An Austin man has been hit with a 12-year prison sentence for a horrific 2020 incident where he struck a pedestrian with his car while drunk, then drove with the victim's mangled body for half a mile. Paul Joseph Garcia Jr., 26, pleaded guilty to intoxication manslaughter with a vehicle for the gruesome crime that claimed the life of 55-year-old Lee Martin Cagle, CBS Austin reported.
Documents from the Travis County court showed that Garcia also pleaded guilty to the charge of accident involving death. Under the judgments issued Monday, he received a 10-year sentence for the latter offense, but it is currently unclear if the sentences will be served concurrently or successively. After colliding with Cagle, who was pushing a shopping cart across Menchaca Road, Garcia failed to stop, steering his car over half a mile with the pedestrian's body inside, authorities said. Details emerged in the case revealed by KXAN, stating that Garcia was recklessly over the speed limit and driving without headlights before hitting the victim.
The grisly nature of the crash caught the attention of the Austin community, as the victim had extreme traumatic injuries, and parts of Cagle's body were discovered in the roadway. Garcia was arrested at the South Austin Beer Garden shortly after the incident, with police concluding that he was too impaired to drive safely due to the influence of alcohol or drugs.
In addition to the prison term, the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission initiated an investigation into whether any business served alcohol to Garcia before the fatal crash. The sentences come with a 31-day jail credit for Garcia, who, as of Wednesday, was still booked in Travis County jail.
