Murder of Kendra Jo Vela

The murder of Kendra Jo Vela occurred on February 5, 2023, at the WoodSpring Suites hotel in Amarillo, Texas. Vela, 31, was approximately six weeks pregnant when she was fatally shot. Trey Phillip Greenleaf was subsequently convicted of capital murder for causing the deaths of Vela and her unborn child during the same criminal transaction. He was sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.^[1]

Shooting

During the early morning hours of February 5, 2023, Greenleaf and Vela were together in a room at the WoodSpring Suites, located in the 4600 block of East Interstate 40. The two had previously been involved in a romantic relationship.^[2]

Greenleaf later acknowledged shooting Vela twice in the head with a Sig Sauer pistol but maintained that he acted in self-defense. According to the account he gave investigators, the two became involved in a physical altercation and Vela reached toward a holster on her hip. Greenleaf said he believed she was attempting to retrieve a firearm.^[3]

Vela's holster was found empty. Her gun was discovered underneath the bedding on the room's other bed. Prosecutors presented evidence that the trajectory of one of the bullets indicated Vela had been lying on a bed when she was shot, contrary to Greenleaf's description of an ongoing struggle.^[4]

An autopsy determined that Vela was approximately five to six weeks pregnant. Greenleaf knew of the pregnancy. According to testimony summarized in the State's appellate brief, the unborn child died from a lack of blood flow and oxygen resulting from Vela's death.^[5]

Discovery of Vela

Jennifer Velasquez, a friend who had been visiting Vela at the hotel, returned to the room during the early morning. She found the door secured with its chain or latch and heard sounds of a struggle inside.^[6]

Greenleaf partially opened the door and returned a purse Velasquez had left in the room. Velasquez later told investigators that Greenleaf had scratches on his face that she had not noticed earlier. He also asked where Vela's car keys were located.

After telephone calls and messages to Vela went unanswered, Velasquez returned to the room and found Vela lying dead on a bed. She subsequently went to the Amarillo Police Department and reported the killing.

At approximately 7:28 a.m., officers were sent to the hotel after receiving information about a possible homicide. Police found Vela with apparent gunshot wounds. The Amarillo Police Department's Homicide Unit assumed responsibility for the investigation.

Investigation and arrest

Greenleaf left the hotel in Vela's vehicle after the shooting. Investigators interviewed another woman who reported that Greenleaf contacted her at approximately 4:30 a.m. and asked her to gather his belongings and meet him. According to the criminal complaint, the woman told police that Greenleaf admitted shooting Vela and said he had taken her car.

Police located Greenleaf later that day at another Amarillo hotel. The department's Critical Incident Response Team was called to the location, and Greenleaf was taken into custody.

Indictment

On March 8, 2023, a Potter County grand jury indicted Greenleaf on two counts:

1. Capital murder of multiple persons, alleging that he intentionally or knowingly caused the deaths of Vela and her unborn child during the same criminal transaction.
2. Murder, alleging that he intentionally or knowingly caused Vela's death by shooting her with a firearm.

The case was assigned cause number 083631-A-CR in the 47th District Court of Potter County, with Judge Dee Johnson presiding. Greenleaf pleaded not guilty.

Bond proceedings

Greenleaf was initially held on bonds totaling $450,000. His attorneys later requested that the amount be reduced to $50,000. At a May 2023 hearing, Judge Johnson denied the request and increased the total bond to $1 million. Had Greenleaf been released, he would have been required to wear a GPS monitor and would have been prohibited from possessing firearms or illegal drugs.[abc7amarillo]

Trial

Greenleaf's trial began on September 16, 2024. The defense argued that Greenleaf shot Vela because he believed she was reaching for a gun. The jury received instructions concerning self-defense and was told to acquit Greenleaf if it had a reasonable doubt as to whether he reasonably believed deadly force was immediately necessary.

The prosecution disputed the self-defense claim. Among other evidence, prosecutors relied on the location of Vela's firearm and the trajectory of the gunshot that passed through her body and entered the mattress.

Under the jury instructions, an "individual" included an unborn child at every stage of gestation from fertilization until birth. To convict Greenleaf of capital murder, the jury was required to find that he intentionally or knowingly caused the deaths of both Vela and her unborn child during the same criminal transaction.

On September 24, 2024, the jury found Greenleaf guilty of capital murder after deliberating for less than an hour. Because the State did not seek the death penalty, Texas law required the court to sentence him to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.[thebullamarillo]

Appeal

Greenleaf filed a notice of appeal on September 24, 2024. The appeal was assigned case number 07-24-00303-CR in the Seventh Court of Appeals in Amarillo.

In his appellate brief, Greenleaf raised five principal issues:

1. Whether the evidence established that he possessed the required intent or knowledge regarding the death of Vela's unborn child.
2. Whether the jury instructions improperly defined intentional and knowing conduct.
3. Whether the instructions adequately required a separate culpable mental state for each death.
4. Whether the instructions properly addressed justification and self-defense.
5. Whether sufficient evidence established that the approximately six-week-old embryo qualified as an individual under the capital-murder statute.

The State responded that Greenleaf knew of Vela's pregnancy and would have understood that killing her was reasonably certain to cause the death of the unborn child. It also argued that the jury was properly instructed, that the evidence defeated Greenleaf's self-defense claim, and that he had failed to preserve his constitutional challenge to the statutory definition of an individual.

Greenleaf's appellate brief was filed on June 30, 2025, and the State filed its response on July 28, 2025. The supplied court records do not include a final appellate opinion.

References