK) — One of four teens accused in a violent jail escape in Sugar Land earlier this month was on parole for murder, granted by a juvenile court judge.
On Jan.11, police say 19-year-old Edmound Guillory and three other teens robbed a CVS at gunpoint before being arrested and taken to the Sugar Land Police Department jail.
Court records show the group later escaped after a brutal attack on a jailer, whose head was stomped on “approximately 6 to 7 times.” The attack left him unconscious, records show, and with a broken nose, severe lacerations, and multiple deep bite marks.
All four teens were recaptured.
Harris County prosecutors tell ABC13 they warned Guillory was dangerous and tried to keep him behind bars.
“In real time, we thought this young person was a threat to the community,” John Jordan, Executive Bureau Chief with the Harris County District Attorney’s Office, said. “And it seems like, based on his recent criminal behavior, we were right.”
By law, juvenile records are sealed, but because Guillory has been charged as an adult, some of his history is now public.
ABC13 has learned “he was found delinquent” in the shooting death of 59-year-old Anthony Merchant, a father and husband who loved his job as a car salesman. It happened on Swiss Lane in southeast Houston in June 2022. Police sources say Guillory was one of the shooters. He was just 15 years old.
In 2024, he was arrested and later sentenced to 17 years by 315th District Court Judge Leah Shapiro, one of three juvenile court judges in Harris County. Before Guillory turned 19, the court had to decide whether he would be transferred to an adult prison or released on parole. He was released after serving a small fraction of his sentence.
“There are consequences when you give a chance to someone who is a violent offender,” Jordan said.
The Texas Code of Judicial Conduct prevents judges from commenting on cases, so the reason for the decision is unknown.
Steven Halpert, Juvenile Division Chief at the Harris County Public Defender’s Office, said judges must weigh many factors and cannot predict future behavior.
“We don’t want judges who automatically transfer kids, and we don’t want judges who automatically release a child,” Halpert said. “You want judges who will listen to all the facts. They are experienced and make an intelligent decision. But they’re not clairvoyant, and they can’t predict what a child is going to do.”
After his release, Guillory was required to wear a GPS ankle monitor. Court records show he received the monitor last August. Three days before the CVS robbery, records say he cut it off and threw it into the bushes outside his home.
“There are other victims now that didn’t have to be that way,” Jordan said.
Jordan said diversion programs work for most juveniles, but cases involving extreme violence require a different response.
“This is a poster child of why we do what we do,” Jordan said. “We divert and give second chances to the worthy ones. The ones we’re afraid of, that can hurt us, frankly, sadly, they need to be incarcerated.”
Guillory is now facing multiple felony charges in Fort Bend County as an adult. His bond has been denied.
Guillory’s attorney could not be reached for comment.
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