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James Craig Keen, 52

Former Kyle resident convicted of murder, sentenced to life in prison

Friday, October 4, 2019

A former Kyle resident was convicted of murdering his estranged girlfriend and was sentenced to life in prison by a jury. 

James Craig Keen, 52, was found guilty of murdering Erin Wright, 39, on March 26, 2016 in Kyle during a trial presided by 428th Judicial District Judge Bill Henry, which took place from Sept. 23, through Oct. 2 and included a weekend recess. The jury returned the guilty verdict on Oct. 1 and the jury assessed punishment of life in prison and a $10,000 fine — the maximum sentence for the charge. 

“This trial is another reminder — especially during Domestic Violence Awareness Month — that the escalating cycle of domestic violence can and too often does culminate in murder,” Hays County District Attorney Wes Mau said. “This jury’s verdict and resounding life sentence echo my own feelings: domestic abusers have no place in our society. Ms. Wright’s family, having endured this painful journey — which for them will never be over — remain living reminders of the heart-rending toll domestic violence leaves not only on its victims, but on everyone around them.”

Keen shot Wright in the kitchen of his home after an argument. Three young children — Wright’s two daughters, then 6 and 9, and Keen’s daughter, then 9 was in the home at the time of the murder. One of Wright’s daughters, who is now 9 years old, told the jury that she witnessed Keen and Wright arguing. The daughter then said that Keen climbed on the kitchen counter, grabbed a firearm from the top of the cabinet, pointed the gun at Wright and shot her. The daughter remembers holding her mom’s hand when Keen shot her. 

Wright moved away from Keen when their daughter was only a few months old due to previous incidents of domestic abuse. Wright, however, travelled from Oregon to Texas in March of 2016 in order for Keen to get to know their shared 9-year-old daughter. Wright hoped to allow Keen to rekindle a relationship with the child. 

Keen murdered Wright three weeks after she and her two daughters moved in with him. 

Keen’s ex-wife testified about being abused by Keen over their 30-year on-again, off-again relationship during the trial’s punishment phase. 

Keen had previously been convicted of Assault in Tarrant County in 1996 for abusing his first wife. Court documents admitted at trial showed Keen was placed on deferred probation for assaulting Wright in Dallas County in 2007. 

Hays County Assistant Criminal District Attorney Katie Arnold led the prosecution. Following the trial, Mau recognized the Kyle Police Department, including Detective Diane Talamantes, Officer Perry Field, Sgt. Tracy Vrana and former Detective Adam Watson, who led the investigation. 

San Marcos Record

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P.O. Box 1109, San Marcos, TX 78666