Garcia had standoff with police following
The 41-year-old Hollister man accused of shooting his mother
three times, once in the face, is headed toward a 12-year prison
sentence after his attorney reached a plea deal with a prosecutor
last week.
Garcia had standoff with police following
The 41-year-old Hollister man accused of shooting his mother three times, once in the face, is headed toward a 12-year prison sentence after his attorney reached a plea deal with a prosecutor last week.
Ruben A. Garcia had been charged with first-degree attempted murder. With a prior strike on his record for battery with serious bodily injury, Garcia had faced a sentence, if convicted in a potential trial, of 55 years to life in prison.
Public Defender Gregory LaForge struck the plea deal July 13 with a deputy prosecutor – District Attorney Candice Hooper acknowledged she did not OK the deal – the same day Garcia had been scheduled to start his jury trial, said LaForge, noting how he had been involved in negotiations for a plea agreement leading up to the planned proceeding.
“Any time you can take life off the table and get a set sentence, that’s a victory,” LaForge said.
Authorities suspect Garcia shot his mother in her face, arm and hand June 1 of last year after an argument over finances.
She survived the attack after treatment at a Bay Area hospital. Two days later, police discovered Garcia locked into his home near Cerra Vista Elementary School on Brighton Avenue.
Authorities then engaged in a four-hour standoff before the suspect turned himself in without further confrontation.
In the end, Hooper’s office agreed to lower the charges to a count of mayhem with a 10-year firearm enhancement, with the sentence coming to a maximum of 12 years, more than one of which Garcia has already served.
Hooper, however, acknowledged she did not sign off on the agreement and suggested the Pinnacle ask Deputy District Attorney Patrick Palacios about the case.
“I don’t sign off,” Hooper said. “I trust my deputies.”
Palacios declined to comment on internal policies regarding Hooper’s involvement, but he did note how Garcia’s mother, the suspected victim in the case, was not cooperating as a witness.
“Justice is a process,” Palacios said. “The victim in the case didn’t want any prosecution. It was her son. Based on her position, that it wasn’t him, we think … this was a very good resolution.”
