Someone dropped the ball on this one Big Time.
Sending a prisoner with six felony convictions involving violence toward others to a pediatric dental clinic with only one guard to escort him was not a good idea.
It resulted in the death of an innocent man who tried to defend his home and family from an armed criminal who was loose because of the negligent manner in which his custody was handled.
Michael David Garcia, 38, was a known bad man. His rap sheet includes at least six convictions of violent assault of other persons, terroristic threats and a burglary where he committed other felonies.
Throw in a cocaine possession and evading arrest and anyone could tell you that he was a danger to any community where he lived.
Mario Alfredo Martinez, 56, was at home visiting family when Garcia – after slashing the throat of his lone guard at a pediatric dental clinic (a clinic for children, mind you) – knocked on his door armed with the gun and assault rifle of the Cameron County Sheriff Department's correction officer he had attacked and demanded the keys to his car.
What did Garcia use to cut the guard?
Sources inside the Rucker-Carrizales Corrections facility say that he had left the Carrizales with a shank he had made inside the jail and had evaded its detection by the guards when they put him in the van to take him to the clinic. How he managed to slash the guard while handcuffed and supposedly shackled with a chain around the waist and ankles is anyone's guess.
He had just made his way along the opposite bank of the resaca maybe half a mile from the dental clinic where he left the wounded guard and crossed the resaca behind Martinez's house on Fruitdale Terrace. When Martinez tried to calm him down and then got into a struggle with the fugitive, Garcia shot him and killed him before his terrified family and took the keys to a car.
When police finally caught up with him on the expressway near San Benito, he shot it out with them and he was killed.
But it was too late for an innocent man who was peacefully at home visiting his relatives. If the authorities had exercised due diligence in the performance of their duties, Martinez might still be alive in the warmth of his family.
No matter how much the sheriff's department might want to sugar-coat this incident, an innocent man died though negligence of the authorities.
31 comments:
Easy to play Monday morning quarterback isn't it Juanito...
Maybe if clinics allowed patients to carry guns, a bystander could of prevented this! But NO! All doctors offices have a NO Guns allowed sign just like our local Cunemsrk theatre, they cater to criminals by denying us law abiding licensed citizens to carry our guns. Go ahead advocate for stricter gun laws fools.
Maybe if our jail system would let our inmates tough out a toothache like in Mexico, or not offer enfermery to criminals, let them suffer
This MF should of been deported the moment he was arrested!
trump! TRUMP!!! TRUMP!!!
Dead guy was at home? Not work? Brownsville needs its people to be employed, juan! He would be alive if he had a job!!!!!!!!!!!
Yet you keep elected a senile sheriff with a right hand man who clearly suffers from alcoholism and everyone turns a blind eye ! Time to move the county in a new direction with new and improved policies that must be followed by well trained and paid employees stop hiring your friends friend ! Duh everyone knows the sheriff office is a joke
So I guess it would have been a good udea to start a gun fight in a pediatric facility?
Primeramente... ABC pediatric no es una clinica de dentistas, son pediatras.
ese lugar es un "shoppong plaza" donde hay otros negocios, uno de ellos es el ABC, Valle Dental Center y creo una officina de seguros.... son negocios muy diferentes.
no estaban llevando a un criminal a un lugar donde atienden niños.
Primero informate bien antes de dar una noticia.
una cosa tienes razon, un solo oficial para custodiar a un criminal, really?
nothing but system flaws on behalf of the Sheriff Dept. Maybe if Chief Deputy Gus Reyna would stay out of "Mi Pueblito" where he consumes enough scotch to become a liability and get to running the department like it should be run. Or maybe if Sheriff Lucio would pay more attention to his ineffective chief Jailer and his top notch commanders(Leal and Garcia)and realize that these individual are not qualified, maybe the innocent man would be alive today. This year alone the Cameron County Jail under the administration of the Chief Jailer has reported two suicide and now this. If the citizens/taxpayers of this county only knew, how dysfunctional the operations of the jail are and what it will cost when, the dust settles down and the law suits get settled, I dont think Sheriff Lucio would have gotten elected. unfortunately the tax payers still have three more years to deal with this fucked up administration.
Its a sad day in the history of the Cameron County Sheriff Department And the worst part is, the real culprits are the top brass of the Sheriff Dept and as the result nothing will change and more than likely the one at the lowest in rank will suffer while the Sheriff will continue with his absenteeism and the Chief Deputy continue on his drinking spree in a county vehicle. You have within the Jail division two commanders operating unmarked highly priced county units to hide their daily personal errands and for the Sheriff.
To anonymous at 12:05. There is no Monday morning quarter back on this terrible and tragic incident. Anybody with extensive experience in Law enforcement and common sense can clearly see that this whole thing from the start is nothing, but a major fuck up on behalf of incompetent supervisors at the county jail.
