A Starr County woman is facing two felony charges after a bat attack. That is according to a sworn complaint from the Starr County Sheriff's Office. Dariela Gazca is accused of hitting a man named Osvaldo Lugo with a bat.
The case came to light through a public records request El Tejano News filed with the Starr County Sheriff's Office. Gazca has not been convicted of any crime. Under the law, she is presumed innocent unless a court finds her guilty.
The bat attack is a serious matter for Starr County. A bat used as a weapon can cause deep harm. When someone is hurt this way, prosecutors treat it as a top-level violent crime, not a simple fight.
Court papers list two charges against Gazca. The first is aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. This is a 2nd degree felony. It can mean 2 to 20 years in prison. The complaint says the bat is the weapon behind this charge. It says Gazca is accused of striking Lugo with it.
The second charge is injury to a child, elderly person, or disabled person. This charge is filed as reckless bodily injury. It is a state jail felony. A state jail felony can mean 180 days to 2 years behind bars. The sworn complaint ties this charge to the same case as the bat attack. The complaint does not spell out how the child, elderly, or disabled person named in that charge connects to Lugo. El Tejano News is not filling in that gap with a guess. We report only what the complaint states.
Aggravated assault with a deadly weapon is one of the more serious charges filed in Starr County courts. State law treats any weapon that can cause death or serious harm as a deadly weapon. A bat can qualify if it is used to strike a person hard enough to cause real injury.
The second charge adds another layer. Texas law gives extra protection to children, elderly people, and people with disabilities. When someone recklessly hurts a person in one of those groups, the state can charge it as its own felony. That charge stands apart from any other charge in the case.
Cases involving a weapon, even a common object like a bat, tend to draw closer scrutiny from prosecutors. Texas law treats these cases as more dangerous because the risk of serious harm goes up.
As of this report, Gazca's case is moving through the Starr County court system. It is not yet clear when she will appear before a judge or enter a plea. El Tejano News will update this story as new facts come in.
Anyone with more information about this case is asked to contact the Starr County Sheriff's Office. Gazca is accused only. She has not been proven guilty in a court of law.
