Teen sentenced to prison for attacking Eldorado High teacher
A former Eldorado High School teacher attacked by her 16-year-old student last year made her first public statements Wednesday during an emotional sentencing hearing for the teenager.
The teacher, Sade, said that instead of feeling angry or hurt, she has felt “absolutely nothing” since she was attacked last year in her classroom by Jonathan Martinez Garcia.
She told District Judge Kathleen Delaney that she has been “imprisoned” mentally and physically for the past year.
“It only makes sense that he too should be in prison for as long as possible,” she said. “This isn’t because I hate him or want any sort of suffering for him … but like I said, I just no longer feel those feelings.”
The Las Vegas Review-Journal does not typically identify victims of sex crimes, but the victim in this case agreed to be identified by her first name and through photographs.
Martinez Garcia was sentenced to between 16 and 40 years in prison on Wednesday. Prosecutors had asked for a sentence of between 22 and 55 years, but the judge said the lower sentence was “striking the balance” between the seriousness of the crime and other factors in the case.
Public defender Tyler Gaston made a passionate argument to the judge that Martinez Garcia’s behavior was caused by severe side effects of an asthma medication, which Gaston said caused mood changes, night terrors and hallucinations. Before taking the medication Singulair, also known by the generic name Montelukast, Martinez Garcia was a caring teenager who earned good grades in school, participated in ROTC and won a robotics award, Gaston said.
The company that created Singulair is currently facing multiple lawsuits alleging it was aware the drug could affect the brain and cause psychiatric problems, Reuters reported this week.
While showing the judge pictures of Martinez Garcia as a young child and posing with family, Gaston argued that the teenager should be sentenced to probation. He said the judge should not use the case to set an example about violence in schools.
“There’s no behavior we’re trying to alter or correct here, because the issue is resolved — he’s off Montelukast,” Gaston said. “So to dress up a prison sentence as punishment is just vengeance; it doesn’t change a thing for anybody.”
Martinez Garcia, who is now 17, pleaded guilty in April to attempted murder, attempted sexual assault and battery with use of a deadly weapon resulting in substantial bodily harm.
In April 2022, Martinez Garcia walked into the teacher’s classroom and choked her with a “rope or string,” then slammed her head against the table and knocked her unconscious, according to the Metropolitan Police Department.
The teacher told police she asked Martinez Garcia why he was assaulting her, and he responded that he “didn’t like teachers” and was “getting revenge.”
He then choked her unconscious a second time, and when she woke up, her pants and underwear were pulled down. Martinez Garcia poured something on her and said he wanted to “set something on fire,” authorities have said. He then moved a shelf on top of her and sat on top of it.
During the attack, Martinez Garcia attempted to cut the teacher’s wrists and told her, “Can’t you die already?,” according to police. He initially told police he “blacked out” and didn’t remember the attack, but later said he remembers trying to choke the teacher, and told police he had raped her.
The teacher told the judge Wednesday that she remembers believing she was going to die as Martinez Garcia attacked her.
During the court hearing, Martinez Garcia apologized for the crime and said he should have asked for help.
“I regret what I’ve done,” he said. “I also regret the things I should have done, but didn’t do.”
Chief Deputy District Attorney William Rowles said Wednesday that he does not believe the side effect of the medication was a valid reason for the attack, and that Martinez Garcia had multiple opportunities to leave the classroom. Rowles also referenced increased reports of violence in local schools, and told the judge that Martinez Garcia’s sentence should serve as a deterrent to the community.
“I firmly believe that there are still certain crimes and still certain conduct that requires a punitive punishment,” he said.
The attack was one of several incidents of school violence that politicians have decried in the past year. In March, Sade appeared with Gov. Joe Lombardo when he spoke in support of Assembly Bill 330, known as the Safer and Supportive Schools Act.
The bill, which was approved by the Legislature and signed by the governor, outlines discipline for a student who commits battery intended to cause bodily harm to a school employee.
Sade and multiple members of her family addressed the judge on Wednesday, all asking for Martinez Garcia to receive the highest possible sentence.
Sade’s mother said her daughter used to be a fun-loving, independent woman who came from a family of teachers and moved to Las Vegas to start her first teaching job. Since the attack, she has been unable to teach and has had difficulty leaving her home due to ongoing physical and mental health complications.
“For the rest of her life, her last memory of teaching is going to be this student, trying to kill her,” Sade’s mother told the judge.
Contact Katelyn Newberg at knewberg@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0240. Follow @k_newberg on Twitter.