Nicholas Hernandez, 25, has avoided a jury trial by pleading no contest in the killing of a New Braunfels mother of four who was found shot along a San Antonio access road in November 2024. The plea deal caps his potential prison time at 35 years.
Hernandez entered the nolo contendere plea on Thursday and is set to be sentenced next Friday by state District Court Judge Kristina Escalona, according to the San Antonio Express-News. The outlet reports that under the agreement, the judge can sentence him to any term up to 35 years behind bars.
SAPD officers found 31-year-old Julie Marie Butcher on Nov. 8 in a crashed SUV near the 6200 block of Interstate 35 and Rittiman Road, and she was pronounced dead at the scene, KSAT reported. Butcher, a mother of four and a general manager at a Papa John’s in New Braunfels, became the center of a months-long investigation and a wave of public mourning. Hoodline also reported when he was arrested in the road-rage killing in November.
How Investigators Say They Linked Hernandez To The Shooting
Detectives say the break in the case came from an anonymous tip that a man named “Nick Hernandez” had confessed to a friend. Witness accounts, surveillance footage and phone records later tied Hernandez’s Volkswagen Jetta to the scene, according to the San Antonio Express-News.
The arrest affidavit cited by the outlet describes witnesses who said Hernandez called to say he had been in a road-rage confrontation. One witness told investigators Hernandez asked a friend to get rid of two 9 mm shell casings taken from his car.
Family Reaction And Community Aftermath
Butcher’s family said in a statement that they were “grateful for the progress toward justice,” and a GoFundMe created to support her children drew donations from across the community, KSAT reported.
The killing has amplified concern about shootings during road confrontations on busy stretches like I-35 and has fueled calls for drivers to back off and de-escalate instead of letting tempers take over.
Legal Note: What A No-Contest Plea Means
A plea of nolo contendere, or “no contest,” is treated the same as a guilty plea when it comes to criminal sentencing. At the same time, it generally cannot be used as an admission of guilt in a later civil lawsuit, under Rule 410 of the Federal Rules of Evidence.
That rule is designed so defendants can resolve criminal charges without making a formal admission that could be dragged into unrelated civil litigation, but it does not shield anyone from criminal punishment. Rule 410 lays out how and when plea statements can be used as evidence.
