Gustavo Julian Garcia

Gustavo Julian Garcia Jr.[1] (September 27, 1972[2] – February 16, 2016) was an American prisoner from McKinney, Texas, who was executed for the 1990 murder of Craig Turski.

[1] Craig Turski, 43, was murdered on December 9, 1990, during the robbery of the Warehouse Beverage Store in Plano, Texas.

[1][4] His co-defendant was 16-year-old Christopher Vargas, who received a life sentence for capital murder charges.

[5] Garcia attempted to escape the Ellis Unit death row on Thanksgiving Day 1998, along with six other prisoners, but was arrested after surrendering.

[6] Garcia received a new sentencing hearing in 2001 after then-Attorney General of Texas John Cornyn learned that Walter Quijano, a psychologist who testified in the trial, had stated at the original trial that black and Hispanic men were more dangerous to society since there were more of them in prison.