GUILLERMO and JOSE LUIS GARCIA - 1 and 3 yo (2010) - San Antonio TX

SAN ANTONIO — A
woman stood outside her north San Antonio home Tuesday afternoon and
met police by holding out her hands and saying, “I just killed my babies.”

Police Chief
William McManus said the woman, 22, was calm as she allowed herself to
be handcuffed. McManus said police then forced their way into the house
on Weizmann Street near Blanco Road because the door had been locked.

Once inside, they
found her two sons, ages 1 and 3, dead. The boys were dressed and lying
on their backs in a bed, shoulder to shoulder, the chief said.

“It looked like they were sleeping,” he said.

McManus said it appeared the children may have been killed up to eight hours earlier.

“This is just unspeakable tragedy,” he said, adding that officers also were
confronted with the smell of gas once inside the house because the
home's oven had been left on.

The children's mother was taken into custody and was questioned at police headquarters.

After her arrest, as she was being escorted from police headquarters to the magistrate
for arraignment, the woman told reporters: “You all need to (expletive) off.”

According to county records, the woman was identified as Elyse Colon and was charged with
two counts of capital murder. Bond was set at $1 million on each count.

McManus said police responded to the house in the 100 block of Weizmann Street at about 5
p.m. after receiving a 911 call from the home. Authorities believe it
was Colon who made the call.

The small blue structure appears to be a detached garage or outbuilding behind another
house at the same address and is almost hidden from view.

McManus said it wasn't a bloody scene and added it was unclear if there were multiple stab wounds to the bodies.

He said there have been previous calls to the home for family violence, but not child abuse.

He also said the boys' father is jailed for being an illegal immigrant, but he didn't have further details.

Public records searches show that in October, Colon applied for a protective order
against a man named Luis A. Garcia-Pacheco, who was also listed as
living at the address where the crime occurred.

Crime records show that Garcia-Pacheco had been arrested in 2009 for assault bodily
injury-family violence and again for assault-family violence, second offense.

He was arrested for illegal entry last year as well, public records show.

Betty Estrada, 48, lives across the street and said she was returning from dinner when she
saw the commotion. Estrada said she saw Colon standing with police and
noticed that there appeared to be blood on her arms.

Then, she said, she saw the grandmother of the boys arrive at the house.

“She was crying so hard and screaming, ‘My babies, my babies,'” Estrada said.

Estrada walked over to her, gave her a hug and asked if she could help. The grandmother
thanked her but said she was waiting on her sister.

Neighbors said the boys' mother mostly kept to herself, but when she did venture out with
her children, she would be carrying the youngest. However, several
neighbors said Colon appeared “out of it.”

Angelica Puentes, 34, a mother of five, said she had talked to the woman a couple of
times and said she seemed like she was in a daze. The children,
however, appeared to be “normal, happy boys.”

Puentes said she has seen police at the address more than once but never thought something like this could have happened.

She said she saw the woman standing in the driveway before police took her away.

“She wasn't crying or anything,” she said. “She seemed completely calm.”

Puentes said it's terrible that something like this has to happen when there are programs available to help parents in need.

McManus echoed those sentiments.

“There are people here to help,” McManus said. “There are resources available and we urge
anyone having trouble to find the people who are there to help.”
Around 10 p.m., a white minivan pulled up to the driveway of the home and the bodies of the boys were removed

SAN ANTONIO — A 22-year-old
woman stabbed her two young sons to death, then calmly held her wrists
out to police officers who arrived at her home and said "I killed my
babies," authorities said.
Elyse Marsyl Colon was being held Wednesday on two counts of capital murder
of a child in the deaths of her sons, 3-year-old Jose Luis Garcia and
1-year-old Guillermo Garcia. Her bond was set at $2 million.
"Words can't describe the scene," San Antonio police Chief William McManus said. "It was unspeakably sad."
Colon was waiting outside her home when officers arrived Tuesday evening and
put her hands behind her back as they approached, police said. When an
officer asked "What happened?", Colon allegedly responded with, "I
killed my babies."
An officer kicked in the locked front door of the home and found the boys lying on a bed,
according to police. After Colon was placed in the patrol car, she
allegedly told police, "Their father was in jail, I want him to know."
Public records show that Luis Alonso Garcia, who lived at the same address,
was arrested in September for illegal entry and for family assault, a
third-degree felony. More information was not immediately known.
Jail records indicated Colon did not have an attorney. She cursed at
reporters while being taken to court for arraignment late Tuesday. She
wore jeans, black ankle boots and a black "Don't Mess with Texas" skull
cap when arrested, according to the police report.
The attack occurred less than three miles from the home where prosecutors
say a woman decapitated and butchered her 3-week-old boy last summer.
The woman, Otty Sanchez, is charged with capital murder.
On Colon's street, neighbor Angelica Puentes, 34, said she had talked to
the woman a couple of times and said she seemed like she was in a daze.
"They can't speak for themselves, they can't defend themselves," Puentes told
San Antonio television station KSAT. "They're very vulnerable right
now. She just took advantage of that for whatever reason, I don't know."
State child welfare officials said Wednesday they were still looking into
whether their agency had previously investigated the family.

