After his third drunken driving arrest, a Mission police lieutenant discovered himself with out a job final week.
Mission fired police Lt. David Michael Garcia on June 14 — greater than 4 months after the Palmhurst Police Division charged him with driving whereas intoxicated and unlawfully carrying a weapon.
David Michael Garcia. “Picture courtesy of the Hidalgo County Sheriff’s Workplace.”
“We deny the fees and he’s appealed it to a third-party listening to examiner,” mentioned his lawyer, Roberto “Bobby” Garcia of Edinburg.
The Mission Police Division didn’t reply to a request for remark.
Palmhurst police Sgt. Julio Barajas arrested David Garcia after a site visitors cease on Jan. 26, when his truck hit a curb close to the intersection of North Shary Highway and East 3 Mile Line.
David Garcia had bloodshot eyes and slurred speech, in accordance with the prison criticism towards him.
Barajas might odor beer on David Garcia’s breath. He requested David Garcia to carry out a standardized subject sobriety take a look at.
David Garcia couldn’t preserve his stability, in accordance with the prison criticism. He refused to take a breath take a look at, which compelled the Palmhurst Police Division to request a warrant for a blood pattern.
Palmhurst offered physique digicam video from the incident to the Mission Police Division, which reviewed the footage.
“You inform Sergeant Barajas that you’re sorry for hitting the curb, and that you’re coming from McAllen, and that you simply solely had two beers; that you simply reside down the road. You additionally inform Sergeant Barajas that he can observe you dwelling,” in accordance with the order of indefinite suspension, which the town launched underneath the Texas Public Info Act. “Sergeant Barajas tells you that he’s not going to observe you dwelling, that he can odor alcohol coming from you even with the masks on.”
For cops protected by civil service rules, an indefinite suspension is akin to termination.
David Garcia was charged with driving whereas intoxicated, a Class B misdemeanor, and unlawfully carrying a weapon, a Class A misdemeanor.
“Your actions introduced discredit and humiliation to our division,” in accordance with the order of indefinite suspension.
Why the town waited greater than 4 months to indefinitely droop David Garcia stays unclear.
In keeping with the order of indefinite suspension, Police Chief Robert Dominguez discovered in April that David Garcia had been “afforded a further two weeks by the Metropolis of Mission to ponder resigning.”
The order doesn’t establish the one who afforded David Garcia further time to decide.
In lots of instances, Mission indefinitely suspends cops inside days of an arrest.
Dominguez additionally wrote that in mid-April he turned conscious David Garcia had entered a remedy program for individuals with drug and alcohol issues.
Earlier than the January incident, David Garcia had been arrested on drunken driving expenses in 1996 and 2000.
David Garcia had clashed with Dominguez and Assistant Police Chief Ted Rodriguez earlier than his drunken driving arrest.
In December, he wrote a six-page letter that accused Dominguez and Rodriguez of making a hostile work surroundings.
“I really feel harassed, harassed, and focused by the present administration,” David Garcia wrote to Dominguez, Rodriguez, Civil Service Director Jesse Lerma and Human Assets Director Noemi Munguia.
David Garcia claimed that Dominguez hadn’t taken sexual harassment complaints towards Rodriguez critically and warned that patrol shifts had change into dangerously understaffed.
“I’ve additionally been advised by a number of individuals in administration that (assistant chief) Rodriguez is actively after me and is doing it with Chief Dominguez blessing, so I would like to observe my again,” David Garcia wrote.
Dominguez and Rodriguez strenuously denied the allegations.
