Teen was trying to avoid trouble when he was killed, witness says. Alleged shooter faces trial
A 24-year-old Fresno man will go to trial for the shooting death of 16-year-old Robert Hernandez in what a Fresno County judge called a “stupid and pointless” crime.
Pete Garcia IV is charged with killing Hernandez on April 16, 2107 outside a house party on the 2400 block of Sarah Circle in Selma. Garcia is alleged to have wounded two others in the shooting.
If found guilty he could face 66 years to life in prison.
Police said bad blood between rival gangs led to the deadly shooting. Witnesses testified Tuesday that prior to the shooting, Hernandez, of Parlier, had decided to leave the party because he heard someone had a gun. Tensions at the time were high. Several Bulldog gang members were giving hard stares to a few Norteno gang members, a witness said.
“Robby was getting nervous and said he wanted to leave so we started walking out,” said the witness, who asked not to be identified out of concern for his safety. “That’s when we saw that a group of people, including Pete, were following us.”
The witness said he grew up with Garcia but had not seen him in a long time. He also said he suspected Garcia was a Bulldog gang member and one of Hernandez’s friends was a Norteno gang member.
As Hernandez and several of his friends rushed outside to try and drive away, shots rang out, the witness said.
“I saw him (Pete) across the street holding a gun, then I saw the flashes from the gun,” he said.
The witness said he stood frozen as bullets whizzed by him. One of the bullets hit the car near him, sending shrapnel his direction. One piece caught him in the neck and another chunk lodged in his chest.
He squeezed a bullet fragment out of his chest later that night and later gave it to police, he testified.
Prosecutor Ryan Wells asked the witness if he was sure he saw Garcia do the shooting.
“Positive,” the witness said.
After the shooting stopped, the witness said he saw Hernandez on the ground, bleeding.
“Robby said he got hit and I could see blood coming out of his back,” he said.
A second witness wasn’t sure who did the shooting. Under cross examination by defense attorney Emily Takao, the second witness said he heard the gunshots, but did not see who was holding the gun, or guns.
“I just saw some people drive off in a white car,” the witness said.
Judge W. Kent Hamlin ruled that there was an abundant amount of evidence that Hernandez was killed by a gunshot and there is “reasonable probable cause that the defendant was a shooter, if not the sole shooter.”
Garcia will be arraigned on Feb. 19 in Department 31. His bail is set at $1.7 million.