A Child Protective Services caseworker visited the home of Elyse Marsyl Colon the day before her two young sons were stabbed to death and had found nothing amiss.
It was a routine visit that began with Colon hugging the caseworker, welcoming her into her North Side home and thanking her for being there, said Mary Walker, a CPS spokeswoman.
“Nothing,” Walker said. “There was absolutely nothing that would indicate that this mother would go out and hurt her children.”
It made hearing the news of the double homicide all the more shocking, Walker said.
Authorities said Colon, 22, stabbed her boys to death Tuesday, then stood outside her home in the 100 block of Weizmann Street and met police by holding out her hands and saying, “I killed my babies.”
Inside the patrol car, Colon said, “Their father is in jail. I want him to know.”
Colon remained in Bexar County Jail on two counts of capital murder in the deaths of her children, Guillermo Garcia, 19 months, and Jose Luis Garcia, 3. Her bonds totaled $2 million.
Bexar County spokeswoman Linda Tomasini said the children's father, Luis A. Garcia-Pacheco, found out about the slayings around 1:45 p.m. Wednesday.
A clergyman and a nun told him about the deaths, which the Bexar County medical examiner's office said were caused by “multiple sharp force injuries.”
He was “very distraught and emotional,” Tomasini said.
A longtime family friend of Colon said other relatives also were in shock. Attempts to reach the family weren't successful Wednesday. Relatives did not return calls, nor did anyone answer the door at Colon's mother's house.
Martha Arkeen, 82, said she spoke with Colon's aunt Wednesday morning.
“They don't know what happened to Elyse, they thought she had just snapped,” said Arkeen, who has known Colon's mother since childhood. “But I don't know what could have caused her to murder those sweet little children.”
The slayings also moved some San Antonio residents to respond by visiting the fenced rental property.
Birdie Zuniga, 47, and her son, Tom Cruz Zuniga, 22, brought three teddy bears as a tribute to the boys, whom they never met. Wearing hoods to protect them from the noon downpour, they waded through the rain's runoff, walked to a tree, set down the bears and prayed.
Birdie Zuniga cried as she walked away.
The three bears, wrapped in plastic to protect them from rain, later were moved to a fence closer to the home.
There was no indication of what happened inside the powder-blue home that sits behind another house.
Police Chief William McManus said it wasn't a bloody scene when officers arrived Tuesday afternoon to investigate a reported cutting.
Colon was nonchalant as one officer placed her in handcuffs while the other kicked in the home's locked front door, police said.
Once inside, police discovered the two boys lying on the bed, shoulder to shoulder, McManus said.
Authorities said the parent's history was fraught with domestic violence.
In 2009, police were called to the house nine times, records showed. On two of those occasions, May 23 and Sept. 30, Garcia-Pacheco was arrested on a family violence charge.
It was because of the family violence that CPS began working with Colon in May, after someone — whose name wasn't disclosed — called the agency, Walker said.
She said Colon admitted to a history of violence between her and the boys' father.
“The children were not hurt but (the investigation) did find they were physically neglected because they were in the middle of all this,” Walker said.
She said the case was transferred in August to the Family Safety Services division, which provides services to strengthen families and “give the mom the tools to keep the kids protected.”
The May referral was the third the agency had received in as many years, Walker said. The others were for allegations of drug abuse, but Colon and her sons all tested negative for any illegal drug use, according to Walker.
The boys' father has been jailed since his September arrest. Authorities said at that time Garcia-Pacheco also was charged with entering the country illegally and was placed on a federal detainer.
In October, Colon applied for a protective order for herself and her two sons. The order was agreed upon on Nov. 5 to last for two years, according to court documents.
She was working at keeping her family together and also was trying to find a job, Walker said.
“We're still reviewing the case because we want to make sure we did solid casework,” she said. “It appears preliminarily that we did all we could do to keep something like this from happening.”
Arkeen said Colon just didn't seem capable of the crime she told police she committed.
“Elyse was always so sweet, soft-spoken and quiet,” she said, adding she seemed like a good mother. “I just don't understand how this could happen. Those poor little innocent angels.”

