SAN ANGELO, Texas — UPDATE: (3:15 p.m. Sept. 17) In a recorded custodial interview with Tom Green County Sheriff's Office investigators, Andres Rios Ramirez admitted to shooting Camille Garcia in the head after what he described as a heated confrontation, where he alleged Garcia pulled a knife on him.
"She came at me. I was, like, trying to restrain her," Ramirez said in the video. "She came at me like (explicative) crazy."
TGCSO Sgt. Investigator Andrew Alwine asked Ramirez what happened next.
"I pulled the trigger," Ramirez said. "I shot her right there at my house. I shot her in the head."
Ramirez then asks if they had found the knife in question.
He said after he shot Garcia he "didn't know what to do," then told investigators the crime happened "a long time ago. It would be about three or four days ago, possibly. Four or five days, maybe."
Ramirez then tells investigators in the video that he wrapped Garcia's body in a blanket and "put her in that thing," referring to the blue tote bin in which she she was discovered.
He said he placed "Pine-Sol" in the bin with her after he had cleaned the couch with it.
(While listening and watching his own video interview in court, Ramirez let out an audible sigh and looked over to the jury box.)
Ramirez continued to describe the scene of Garcia's death (his living room, where one shot was fired) to investigators, telling them, "she was trippin' on me for no reason."
He said he would tell them how "it went down."
"She's coming at me with a knife. I'm sitting down," Ramirez said. "I restrain her. She going crazy. I'm telling her 'let go of the knife.'"
For some reason, Ramirez said, the handgun was "right there."
"All I could do is, you know what I mean," he said.
Ramirez then told the investigators that he threw the bullet away in the trash at his grandma's house. He then asks TGCSO Investigator Corey Speck, "But the thing is, you believe me, right?"
Jurors continued to view the approximately five-hour video interview through the afternoon.
Ramirez is accused of first-degree murder of Camille Garcia. If convicted, he faces five to 99 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.
Proceedings will resume at 9 a.m. Wednesday in the Tom Green County Courthouse.
ORIGINAL: Day two of the murder trial of Andres Rios Ramirez began Tuesday with testimony from Dr. Luisa Florez, forensic pathologist from South Plains Forensic Pathology in Lubbock. The state called Florez as a witness.
Florez described what Camille Garcia's body was clothed in when her remains arrived for autopsy, saying she was clad in shorts, a black boot only on one of her feet (her left foot) and some kind of tank top, as well as fashion jewelry on her neck.
She described Garcia as a "thin, small lady," saying she was 64 in. tall (5'4") and weighed approximately 123 lbs. There was no state of decomposition of Garcia's body and Florez said there was lividity on the back of the body.
"We found a wound on the head," she said.
Some contusions were located on Garcia's leg, however Florez said, "The only part that had interest was the head."
The head had a gunshot wound, specifically a perforation gunshot wound. The specific cause of death, Florez said, was brain injury and manner of death was homicide.
When asked about the distance between Ramirez and Garcia at the time of the gunshot, Florez said, "In this case, I think the muzzle was pressed against the head."
She went on to explain about the wound, just above Garcia's left ear, and the exit wound on the right side of Garcia's head.
When asked how long after being shot Garcia died, Florez said her office does not give times of death.
Florez said the results of a toxicology screening of Garcia's body tested positive for alcohol, amphetamines and methamphetamine.
Ramirez's court-appointed defense attorney Kirk Hawkins asked about findings of stippling near the wound, as well as asking Florez to identify markers of Garcia "like, tattoos."
"Would you say she had a few or a lot of tattoos," Hawkins asked.
"A lot of tattoos," Florez answered.
Specifically, Hawkins asked Florez to verify a "South Side" tattoo on Garcia's abdomen; "South" on her forearm; "Murdaland, Tx" on her thigh; and various skulls on various parts of her body.
Hawkins asked Florez how "meth" affected a person. She described possible euphoria, elevated body temperature and said some users could become aggressive.
"And by aggressive, you mean, could be violent?" Hawkins asked.
"Yes."
Florez was briefly released from testimony, before being called back by Hawkins, who showed Florez photos of Garcia's boot that she arrived at autopsy wearing. He then asked about a time of death and Florez repeated her previous statement about never giving a time of death.
She did say, however, that Garcia's body had "no rigor," which could have passed by that point.
The state then called Tom Green County Sheriff's Office Sgt. Investigator Andrew Alwine to the stand.
Alwine said he was contacted at approximately 3 p.m. March 20, 2018, to respond to Cactus Lane for an unattended death. Alwine said when he saw Garcia's body, which had not yet been identified, he noticed a gunshot wound to the left and right side of her head.
After interviews with possible associates, a lead to 629 Antonio St. was developed, as well as the name of "Machine" and "Little Machine," being brought up. Alwine said "Machine" was the name given for Andres Ramirez's father, Rudolfo Ramirez; and "Little Machine" was the name given for Andres.
At the Stripes location where Andres Ramirez was arrested, he requested to speak to the person in charge of the investigation.
Alwine did note that when the interview with Ramirez was recorded, there was a technical glitch, separating sound from video.
The video recording of the interview was entered into evidence by the state and approximately an hour of the interview was viewed by the time court recessed for lunch.
Proceedings will resume at 2 p.m. in the Tom Green County Courthouse.
