MICHAEL GARCIA
Charge: Petty theft with a prior conviction of theft
Value of stolen goods: $5.62 (one package of meat)

"I think the law is a good idea," stated Michael Garcia. "I mean, if I was to 
get busted for another serious crime, I'd think I'd have it coming."

Michael Garcia is a soft-spoken, 35-year-old Mexican American who was the 
picture of self-deprecation throughout his interview in the Los Angeles County 
Jail. He often had trouble making eye contact and freely expressed his shame 
for his actions. He still seemed in disbelief that he is facing a life sentence
for stealing a package of meat.

"I don't think I should get away with it," Garcia said. "I mean, I'll go back 
to prison if they think I should, but I just think that life is a bit too much,
you know."

Michael Garcia obviously struggles when discussing his crime and his inability 
to get control of his heroin addiction. "I just wanted to be a hard-working 
dude like my father, but for some reason I was never able to do that."

On March 12, 1994, five days after the "three strikes" legislation was signed 
into law, Michael Garcia, his stepmother, Mary, and his mentally retarded 
brother, Porfirio, had run out of money.  

Mary had been erroneously overpaid by Social Security for several months. When 
the error was noticed, her subsequent payments were cut off until the account 
was reconciled. Meanwhile, Michael Garcia, who did temporary work fixing trucks
for J & G Produce in Pomona, hadn't had any work in several months.

Garcia walked into the Stater Brothers' Market on South Garey Street, in 
Pomona, three blocks from his home. It was the store in which he and his 
stepmother bought all of their groceries. But on March 12, he didn't have 
enough to buy the family's evening meal.

Michael's stepmother, Mary Garcia, was interviewed by phone while she was 
preparing beans for her and Porfirio's evening meal. She talked simply about 
Michael's motivation. "We didn't have anything to eat," she says. "My check was
gone, and J & G hadn't had work for Michael in a while, so he had no income 
coming in. He never told me he was going to do that [steal the meat], or I 
would have told him `no way.' I guess he just couldn't see us eating leftover 
beans again."

The store's security guard noticed Garcia shoving one package of chuck steak 
down his pants. The package had three steaks in it. "One for my mother, one for
my brother, and one for me," notes Garcia. He was easily apprehended and 
immediately confessed. According to the Pomona Police Department's report, 
Garcia told an officer, "Yes, I know, I came in here to steal." Garcia 
remembers that after the arresting officers were able to bring up his prior 
record on their computer, they joked and wagered with one another as to whether
or not he would be a "three strikes" candidate.

Michael Garcia talks about his background with great difficulty. It is not easy
to get details from him, and he protects his loved ones zealously.  

His parents, Edward Garcia and Margaret Alvarado, separated when Michael was 2.
After the separation, Margaret didn't see Michael or his older siblings, Edward
and Judy, until they had grown to adulthood. Michael was raised in the belief 
that his aunt, Virginia Redollar, was his mother. He found out that this was 
not the case when he turned 15. Shortly afterward, Michael relates, he "began 
hanging out with the wrong crowd in the barrio" and was arrested for the first 
time.

When Garcia is asked why his mother left and did not seek out her children for 
so many years, he responds that he "has no idea." He hints cryptically at 
problems with his father but is clearly unwilling to get into this aspect of 
his life.

It took a call to Garcia's mother, Margaret Alvarado, to learn the story of his
upbringing. "I never kept in contact with my children because my ex-husband was
a rough character. I was threatened, and believe you me in those days he meant 
it. Michael knows, but he keeps a lot of things inside. He doesn't want to say 
anything against his dad, especially since he's dead."
Margaret recalls "beating after beating" inflicted upon her by a husband 
inebriated on alcohol and pills, and a system that failed to protect her and 
her children. Prior to the breakup of her marriage, she had Edward Garcia 
arrested several times, once for breaking her nose. One of the Pomona police 
investigators warned her that she should "get out of there or she was gonna get
killed." 

