Fayette Co. Tie in State of the Union Speech

President Donald Trump delivered his State of the Union speech at the Capitol in Washington, D.C. Tuesday evening, and in it he mentioned a tragedy with a Fayette County connection.

While speaking about his efforts to curb illegal immigration, President Trump brought up the murder of Lizbeth Medina, a 16-year-old cheerleader from Edna who was stabbed to death on Dec. 5, 2023, by Rafael Govea Romero, 23 of Mexico. Romero had an expired visa, and he was living in Schulenburg at the time of his arrest.

“Lizbeth’s killer was a previously- arrested illegal alien who had broken in and brutally extinguished the brightest light in her family’s life,” Trump said during his speech The previous arrest that the President mentioned took place right here in Fayette County. Schulenburg Police arrested Romero on Oct. 6, 2022, for burglary of a habitation. An indictment from that case accused him of stealing an air compressor and several other items from a residence in Schulenburg on or around Sept. 6, 2022. He pleaded no contest to the burglary charge on April 5, 2023. The court sentenced him to five years of deferred adjudication and placed him on probation. Romero was still on probation here at the time of the murder.

Romero pleaded guilty in September of last year to capital murder and aggravated robbery, which both carry a life sentence.

Lizbeth’s mother, Jacqueline Medina, was in the gallery for Trump’s speech, and the President recognized her during his remarks.