A Rio Grande Valley widow took the stand Tuesday on the first day of the Julio Diaz murder trial, sharing details about the moments before her husband was shot and killed outside a McAllen Freemason lodge.

Josefina Sanchez told jurors her husband, Robert Wise, had invited the family to watch him be installed as a junior deacon at the McAllen Masonic Lodge in July 2023.

After the ceremony, Sanchez told jurors Wise said he would be home in about 15 minutes.

"He gave me a kiss and told me how nice I looked. That's just how he was with me," Sanchez said.

Instead, she got a call from one of the Masons.

"I answered it, and he said, ‘please come back, something tragic has happened,’" Sanchez said.

Sanchez rushed to the hospital, where a doctor told her Wise had died.

The trial started the day after a Hidalgo County judge shut down attempts to delay it from the defense team.

Jurors were also shown a wedding ring, a Freemason ring, and a suit jacket stained in blood that was recovered at the scene next to Wise's truck.

Prosecutors say Diaz targeted Wise because of his hatred for the Freemasons.

To support that claim, they called McAllen police investigator Joel Villegas to the stand.

Villegas walked jurors through surveillance video that shows a suspect driving around the lodge before approaching Wise.

"In your training and experience, would you say the suspect is casing the area?" Villegas was asked.

"Most definitely yes," Villegas said.

Jurors were also shown an Instagram account where prosecutors say a video of the shooting was posted. The owner of the account is believed to be Diaz.

The state called a total of 19 witnesses. The defense objected to much of the evidence.

The trial continues Wednesday morning.

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