David Garcia, accused shooter in Halloween deaths of 2 teens, pleads not guilty

L-R Kane Roldan and Elias Yanez Photos courtesy of GoFundMe An -year-old man accused of gunning down two teenage boys at a Chula Vista house party pleaded not guilty Wednesday to two counts of murder David Garcia is accused of opening fire on Kane Roldan and Elias Yanez at a Halloween party attended by more than people Police responded to the East Prospect Street home just after p m to find both boys with gunshot wounds The teens later died at a hospital Garcia was arrested Monday near his home in National City police noted Along with the murder counts he faces a charge of negligently discharging a firearm for allegedly shooting into the air several time before the teens were shot He also faces a special circumstance allegation of committing multiple murders If he is convicted of the murder counts plus the special circumstance allegation he would face life in prison without the possibility of parole or the death penalty should prosecutors pursue capital punishment At Garcia s arraignment Deputy District Attorney Jack Yeh noted Garcia demonstrated multiple people at the party that he had a gun tucked into his waistband Prior to the fatal shooting the prosecutor announced Garcia got into an altercation with someone then fired the gun into the air to scare the person away Later Garcia allegedly got into an fight with a friend of the casualties When the boys attempted to aid their friend Garcia shot them both Yeh noted Garcia remains in custody without bail Family members of Roldan of San Diego and Yanez of Imperial Beach have created GoFundMe pages to assist with funeral costs and promotion their loved ones According to the fundraising pages Roldan s memorial will be on Nov while plans for Yanez s facility are pending