Juanito! sources say that Chief Deputy Reyna was to drunk to comprehend
If the prisoner had been searched properly and there had been two guards (as is the policy at the jail), then no one would be dead and no one would be wounded. Sheriff "Old Man" Lucio and his hired hands (The Reyna Brothers) need to rethink their policies. I will guess that the Sheriff will say he doesn't have enough deputies....if that is so, don't send them to the dentist, and why a pediatric dentist???????
To Anonymous said at 12:19 PM....
Seriously, you're going to blame the VICTIM for what happened to him! How pathetic must you be, did it not ever occur to you he may be, oh I don't know, retired, a teacher and be out on summer vacation, or perhaps he had a day off!! Just because this victim was at home does not mean he was unemployed! And regardless if he was employed or unemployed he did not deserve to get shot after trying to defend his family.
TO ANONYMOUSE who commented on June 9, 2017 between 12:05: PM through 12:19 PM
It is obvious you are the same person who had nothing better to do than to post such stupidity as blaming the victim. Shouldn't you be working at your job if you have one.
This article is not about "GUN CONTROL". It is about the irresponsible lack of following policy procedures while transferring a six-felony convicted criminal.
Get a freaking life!!!!
Mr. Martinez was home for a hot lunch had prepared for him just like she does everyday and he came from work for his lunch hour. On the other hand, where was the sheriff and his deputies - en la cantina! Mrs. Martinez, call the number 444-4444 and get yourself a lawyer that will sue the hell out of the make-believe Sheriff (Andy Griffin) that can't even speak well enough to be understood. Why the hell does he even hold a press conference?e (You know)
Maybe if he shaves of his dirty mustache he could pronounce the words well
enough so we can understand what the hell he is trying to make excuses for.
A CONVICTED MURDERER AND GETTING DENTAL CARE ??!! WHAT A LAME STUPID SYSTEM AND NEGLIGENCE OF THE CAMERON SHERIFF'S OFFICE !! U.S.A WAR VETERANS CANT EVEN GET A SIMPLE MEDICAL CHECK-UP BECAUSE THEY GOT TO MEET ALOT OF CRITERIA/REQUIREMENT'S BUT THIS PIECE OF SHIT GETS 24/7 MEDICAL AID !!??!!
WHY IS LUCIO NOT IN A NURSING HOME, SILVER ALERT !!?? I HEAR LUCIO GETS HIS DIAPERS DELIVERED AT WORK BY A MEDICAL SUPPLY TRUCK !!
Can't defend anything without a gun. Go out and buy GUNS people be ready! That was the poor man's only mistake, not having a gun readily available. RIP
Your comment is by far the most intelligent one. Sad situation..it was one mistake after another. Perfect storm for this POS prisoner. Someone has to pay, I sense a lawsuit. Hopefully this mistake won't happen again, better training for all law enforcement!!
Los detalles de la noticia van saliendo a laluz poco poco, aun asiel rrun rrun dio la mejor cobertura al momento del incidente
Es facil opinar al final pero lo importante es informar de inmediato en un mundo dinamico en donde 30 minutos marcan la diferencia entre dar la noticia o la historia de la misma
Where is captain Robert Sanchez when you need him. We need you now more than ever. Also mr shrimp as a side kick
What if ...what if, the County had a contract where dentists come to the County jail for inmate treatment????
Why rethink policy? Policy IS there! They just need to enforce it,abide by it, and punish those that don't. Easy, just like in every other profession. Maybe refresher training, or new management. Remember heads roll at the top (well except at cameron county)
I would think the victim's family has a strong civil lawsuit case here.
Desapendejate. He should have shot your stupid ass instead.
Why not buy leg irons for your inmates with the drug fund, your own jailers are laughing at you Sheriff. Get rid of Gus, Javier, Carlos, Garcia, Fermin, and Janie just to finish your three years you have left. They destroying you, leave now in a good note, not like Trump that will be known as the worse president. Leave as a great sheriff Omar. All these guys will be gone soon anyway, pendejos!!
No County raises for awhile now, that's for sure. Gotta pay the lawsuits now.
They should remove Sherrif Lucio an hire san Benito police chief Michael galvan for the job!! Oh wait, he records everything..... gotta check the county policy on that. And they won't pick him up with his sexual harassment case cover up. Never mind folks
The Family has suffered a loss all due to policies that were not followed plain and simple, I see here is a multi-million dollar lawsuit with of course Cameron county taxpayers holding the bag.
Several comments are insightful. Some are the work of morons. I am thankful that the thoughtful people outnumber the morons. And everyone knows who the morons are except the morons. And Mr. Blame the Victim is the biggest moron. What if the victim normally worked in Matamoros, but made a point of visiting relatives in Brownsville once a month? A terrible irony.
Matamoros? Moron!
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