Sunday, 03/11/07

Tennessean.com

Local Update: Immigrant's case goes to court next week

      Gustavo Reyes Garcia

THEN: On the afternoon of June 8, 2006, Gustavo Reyes Garcia, fleeing from police, caused a wreck that killed Mt. Juliet couple Sean and Donna Wilson, authorities say.

Garcia, a 29-year-old who is in the country illegally, was well-known to police. He had been arrested on more than a dozen occasions that included multiple DUI charges, evading arrest and leaving the scene of an accident.

Despite his arrest history, federal authorities didn't place an immigration hold on him all the times he was jailed before the deadly crash. He is now in Metro Jail with an immigration hold.

NOW: A jury trial for Garcia begins March 19. He is charged with two counts of vehicular homicide while intoxicated and evading arrest. Regardless of the outcome of the trial, the Garcia case has became a flashpoint for Middle Tennesseans fed up with undocumented immigrants committing crimes. A man who was injured in the wreck last summer is suing Garcia, his girlfriend, the city of Lakewood and some of its officers.