DRUG DEALER GETS 20 YEARS

Harsh term: Judge says it was justified; critics say politics played role.

A 21yearold man who sold methamphetamine to junior high school girls in
Los Gatos burst into tears Monday as he was sentenced to 20 years in
prison, a lengthy term that his angry supporters charged was politically
motivated.

In imposing the tough sentence, Superior Court Judge Lawrence F. Terry
noted that Anthony A. Garcia was a twiceconvicted felon who ``exploited''
girls as young as 13, some of whom relied on ``crank'' to lose weight.

``It is clear this defendant has by his conduct . . . exploited young
people for his own purpose . . . and done very poorly while on probation,''
said Terry, noting that three of Garcia's Los Gatos High School customers
had been buying drugs from him since their days in middle school.

But defense attorney Harry Robertson blamed prosecutors for the sentence,
saying they requested that Garcia spend 23 years in prison for two
politically motivated reasons: The uncle of one of the victims is a captain
in the Los Gatos police force, and Garcia had the audacity to sell his
wares in the largely white, upperclass community of Los Gatos.

The sentence is longer than that served by some rapists and even some
killers, Robertson said, adding he will appeal. Garcia faced a maximum of
50 years in prison. He could be paroled in nine years.

``He's getting a different standard of justice because the young girls
buying drugs were from a privileged community,'' Robertson said. ``If this
had happened in East San Jose or East Palo Alto where this kind of stuff
goes on every day he wouldn't have been treated this way.''

But the San Mateo County district attorney, with jurisdiction over East
Palo Alto, disagreed.

``We also would have thrown the book at him,'' said Jim Fox. ``We can
because the state Legislature has recognized that furnishing drugs to
minors or involving minors in the sale of drugs is worthy of harsher
punishment.''

Garcia was arrested last November after an undercover investigation
revealed that he had been selling drugs to school children for more than
three years. He was sentenced on nine felony counts of furnishing
methamphetamine to minors, one felony count of possession of
methamphetamine and one misdemeanor count of driving with a suspended
license.

Deputy District Attorney Jay Boyarsky acknowledged the sentence was harsh.

``Yes, it's unusually long for a drug case, but it's an outrageous case
that calls for a severe penalty,'' he said.

The defendant's father, Gary Garcia, insisted that local police took a
strong personal interest in the case. He said he moved to Los Gatos from
San Jose hoping to shield his sons from drug influences, only to find the
youth community just as drugriddled.

``The police more or less look the other way there, until this particular
case when the niece of a cop is involved,'' Gary Garcia said.

But Los Gatos detective Tim Morgan, the chief investigator in the case,
said the captain's niece had nothing to do with the department's ardor in
pursuing the case.

``Tony was the major supplier of methamphetamine at Los Gatos High
School,'' Morgan said. ``I don't care who he was selling to we would
have gone after him with the same vigor if it was anyone's daughter.''

Garcia had served seven months in jail and been put on two years probation
after being convicted in 1995 of possession of methamphetamine and selling
marijuana to minors at Los Gatos High School. By Garcia's own admission, he
continued to sell drugs at the high school while on probation.

Because neither of Garcia's previous convictions are considered ``strikes''
under California's ``three strikes, you're out'' law, Garcia's sentence was
not automatic. To qualify as a strike, a previous conviction must be a
``serious'' or ``violent'' crime, and a third strike can result in a
mandatory sentences of 25 years to life.

Terry also went out of his way in court Monday to say that he was not
motivated by political considerations, including by a letter from Los Gatos
Police Chief Larry Todd, who asked that Garcia be sent away for 38 years.

``I don't need to know what the police chief is thinking,'' Terry said.
``It suggests this is some sort of political process. My decision must not
be made by political pressure.''

The judge listened to more than five hours of testimony over a
twoday period from four victims, now in their late teens; parents; a
psychologist, who noted Garcia lost his mother at an early age; and a
drug treatment counselor. The defense had requested that the judge
hear the case because, as head of the drug court for Santa Clara
Superior Court, Terry is considered sympathetic to the problems
addicts face and is sometimes amenable to putting them into
residential treatment programs.

But while the judge commended Garcia for kicking drugs since he was jailed
more than a year ago, he sided with Boyarsky, who likened Garcia to ``a
lion who selects the youngest and weakest gazelle in the herd'' by preying
on young girls and argued that he needed to pay for his crimes.

As the judge announced his decision and Garcia broke into loud sobs, the
faces of parents and some of Garcia's victims turned ashen. Four young
women, including a high school girl who testified that Garcia recruited her
as a dealer, and two of their parents, had prevailed upon the judge for
leniency.

``I'm surprised,'' said one parent who had asked the court to sentence
Garcia to a short prison term just so he would learn his lesson. ``My heart
goes out to the young man.''