PATROLMAN HECTOR FRANK GARZA (END OF WATCH: MARCH 29, 2001)

On this date, March 29, 2001, Patrolman Hector Garza was murdered by Frank Garcia. The Cop killer was executed on October 27, 2011. Unit 1012 honors this fallen police and thank God that justice was served.

            Please go to this blog post to hear learn more about the case. Let us hear from the fallen cop’s family members:

Patrolman Hector Garza

QUOTE 1: Facts of the Crime: On March 29, 2001, in San Antonio, Texas, Garcia fatally shot two victims, San Antonio Police Officer Hector Garza, 48, and Jessica Garcia, 21. The incident began as a domestic dispute between Garcia and Jessica, his wife. Officer Garza, who responded to the disturbance call, was the first victim. Garcia shot the officer three times, resulting in his death. Garcia then shot his wife six times resulting in her death. The couple's five-year-old daughter witnessed both murders. Garcia also shot and wounded the uncle of his wife during the incident. Garcia was sentenced to death in June 2002.

Garza's family, in a statement through the San Antonio Police Department, said they didn't see the punishment as a cause for celebration.

"Hector would be deeply saddened by the loss of another life," they said, calling the execution "a very necessary reminder that the citizens of this great state will not tolerate the murder of a Texas peace officer and the death penalty imposed must send a loud and clear message to those who would commit such an act."

Supporters of the family of slain San Antonio Police Officer Hector Garza, including retired and current SAPD officers, hold up glow sticks at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 27, 2011, the scheduled time for the execution of Frank Garcia at the Huntsville Unit of the Texas State Penitentiary. The execution of Garcia, who murdered Garza on March 29, 2001, occurred almost an hour later because of an 11-hour appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. (Photo: Lisa Krantz / Lkrantz@express-news.net / San Antonio Express-News)

