Mission attorney takes Alton police to task after client dies in custody

MISSION — A defense attorney is asking the public and police for answers regarding the death of his client who died in Alton police custody.

Carlos A. Garcia said he is seeking answers for the death of 40-year-old Jesus “Jesse” Garcia, who was taken into custody by Alton police for unknown reasons and left intubated in a hospital where he would later die, according to the attorney.

Carlos A. Garcia held a press conference Friday afternoon in order to seek answers that he said Alton police won’t disclose.

He was representing Jesus Garcia for charges of driving while intoxicated and possession of a controlled substance.

“I defended Jesse in his life and I will be defending him in his death,” Carlos A. Garcia said.

The law firm provided a timeline of its version of events which began Sunday afternoon at around 6 p.m. when Jesus Garcia was washing his red pickup truck and shows that he was arrested and taken into police custody an hour later.

According to Carlos A. Garcia, his client was involved in a brief pursuit with Alton police, the Hidalgo County Sheriff’s Office and the Texas Department of Public Safety before being arrested.

Prior to the pursuit, from what Carlos A. Garcia said he understands, there was an accident involving someone hitting a carport or garage, which is believed to have happened around North Bryan Road in Alton.

“That’s how law enforcement first came,” Carlos A. Garcia said.

He said that Jesus Garcia’s family attempted to film the altercation between Jesus Garcia and police, but were told that they would be arrested for doing so.

The family, Jesus Garcia’s wife and four sons, could only listen to Jesus’ “wailing,” according to his attorney.

“We’ve interviewed the family members,” Carlos A. Garcia said. “There was some sort of car accident that he was involved in. There was some sort of a short pursuit where law enforcement was following him or chasing him, he went onto somebody’s yard.”

A photo of Jesus Garcia being intubated shows various head injuries and multiple scrapes on his shoulders and upper body.

According to Carlos A. Garcia, the vehicle sustained damage to the front left side, but the windshield wasn’t cracked.

“Nothing that would support this type of injury to his head,” Carlos A. Garcia said while pointing at the enlarged photo of Jesus Garcia in the hospital.

Jesus Garcia ended up in intensive care on life support Monday morning at about 1:30 a.m.

Carlos A. Garcia was then called by the family to look into the matter and found Jesus Garcia intubated at a local hospital with his organs failing.

Jesus Garcia would later die from his injuries early Tuesday morning at around 4 a.m.

Carlos A. Garcia said he is asking law enforcement what steps were taken in order to assist his client during his “crisis.”

He also questioned why Alton police can’t release the body cam footage of the incident.

Carlos A. Garcia emphasized that Jesus Garcia doesn’t have a history of violence and that jail records would support his statement.

So far, all he’s learned is that the Texas Rangers are investigating the incident and that a police officer from the Alton Police Department hired a police union lawyer.

When he asked if he could speak to the officer, Carlos A. Garcia said he was told he’d have to wait two weeks.

Alton Police Chief Mark Perez provided a statement to The Monitor regarding the death of Jesus Garcia and addressed Carlos A. Garcia’s concerns surrounding the police reports and evidence.

“We requested an independent review from the Texas Rangers to be transparent,” Perez said. “It’s unfortunate that something like this happened. [The Texas Rangers] have all our evidence, dash cam, body cam and stuff like that.

“For the integrity of the case, we have to refer everything to the Ranger’s office.”

Perez added that he spoke to the Alton city manager who said that Carlos A. Garcia can request police reports through public information requests and they would gladly disclose whatever he may need.

Carlos A. Garcia is asking the public for information regarding the Sunday incident by calling his law firm at (956) 584-1448.