If any threat existed against the two small boys living with their
parents in a weathered North Side house, officials said, it was their
father.
Authorities had responded to the home on Weizmann Street, near
Blanco Road, six times in six months for reports of domestic violence.
In late September, the tension appeared to escalate, with three 911
calls made in four days, police records show, culminating with the
arrest of the father, Luis Garcia-Pacheco.
With his Sept. 30 arrest on a battery charge, the apparent threat
was removed — or so thought a Child Protective Services caseworker, who
had visited the home seven times that month.
Through last Monday, the caseworker made 26 other scheduled and
unscheduled visits and became increasingly confident that the boys'
mother, Elyse Marsyl Colon, was becoming a better parent, a CPS
official said.
But the day after the caseworker's final visit last week, the young
brothers were stabbed to death. Police said Colon, 22, met officers
outside the house Tuesday and held out her hands, saying: “I just
killed my babies.”
Colon was charged with two counts of capital murder and remains
jailed in lieu of posting $2 million bail. The slayings of Guillermo
Garcia, 19 months, and Jose Luis Garcia, 3, marked the first child
killings this year in San Antonio.
Authorities on Saturday said the disappearance of 9-month-old
Gabriel Johnson now is being investigated as a homicide. His mother,
who last was seen with her son in San Antonio, remains jailed in
Arizona.
Last year, five children were killed in San Antonio, allegedly by their caregivers.
Authorities have released few other details about last week's killings of Guillermo and Jose Luis, including a possible motive.
District Attorney Susan Reed, though, said there is more to the case than has been made public.
“Drugs are a very big part of why people do things like this,” Reed
said by phone. “We may learn more about that as this case develops.”
Authorities haven't said whether Colon might have been using drugs at the time of the killings.
Mary Walker, a CPS spokeswoman, said someone reported in 2006 and
again in 2008 that Colon was using drugs. But tests were negative, she
said.
Colon wasn't tested for drugs during a CPS investigation last
summer. Nor was she tested any time after the case was transferred to
the agency's Family Based Safety Services Division, Walker said,
because no new allegations were made.
Reed called the case “gut-wrenching,” and said she has requested
that authorities investigate Colon's state of mind before her sons were
killed.
“The fact that she called police to tell them she killed her
children indicates she knew what she was doing was wrong,” she said.
A violent father
Walker said Colon's caseworker, who has been with the state agency since June 2008, saw no signs that Colon was violent.
In fact, Walker said, since Colon began working with CPS last
summer, she had been receptive to the agency's services, which included
the teaching of basic parenting skills, help with the $650 monthly rent
and lessons on keeping her children clean.
Walker said the caseworker, whom she wouldn't identify, visited
Colon about twice a week, on average, to keep tabs on her progress.
With what appeared to be strong family support and a seeming
willingness to work with CPS, Walker said the agency saw no reason to
remove the children from the home.
“These aren't heartless, uncaring folks,” Walker said, referring to caseworkers.
In Colon's final visit with her caseworker, who was juggling seven
other cases, Colon talked about her children's new haircut. There was
no indication, Walker said, that the boys were in trouble.
One local child abuse expert said that even though warning signs are
foggy, domestic violence in a household significantly increases the
risk of physical abuse of children.
“The fact that you have domestic violence in a household means you
have one or more individuals who are willing to take out their
frustrations physically,” said Dr. Nancy Kellogg, a pediatrics
professor at the University of Texas Health Science Center.
But domestic violence isn't enough to remove children from a house,
Walker said. The agency's investigation found no evidence of physical
abuse against Colon's children, concluding instead that their proximity
to domestic violence had left them physically neglected.
“At the time of the children's death, there was no safety plan in
place for the mother,” Walker said. “The father posed no further risk
because he had been incarcerated.”
CPS began working with Colon in May after she admitted to being in a violent relationship with Garcia-Pacheco.
Three months later, the case was transferred to the Family Based
Safety Services division, which offers help to parents and advice on
how best to protect their children.
A month after being enrolled, Walker said the caseworker learned
Garcia-Pacheco was accused of physically and sexually assaulting Colon.
In October, Colon applied for a protective order for herself and the
boys. The two-year order was agreed upon on Nov. 5, according to court
documents.
Garcia-Pacheco has been jailed since his September arrest.
Authorities said he also has been charged with entering the country
illegally and is being held on a federal detainer.
Concerns about mom
Aside from CPS, staff members at Brighton, a nonprofit that helps
educate children with learning disabilities, began working with Colon
and her youngest son late last year.
“From their initial visit, there was some concern about the mom's
ability to understand what they were talking about and what was going
on so we contacted the CPS caseworker who was already working with the
family,” Brighton Director Kim Jeffries said.
Jefferies said her staff raised concerns with CPS about Colon's
apparent inattention to her child, her inability to take instruction
and what appeared to be bruising on the boy's arm.
Walker said CPS investigated the bruising complaint but found no
indication of child abuse. There was, however, a rash on the child.
Because of that, Colon was given additional instructions to help her
focus on hygiene and keeping her home and children clean.
State Sen. Carlos Uresti, D-San Antonio, whose work with the
multiagency Blue Ribbon Task Force seeks to prevent child abuse and
neglect in the city, said last week's killings have forced public
officials to consider what could have been done differently.
“I think the city has been in denial,” Uresti said. “We can't
imagine how somebody could do this. But we need to move from shock to
action. We can't give up. There still needs to be awareness.”
And, he said, last week's case is another opportunity to improve
CPS, which in recent years has struggled with high turnover and
overtaxed caseworkers.
“They need more on-the-job training so they can have the experience
to know when somebody is pulling their leg,” he said. “That comes with
being a seasoned caseworker.”
The caseworker assigned to Colon was especially attentive, Walker said.
The month after Garcia-Pacheco was jailed, the caseworker visited
Colon eight times. She visited six times in November and seven more in
December.
In Colon's case, things seemed to be improving, Walker said.
Brighton's director agreed, as the staff last met with Colon and the CPS caseworker in late January.
“That last visit they had was all very positive and the mom showed a different interaction” with her son, Jefferies said.
Walker said Colon was receptive, even taking the agency's suggestion
that she and her children stay with her mother, who lives about a mile
away and who could help monitor and care for the boys.
“The children's mother did so, remaining there through the final visit by the worker,” Walker said.
Relatives of Colon haven't responded to repeated requests for
interviews. Last week, they released a statement thanking the community
for its prayers.
“With broken spirits and shattered hearts we are humbled and so very
grateful for your thoughts and prayers,” the statement said. “Thank you
for giving us strength. Please know that we are certain that our angels
... are in the arms of Jesus. Please know that nothing will ever fill
the void this tragedy has caused.”
On the night of the final CPS visit, hours before police said the
boys were fatally stabbed, neighbors of her mother said Colon ate
dinner with her family. If she followed her typical routine, she put
her children in their stroller and went for a walk around the block
afterward, saying hello to neighbors who had known her all her life.
Until she was accused of killing her children, these neighbors were the people who thought they knew her best.
“She was a sweetheart and I never saw her angry,” said Martha Arkene, a family friend. “She just snapped the wrong way.”

