Hollister
– Catherine Lara often passes a familiar house on her way to the
I.O.O.F. Cemetery where her slain 18-year-old son, Daniel Gallegos,
lies in peace.
Hollister – Catherine Lara often passes a familiar house on her way to the I.O.O.F. Cemetery where her slain 18-year-old son, Daniel Gallegos, lies in peace.
The house she passes has broken windows from thrown rocks. The weeds in the front yard have been left unchecked. And the roman numeral ‘XIV’ – a sign for the Norteño street gang – is spray-painted on the door of the small side garage.
No one lives there anymore.
The small, light brown home on Locust Avenue once housed the family of Gonzalo Munguia, who, along with Emilio Roman, is accused in the July 2006 murder of Gallegos. The Munguia family moved out of the home shortly after the incident, police said.
Police believe the killing was gang-related, and that Munguia, 18, and Roman, 17, are members of the Sureño street gang. Police believe Gallegos was run over with a car on Hillcrest Road in Hollister shortly before midnight July 10 following a gang fight.
But Lara denies her son had any gang affiliation.
“My son is not a gang member,” Lara said Thursday with tears in her eyes. “He was a football player. He just wanted to spend time with his friends.”
Although Lara admitted to the Free Lance that she was briefly involved with gangs as a teenager, she said her involvement was minimal. And once she saw the damage gangs could cause in her hometown of Salinas, she moved the family east to Hollister, which at the time had few gang problems.
“I did whatever I could to keep my kids away from (gangs),” Lara said. “My kids still don’t want to leave this town. They love this town.”
But in the six months since the murder, Lara has fallen on hard times. She still struggles to deal with her son’s death. Lara said she is homeless; her sole income is from disability payments.
“There’s times that I just don’t want to get up,” Lara said. “But I have to for my four others.”
Lara visits her son’s grave every day, sometimes twice a day.
She and her friend Eleyigth Escalante, who Lara said was like a second mother to her son, are present at every court date involving Munguia and Roman.
Escalante said Lara’s presence is a reflection of the deep love she feels for her son.
“I know Daniel would do the same thing for her,” Escalante said. “He would not let her fall.”
But the two women are losing faith fast, unsure if the justice they seek for their loved one will be fulfilled. Both women said they believe the case is moving slowly through the court system, which frustrates them.
District Attorney-elect Candice Hooper said she understands their frustration. Although Hooper won’t be sworn into office until later this month, she has been running the day-to-day operations of the office while outgoing District Attorney John Sarsfield is on vacation.
Hooper said she has yet to begin a review of the case and has not met with Lara to discuss the case.
But she and Lara plan to meet today.
“We’re hoping to get all of her concerns addressed,” Hooper said.
The District Attorney’s Office will also decide whether or not to prosecute Munguia for capital murder, which could carry the death penalty.
Lara and Escalante said they want justice for Daniel Gallegos. But if the suspects are convicted, they don’t want them to face the death penalty.
“It’s too easy,” Escalante said. “Life is harsh in prison.”
Hooper said the justice system can never make the victim’s family in a murder case whole. Lara seemed to agree.
“I can’t see my son smile anymore,” Lara said. “I can’t hear my son call me ‘mom’ anymore. What they took I can never get back.”
Despite the hardships she has faced, Lara said she would like to help build a handball court as a memorial to her son. She believes such a court would give Hollister youth an activity to occupy them and help stem the city’s gang violence of recent years.
Michael Van Cassell covers public safety for the Free Lance. He can be reached at 831-637-5566 ext. 335 or [email protected].
