Woman convicted in twins death denied new trial
Jul. 15—A Midland woman sentenced to 40 years in prison for killing twin girls in an alcohol-related crash three years ago was denied a new trial Friday and did not have her sentence reduced either.
Angelica Garcia was sentenced June 9 to two consecutive 20-year prison sentences in the July 3, 2019 deaths of Mia and Mya Coy. The 34-year-old pleaded guilty to two counts of intoxicated manslaughter on the second day of her trial and left her sentencing up to the jury.
The jurors opted to give her two, 20-year sentences and Judge Denn Whalen of the Ector County 70th District Court opted to run the sentences consecutively instead of concurrently.
Standing in front of a couple dozen loved ones of the victims, defense attorney Michael McLeaish asked Whalen to reconsider Garcia's sentence saying he was "devastated and angry" following the sentencing hearing.
McLeaish noted that in January 2019, Whalen sentenced Mark Garrett, now 28, to 20 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to three counts of intoxication manslaughter and three counts of intoxication assault. Garrett could have received as much as 90 years in prison.
Police arrested Garrett June 22, 2017, after his Dodge Challenger slammed into an ice cream van, which caused both vehicles to burst into flames. The wreck killed the three passengers inside the van — Richard Mackrell, 63; his wife, Barbara Mackrell, 46 and Angel Pierce, 28. The wreck seriously injured Garrett, who was drunk, and his three teenage passengers, Maurice Green, Mikaila Bazan and Alexis Dominguez.
A man who has sex with a 3-year-old is evil. A murderer who intentionally kills is evil, McLeaish said. His client is not evil despite what people are saying on social media, he said.
Up until July 3, 2019, Garcia was a happily married woman of two without a criminal record, he said. On that night she had too much to drink and made a horrible decision to drive, he said.
"It could be my wife sitting here. It could be half of the jury. It would be you. It could be me. It could be Ms. Williams," McLeaish said, referring to Assistant District Attorney Melissa Williams.
As for his motion for a new trial, McLeaish argued in his written motion that the statute Whalen used when sentencing Garcia "is unconstitutional in that it deprives this defendant of her right to trial by jury, including her right to be sentenced by a jury pursuant to her election filed prior to trial." He reiterated that argument Thursday.
Williams told the judge the Garrett and Garcia cases are "apples and oranges" because Garrett's sentence was stipulated as part of his plea agreement. Garcia had many opportunities to enter a plea agreement, but chose not to, she said.
She also argued against the motion for a new trial, noting the statutes allow judges to "stack" sentences as long as they don't exceed the maximum term set by statute.
Whalen told McLeaish that while he "understood and appreciated" his position, he was denying both motions.
McLeaish informed the judge his client would be pursuing her right to appeal.
