NewsWest 9
FT. STOCKTON - It's been a long wait for justice. Six years after the crime, a Fort Stockton man was sentenced for murder but the victim's family isn't happy with the outcome.
On Wednesday, they had the chance to tell Alfonso Quiroz how he hurt their family.
"I hope he thinks about everything he did and he rots in his cell because my brother didn't deserve to go the way he did," Lizeth Garcia, the victim's sister, said.
"There's a God up there and with God, you don't leave this world without paying," Edith Garcia, another sister of the victim, said.
Those powerful words came from the family of Jesus Garcia. The 24-year-old was killed back in May of 2007. His body was found with a single gunshot to the head.
According to 83rd District Attorney Rod Ponton, Alfonso Quiroz confessed to the murder saying Garcia was causing problems within a drug organization.
Quiroz was caught in August of 2013 after fleeing to Mexico and on Wednesday he was sentenced to 25 years.
Although no cameras were allowed in the courtroom, the victim's family addressed him after the sentence was handed down.
Quiroz never looked their way.
"As he left the courtroom, he had a smile on his face as he walked through that door," Lizeth said.
"It's something we will never forget and he showed no remorse whatsoever for what he did," Edith said.
Garcia's family tells NewsWest 9 they're upset with how the case was handled, Quiroz never went to trial but instead was given a plea deal.
Ponton tells NewsWest 9 not all cases can be successfully tried in court.
In a statement, the D.A. said his office promptly initiated a vigorous prosecution of Quiroz, which had been delayed for six years. Quiroz plead guilty in October to murder.
Ponton said he's proud of the outcome but the family disagrees.
"I don't think that was enough justice for him," Edith said.
"It's sad for the family that they have to go through this every day, every year, every minute and it's not right," Christina Benavides, a family friend, said.
The family said they have a lot of questions that'll never get answered.
"There's never gonna be closure like they say there's gonna be closure, it's never gonna be closure," Lizeth said.
Now they're focusing on moving forward and trying to cope years later.
