USA | Capital murder case sought after death of final El Paso Walmart shooting victim

An additional capital murder case will be sought against the El Paso Walmart shooting suspect after the final hospitalized patient died over the weekend.

Guillermo "Memo" Garcia died on Saturday after being hospitalized at Del Sol Medical Center for nearly nine months after being shot on Aug. 3 in what federal prosecutors have described as a domestic terror attack.

The death toll is now 23 people and more than two dozen wounded in what law enforcement officials described as a racially-motivated mass shooting targeting Latinos at the Walmart near Cielo Vista Mall.

“The District Attorney’s Office will seek a new capital murder indictment to include the tragic death of Mr. Guillermo Garcia," El Paso District Attorney Jaime Esparza said Monday.

The accused shooter, Patrick Crusius, was first indicted by a state grand jury on Sept. 12 on a charge of capital murder of multiple persons. Garcia's death could be added in a superseding indictment.

After the six-month anniversary of the tragedy, a federal grand jury in February indicted the Dallas-area man on 90 federal counts, including hate crime, murder and firearms charges.

Crusius remains held without bond at the El Paso County Jail in Downtown.

Judges will decide whether the state or federal case goes to trial first. Esparza has said that his office will seek the death penalty. The U.S. attorney general will decide whether to seek the federal death penalty

'An El Paso warrior'

Garcia and his wife Jessica Coca Garcia were with their daughter’s soccer team fundraising outside the Walmart when the gunman opened fire on Saturday morning bustling with back-to-school shoppers.

Garcia was a large man, a father and youth sports coach, lovingly nicknamed "Tank," and remembered as a warrior who fought a long battle in the hospital despite his wounds.

"Tank tough" read across T-shirts made in support of Garcia.

Jessica and Guillermo Garcia were with their two children, ages 5 and 10 years old. Both parents were shot multiple times and the children were uninjured. Jessica Garcia suffered leg wounds and recovered.

The Garcia family is among survivors suing Walmart, accusing the company of not having adequate security to safeguard its customers.

"Rest in peace, Tank," former Democratic presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke tweeted. "You fought as hard as you could for as long as you could. Jessica, we are with you. You and Karina and Memo Jr. have our prayers and love and support."

Republican Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick tweeted, "El Paso has lost another hero — the last victim of the heinous and horrific murder last August has died. Please keep Guillermo 'Memo' Garcia’s family and the entire El Paso community in your prayers."

In a message to Channel 7-KVIA, Jessica Garcia stated that "we lost a warrior but gained an angel.

"He fought long and hard, with the help of all his troops he won many battles but lost the war. I would like to thank the community for all the love, support, and prayers," she wrote.

The Garcia family would like a community memorial but it cannot take place at this time due to social distancing measures intended to fight the spread of COVID-19 pandemic, Coca Garcia stated.

"We would like to ask the community to continue to lift Memo in prayer and allow us to grief this tremendous loss, we are asking for privacy during this time," she stated. "When the pandemic and social distancing orders pass we will have a proper memorial and mass where the community can pay their respects to an El Paso warrior!"

Source: elpasotimes.com, Daniel Borunda, April 28, 2020

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