ArchivesRaul Garcia, the 16-year-old charged with manslaughter in the July 6 shooting of his classmate, Sofia Palma, was released from jail to his parents.
 A day after members of the community marched in the name of gun-safety, Santa Cruz County Superior Court Judge Pro Tempore Kimberly Corsaro released Raul Garcia from jail to his parents. |
His attorney Thomas Fink hammered the county attorney’s office, because he said prosecutors failed to meet the burden of proof called for by the Arizona Constitution and Rule 7 of the Arizona Rules of Criminal Procedure. They specify a person has the right to be released prior to a conviction unless the state demonstrates that a person is likely to abscond and demonstrates tendencies that could prove dangerous to others, Fink said.
“A life has been lost,” he said. “Another one equally as promising hangs in the balance. We don’t play loose with the law when a kid’s life is in the balance. We have to follow the law to the letter.
“When prosecutors do not meet the burden established on them by the law to bring forth evidence to rebut a presumption in favor of release and when prosecutors fail to realize they have no such evidence, we look to judges to step in and apply the law,” Fink said.
Garcia is being tried as an adult and was in a special facility at the Pinal County Jail in Florence on a $250,000 bond.
The prosecution had agreed to reducing the bond amount to $100,000.
But Corsaro released him to his parents and placed him under house arrest. She ordered that he be assessed for “counseling purposes.” He may leave his family’s home in Nogales only to attend school, work or counseling, she said.
Deputy County Attorney Jessica Silva had argued that “the charges alone are enough to give the court pause to consider whether Mr. Garcia is a flight risk. Anyone facing such charges is bound to be scared.”
But Fink had told the court about listening to the recording of Garcia’s 911 call after police say and he has admitted to pointing a 9 mm handgun he thought was not loaded at Palma’s head and pulling the trigger.
Other teenagers in the room who were witnesses to the shooting ran. But Garcia remained and administered CPR and called police. “If there was an instant to flee and run, that was it,” Fink said, “Yet, he stayed and called 911.”
Matt Davidson, an attorney advocating for the parents and family of Palma, said Garcia was warned twice to stop playing with the handgun, “once by the girl who is now dead.”
He argued that the shooting itself showed “a degree of recklessness and danger to the community.”
He added that an investigation is not complete and that police are checking into reports that one of the witnesses said Garcia pointed the gun and put it down “several times before it went off.”
Fink snapped, saying Davidson’s comments were “disingenuous.”
He said, “The investigation has been completed. Police ran down that lead and it did not bear out.”
Earlier during the hearing, Fink called Garcia to the witness stand. He pointed out that Garcia had garnered his General Education Degree in less than a month while he was in jail. He noted Garcia did not have to study for the GED examination and passed it.
Under questioning, Garcia told Fink he plans to finish high school in Tucson and then attend the University of Arizona to pursue a law degree.
Silva then asked to approach the judge’s bench where she argued that the questioning about his schooling and future plans had no relevance to the hearing. But Fink countered that it was “clearly germane” as it demonstrated that if he has aspirations and plans, there is less of a flight risk. The judge agreed.
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Ugly Dog wrote on Feb 3, 2010 8:56 PM:
Raul's family is suffering
do you think that just bcuz Raul breathes, eat, and sleeps makes them the same happy family? Well NO! bcuz i am definitely sure that Raul has died inside too..
i knoe i would if i had accidently shot a friend, it doesnt change that he was very naive and neglecting by using that gun
but COME ON! RIP- Sofia Palma
and to your beloved family, i wish them the best, may your memory portray and and be blessed in our presence
and sorry about your "friends" who left you there, i wasn't your best friend, but i care(d). i still mourn for you even IF i wasn't close to you.
Raul, may your consious be saved. Bcuz what you're going through is self imprisonment of guilt and depression.
I Love You Both <3 "
Disgusted wrote on Aug 25, 2009 7:06 PM:
Common sense and reality, he killed, he took a precious life, he must pay for his action. It was not an accident don't people get it? An accident occurs when the gun goes off by itself and it didn't he pulled the trigger.
