The suspect in a West Sacramento homicide remains in Yolo County Jail custody while awaiting word whether the Yolo County Public Defender’s Office can represent her in court.
Esther Garcia, 53, pleaded not guilty to murder and other charges Friday in connection with Wednesday’s fatal stabbing of another woman, 32-year-old Raechel Kay McGrath, during a violent altercation.
Garcia requested a public defender, but that office also represented McGrath in a criminal matter last year and must determine whether taking Garcia’s case would pose a conflict of interest.
“We can accept appointment and evaluate whether we have a conflict or not,” Supervising Deputy Public Defender Monica Brushia said during the brief arraignment hearing, which was streamed online via Zoom.
Visiting Yolo Superior Court Judge Stephen Mock made the appointment and ordered Garcia back to court Oct. 26 for a preliminary hearing.
Meanwhile, West Sacramento police said Friday they’re still investigating the relationship between the two women and the motive for the fatal stabbing, which occurred at about 12:30 p.m. in the 900 block of Sacramento Avenue.
“Our dispatch center received several 911 calls reporting that two women were fighting, and one was armed with a knife,” Sgt. Eric Angle said in a news release at the time. “Units responded to the scene and detained a woman who was pointed out as the suspect by independent witnesses.”
Responding officers also performed life-saving measures on McGrath, who according to Angle suffered from “at least one” stab wound to her upper torso. She was transported to an area hospital but died from her injuries.
In addition to murder, Garcia is charged with enhancements for use of a deadly weapon and for having a prior serious felony conviction, which Mock said appears as a strike offense on her criminal record.
It was not immediately clear whether that prior conviction occurred in Yolo County or elsewhere. Local online court records show Garcia was charged with burglary in 2004 but ultimately pleaded no contest to petty theft with a prior, and was cited for trespassing in 2014 and jaywalking in 2017.
— Reach Lauren Keene at lkeene@davisenterprise.net. Follow her on Twitter at @laurenkeene