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Mothers take hit and run suspect to court

Posted at 3:53 AM, Apr 24, 2018
and last updated 2018-04-24 04:53:39-04

A hearing is scheduled for today in the lawsuit filed against the driver accused of hitting two King High School students.

On April 2nd, the mother of the two girls filed a lawsuit against Elton Wayne Holmes, Jr. He’s accused of hitting 16-year old Rai-Ane Garza and 15-year-old Madicyn Knott while on a crosswalk on Staples Street and Mustang Trail. Both girls were walking home from school. Garza died at the scene and Knott continues to recover from her injuries.

Police say Holmes fled the scene and was later arrested on felony charges of an accident causing injury/death. 

According to court documents obtained by KRIS 6 News, Garza’s mother, Tanya Brown, and Knott’s mother, Brandy Wade are suing Holmes for $1 million.

According to the lawsuit, Brown and Wade state Holmes operated his vehicle in a negligent manner. They also claim he failed to apply his brakes, sound his horn, control his speed, and yield the right of way to pedestrians in a crosswalk.

On April 3rd, Brown and Wade’s attorney, Curtis Fitzgerald, filed a temporary injunction to assure that the Jeep Holmes was driving the day of the crash isn’t damaged or destroyed. He also asked that evidence collected at the scene not be tampered with or destroyed. 

Judge Lisa Gonzales was set to rule on the injunctions filed Thursday morning in County Court at Law 2 but the attorney in court representing the mothers didn’t have the paperwork requested by the judge. So, Judge Gonzales ordered that the case be reset for April 24th.

Garza’s mother, Tanya Brown, is seeking damages for mental anguish and loss of companionship from Rai-ane if she had lived. She would also like to be compensated for funeral expenses.

Knott’s mother, Brandy Wade is also seeking compensation for her daughter’s medical care and expenses. She is also asking for compensation for physical pain and suffering.

Holmes is currently being held in the Nueces County Jail. On April 3rd, Nueces County District Court Judge Sandra Watts ruled Holmes violated his pretrial bond conditions and revoked his bond.

The day before his hearing, Holmes admitted to a probation officer that he had violated the terms of his release by drinking alcohol. The probation official informed police of the violation, and Holmes was taken into custody.