HUNTSVILLE, Texas – On March 27, 2018, Rosendo Rodriguez III was executed by lethal injection at the Huntsville Unit, ending a nearly decade-long wait on death row for the brutal murders of Summer Baldwin and Joanna Rogers. The 38-year-old former Marine reservist, known as the “suitcase killer,” died at 6:46 p. m.

Central Daylight Time, just one day after his birthday. His final words, delivered over seven minutes, shocked witnesses with their lack of remorse.

Rodriguez used his last statement to thank prison staff and urge the public to write to death row inmates, calling them “good men.” He then accused the medical examiner and prosecutor of misconduct, claiming they engaged in “false and illegal acts.” He quoted scripture, saying “I fought the good fight,” and mouthed “I love you” to his family.

He never apologized to the victims’ families.

The execution came after 22 minutes of pentobarbital flowing through his veins. Rodriguez appeared unconscious within minutes, his chest heaving before all movement ceased. He was the fourth person executed in Texas in 2018 and the seventh in the United States that year.

Outside the prison, victim family members expressed relief and sorrow.

Joe Bill Rogers, father of 16-year-old Joanna Rogers, told reporters, “An apology from Rodriguez wouldn’t have made a bit of difference. He just cared about himself. Just a sociopath.”

Kathy Rogers, Joanna’s mother, added, “Thank God it’s happened. I’m so thankful for the jury doing the job that they did.” Uva Robach, mother of Summer Baldwin, said, “He went to his maker and he’s got his justice now.

He put Summer in that suitcase while she was still alive. She suffocated. How horrible that must have been.”

The crimes that led Rodriguez to death row began in September 2005 in Lubbock, Texas. Rodriguez, then 25, was in town for Marine Corps reserve training but checked into a Holiday Inn alone. On Sunday, September 11, he picked up Summer Baldwin, a 29-year-old mother of four who was working as a prosтιтute to survive.

She was also 10 weeks pregnant and a federal witness in a counterfeiting case.

Inside that H๏τel room, Rodriguez beat Baldwin with approximately 50 blunt force wounds, raped her, and strangled her. He then drove to a Walmart at 3:30 a. m.

, purchased a new suitcase and latex gloves using his debit card—a fatal mistake. He returned to the room and forced Baldwin’s naked body into the suitcase while she may still have been alive, causing her death by positional asphyxiation.

He discarded the suitcase in a dumpster. Landfill workers discovered it the next day, still with the tags on it. The debit card transaction led detectives to Rodriguez.

Four days after the murder, police arrested him at his parents’ home in San Antonio. Fresh scratch marks on his arm told a story of violence.

But investigators soon uncovered a second victim. Joanna Katherine Rogers, a 16-year-old girl, had vanished from her parents’ home in South Lubbock on May 4, 2004. Her father heard a noise at 3:30 a.

m. , but by morning she was gone. Rodriguez’s phone records showed calls to the Rogers home at the time of her disappearance.

He had been chatting with Joanna in an internet chat room.

About a month after his arrest, Rodriguez confessed to killing both women. He claimed self-defense in both cases, but the forensic evidence contradicted him. Baldwin had 50 blunt force wounds and evidence of Sєxual ᴀssault.

Rodriguez directed investigators to the same landfill where Joanna’s remains were found, stuffed in another suitcase. Her body was badly decomposed but identifiable.

Prosecutors offered Rodriguez a plea deal: life in prison in exchange for pleading guilty to both murders. The victims’ families supported the agreement. But on the day of the plea hearing, Rodriguez backed out, claiming he didn’t understand his attorney.

Prosecutors withdrew the offer and sought the death penalty.

At trial in 2008, held in Amarillo due to media coverage, the prosecution’s case was overwhelming. Surveillance video, the debit card transaction, H๏τel room blood evidence, DNA, and computer searches all pointed to Rodriguez. Medical examiner Dr.

Sreedhar Natarajan testified about the 50 blunt force wounds, the Sєxual ᴀssault injuries, and a 5-week-old fetus that died with Baldwin.

The jury deliberated less than three hours before convicting Rodriguez of capital murder. During the punishment phase, five women testified that Rodriguez had Sєxually ᴀssaulted them in the years before the murders. They described a pattern of violence, control, and strangulation.

Julia Ross, his high school girlfriend, testified he raped her multiple times. Another woman said he gave her a Sєxually transmitted disease.

District Attorney Matt Powell summed up the evidence: “He’s really good at killing people. Very calm, very calculated. Women were terrified of him.”

The jury sentenced Rodriguez to death in May 2008.

Rodriguez spent nearly 10 years on death row, shorter than the Texas average. His appeals moved relatively quickly. In 2011, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed his conviction.

The Fifth Circuit denied his habeas peтιтion in May 2017, and the U. S. Supreme Court declined review in October 2017.

In January 2018, Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed the death warrant.

Final appeals centered on the medical examiner’s credibility, but courts rejected those arguments. On March 27, just 30 minutes before the scheduled execution, the U. S.

Supreme Court denied Rodriguez’s final appeal. All legal options were exhausted.

As the execution hour approached, Rodriguez was transferred from the Polunsky Unit to the Huntsville Unit. He was visited by three family members. Among the witnesses that evening were Joe Bill and Kathy Rogers, Uva Robach, and law enforcement officials from Lubbock.

Rodriguez was strapped to a gurney at 6 p. m. The warden asked for final words.

Rodriguez spoke for seven minutes. He never apologized. He accused the medical examiner and district attorney of misconduct, calling for an FBI investigation.

He noted it was Holy Week and that yesterday had been his birthday. “The state may have my body, but they never had my soul,” he said. He urged a boycott of Texas businesses to end the death penalty.

Then he mouthed “I love you” to his family and said, “I’m ready to join my father.”

The pentobarbital began flowing at 6:24 p. m. Within minutes, Rodriguez lost consciousness.

His chest heaved, then stopped. At 6:46 p. m.

, he was pronounced ᴅᴇᴀᴅ.

Afterward, Uva Robach told reporters, “There will never be closure because you know she is gone and we miss her every day.” The Baldwin and Rogers families had met even before Summer’s murder, while Joe Bill was searching for Joanna. The tragedy that led to finding Joanna’s body only deepened their bond.

Rosendo Rodriguez III was a predator who used charm, good looks, and his status as a Marine and college student to evade suspicion for years. At least five women came forward about Sєxual ᴀssaults. Two women were murdered.

One was 16 years old. The pattern was clear: he targeted vulnerable women, used violence and strangulation, and disposed of their bodies in suitcases.

Summer Baldwin was 29, a mother of four, and pregnant with her fifth child. Joanna Rogers was just 16, with her whole life ahead of her. On March 27, 2018, they finally received justice as Rodriguez was held accountable for his crimes.

The case is now closed, but the pain will never fully heal. Summer’s children grew up without their mother. Joanna’s parents will never see milestones like graduation or grandchildren.

And somewhere out there, other families may never know if their loved ones were among Rodriguez’s victims.

Rest in peace, Summer Baldwin and Joanna Rogers. You are not forgotten. The execution of Rosendo Rodriguez III marks the end of a dark chapter in Texas criminal justice, but it also serves as a stark reminder of the evil that can hide behind a charming smile.

This article is based on official court records, trial testimony, and witness statements.