Trial opens for woman charged in drunken crash that killed man walking back to work release

Yahoo

2 days ago

A trial opened Monday for a woman accused of drunkenly hitting and killing a man walking in the middle of Taft Street back to work release in January 2020 after his McDonald's shift.
Christian Megan Garza, 30, is charged with several felonies. She pleaded not guilty.
The victim, Andreas Ramos, 27, of Chicago, was still lying on her hood when Garza's father arrived minutes later to help. She claimed she hit a deer.
In opening statements, Deputy Prosecutor Shannon Philips told jurors that Garza had been drinking 'Don Julio' tequila with 'Squirt' at a Jan. 18, 2020, birthday party in St. John.
She loaded her 4-year-old daughter into a car seat in her red Volkswagen. On a cold and icy night, Garza decided to take an alternate route to avoid the curvy and twisty 93rd Avenue back to her parents' Crown Point home — where she also lived.
She got into the turn lane about 1,000 feet before the light, before hitting Ramos just after midnight. The crash happened near 91st and Taft Street in Merrillville.
There was 'no attempt' to break or swerve, Philips said.
Defense lawyer Susan Severtson clarified it was Garza's toddler niece's party.
Her parents went home first. She didn't see Ramos.
Ramos was wearing a black jacket with 'fur' trim, which is why Garza could have believed the man was an animal, the defense lawyer said.
Garza consented to a blood draw, which showed she was above the legal limit, court documents show.
'No one could have avoided this accident,' Severtson said. 'That was the cause, not any…intoxication.'
Ramos was 'violating the rules of the road' by walking in the middle of the turn lane, Severtson said.
Court documents show Sgt. Jeff Bunnell told Merrillville Detective Jeff Rice that Ramos was an inmate in the Lake County Community Corrections Kimbrough Work Release Center.
Men commonly seen walking in the middle turn lane on Taft Avenue in Merrillville – a busy street with long stretches without sidewalks – are typically returning from their jobs to work release while they serve their terms.
Police estimated Garza drove 644 feet with Ramos still on her car, documents note. Officers also found an empty vodka bottle in her vehicle.
On Monday, Lydia Ramos, the victim's mother, testified briefly.
Armando Garza, the defendant's father, said the child's party started around 5:30 p.m. He admitted he had a couple beers, but said he was good to drive.
He wasn't sure if his daughter was drinking before admitting he saw her with a red solo cup.
He arrived home shortly before his daughter called. She pulled over in a former Ultra grocery store parking lot. It was immediately clear there was a man on her hood.
'It's not a deer you hit,' he said. 'It's a person.'
She was 'shocked,' 'scared,' 'nervous' and 'crying.'
The father called 911.
When the dispatcher asked if she used drugs or alcohol that night, he said no.
He told defense co-counsel Roy Dominguez that they were all traumatized – 'Nobody's seen anything like that.'
Wouldn't it have made more sense to have his wife drive him, their daughter and granddaughter home, Philips later asked.
I wasn't impaired, Armando replied.
The woman is charged with seven felonies – two counts each of causing death when operating a motor vehicle with an ACE of .08 or more, causing death when operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated, operating a vehicle while intoxicated – endangering a person less than 18 yrs old.
She's also charged with neglect of a dependent and five misdemeanors.
The case is before Judge Natalie Bokota with Deputy Prosecutor Jacob Brandewie also assigned.
Ramos is survived by two children, according to his obituary. A judge approved a $92,000 payout from Garza's sister's homeowner's insurance policy in October.
Ramos was sentenced to two years of work release in December 2019 in a robbery case.
'Without having sidewalks on Taft, it does make it challenging,' Lake County Community Corrections Executive Director Kellie Bittorf said Tuesday. The program oversees the Kimbrough work release center.
They give inmates safety vests to wear at night if they have to walk back from work, she said. They give out Gary bus passes and 'strongly encourage' them to use it. But, sometimes the scheduling or bus stops don't line up.
They have had a bus stop put right in front of the center and are currently working to buy bus passes in bulk, she said. If approved, they also let inmates drive or have family members take them to work.
'We do our best to avoid having them to walk, to provide those resources,' she said.
The trial continues this week.
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