Texas man executed for 2004 murder offers apology to victim's children before death
Houston: A 41-year-old man who was convicted of murdering a young mother over two decades ago was executed in Texas on Wednesday and spent his final moments apologizing to her children for the pain he had caused.
Moises Sandoval Mendoza was executed by lethal injection at the state penitentiary in Huntsville for murdering 20-year-old Rachelle O'Neil Tolleson in 2004. Court documents state that he raped Tolleson, killed her, and then burned her body and left it in a ditch. Her body was found days later.
Tolleson, mother of a five-month-old infant, had known Mendoza since high school. He pleaded guilty to the crime and petitioned to have his death sentence commuted to life imprisonment, but all legal options were ultimately exhausted. The U.S. Supreme Court denied his last appeal earlier on Wednesday.
In a statement released just before his execution, Mendoza spoke to the victim's family, stating, “To Avery… I robbed you of a mother. I’m sorry for that.” He conceded that no apology would make up for the damage he had inflicted, and he apologized to Tolleson's family.
His execution is the 13th in the United States this year. Although the means used to kill Mendoza was lethal injection, some of the most recent executions involved nitrogen gas and firing squads, tactics that have been strongly criticized by international human rights organizations. The death penalty is a point of national contention, with 23 U.S. states abolishing it and others holding moratoriums.
After the execution, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton reaffirmed his belief in capital punishment, saying, "I will always do everything in my power to defend the law and hold criminals accountable."
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AI reshaping music, filmmaking in Kannada cinema
Bengaluru: Artificial Intelligence is slowly changing the way music and creativity are produced in the Kannada film industry, raising concerns among musicians, singers and technicians, The New Indian Express reported on Sunday.
Music composer, actor and director V Manohar reportedly said, AI is being used to write lyrics, especially in low-budget movies. Once lyrics are generated, AI can suggest thousands of tunes. It even asks whether the voice should be male or female. With one click, a complete song is ready.
“If this continues, singers and musicians will have less or no work in the coming days. But it may not succeed either. A few years ago, dubbing was allowed and people could watch movies in any language they preferred. But not many took to it as they wanted to watch a movie in the original,” TNIE quoted him as saying.
According to the report, Filmmaker Avinash U Shetty, a National Award winner, said resistance to new technology is not new. Those who resisted shifting from analogue to digital films years ago have now embraced it. The industry is now using only 10% of the AI potential. If it is scaled up, it can do unimaginable things. What we consider bad now, may not be after five years.
Highlighting the cost advantage, Sangamesh, an independent creator reportedly said, he made a three-minute video using AI for just Rs 4,500. Earlier, the same work would have cost nearly Rs 15 lakh. I finished the entire project in three days. The only expense was the AI software subscription, he said.
These days, it has become difficult to differentiate between the real and AI. AI is creating artistes. Scenes like war, big fights and dance can be shot with a lesser number of artistes. Then with the aid of visual effects and AI, you can achieve what you have in mind, he said.
Actor-director D P Raghuram felt that while AI has made an impact on music, it lacks emotional depth. Cinema earlier involved hard work and strong emotional connections. AI can help improve our work, but creativity should remain human, he reportedly said.
As per the report, earlier, Kannada cinema employed hundreds of junior artistes, who not only earned wages but also shared meals on sets and formed lasting bonds with stars like Dr Rajkumar, Vishnuvardhan and Ambareesh. Today, filmmakers fear that increasing dependence on AI could reduce such human connections, turning creativity into just another automated process.