Mother, 24, to get life for killing sons
She accepts offer from the DA, who cites woman's 'mental status' in taking death penalty off table.
By Craig Kapitan
ckapitan@express-news.net
Updated 07:24 a.m., Wednesday, September 14, 2011


A San Antonio mother who told police she fatally stabbed her two young sons as part of a failed murder-suicide attempt after a night with friends smoking crack cocaine agreed Tuesday to spend the rest of her life in prison.
A lengthy jury-selection process had been set to begin next week for the death penalty trial of Elyse Colon, 24, who in February 2010 called 911 and casually told a responding officer, “I just killed my babies.”
She quietly entered guilty pleas before state District Judge Juanita Vasquez-Gardner for two counts of capital murder of a child younger than 6. With prosecutors dropping the death penalty request as part of the plea deal, the only other sentencing option was life in prison without parole.
Emergency responders found Jose Luis Garcia, 3, and Guillermo Garcia, 1, side by side on a bed — covered by a blanket, a crucifix and the knife that had been used to stab each of them in the chest up to 13 times.
The boys, who attended Christ Our Savior day care and were both described by caseworkers as developmentally disabled, wore blood-soaked T-shirts that read “Monster Squad — Grr” and “I'm definitely up to something.” On a nearby dresser, police found open bottles of household cleaners, some of which had been poured into a Bill Miller Bar-B-Q cup.
In an interview with police, Colon said she had fallen off the wagon and was afraid her children would be put in foster care if she tested positive for drugs. Thinking she'd never see them again, she came up with the idea of killing them the next morning while coming down from the crack high, she told police.
“Elyse said that she was thinking that they would all be together,” police noted in court documents. “Elyse said it didn't turn out that way.”
After drinking some cleaners, Colon said she lay down next to her sons but then threw up.
“I hope they give me the chair,” she reportedly said as detectives asked her what she thought her punishment should be.
“Unfortunately, they don't do that anymore,” an officer replied.
Colon had many stresses in her life: unemployment, an abusive relationship, the father of her children getting deported, an upcoming eviction and a visit the day before the killings from Child Protective Services, defense attorney Celeste Ramirez said after Tuesday's brief hearing.
“Everything was just overwhelming her and it ended up in tragedy,” Ramirez said. “She's been remorseful ... She loved her kids, and there has never been any doubt about that.”
While prosecutors were prepared to seek the death penalty, they began to consider life without parole “based on what we thought were appellate issues, her mental status and what a jury might do,” District Attorney Susan Reed said.
Colon, who was in special education before dropping out of Lee High School in 10th grade, didn't meet the Supreme Court guidelines for mental retardation, but she was a borderline case, Reed said. That was considered along with her lack of a prior criminal record and three previous suicide attempts, Reed said.


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