Matthew Bobo of Fort Worth knew it would be legally and emotionally difficult to represent the parents and estate of murder victim Melanie Goodwin, the 19-year-old University of North Texas undergraduate whose body was discovered four hours after she purchased chocolate milk and Cheetos at a convenience store.

He knew Denton County jurors usually decide “conservatively.” And he had known Goodwin since she was 6 years old; his wife worked with her mother, Peggy Goodwin, for more than a decade.