Witnesses say driver repeatedly struck Ford Expedition, threw metal rod that shattered rear window; state publishes dash- and body-cam footage

A prosecutor presented testimony and multiple exhibits at a Bexar County courtroom hearing over events the state says occurred March 16, 2023, in which a pickup allegedly struck a black Ford Expedition and a metal rod shattered the Expedition’s rear window.

The state called Deputy Jason Garcia of the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office and crime-scene deputy Enrico Garza, followed by three occupants of the Expedition—Raquel y Alfonso Ortega (the driver), Britney Camacho (back-seat passenger), and Fatima Camacho (front passenger). The court admitted a dash-cam recording and a body-cam recording, a series of scene photos, and two seized objects that deputies said were recovered from the pickup and the Expedition.

The testimony and evidence the state introduced Deputy Jason Garcia testified that on March 16, 2023, he and a partner followed an SUV with a broken rear window that pulled into a QuikTrip at Fredericksburg Road and Interstate 410. Garcia said the vehicle’s occupants appeared “frantic” and that he and the other deputy conducted a traffic stop and spoke with the three women who exited the SUV. The court admitted the dash-cam (State’s Exhibit 8) and body-cam (State’s Exhibit 9); Garcia testified that Exhibit 8 has no audio and that both exhibits “fairly and accurately represent” the events shown.

Deputy Enrico Garza of the sheriff’s crime-scene unit testified that he processed the scene at 4710 Fredericksburg Road (QuikTrip) and photographed an SUV later entered as State’s Exhibits 10–20. He described photographs that show a broken rear window (Exhibit 17), apparent blood on a driver-side area (Exhibit 12), paint transfer and damage to a rear driver-side door (Exhibits 13–15), a broken headlamp (Exhibit 16), and items recovered from the rear of the SUV including a fishing pole and a metal rod (Exhibits 18–19). The court admitted Exhibits 10–20 without objection.

Victim-witnesses described the incident and an object thrown at the Expedition Raquel y Alfonso Ortega testified that, while driving with her daughters to a medical appointment, a brown pickup began following and then struck the family’s black Ford Expedition. Ortega said the pickup “stopped his truck completely in front of me,” that the man at the window told her to “give me the girl that’s inside,” and that one of her daughters later used a fishing pole to strike the man, causing a bleeding head wound. Ortega said the pickup then hit the Expedition multiple times and that the man retrieved a metal rod from his truck and “threw the iron rod at my car.” The court admitted the metal rod as State’s Exhibit 21 after a defense relevance objection; the judge overruled the objection and admitted it for the prosecutor’s stated purpose of showing intent and state of mind.

Britney Camacho, who was 17 at the time and seated in the back, testified she struck a man with a fishing pole and that the man began bleeding from his head. She also testified that, after he returned to his truck, the defendant hit their vehicle while she was on a 911 call; she said the rear window later “shattered” when the man threw an object at it. Fatima Camacho corroborated that the pickup struck their vehicle, the man approached the driver’s side and forced the window down, and that an object thrown from the pickup broke the Expedition’s rear window.

Evidence handling and limits of witness knowledge Deputy Garza testified that seized items were logged under the case number BCS230067439 and placed into the sheriff’s property room; he identified two seized items in court (marked as State’s Exhibits 21 and 22). During cross-examination the officer said he was not responsible for DNA testing decisions and did not know whether the apparent blood visible in photographs was submitted for forensic testing. Defense questioning also established that scene photographers do not determine damage dollar amounts or insurance evaluations.

Courtroom rulings and procedural notes The court admitted State’s Exhibits 8 and 9 (dash- and body-cam), Exhibits 10–20 (photographs), and Exhibits 21 and 22 (seized objects). Defense counsel objected to Exhibit 21 on relevance grounds because the indictment’s described means focused on vehicle contact; the judge admitted Exhibit 21 for the limited purpose the state advanced—showing intent and state of mind.

Why it matters Prosecutors offered synchronized witness accounts plus video and physical evidence to show a sequence in which a pickup allegedly pursued and struck the Expedition and an object from the pickup later broke the Expedition’s rear window. The state sought to use the physical object and photographs to link the defendant to both the damage to the vehicle and the man’s bleeding head injury; defense counsel questioned the connection between those items and the statutory elements charged and probed limits in what scene deputies could confirm (for example, DNA testing of blood evidence).

The trial record continued after the testimony summarized above, with further witnesses, cross-examination and the court taking a recess.