RSSTeen's death is county's 11th homicide of 2009
Yakima Herald-Republic
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YAKIMA, Wash. -- Oscar Garcia, a 16-year-old Yakima boy shot in the head earlier this month in a drive-by, died early Saturday.
His death makes the gang-related shooting the county's 11th homicide this year and further punctuates a recent spate of local violence that includes one other homicide and 10 people injured by gunfire since early May.
Garcia was shot in the 400 block of South Fourth Street late in the afternoon of June 17. Police said he was a known gang member and that it was not the first time they'd been called to the area surrounding the house where Garcia was shot. No arrests have been made in the case.
The bullet entered his brain from the back of his head on the right side, Yakima County Coroner Jack Hawkins said. Garcia had been on life support at Yakima Regional Medical and Cardiac Center since that day and was essentially brain dead, Hawkins said. Garcia's family chose not to disconnect life support, but as the days passed his organs shut down.
"I think the family was holding out for a miracle," Hawkins said.
It never came, and at 1:24 a.m. Saturday, Garcia's heart stopped.
The death is the first homicide in the county since mid-May, when Leonardo Perez was shot in the chest in another incident police believe was gang-related. Perez, 20, was shot May 18 in the 1000 block of North Fourth Street and died the next day.
It keeps the county's homicide rate ahead of last year's pace. At this point last year, seven homicides had occurred. The county finished the year with 18, its second-highest total in more than two decades.
* Pat Muir can be reached at 509-577-7693 or pmuir@yakimaherald.com.
Within the context of Pat's writing, I can't help but ask: Where was the family when their son joined the gang?
Report ViolationMy heart goes out to his family and friends. I know, I know, he was a known gang member so please beat it down someone elses throat. He was more than that, he was a son, a brother, a boyfriend, a student and just a boy. He will be missed and remembered.
Report ViolationI wonder who pays for all this "life Support" while the family "waits for a miracle". Sometimes, especially in instances where a criminal is a victim of his own choices like this, (by joining the gang and hanging out with them, he knew the risks and chose to be there anyway) why it is even necessary to put them on life support when he is already brain dead and was since the get-go. The exception might be if the relatives have medical insurance and can afford to pay the bills, fine, but on the taxpayer, no way.
Too many times, even when the police find it necessary to shoot a perpetrator and he survives, the taxpayers pay the medical bills and then on top of it all, he sues the police and usually gets a retirement out of the deal. If you do the crimes, YOU pay, not us.
Lobo -
The boys parents were there, they were always around, however failed to admit their son was in a gang. To my understanding police would drive by the boys house on a regular basis to check up on the them (because both brothers are Sureno gang members) and parents would often become upset that their son's were being harassed.
For those of you "PARENTS" who are told your children are in gangs....LISTEN !!!!!!! THEY'RE IN GANGS - DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT!
***** DON'T IGNORE THE BLUE/RED SHOE SHOE LACES
***** DON'T IGNORE THE THREE OR FOUR DOTS ON THEIR HANDS
***** DON'T IGNORE THE FRIENDS THEY ARE HANGING OUT WITH
***** DON'T IGNORE THE FACT THEY FAVOR A CERTAIN COLOR
***** DON'T IGNORE THE WRITING ON HIS/HER SCHOOL WORK
***** DON'T LET THEM STAY OUT ALLLLLLL HOURS OF THE NIGHT
***** DON'T IGNORE THE NICKNAMES
***** MORE IMPORTANTLY - WHEN YOU IGNORE THESE SIGNS, YOU'RE IGNORING THE "LIFE" OF YOUR CHILD.
Regardless of his affiliation he was a human being, life has no price.
Millions of tax dollars are wasted on other needless crap, If that money was used here in the US instead of rebuilding country's we helped destroy, then perhaps we wouldn't have all these social issues.
Is it a bad thing someone died? Yes, without question, but it is a good thing it wasn't an innocent bystandard this time. Shooting at each other is what gang members do to each other and every one of them knows it.... thats part of why they do it, to live the Scarface lifestyle.
Report ViolationYeah its time we fired the Sheriff! He hasn't been able to get the gang problem under control...he's hasn't done anything except whine he needs more money for the sales tax for more deputies..and they don't take drug test either. Maybe if them deputies didn't take home those cars he could save enough money to hire deputies without more of this tax money.
Report ViolationImpose Martial Law, call up the Guard and clean the valley up! Or let them rule the valley, hell everything is in spanish any way, so don't let them rule what's left of this third world valley living!!!
Report ViolationI didn't know that speaking spanish was against the law. I've heard asians speaking their language in the stores and I could care less. Latino's speaking spanish doesn't bother me one bit. Most white people love mexican food but hate the people. Ignorant people can't seem to see past that because according to the white supremist, white power, aryan nation, etc...white can do no wrong. They aren't child molesters, they aren't criminals, they aren't meth addicts...and that is what most of these people act like on these blogs. What about the recent coaches, teachers, law enforcement who have committed crimes in the valley? They have sexual relations with children and most of the ignorant speaking smack about the Latino's turn blinders to that. I find that shameful and pathetic. Yet, the ignorant talk like their race is so much better than the others. All were created equal, we all have the same color blood running through our veins, yet the different are treated poor, the 'spanish' speaking are treated like criminals and condemned for speakign their native tongue. Sounds like back in the day when the blacks were forced to sit in back of the bus, etc....racism in Yakima Valley seems to be returning with a vegeance.....
