Gustavo Julian Garcia
Born(1972-09-27)September 27, 1972
McKinney, Texas, U.S.
DiedFebruary 16, 2016(2016-02-16) (aged 43)
Huntsville Unit, Huntsville, Texas, U.S.
Cause of deathExecution by lethal injection
Criminal statusExecuted
Conviction(s)Capital murder
Criminal penaltyDeath (December 19, 1991)
Details
VictimsCraig Turski, 43
Gregory Martin, 18
DateDecember 9, 1990
January 5, 1991
CountryUnited States
State(s)Texas
The Ellis Unit housed the State of Texas death row for men until 1999.
Allan B. Polunsky Unit houses the State of Texas death row for men.
Huntsville Unit, where Garcia was executed

Gustavo Julian Garcia Jr.[1] (September 27, 1972[2] – February 16, 2016) was an American prisoner from McKinney, Texas, who was executed for the 1990 murder of Craig Turski.[1]

Profile

Craig Turski, 43, was murdered on December 9, 1990, during the robbery of the Warehouse Beverage Store in Plano, Texas.[1] Garcia, then 18, entered the store and demanded cash as he displayed a sawed-off shotgun. As the victim attempted to escape, Garcia shot Turski in the abdomen, reloaded, and then fatally shot him in the back of the head.[3]

Garcia also participated in a robbery of a Texaco station on January 5, 1991, where he was arrested.[2] Gregory Martin, an 18-year-old clerk, was killed during the course of that robbery.[1][4] His co-defendant was 16-year-old Christopher Vargas, who received a life sentence for capital murder charges. Shelia Maria Garcia, the common-law wife of Gustavo Julian Garcia, was also arrested and received a 20-year sentence on conspiracy to commit robbery.[2] Shelia Garcia was paroled in January 1999.[3]

Incarceration

Garcia arrived on death row on January 8, 1992.[2] He was initially located in the Ellis Unit, but was transferred to the Allan B. Polunsky Unit (formerly the Terrell Unit) in 1999.[5]

Garcia attempted to escape the Ellis Unit death row on Thanksgiving Day 1998, along with six other prisoners, but was arrested after surrendering. Martin Gurule was able to escape but was shot and subsequently drowned.[6]

Garcia received a new sentencing hearing in 2001 after then-Attorney General of Texas John Cornyn learned that Walter Quijano, a psychologist who testified in the trial, had stated at the original trial that black and Hispanic men were more dangerous to society since there were more of them in prison. However, Garcia was again sentenced to death.[7] He resided on Texas's death row for over 25 years before he was executed on February 16, 2016.[1]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Wigglesworth, Valerie. ""McKinney man executed in 1990 capital murder of Plano store clerk" Archived 2016-02-19 at the Wayback Machine
    The Dallas Morning News archive, February 16, 2016; retrieved February 20, 2016.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Garcia profile, Texas Department of Criminal Justice; retrieved February 20, 2016.
  3. 1 2 Walker, Lauren. Garcia death penalty in Texas, newsweek.com; accessed February 20, 2016.
    Newsweek archive. February 16, 2016; retrieved on February 20, 2016.
  4. ↑ "Execution Report: Gustavo Garcia - Page 1". www.txexecutions.org. Retrieved 2022-04-25.
  5. ↑ "Death Row Facts", Texas Department of Criminal Justice; retrieved February 4, 2016.
  6. ↑ "Texas executes inmate who had tried to escape death row", Associated Press at CBS News. February 17, 2016; retrieved February 18, 2016.
  7. ↑ "Was Convicted Murderer Gustavo Julian Garcia Executed Because he Was Latino?" Latina archive, February 17, 2016; retrieved February 20, 2016.
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