QUOTE 2: Summary: On the morning of March 29, 2001, Frank Garcia fatally shot uniformed San Antonio Police Officer Hector Garza and Garcia's wife Jessica inside the home Garcia shared with Jessica, their children, and Garcia's parents. After subsequently firing several shots at others outside the Garcia residence, wounding one person, and causing damage to a nearby elementary school, Garcia surrendered to police and gave a formal, written statement in which he admitted to intentionally killing both officer Garza and Jessica. The guilt-innocence phase of Garcia's capital murder trial commenced on February 4, 2002. In addition to the testimony summarized above, Garcia's jury also heard testimony from forensic and firearms experts regarding (1) the MAC-10 semi-automatic weapon and the Egyptian-made AK-47 assault rifle Garcia used to shoot Officer Garza and Jessica, (2) ballistics evidence about the shell casings and bullet fragments found at the crime scene, and (3) testimony regarding the blood, blood spatter, and other trace evidence recovered from the crime scene and Garcia's clothing. The foregoing testimony corroborated those portions of Garcia's written statement in which he admitted to having emptied both the semi-automatic pistol and assault rifle following his fatal shooting of Officer Garza and Jessica. The defense presented no witnesses or other evidence during the guilt-innocence phase of Garcia's capital murder trial. On February 8, 2002, after deliberating less than three hours, Garcia's jury returned a verdict of guilty.  The autopsy of Officer Garza revealed (1) he died as a result of four gun shot wounds, each of which would have been fatal alone, (2) the four shots struck Garza, respectively, in the head, two in the back of the neck, and one in the abdomen, which penetrated the lungs and aorta, (3) the shot through Garza's chest was likely the first to strike him, (4) the shots to Garza's chest and head came from a non-high-velocity weapon, and (5) the two shots which struck Garza in the neck came from a high velocity weapon, exited through the skull, and caused massive damage to the brain and cranial vault. The autopsy performed on the body of Jessica Garcia revealed (1) she died as a result of three gunshot wounds, only one of which would have been fatal alone, (2) the fatal gunshot struck Jessica in the left forehead, fractured her orbital area, and penetrated through the midbrain, (3) the two, non-fatal shots struck her in the right cheek and her chin, (4) all the gunshots which struck Jessica came from a non-high-velocity weapon, and (5) the latter two gunshot wounds likely struck Jessica while she was down on the floor. Several witnesses testified to having personally witnessed Garcia firing two different weapons at persons located outside the Garcia residence on the morning of the fatal shootings. A friend of Jessica testified (1) an emotional Jessica called her on the morning of the fatal shootings and asked her to help Jessica move out, (2) after securing assistance from John and Rosario Luna, she rode with the Lunas to Jessica's residence, (3) Garcia's mother interfered with their efforts to help Jessica remove clothing and other personal items from the Garcia residence, (4) she overheard Jessica telling Garcia over the phone that Jessica was leaving him, (5) Garcia arrived at the Garcia home before the police and Garcia grabbed Jessica in a head lock and dragged her back inside the Garcia home, (6) moments later a police officer walked inside the Garcia home, (7) a few minutes after the officer entered the house, she heard three-to-four shots in rapid succession come from inside the house, (8) after a pause, she heard a second series of approximately three shots come from inside the house, (9) Garcia then emerged from the house, pointed a firearm, and fired several shots, at least a few of which struck their vehicle, (10) Garcia fired at her and John Luna as they attempted to flee the scene toward a nearby elementary school, (11) Garcia went back inside the house and she heard several more shots, (12) Garcia emerged from the house a second time holding a big rifle and fired that weapon, striking the truck behind which she was hiding, i.e., the same truck Garcia had driven to the scene, and (13) she saw Garcia chasing after John Luna as she fled for the safety of the school. The then-vice-principal of the nearby Emma Frey Elementary School testified (1) she noticed a police vehicle in front of the Garcia residence when she arrived at school around 7:30 that morning, (2) she later noticed the police vehicle was gone when she saw Jessica outside the Garcia residence between 8:45 and 8:50, (3) around nine a.m. she was alerted to a problem by other staff, (4) as she exited the campus building near the Garcia residence, she saw a man later identified for her as John Luna running toward her who was yelling "Get out of here. He's shooting at everyone," (5) she looked toward the Garcia residence and saw a man in the yard holding a rifle, who then pointed it at her or in her direction, (6) as she and Luna attempted to flee away from the Garcia residence, she heard four shots, (7) the school custodian let her and Luna inside the school, (8) once inside the school, she climbed to the second floor, ordered the school locked down, telephoned school district police, and looked out and saw Garcia with the rifle in the front yard of the Garcia residence walking away from the school, and (9) subsequent examination of the school's exterior disclosed several indentations in the front doors, as well as a hole in a window screen that had not been present before the shootings. The San Antonio Police Officer who arrested Garcia testified (1) he knocked repeatedly and announced himself before entering the Garcia residence, (2) he heard a box of bullets hit the floor and footsteps running his direction, (3) he heard a rifle racking and smelled gunpowder and blood, (4) Garcia came out and pointed an assault rifle at him, (5) when Garcia saw the officer's weapon, Garcia retreated, shouted "I give up," and threw down his rifle, and (6) Garcia thereafter offered no resistance. In his five-page, formal, written statement executed only hours after the fatal shootings, Garcia admits he deliberately fired at officer Garza's head multiple times and then turned his weapon on his wife.

The San Antonio Police Department said in a statement on behalf of Garza's family that the officer was a devoted husband and father committed to protecting his community.

"Though the execution does not bring complete closure to Hector's family, as we all miss him dearly, it comforts us to know that Frank Garcia will never destroy another family," the statement said.

AUTHOR: Officer Hector Garza’s family – Officer Hector Garza and Jessica Garcia was murdered by Frank Garcia in San Antonio, Texas on March 29, 2001. Frank Garcia was executed by lethal injection on Thursday October 27, 2011.

REMEMBERING TYUS SNEED AND KEENAN HUBERT (BOTH DIED ON MARCH 28, 2011 IN WACO, TEXAS)

            On this date, March 28, 2011, two African American teens, Tyus Sneed and Keenan Hubert were both shot dead by Rickey Donnell Cummings. Rickey Donnell Cummings was convicted of capital murder in the March 28, 2011 shooting deaths of Tyus Sneed, 17, and Keenan Hubert, 20, as they sat in the back seat of the car at the Lakewood Villas apartment complex, 1601 Spring St, Waco, Texas. Demontrae Majors, 22, and Marion Bible, 23, who were in the front seat of the car, were wounded but managed to flee to the safety of a nearby apartment. 

