Redmond couple on trial in 5-year-old’s starvation death

(Update: Correcting Estevan Garcia’s lawyer; adding video, comment from woman who visited couple in jail)

The murder and manslaughter trial of a Redmond couple accused of starving their 5-year-old adopted daughter to death began Friday with a prosecutor telling jurors about a little girl whose weight had dropped sharply amid clear signs of deteriorating health.

Estevan Adrian Garcia, 36, and Sacora Rose Horn-Garcia, 33, each face one count of murder and two counts of first-degree manslaughter in the late 2016 death of Maliyha Garcia. The trial is expected to last up to eight weeks.

Deschutes County Deputy District Attorney Kandy Gies told jurors in her opening statement that Maliyha had been a happy and energetic girl, but she had dropped to just 24 pounds by the day she died. She displayed a timeline of the girl’s weight loss to the jury in the courtroom of Circuit Judge Beth Bagley.

An autopsy showed Maliyha had no fat and no thymus, which helps ward off diseases, Gies said.

The girl’s parents said they had noticed Maliyha was looking and acting sick, the prosecutor said, showing the jury internet searches and text messages about Maliyha’s declining health.

Investigators learned Maliyha had lied to day care providers about going to the bathroom, just so she could take crackers and eat them in the stall, Gies said. She also would eat ” bowl after bowl ” of cereal while at day care.

Gies also showed the jury a picture of Maliyha’s mouth, which had black ulcers inside.

Four days before her Dec. 21, 2016 death at St. Charles Redmond, a pizza delivery person said he saw Maliyha sitting on the couch, with white spit up coming out of her mouth, Gies said. Estevan Garcia went to clear her airways, and the delivery man asked if she needed to see a doctor, to which Garcia said that she did.

Sacora Garcia’s search history from the following day showed queries about essential oil remedies, the prosecutor said. Other searches ensued, including ” how to avoid getting stomach flu from your kid ” and ” reasons your child may have poor balance, ” she said.

Gies said others who observed Maliyha’s condition also asked about her.

Gies said text messages as far back as April of that year showed the parents discussing withholding food, making the girl scrub walls for hours and limiting her calorie intake. After letting Maliyha swim and eat a cheeseburger, Sacora Garcia said she and Estevan Garcia were too easy on the girl, the messages showed.

Sacora suggested putting Maliyha in a kennel with a family dog, the prosecutor said, and both talked about how Maliyha was sneaking into the kitchen to eat food in the middle of the night

” The evidence will show Maliyha was dehumanized and deprived, ” Gies told the jury.

Neighborhood kids said there was an alarm on Maliyha’s door, Gies said, and detectives found the alarm on the parents’ dresser during a search.

No 911 calls were made until the day Maliyha died, the prosecutor said. She added that records showed other children in the house were taken to doctors on a generally acceptable basis.

The jury then heard opening statements by the two defense lawyers in the case.

Estevan Garcia’s attorney, Shawn Kollie, said that while his client should get some of the blame, his wife was the real culprit in what took place.

Kollie noted that when Maliyha was born, her birth mother tested positive for methamphetamine. The defense lawyer also claimed Estevan Garcia did not know enough about the child’s health situation to prove his mental state was such that the jury could convict him.

Sacora Horn-Garcia’s attorney, Aaron Brenneman, acknowledged the couple punished the girl by withholding food from her.

But Brenneman said Horn-Garcia showed concern for her stepdaughter, and didn’t see everything that was happening due to her many responsibilities, with several other children also in the house.

” Was Sacora the perfect mom? Maybe not, ” Brenneman said, noting she used discipline methods not accepted by all. But ” she did not systematically starve her child, ” he argued.

The trial recessed for the day after opening statements, with testimony set to begin when it resumes next Tuesday.

During a break, NewsChannel 21 talked with a woman in the courtroom who has visited the Garcias in jail as part of a church program to help inmates know they’re not forgotten.

Lorelei Kryzanek said it was the first time she’d heard some of the evidence in the alleged crimes.

” The prosecutor did such a good job in her opening statement of sharing what’s really been going on that I had no idea about, ” Kryzanek said. “I am shocked and saddened to my core.”

“I think everyone is, who was in there listening to that and feeling so sorry for this little one who went through so much trauma and damage before she even truly passed away,” she said.

The judge had imposed a gag order on any public statements by those involved before the trial. Dozens of potential witnesses are expected to be called, from police officers and other authorities to family members and Maliyha’s friends in school.