What about those kids "supposed friends" that left, didn't tell their parents until the police went for them and took them to the P.D. What are their consequences? Shouldn't they be held accountable for fleeing a scene of a crime and hindering or witholding information?
Not too long ago a similar tragedy happended and if I am not mistaken that person (the friend who fled the scene) was arrested and never released.
Meanwhile all we can do is leave it in the hands of god and pray for Sofia's family as they are the ones whos' suffering we can not even imagine. "
Sophias family member says... wrote on Aug 22, 2009 9:00 PM:
Common Sense wrote on Aug 22, 2009 1:16 PM:
eventually things will get to Raul if he gets away with this and u know how nogales is they will make fun of him, disrespect him or bully him till he reaches a point of no return and commits suicide or kills someone and say he didint mean it. "
Just wrote on Aug 21, 2009 5:52 PM:
People People wrote on Aug 20, 2009 6:26 PM:
Concerned wrote on Aug 20, 2009 3:56 PM:
Concerned wrote on Aug 20, 2009 9:11 AM:
George Wilgers wrote on Aug 19, 2009 9:43 AM:
There also is a distrubing undertone of presumed premeditaion within some of the posts. Had there been any evidence of premeditation, Mr. Garcia would have been charged with Murder, not Manslaughter.
The question about who owns and brought the gun are valid. Those individuals or individual should share equally in the crime as there actions set the stage for this tragedy. That would be justice. But what does the law say? "
Jose Muz wrote on Aug 18, 2009 10:09 PM:
I agree... wrote on Aug 18, 2009 9:38 PM:
This is why I believe that this teen should remain incarcerated - to save his life! The lawyers might just be all about the money, reputation, and results, especially if he is released. But, Everyone in that court room has the opportunity to save his life... keep him in prison for his own sake! "
A Professional wrote on Aug 18, 2009 5:43 PM:
I have a degree in Psychology and I've been studying this case since the beginning everyone keeps saying Raul, this Raul that, but how about the other kids that were there? I've listened to the 911 call several times and there are some kids in the background during the first two minutes of the call. So yes! Raul pulled the triger, Raul commited the crime, but why the the other kids runned??? If they stayed for a little while, who has said that Raul was the one who threw the gun down the hill, what happened while Raul was on the phone trying to find the name of the street? one of Those kids could have put sophia in a car a drove less than 1 mile to the hospital. Looking as this case in a professional way, Raul yes, killed Sophie, but he was a kid that was trying to fit in this little group of so called popular kids. All of you that are part "Lynch Mob" as it was well said by one other bloggers, have stopped to think about the other kids?, we keep talking about Raul, we need to wait until the trial starts, to see what really happened. On my very particular opinion...There is alot of things that we don't know and there is a reason Raul was released.
Thanks "
Nogalian wrote on Aug 18, 2009 5:26 PM:
No if you do it it would be pre-meditated murder, because you already know what you are going to do. An also you said it in public... There "
loving friend wrote on Aug 18, 2009 5:17 PM:
Sofia's death has taught me so many things. before there were so many times where i would have volunteerly picked up a gun to kill myself but once the class of 2011 lost there classmate, my life changed unbelieveably. sofia demonstrated to me that i should appreciate life. everyday i wake up should be a blessing. no matter what gets thrown at me, i can't dwell on that. life goes on. if i could tell sofia one thing it would be thank you. thank you for helping me realize how inconsiderate and selfish i have been.
I love our community but i think that we must move on. Sofia will always be in our heats,but we must learn to dwell on everything good. life is beautiful, appreciate it. "
only in america wrote on Aug 18, 2009 4:45 PM:
MR. S wrote on Aug 18, 2009 4:45 PM:
It Means That If I get staight A's Honor Rolls Everything you get to kill Anyone and not Go to Jail....... "
Jonathan M. wrote on Aug 18, 2009 2:51 PM:
A parent too... wrote on Aug 18, 2009 10:59 AM:
I think people are so concerned with punishing Raul and keeping Sofia's memory alive to do this, that it is extremely detrimental to the other victims in this tragedy, namely the rest of the teenagers affected by this incident.
