Appeals Court Upholds Former Firefighter's Murder Conviction

AUSTIN, TX -- A state appeals court Friday upheld the murder conviction of a former firefighter serving a 60-year-plus sentence for killing his girlfriend and dumping the body in Lake Travis.

The Austin American-Statesman reports the 3rd Court of Appeals rejected an argument of convicted murderer Joe Carr related to insufficient evidence used at his 2014 trial.

The former fireman was convicted of killing his girlfriend, 22-year-old Veronica Navarro, wrapping her body in a tent, binding it with rope, weighing it down with cinder blocks and paint cans and throwing it into Lake Travis.

During his trial, those in the courtroom learned Carr may have been motivated by jealousy stemming from Navarro’s having stayed in contact with her former boyfriend. The convicted killer’s violent temper, issues with alcohol and past violent outbursts also were revealed during the trial.

Days after Navarro’s body was found, Carr was detained as he tried to cross the Canadian border with many of his possessions stuffed in his vehicle.

A jury deliberated less than an hour before sentencing Carr to 60- and 20-year sentences on two felony charges, to run concurrently. Carr, 29 at the time of his conviction, is eligible for parole after 30 years behind bars.