Luna County settles wrongful death suit in deputy crash for $7M

This story was updated with comment from Luna County on Nov. 18.

Just one year and three days after 14-month-old Wyatt Franzoy’s death, Luna County commissioners approved a $7 million settlement with the child’s family.

Franzoy’s life was cut short when a Luna County Sheriff’s deputy driving a Dodge Durango service vehicle, en route to a reported robbery in progress at high speed, slammed into a car driven by Franzoy’s mother. Isabella Hernandez survived, but her child – who had been secured in a car seat – was pronounced dead at Mimbres Memorial Hospital.

The driver, Deputy Paul Garcia, exceeded speeds of 130 miles per hour while heading south on state Highway 11, a two-lane roadway leading from Deming through rural Luna County to the village of Columbus. Per court records and video, Garcia moved into the northbound lane attempting to pass Hernandez’s vehicle as she attempted a left-hand turn, and T-boned her vehicle at 99 miles per hour. The posted speed limit was 55 miles per hour. Per court documents, the Luna County Sheriff’s Office policy limited speeds to emergency calls to 20 miles per hour over the limit, with lights and sirens in operation.

Garcia was placed on administrative leave and terminated 11 months later. He is awaiting trial on third-degree felony charges of homicide by vehicle and great bodily injury by vehicle, both related to reckless driving. A jury trial is currently scheduled for August 2025, per court records.

The settlement was unanimously approved by Luna County’s three elected commissioners on Nov. 14, and publicized at a news conference in the El Paso office of Hernandez’s attorney, Daisy Chaparro-Cavazos.

Luna County Manager Chris Brice told the Las Cruces Bulletin the county would pay $2 million from its general fund, while the remaining $5 million would be paid through the New Mexico Counties organization insurance pool.

The family filed the civil suit in April, asking the district court to hold the county liable for the death of their son, personal injury damages, loss of consortium and civil rights violations. They argued that Luna County is also liable for negligent hiring, training, supervision and retention of Garcia, who pleaded guilty to aggravated DWI in 2016. 

“Every day is a reminder of what happened and what I lost,” Hernandez said, reading prepared remarks through her grief. “Paul Garcia not only took my son but continues to take from me every day. I’m stuck in a cycle of doctor appointments and medical tests, just to deal with the physical pain left behind. The pain in my body mirrors the pain in my heart – a constant reminder of the day my world shattered forever.”

Hernandez’s legal counsel said Hernandez suffered nerve damage, bleeding in her liver, and multiple bone fractures, leaving her with chronic back and neck pain and mental fog.

“This was no accident,” Chaparro-Cavazos said at the news conference. “This was the result of reckless, dangerous and utterly avoidable actions.” She called on Luna County to overhaul its hiring, training and supervisory practices, saying it was necessary for the safety of the public and to bring justice to Wyatt Franzoy’s family.

“Luna County wishes to offer its condolences to the Hernandez and Franzoy families for the loss of their loved one,” Brice said in a written statement the following Monday. “While the settlement ends the litigation in this matter, we fully understand the healing process goes on. We are conducting an extensive review of all policies and procedures related to the Sheriff's Department. This represents a step in our continuing effort to improve how Luna County conducts the business of serving our citizens.”