Texas man, charged with murder of his pregnant wife, flees to Italy just before trial.
40-year-old Lee Mongerson Gilley, a Texas man charged with killing his pregnant wife, fled to Milan with a fake passport and preferred to be imprisoned in Italy instead of Texas, as the state has the death penalty for the crime he is accused of. The alleged murder took place in 2024, and the trial was scheduled to begin this June. Extradition efforts have reached a roadblock as Italy wants an assurance from Texas that they won’t give a death sentence to the man as the country does not have death penalty and they don’t extradite anyone to any country where they may face death penalty.
In May, he cut off his ankle monitor and took a flight to Canada and then traveled to Milan with a forged passport. He was arrested in Milan and his fake Belgian passport was easy to detect.
The 2024 alleged murder case
Italian authorities therefore want confirmation that Gilley would receive a sentence below life without parole if he is convicted in Texas.
His attorney, Dick DeGuerin, said Italian authorities have asked for a formal assurance from US authorities that Gilley will not face the death penalty if extradited to Texas. “When we spoke, the district attorney’s office said it would not seek the death penalty, but it has not filed that formally,” DeGuerin said. DeGuerin said Italy’s legal system does not allow the death penalty or life imprisonment without parole.
Prosecutors alleged Bauer was eight weeks pregnant when she was killed. Two children were also inside the home at the time. “That’s what the Italian courts are looking for.