Netflix viewers have begun calling for the early release of a murderer who is serving a life sentence.
This comes after he explained why he killed a cashier in a robbery gone wrong. The explanation came in an episode of the newest season of Netflix’s I Am a Killer.
I Am a Killer features the story of Higinio Gonzalez, who killed 27-year-old Eric Anthony Pavilionis when he was 16 years old.
Speaking in the documentary, he explains how he had been asked by two girls to help rob a convenience store to get the money to get out of town.
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He described going in with a gun they gave him, saying: “I checked and [the gun] was empty. I remember walking in the store and I never like directly aimed it or pointed it at him like you would if you were actually trying to hit something.
“I went to scare him as if I was going to pull the trigger, and I though ‘okay, if I pull this trigger he’s gonna hear it shoot’.
“Nothing’s gonna happen, but it’s gonna scare him, so I pulled the trigger and I remember it going off and I just ran.
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“I remember jumping in the car saying ‘why didn’t you guys tell me there was a bullet in this gun?’
“I was like ‘I just shot that guy, man.’ I didn’t know they had put one round in there.
“When they handed it to me, I checked the magazine and I didn’t think to check anything else.”
The prosecutor of the case, Joe Coble, listened to this explanation given by Gonzalez, and said this is the first time he heard this being the series of events.
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He says that, when interviewed at the time of the shooting, Gonzalez had indicated that he knew there was one bullet in the gun.
He also shows CCTV which clearly shows Gonzalez aiming the gun at the clerk, Pavilionis.
Coble suggests it’s possible that due to years ‘sitting in prison’, the murderer has convinced himself of a false version of what happened.
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The Netflix production went back months later to ask more questions, with Gonzalez saying that the intent was to ‘dry fire’ and scare the clerk.
He goes on to finish the interview by saying: “I think… he’s right. I think I did know [the gun was loaded].
“I think I did know, and I just didn’t want to come to terms with it. I won’t ever be able to heal properly unless I face it.
“I don’t like how it feels right now, but it’s probably something I needed to hear. You know, I’m trying to be the best me I can be and that… that makes me feel like I’m not even close.”
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Viewers were quick to react to this emotional scene, with one posting on Reddit: “What a powerful and heartbreaking episode. A poignant vignette of the worst that can happen when you mix bad influence (paternal figure) with teenage impulsivity.”
Higinio’s father was involved in a drug cartel, and his mother had broken up with him when she found out about this.
He followed their family though and bought a house near them.
The post went on to say: “I felt that Higinio (as the show portrayed him) embodied a level of profound remorse and humility in a way I don’t think I’ve ever seen.
“I really hope he and everyone involved finds peace.”
Another commented: “This may have been one of my favorite episodes. I really hope he gets the early release he deserves.”
Higinio was sentence to life in prison in January of 1997, but is eligible for early release when 30 years of his sentence has been served.
Topics: True Crime, Netflix, TV, TV and Film
Michael Slavin