            We, the comrades of Unit 1012, were satisfied that Cummings was sentenced to death on Wednesday November 7, 2012, some justice was served here. Let us not forget the two boys by hearing from their parents. Please go to this previous blog post to learn more.

IN MEMORY OF FRANK MEZIERE (DIED: MARCH 26, 1998)

            Let us not forget Frank Meziere who was murdered on this date, March 26, 1998. The Killer, Yokamon Laneal Hearn was executed by lethal injection in Texas on July 18, 2012. Let us hear from his family members:

Frank Meziere

Summary: Frank Meziere had watched a Dallas Mavericks basketball game at a restaurant with a friend and before heading home decided to stop at a self-service car wash to clean his black Mustang convertible. The 23-year-old Plano stockbroker, a 1996 Texas A&M University graduate, never made it home. His body was found the next day, March 26, 1998, along the side of a road in an industrial area of Oak Cliff, an area of south Dallas. Evidence admitted at trial established that on March 25, 1998, then 19-year-old Yokamon Laneal Hearn and three others drove to North Dallas for the expressed purpose of making some money. The group carried with them two shotguns, a .22 caliber pistol, and a Tec-9 automatic. At about 10:30 p.m. the group observed Frank Meziere preparing to wash his 1994 Mustang in a coin-operated car wash. Hearn devised a plan to steal the car and instructed his accomplices how to proceed. Hearn and his companions abducted Frank Meziere at gunpoint and drove him to a secluded location where Hearn used the Tec-9 to shoot Meziere in the face. Meziere died as the result of twelve close-range gunshot wounds to the head and upper body. The assailants then took Frank's wallet and personal items. Hearn then drove away in Meziere’s Mustang in search of a “chop shop” for stolen cars. A city electrician discovered Meziere’s body in a patch of grass in a roadside field around 6:00 am the next morning. Two hours later a patrol officer discovered Meziere’s abandoned Mustang in a shopping center parking lot. Hearn and his companions were caught on videotape by a security camera at a convenience store adjacent to the car wash. Hearn and Delvin Diles were arrested several days later when police acted on a tip they received. Meziere's father said at the time, "I just hope justice can be done as soon as possible. I've always been in favor of the death penalty, and I stand by that now." Dallas County criminal records showed Diles had received 5 years of probation the previous summer after pleading guilty to a felony burglary charge; Hearn had been charged with misdemeanor theft, a case which was still pending at the time of Frank's murder. Physical evidence linked both Hearn and Diles to the car. Diles, 19 at the time, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to consecutive life terms for Meziere's death and an unrelated aggravated robbery. Teresa Shirley, then 19, and Dwight Burley, then 20, were arrested more than 8 months later. Each pleaded guilty to aggravated robbery and received 10-year prison sentences. At Hearn's trial, Shirley testified that she was the driver of the second car. She said that Meziere had his arms raised and appeared to be begging for his life as Hearn swung a Tec-9 semiautomatic rifle back and forth. The rifle, Shirley testified, had been stolen in an apartment burglary the previous day. Hearn fired at Meziere and kept shooting him even after he fell to the ground. Diles also shot at the victim several times with his revolver, she testified. Shirley further testified that Hearn later bragged about the killing. She said he waved around a newspaper account stating that Meziere had been shot in the head - or "domed" in street slang, and he told her, "I told you I domed him. I told you. I told you." At age 19, Hearn had no prior felony convictions. Testimony at his punishment hearing indicated that he had an unadjudicated history of burglary, robbery, sexual assault, and other offenses. A jury convicted Hearn of capital murder in December 1998 and sentenced him to death.

Frank Meziere’s father, brother and uncle were among those who witnessed Hearn’s lethal injection. “We did not come today to view this execution for revenge or to even the score,” the family said afterward in a statement. “What this does is give our family and friends the knowledge that Mr. Hearn will not have the opportunity to hurt anyone else.”