Fourth DWI results in 50-year sentence

Fourth DWI results in 50-year sentence

A judge sentenced a Willis man who will go to trial in the next few months for his fifth charge of driving while intoxicated to 50 years in prison for his fourth DWI.

A jury convicted John El Garner, 39, Feb. 4 in the 410th state District Court of Judge K. Michael Mayes, and visiting Judge Reagan Clark sentenced him Wednesday, according to a press release from the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office.

“Fifty years, I felt, was extremely fair,” prosecutor Nancy Hebert said. “To me, you just can’t hide the look of shock on your face when you get sentenced to 50 years.”

Hebert said Garner raised the issue of competency during his trial, which began Feb. 2.

“The jury found him competent to stand trial and convicted him,” she said.

He was arrested April 21, 2008, when he was observed driving erratically in the 400 block of West Montgomery Street in Willis, the press release stated. The police officer who pulled him over approached the vehicle and “immediately noticed the odor of alcohol emitting from the passenger compartment of the vehicle,” the release stated.

Garner performed poorly on field sobriety tests, refused to take a breathalyzer test and became belligerent at the Montgomery County Jail and had to be restrained, the release stated.

But Garner was released three days later, on April 24, on a personal recognizance bond, First Assistant District Attorney Phil Grant said.

“I don’t really have an explanation for that one,” Grant said.

Exactly two months after his arrest in April, Garner was arrested again – his fifth DWI offense. He is set to go to trial for that arrest in the next few months, the press release stated.

Hebert will serve as prosecuting attorney again in that case, she said.

“I assume the defense attorney and I will be talking about that,” she said.

Garner’s DWI conviction was his first, Hebert said, but he has a history of arrests for various misdemeanor and felony charges dating back to 1987, according to Public Data.

“He was an all-around career criminal,” Grant said.

He served prison time for two felony convictions, Hebert said, including eight years for a 1991 conviction for burglary of a building in Brazoria County and two years in 2006 for conspiracy to distribute marijuana in Louisiana.

Garner does have the possibility of being paroled after serving about a quarter of his sentence, Grant said.

District Attorney Brett Ligon, who has said his office will step up its efforts to prosecute driving while intoxicated cases, was pleased with Garner’s sentence and praised Hebert.

“Nancy continues to be one of the hardest-working assistant DAs in this office,” he stated in the press release. “She tried more felony cases than anyone else in the office last year.

“I’m thankful she was able to convince Judge Clark that in order to protect the welfare of our community, John Garner needs to stay in prison.”

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