The students need to see closure. They need to return to normalcy. They need to see the community move on.
I am all for remembering Sofia, to educate the community about gun control and safety; I am opposed to the "Lynch Mob" mentality some folks are exhibiting. That is neither justice nor will it help our community or our children. "
The Co-Killer wrote on Aug 17, 2009 11:53 PM:
Ms. Georgia wrote on Aug 17, 2009 10:55 PM:
Hey kids where is your common sense??? "
Hey... wrote on Aug 17, 2009 5:03 PM:
PV wrote on Aug 17, 2009 5:00 PM:
Me wrote on Aug 17, 2009 4:57 PM:
So what if he didn't run away to Mexico, the foreign country you'tr talking about. At least there they would hvae done something to him.
As far as age goes... a felon is a felon, and a killer is a killer, regardless of age and regardles of whether you had malitious intent or not.
And I am so sorry, but a "prison is not just a prison, even if it's full of family and friends." You might want to ask the inmates "housed" in real prisons. hey would probably tell you that you're wrong too, well you can tell them that. Oh, and I'm pretty sure that he might want "normality" back in his busy schedule. Maybe he can show the Palma family and friends what normality is since they are able to go on witht eir daily routines.
You need to understand that "you do the crime, you do the time" is the just thing to do in this case. We're not asking for the death penalty, we're just asking for the right closure for these families.
How many take advantage of a second chance. He should have taken advantage of the "second chance" to put the gun down before he committed the crime.
Let's just bring all the felons out of "real prison cells" and put them back in their homes so that mom can have some menudo ready when they wake up from their dream. Think outside the box!!! "
George Wilgers wrote on Aug 17, 2009 1:27 PM:
The harsh reality is this. I fear for Mr. Garcia. Not because of the crime he committed, how ever accidental it may or may not be. Not because greiving family members and friends may try to take matters into their own hands. But because, statistically speaking, teens who have committed this sort of crime in the past have almost always ended up committing suicide. That would not be justice, that would only be a compounding of the tragedy. "
people stop wrote on Aug 17, 2009 11:28 AM:
Response to for the community wrote on Aug 17, 2009 11:10 AM:
What about the pain and suffering this young man has cause Sofia’s family, especially Sofia’s mother. He has destroyed her life for ever - Actually, all of Sofia’s family forever!!!!!!
PS: Why did he lie during the 911 call and was conscious to think about lying and throwing away the gun in the back yard, not too emotionally to try to cover up lies though! Hmm………….
Way to go Judge Corsaro and Attorney Fink, what a disappoint for Santa Cruz County! "
For the community wrote on Aug 16, 2009 5:53 PM:
Absurd wrote on Aug 16, 2009 12:53 PM:
Hopeless in Nogales wrote on Aug 16, 2009 12:48 PM:
Brilliant Youth Message wrote on Aug 16, 2009 12:46 PM:
Hope wrote on Aug 14, 2009 10:30 PM:
Harold S. wrote on Aug 14, 2009 1:46 PM:
Only in America can you KILL someone with a gun and still go home and eat dinner when the day is over!
DISGUSTING!!!! "
Just ME wrote on Aug 14, 2009 12:34 PM:
I believe that the wrong message is being sent here to the young citizens all over the country. You can be 16, kill someone by "accident" and get a second chance. I bet you that if this crime would have been committed by someone older, less popular the defense would be different.
Let's just let teens commit such crimes and see if they get another chance in life. So what if Mr. Garcias has potential in life... so did Miss Palma. Oh, Mr. Garcias also ad the potential to play with guns, and the potential to take a life with it. So what if he called 911... that's what you're supposed to do, it was nothing out of the ordinary. Let's play the "I play with guns, then I call 911, and I get away with it" game people!!!
This is just sickening!!! "