The man accused of killing Jesus Avila is in the process of getting resentenced.
The resentencing process follows a Kansas Court of Appeals ruling this past January. Initially, Judge Jeff Larson sentenced Garcia to over 50 years in prison. However, the Court of Appeals said there was an issue with Garcia’s pre-sentence investigation score of A, the most serious on the state’s Sentencing Guidelines Grid. It was reduced to B after a state law on reckless criminal threat, used against Garcia as part of a separate criminal case in 2017, was found to be unconstitutional.
The Court of Appeals also said Garcia should have earned jail time credit because he had been serving a sentence in the 2017 case and wasn’t credited as part of a law passed last year following an appeal in State v Ervin. That Kansas Supreme Court ruling says a defendant should get jail-time credit for every day in jail as a defendant’s case moves towards resolution, even if those same days are being credited in another case and even if the sentences for those cases run consecutively.
Judge Larson says briefs need to be filed Sept 11, including whether the new sentence should use guidance from Ervin, even though the ruling may be found to be at odds with KSA 21-6615 dealing with procedures on time spent incarcerated and even with the Supreme Court ruling on Ervin following Garcia’s original sentence. Oral arguments will take place Sept 25. Resentencing is now set for Nov 13.
Garcia had pleaded no contest to second-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder and conspiracy to commit aggravated robbery in May 2023. He was originally charged with 11 counts in Avila’s 2017 murder, including first-degree murder.
Most of Garcia’s co-defendants, meanwhile, remain in prison, according to the Kansas Department of Corrections:
*Alan Alanis, convicted of aggravated robbery and arson, remains incarcerated at Larned until at least January 2029
*Jordy Cornejo-Campoverde, convicted of aggravated robbery and interference with law enforcement, is jailed at Norton until at least Aug 6.
*Andrew Granado, convicted of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and aggravated robbery, is jailed in Hutchinson until at least February 2034
*Jovan Pecina, convicted of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and aggravated robbery, is in prison at Norton until at least June 2040
Armando Nunez, convicted of burglary, interference with law enforcement and criminal damage, was released this past December.
