Cop catches break in DWI case when arresting officer is no-show for court
McALLEN — An Hidalgo County judge killed a McAllen policeman’s criminal case after one of the defendant’s fellow officers failed to appear in court and testify against him, court records state.
Judge Jay Palacios of Hidalgo County Court-at-law No. 2 dealt a “fatal” blow to the prosecution’s case, Hidalgo County District Attorney Rene Guerra said, when he granted a motion to suppress evidence in Officer Alex Alvarez’s pending case on a charge of driving while intoxicated.
McAllen police arrested Alvarez on July 5, 2009, after they found him in his red Ford pickup truck at Chili’s, 521 E. Nolana. An anti-theft locking device was still attached to the steering wheel as he allegedly attempted to leave the restaurant while drunk. In the process, his truck collided with a parked car.
“The outcome of last night may determine his future,” McAllen Police Chief Victor Rodriguez said the day after Alvarez’s arrest.
But in criminal court, at least, it appears Alvarez may have avoided a DWI conviction. The arresting officer failed to appear for a court hearing where he was to explain why Alvarez had been arrested.
“Nobody showed up to testify,” said Alvarez’s attorney, Toribio “Terry” Palacios. “We got all the evidence suppressed. There’s not much I can comment on.”
Alvarez refused a breath test and would not submit to other sobriety tests at the police station, according to Monitor archives.
Restaurant employees told police Alvarez had been bothering four female customers and was told to return to his table. The restaurant manager suspected Alvarez was too drunk to drive and called a taxi to take him home. While waiting for the cab to arrive, the manager tried to stall Alvarez, who apparently stripped a pair of glasses from his head and threw them to the floor.
District Attorney Guerra said he learned Wednesday that the case was set for dismissal when a Monitor reporter contacted him about the matter. Guerra said he would ask Palacios to reconsider his decision to suppress the evidence in the case.
“Legally, I don’t know if he can reconsider it,” the district attorney said. “I don’t know until I try.”
But why the arresting officer missed the court date remains unclear.
Court records show the officer was served a subpoena Jan. 12 to appear in court for the scheduled hearing one week later.
Guerra said he learned the arresting officer had worked the graveyard shift the night before the hearing and missed the Jan. 19 court date.
McAllen’s Police Chief Rodriguez said he believed the officer was hospitalized. Rodriguez provided no further details.
Two officers from the McAllen police force’s internal affairs division were in the courtroom that day as part of their administrative investigation, Guerra said.
“They knew he had been subpoenaed and failed to show up,” the district attorney said.
Alvarez, meanwhile, remains on unpaid administrative leave — as he has since his arrest last summer, Rodriguez said.
No decision has been made about any consequences the 14-year police veteran could face, the chief said, but those could range from suspension to Alvarez’s firing. The arresting officer could face administrative consequences for failing to appear in court, as well.
“Now I need to figure out what will happen in this one,” Rodriguez said.
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