After that arrest, Edward warned her that she had "better not go to sleep." 
Margaret wept openly when she described the last day that she saw her 
5-year-old son, Edward Jr., her 4-year-old daughter, Judy, and her 2-year-old 
son, Michael. "Neither Michael's father or I slept for two days, him because of
the drugs, and me because I was afraid to go to sleep. He came in very drunk 
and high, and grabbed a hatchet and was threatening to kill me. He had a glazed
look in his eye, and I believed he meant it. He was drunk enough where I 
convinced him that I had to go to the bathroom, and he let me. I don't know how
I was able to squeeze through the tiny bathroom window, but I did it and got 
away. That was the last day I saw any of my kids until they were adults."
Margaret said that Edward had threatened to kill her if she tried to take the 
kids away from him. Based on her previous experiences with Edward and her 
disappointment in the system's ability to protect her, she believed him.
"Michael grew up ignored or abused by his father," Margaret stated. "He didn't 
understand why the person he thought was his mother [really his aunt] cared so 
much more for the other kids in the family. What he didn't know was that those 
kids were his cousins, not his brothers and sister, and were her real children.
Michael didn't have a lot of love from either his mother or his father."

Michael Garcia's first arrest occurred when he was 16 years old, not long after
he found out about his mother. On July 6, 1975, Garcia relates, he was standing
in front of his house in his "barrio" in Pomona, when a car driven by several 
Latino youth sped by spewing gunfire at a neighbor girl. The girl was killed, 
and Pomona police arrived on the scene and questioned Garcia and other 
neighborhood residents about witnessing the murder.

Several drunk neighborhood youths subsequently drove by and saw the commotion 
near Garcia's house. They asked him what was going on, and he told them. "Can 
you drive?" the older youths asked. "Sure I can drive," Michael responded, 
trying to act brave. "Get in," they replied.

Garcia admits that he knew that "things were going to turn out bad" after he 
got into the car. He hoped that either they would be unable to find those 
responsible for the shooting or they would just scare them. The three 17- and 
18-year-olds in the back seat were all drunk, and all had guns. In the next 
neighborhood they spotted the youths they believed to be the culprits and 
fired, killing one of them. They were all subsequently apprehended. Although 
Michael did not shoot or even carry a gun, he pleaded guilty to murder, a crime
for which he is legally culpable under California law. He spent three years in 
the California Youth Authority for this offense.

Neither of the two adult offenses that are charged by the Los Angeles County 
district attorney's office as "strikes" against Garcia involved physical harm 
to a victim. In 1979, high on heroin, Garcia used an inoperable, unloaded gun 
to steal $20 from a truck driver in broad daylight in downtown Pomona. Garcia 
describes being "sick" -- a heroin addict's code word for "needing a fix." He 
pleaded guilty and spent two years in prison for that offense.  

In 1986, Garcia was again using heroin and again needed money for drugs. His 
girlfriend at the time was house-sitting for some neighbors. Garcia stole their
VCR and was apprehended by police walking down the street carrying the VCR. He 
confessed and immediately led police to the home he had burglarized. Upon his 
release from jail approximately one year later, Garcia says, he met with his 
victim and apologized for the theft.

After his last release from prison, Garcia tried to stay off of heroin and get 
a job. His father, Edward Garcia, had been diagnosed with colon cancer while 
Garcia was in prison, and the disease was at an advanced stage by the time 
Garcia was paroled.

According to Mary Garcia, Michael stayed constantly at his father's side. His 
father was bedridden and wearing a colostomy bag. As it filled with feces and 
urine, Michael diligently emptied it and cleaned his father's stoma so that he 
did not become infected. Michael and Mary had the constant job of attending to 
Edward's every need in order to allow him to die at home and with dignity. Upon
his father's death, Michael became severely depressed and resumed his use of 
heroin.

Garcia repeatedly tested dirty while on parole prior to his arrest. He had 
asked his parole agent several times for a referral to a drug program, but he 
was informed that there were no placements available.  

According to Parole Agent Don Smith, "Michael is not a bad guy. He had some 
problems with dope use, but he's not dangerous." Smith indicated that he would 
have sent Garcia to a residential drug treatment program but every one had a 
long waiting list. Smith felt that the "three strikes" law should have been 
written for people who are dangerous. "Petty theft," he said, "shouldn't be 25 
to life."  


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