Where Is Yolanda Saldívar Now? All About the Prison Sentence of Selena’s Killer

The death of Selena Quintanilla rocked the music industry when she tragically died in 1995.

Just two weeks before what would have been her 24th birthday, the Tejano superstar was fatally shot by Yolanda Saldívar, who was the president of the singer’s fan club.

While Selena’s family has kept her memory alive in the years since her death, her killer Saldívar has rarely spoken publicly until now.

In the new Oxygen True Crime documentary series called Selena & Yolanda: Secrets between themsays Saldívar almost 30 years after the Grammy winner’s murder.

Here’s everything you need to know about the crimes Saldívar committed and where she is now.

Who is Yolanda Saldívar?

AP

Born on September 19, 1960 in San Antonio, Texas, Saldívar was a registered nurse before she met Selena. After seeing the singer in concert, she reportedly called Selena’s father, Abraham Quintanilla, to start a fan club.

Through the fan club, where she was president, Saldívar infiltrated Selena’s life, becoming one of her close friends and business associates. She was eventually promoted to manager of Selena’s clothing boutique, Selena Etc., which gave her access to Selena’s business checking accounts.

According to those close to Selena, Saldívar began to exhibit obsessive behavior. Selena’s fashion designer, Martin Gomez, said The Washington Post that Saldívar was often difficult to work with.

“She would be very angry if you cheated on her,” Gomez told the publication. “She would play so many mind games, say people said things they didn’t say,” he explained. “So many things would happen with the clothes I was working on. I knew I had finished a certain piece, but I would come back from a trip to New York and the hems would be ripped. It was very strange.”

“The last call I had with Selena, the last call, I told her to be careful,” Gomez recalled. “It was very strange. I was very afraid of Yolanda. But I never thought she would hurt Selena. I never thought it would come to this.”

What crimes did Yolanda Saldívar commit?

Things changed in early 1995 when Selena’s father suspected Saldívar of embezzling money after several employees informed him that they had late payments on their payrolls.

On March 9, 1995, Abraham, Selena and her sister Suzette confronted Saldívar and accused her of stealing money from the boutique and fan club. As a result, Abraham fired Saldívar.

Two days after Selena confronted her, Saldívar asked for a permit to buy a gun at a San Antonio gun store, witnesses testified during her trial, according to the Associated Press. At the time, Saldívar told gun store employees that she had been threatened by family members of mentally ill people she worked for, according to the AP. She bought the gun that killed the singer on March 26, five days before the murder, writes AP.

On March 31, Selena agreed to meet Saldívar at the Days Inn in Corpus Christi to retrieve various financial records that Saldívar still had in his possession. However, during their meeting, Saldívar delayed handing over the papers, stating that she had been raped the night before, according to USA Today. According to the publication, Selena then took Saldívar to the hospital for an examination, where doctors found no evidence of rape.

When the two got back to the motel, Selena asked for the paperwork again. Saldívar then took out a gun and shot the singer in the back, severing her artery. Selena was taken to Corpus Christi Memorial Hospital, where she was later pronounced dead from blood loss and cardiac arrest.

What was Yolanda Saldívar’s prison sentence?

Oxygen

After shooting Selena, Saldívar stayed in the motel parking lot, where she locked herself in her truck and threatened to kill herself, according to The New York Times.

She eventually turned herself in and was arrested and later charged with first degree murder.

The trial was held in Harris County Criminal Court in Houston, Texas, beginning on October 9, 1995. Prior to her trial in April 1995, Saldívar was arraigned and pleaded not guilty, with her attorneys arguing that the fatal shooting was an accident. . and that Saldivar was trying to kill herself, not Selena, according to CNN.

On October 23, a verdict was handed down and Saldívar was found guilty of murder. She was later sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole in 30 years.

Where is Yolanda Saldívar now?

Oxygen

Saldívar is currently serving a life sentence at the Patrick O’Daniel Unit in Gatesville, Texas, which is operated by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Under his sentence, he will be eligible for parole on March 30, 2025.

Saldívar gave only a few interviews in the years after Selena’s murder. During an interview on ABC’s “20/20” in 1995, she maintained that she did not kill Selena on purpose, saying, “They made me out to be a monster, and I just want to say that I didn’t kill Selena. It was an accident and my conscience is clear.”

In the new Oxygen True Crime documentary series Selena & Yolanda: Secrets between them, Saldívar speaks from prison as he discusses his professional and personal relationship with Selena. According to an Oxygen press release, Saldívar’s family is also speaking out “for the first time” as they “share never-before-seen documents and footage in an effort to show that there is more to the tragedy than what the public knows.”

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Source: HIS Education