Rios was extradited from Mexico after the state promised not to seek the death penalty.
Rios is charged with capital murder. He's accused of fatally stabbing Tina Davila during an attempted carjacking in northeast Harris County back in April 2008. It happened outside a Cricket cell phone store.
A surveillance camera caught him and another man in front of the store. Authorities say Rios stabbed the mother of five when she tried to stop him from taking her SUV with her baby inside.
Davila's boyfriend, Billy Brewer, is determined to see that justice is done. He says the fact that Rios will stand trial may finally give him the closure he has longed for.
"It will be like a weight lifted off and things should get better," he said.
Rios fled to Mexico after the killing and was captured in August 2009 in Guadalajara. He is reportedly one of three suspects from Mexico who've been extradited to Harris County.
Kennedy Escoto, the man who drove the getaway car, was convicted of aggravated robbery and sentenced to 40 years in prison.