Harris County Deputy Dhaliwal's killer sentenced to death

Prosecutors listed the names of those Robert Solis has robbed, sexually assaulted and hurt during three decades of crime — ending with Deputy Sandeep Dhaliwal, the beloved law man he killed during a 2019 traffic stop. Assistant District Attorney Lauren Bard asked the jurors to let it end there and hand him the death penalty. After 35 minutes of deliberating, those jurors concluded that Solis should be sentenced to death. He showed no reaction after learning his fate. “How you do you punish a man who doesn’t fear the consequences,” Bard said, labeling him a lying, manipulative, narcissistic psychopath.

The prosecutors found more victims than anticipated while digging into his life, including women he had allegedly sexually assaulted and young girls he is accused of molesting. Solis acknowledged in court that he raped a woman at age 14 and later questioned the veracity of the teenager who accused him of molesting her during cross-examination. The judge appeared sullen as silence descended on the ceremonial courtroom during closing arguments. Dozens of observers, many of whom testified against Solis about their own harrowing encounters with the 50-year-old defendant, filled the seats. Residents from the subdivision where Dhaliwal patrolled sat in the back. Solis is among the dwindling number of Harris County defendants for whom prosecutors have sought the death penalty. Another prosecutor, Katie Warren, told jurors the death penalty is saved for the “the worst, the most violent, the scariest, the most frightening individuals,” fearing that he will enter the prison system with the means to manipulate others into doing his bidding. She acknowledged Solis' cunning intelligence will make him smarter than most everyone he'll be imprisoned with.