Report ViolationHalbtroken, people should listen to your watch-list of gang signs in their children, from the age of 8 years old and up.
Eloy, fire the sheriff is right - only for allowing this area to become a sanctuary county and not enforcing the laws of our country, including the immigration laws. Legal yes, illegals, get deported.
1mgh, there is absolutely nothing racial about enforcing the laws. There is nothing racial about stating the facts of a crime. One fact is : Most of the violent crimes committed in our area seem to be by Latinos. Just read the names in the paper. There is something distinctive about a Spanish surname - I have yet to see any Smiths or Joneses.
"52-year-old Gwen L. Rusk, has been booked into Yakima County Jail on suspicion of vehicular homicide."
Need I say more..
So a Smith or a Jones may not shoot you, but they may rape your child according to the Yakima County Sex offenders site. Both names are listed there. 104 of 185 of the sex offenders in this county are White with names like Smith, Jones and Anderson.
Latinos are not the only criminals, they make up most of the gange affiliation, but don't worry White dudes and WOMEN (SICKOS) make up the majority of sex offenders IN THIS COUNTY!
By the way the other 81 sex offenders are a mix of latinos, african americans and native americans.
Report ViolationI've given you statistis Nick on other articles you've commented on. And I might add...that the negative comments are always made by you on the articles that YH reports and a Latino is involved....YET....when a white person commits a crime rarely do you comment on that. So...if a racists talks like one...then he is one.....
Mar 7, 1:14 PM EST - 4 people each sentenced in Seattle to jail - Stan PEGRAM, 55; Regina PADGETT, 24; Tristan SSMITH, 24, & Mitchell CCOUNTER, 27, pleaded guilty with rendering criminal assistance in Hanson's death. 2.)Mar 7, 2009 - Drug dealing, plotting armed escape add up to 27-year prison sentence -Glen Ray Briggs & two co-defendants were arrested in April 2007 at a local motel after Briggs had arranged with undercover agents -- not knowing they were agents -- to rob an apparently fictional drug dealer.
Glen Ray BRIGGS and two co-defendants were arrested in April 2007 at a local motel after Briggs had arranged with undercover agents -- not knowing they were agents -- to rob an apparently fictional drug dealer.
Car thief who killed two young men when he crashed while fleeing police gets 36 years in prison
Douglas DEVALL, 47, was arrested on suspicion of possessing drugs and driving while impaired after being convicted of vehicular homicide. He made a preliminary appearance Wednesday in Yakima County Superior Court
Brandon LANDSEN, 22, was found guilty by a jury of first-degree arson in December in Yakima County Superior Court. Duncan, 30, was sentenced to more than six years after pleading guilty. Allaire, 21, pleaded guilty to second-degree arson and was sentenced to six months.
Homicide suspect arrested in Yakima - Investigators believe that MADDON killed 41-year-old Donald PIKE of Yakima sometime between midnight Monday and 3 a.m. Tuesday at a home in the 2100 block of Carey Avenue in Union Gap.
Mark Ellis HUEY was charged with second-degree homicide in the death of Charles Albert "Cap" PALMER, 62. Huey told police he stabbed Palmer after the older man made sexual
advances toward him. (white person committed this crime in 'our' community).
Those are white people names....does that give me the right to stereo type all white people? No. Because I'm not ignorant or stupid to think that all white people are armed robbers, meth addicts, child molesters..etc. And I have never said or claimed that there aren't any Latino's who commit crimes. That would make me ignorant and stupid...I do know that there are Latino's who commit crimes just as I know that people of ALL races commit crimes, etc. It's the ignorant racist person (I won't mention his name, but I'm pretty sure everyone knows who I'm talking about)....who thinks and acts like his race is better than the others.....
Halbtrocken ....well lets see...I favor purple, red, and black....does that make me a gangster? Blue and Red are not the only colors associated with gangs....cops wear blue...does that make them a gangster? Surgeons wear baby blue...firefighters wear dark blue....
Report ViolationTHIS MESSAGE IS FOR NICK......
how come in every blog you speak so low of the mexican race???
Is it you have some thing against us???
well i could really care less about that matter what brings my attention to this blog is Oscar (R.I.P. LIL PUPPET )
So if some one you cared about was in the same postion and were "already brain dead and was since the get-go" you wouldn't want to pray to god to bring them back you?? n hope that maybe a metrical would happen??? EXACTLY SO JUST STOP TALKIN SMAK!!! N as for the money its a part of life you pay taxes any ways!!! smart one!!!
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