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A Wish For Just One More Chance

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By STEVE OTTO, The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 23, 2007

The BB-gun pellet should have been a sign that his luck was running on low.
Gus Garcia doesn't see things quite that way. I'm not sure you would call him a fatalist, but he is one of those remarkable people who are in control of their emotions no matter the situation. That can be a good thing, especially if you are a cop on a beat.

Garcia is a deputy in the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office and has been for almost four years. Before that there were 14 years with the Boston police.

He's a soft-spoken guy, has a family and says he has found his niche in life right here in Hillsborough County doing what he absolutely loves. "I want to help people," he says, and the more you talk to him the more you realize that he is serious and that is exactly how he feels.

He looks the part and isn't somebody you would pick a fight with. He says spending time in the gym does for him what painting or taking a walk does for others; it relaxes him. You look at his body and figure he must be pretty relaxed.

But that would be misleading. Garcia is a man on a mission. All he wants is to get back on the street where he belongs. Right now it's a tossup whether that will ever happen.

A Shot In The Dark
You have to start with the BB-gun incident. It happened in the same area as a gang-related shooting the week when two people were shot dead. Garcia was handling a traffic violation in Town 'N Country when he heard a whistling noise. As he turned his head a BB-gun pellet ricocheted off his chin. Authorities suspected it was gang related and that the shot had come from the nearby neighborhood. Fortunately, he was only slightly injured.

Then came last May. It was a little after 1:30 in the morning and Garcia was sitting in his patrol car on Anderson Road filling out the paperwork to impound a car stopped in front of him.

Good things seldom happen at 1:30 and this time it was a car traveling more than 70 mph on the twisty road that slammed into the rear of Garcia's cruiser, driving the trunk into the back seat and the police car into the car in front of him.

Dazed, Garcia saw his radio and managed to call for help before passing out.

Brain Surgery

Again it appeared the injuries were minor, but things went downhill and doctors determined the 41-year-old deputy needed brain surgery.

Today, Garcia is on light duty at the sheriff's office in Ybor City. He has a slight stutter from the operation, and the doctors have told him there is the possibility of serious injury if he is hit on the head again.

"You never know," he says. "I told my wife one time when I was starting out that if there was a knock at the door one night and I was still on duty, not to be afraid to answer it. I don't want to be a hero, but those things go with the job.

"My goal is to be able to go out on the street again with my fellow deputies. Whether it's for one day or 10 years is not as important to me as it is just getting back there one more time to prove to myself I can do it."
Gus Garcia will find out in January if he will be able to give up light duty and get on the street or not. In the meantime, if you ask him what he wants for Christmas, it is just to do what he says he was born to do and be serving the public on the street.

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