Brownsville man who decapitated three children cannot appeal adverse ruling

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A 44-year-old Brownsville man who committed one of Cameron County’s most horrific crimes cannot appeal a federal judge’s denial of his request for habeas relief.

The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals denied John Allen Rubio’s request for a certificate of appealability following the March 2024 denial of his request for habeas relief. That order also denied Rubio’s ability to appeal.

Rubio, who is on Death Row, asked the higher appellate court to allow him to appeal.

On Wednesday, in an order that called his crime “especially harrowing,” that court denied Rubio’s request.

A jury convicted Rubio in 2010 of beheading Julissa Quesada, 3, John E. Rubio, 14 months, and Mary Jane Rubio, 2 months. Quesada and John E. Rubio were the children of the man’s common-law wife, Angela Camacho. He was the father of Mary Jane Rubio.

Camacho is serving life in prison for her role in the murder.

The murders happened in March 2003.

A jury initially convicted Rubio in November 2003, but in 2007 his conviction and death sentence were overturned. However, following a trial in 2010, the outcome was the same.

Cameron County District Attorney Luis V. Saenz said in a statement that with this ruling, Rubio “should be executed for his ‘especially harrowing’ crime.”

“For 15 years this cowardly defendant has manipulated the criminal justice system with frivolous and dilatory motions to avoid being held accountable for the most brutal and heinous crime in Cameron County history: the brutal murder by decapitation of three (3) innocent babies,” Saenz said. “We will continue to seek justice for the innocent victims of this horrible crime and along with the people of Cameron County look forward to the day that this monster no longer breathes.”

THE UNTHINKABLE CRIME

Rubio and Camacho lived in a dilapidated house — which has since been torn down and turned into a garden named in memory of the children — just blocks from the Cameron County Courthouse where he was sentenced to death.

That home had no electricity or running water.

“Soon after moving in, Rubio asked Camacho what she would do if he killed the children; Camacho wrote it off, figuring he was joking,” the ruling stated.

Several months later, Child Protective Services removed Quesada and John E. Rubio and placed them with Camacho’s mother. At the time, Camacho was pregnant with Mary Jane Rubio.

“The children were ultimately returned, but Rubio soon lost his job and resumed his pattern of substance abuse. Mary Jane was born soon thereafter, in January 2003,” the ruling stated.

That document said Rubio earned money by washing cars and working as a prostitute.

“Tight on money, Rubio and Camacho feared eviction. To cover their costs, Rubio’s lover, Jose Luis Moreno, would provide him with money and groceries. Moreno, however, would also provide Rubio with various addictive substances, predominantly spray paint,” the ruling stated.

Despite their troubles, the children “were generally healthy and well-nourished.” Rubio and Camacho would take them to a charitable organization for lunch and dinner and they also received food stamps.

“One day, however, the couple received a notice that Julissa’s food stamp benefits would be terminated due to issues with her social security number,” the ruling stated. “In March 2003, one day before the murders, the hospital informed the couple that it could not provide the necessary records to the government to remedy the issue with Julissa’s records.”

As they took the bus home from the hospital, Rubio began proclaiming that everyone wanted to hurt them. He also alleged that a woman at a bus stop wanted to steal his money and that a young girl who offered him a piece of candy had poisoned it.

“When they exited the bus, a ‘woman with dark marks on her forehead’ allegedly gestured rudely to Camacho, which Rubio identified as ‘the devil’s sign.’ Frightened, they hurried home,” the ruling stated.

Later that day, Rubio would commit the heinous crime, believing bad spirits were attacking the family.

“He killed the family’s pet hamsters with a hammer and bleach because he believed them to be possessed, and began speaking about the anti-Christ and an impending battle between good and evil,” the ruling stated.

Then, he determined the children were possessed.

“After ordering Camacho into the bathroom, he decapitated their two-month-old child, Mary Jane, and then requested Camacho’s assistance,” the ruling stated. “He placed Julissa, who was struggling mightily, on the floor next to Mary Jane’s body and ordered Camacho to hold Julissa’s legs while he stabbed and decapitated her.”

He then washed their bodies and placed them in trash bags. He told Camacho to clean the carpet and knife and he put the girls’ heads into a bucket in the kitchen.

“Rubio then claimed that John still had evil energy; he and Camacho restrained him, and Rubio decapitated him as well,” the ruling stated. “Following the murders, he forced Camacho to engage in sexual intercourse with him under threat of gang rape, and the pair showered.”

Shortly thereafter, Rubio’s brother arrived at the house and called police.

Now, Rubio is still working through the appellate process to fight his death sentence while Camacho will be eligible for parole in 2043.

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