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VV Judge apologizes to mom of murdered son
VICTORVILLE • A judge who refused to grant a restraining order against a man who later killed his son then himself apologized on Wednesday to the mother for comments he made to her in court.
Judge Robert Lemkau had called Katie Tagle a liar when she tried to get a restraining order against her estranged boyfriend, Stephen Garcia, on January 21.
Ten days later law enforcement authorities found Garcia and the couple’s 9-month-old son Wyatt shot to death in a car in Twin Peaks in an apparent murder-suicide.
“I deeply apologize for my comments to you,” Lemkau told Tagle at a court hearing in Victorville regarding custody mediation over the child. Lemkau appeared to read from a prepared statement when he made his remarks to Tagle.
Lemkau continued his apology as Tagle, of Yucca Valley, listened with tears in her eyes and a photo of her deceased son Wyatt in front of her on the table. Tagle wore the same blue dress she wore to Wyatt’s memorial service.
Near the end of his two-minute speech, Lemkau said that he could not foresee at the time of the restraining order hearing what would happen.
Tagle petitioned Lemkau for a restraining order against Garcia, 25, of Pinon Hills. Lemkau denied the request although Tagle warned him that Garcia threatened to kill their son.
For the full story, read Thursday's Daily Press. To subscribe to the Daily Press in print or online, call (760) 241-7755 or click here.
Tomoya Shimura may be reached at tshimura@VVDailyPress.com or (760) 955-5368.
To read related stories, click on the headlines below:
Murder-suicides leave cruel question behind
Deadly consequences: Judges rejected mom's bid for restraining order
Click here to view transcripts from the VV hearing
Pinon Hills man plans murder of infant son, suicide on Facebook
Pinon Hills man and 9-month-old found dead in apparent murder-suicide in Twin Peaks
| She added "Wywy has a new daddy now" and sent them to the father. This is a verifiable part of court record and the pictures are in the public domain. |
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| Mchael A - Mar 20, 2010 01:02:41 AM | Remove Comment |
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| Perhaps the story that isn't told here is that Katie Tagle sent pictures of herself giving oral sex to her new boyfriend, genitalia in clear view, one hand "on him" and one hand on the baby's bottle. |
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| Mchael A - Mar 20, 2010 01:00:13 AM | Remove Comment |
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| When will these judges start taking threats seriously against women and children? Don't we have enough violence against them to prove that these threats aren't usually just "talk" - I suppose this judge will have to live forever with the guilt that he pretty much condoned the murder of this baby! |
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| Leslie Shelton - Mar 10, 2010 09:31:46 AM | Remove Comment |
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| This judge must be removed immediately for his fatal professional incompetence and his profound inadequacy as a human. What is just as repugnant as this thoroughly disgusting performance by Limkau is the apparent unwillingness of ANY judges among his peers to condemn him and his performance. The latter failure is a colossal indictment of the sickly, spineless, deficient integrity and professionalism of ALL of the judicial officers in this district. God help the people of Victorville, California. |
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| Pete McDonald - Mar 08, 2010 08:50:37 PM | Remove Comment |
