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Mother given bail to seek mental care

Her lawyers say she needs better treatment than is offered in jail, where she was awaiting trial on two counts of attempted murder.

By JORGE SANCHEZ
Published August 1, 2006

INVERNESS - In a rare move, a mother charged with two counts of attempted first-degree murder was granted bail Monday so she could try to get psychiatric treatment while awaiting trial.

Krystal Garza, charged with two counts of attempted murder after police say she tried to kill two of her children in May, will live with her father in Chassahowitzka and try to get into a psychiatric treatment facility while free on $1,000 bail.

Garza, 37, faces a maximum sentence of 60 years in prison if convicted of the charges, prosecutors said. No trial date has been set.

She has been held in the Citrus County jail since her arrest, and her attorney said she needs better psychiatric treatment than is offered at the jail.

Investigators say Garza, apparently overwhelmed by the stress of caring for two mentally challenged sons and two daughters, snapped on the evening of May 31.

She ran a hose from the exhaust pipe of her car to the interior, and then went for a drive. She took along her twin 14-year-old sons, Jacob and Jeremy. Both have cerebral palsy, are in wheelchairs and can speak only a few words.

A passing motorist saw what was taking place and called the Sheriff's Office. Garza was arrested. The boys were not injured. As a precaution, they were taken to a hospital, examined and later released.

They now live with their father in Texas. Garza's daughters still live in Homosassa and are being cared for by a relative.

In successfully arguing for bail, attorney Kenneth Foote, who is representing her for free, implied the state may have been too harsh in charging her with attempted murder.

"Looking at the evidence, there are serious issues with the state's ability to prove them," Foote said.

He also mentioned that Garza is a Citrus County native, she has never failed to appear for any court hearing and she is under a Department of Children and Families order that prohibits contact with any of her children.

He said she had one prior arrest for battery in 2002, to which she pleaded no contest and was sentenced to one year's probation, records show.

Prosecutor William Catto said that "this is a unique case" and wanted Garza put on electronic surveillance.

"We have no problem with her being released to a psychiatric facility. We just don't want her on the streets."

Circuit court judge Ric A. Howard brushed aside that motion, saying "I'm not going to do that."

Instead, he questioned Garza's father, George Parker, who promised to take care of his daughter and make sure she complied with the DCF and the court's orders.

"You realize, that if she doesn't do what she's supposed to, I can send her to jail, and I can send you to jail as well?" Judge Howard asked.

Parker said he understood the circumstances.

About a dozen relatives of Garza attended the bail hearing. Afterward, they gathered in a hallway outside the courtroom, shedding tears of joy and hugging each other.

"Things are not always as they seem," Parker said of the charges against his daughter.

Jorge Sanchez can be reached at sanchez@sptimes.com or 352 860-7313.

[Last modified July 31, 2006, 21:34:48]