SAN ANTONIO (AP) — A San Antonio man has told jurors he isn’t guilty of murder before rejecting a plea deal that would have sent him to prison for 40 years.
Thirty-eight-year-old Benito Garza said Tuesday he would rather the jury decide his fate. Prosecutors say he fatally stuck a motorcyclist with his vehicle while fleeing from a robbery in September 2012. Fifty-five-year-old Pedro Tenorio died at the scene. His wife was on the bike with him and was hospitalized with broken ribs, a lacerated liver and other injuries.
He was charged with murder, aggravated assault and aggravated robbery. Police say Garza was fleeing from authorities after a shootout during a home invasion.
Garza faces up to life in prison if convicted.
