There has been a delay in the death penalty phase for convicted serial killer Anthony Garcia. The original date was set for March 12th, but it now appears it will be scheduled for May 30th through June 1st.
The delay is designed to give the defense more time to examine Garcia's mental health records.
“The judge continued the hearing on the request of the defense counsel on this mitigating hearing for sentencing of the defendant Garcia. And that’s very frustrating for us, it’s frustrating for the families," says Douglas County Attorney Don Kleine. "We want to get this done. We’ve worked so hard for so long. Law enforcement has, our office has and we just want to finish this,” Kleine says.
Garcia was convicted in the 2008 deaths of Thomas Hunter, the 11-year-old son of Creighton University Medical Center pathologist Dr. William Hunter and the family's housekeeper, Shirlee Sherman, as well as the 2013 deaths of Creighton pathologist Dr. Roger Brumback and his wife Mary.
District Court Judge Gary Randall denied Garcia's motions and overruled his objections to the death penalty. Garcia's attorney had filed five motions which argued, among other things, that sections of Nebraska's death penalty statues were unconstitutional.