Garcia case sheds light on anger issues

If the Auburn community is to come away from the Mario Garcia murder case with anything positive, it should be the light it has cast on a serious problem in our community that is altogether solvable.It's called uncontrolled anger.Evidence at Garcia's murder trial showed a history of eluding the consequences of his actions - much of it violence toward women.Friends, family, employers and law-enforcement need to be able to identify the signs - in Garcia's case warning signs for murder - and fight through a wall of denial that can prove a deadly, enabling behavior.And the people who are in the grip of anger have to recognize the symptoms themselves and reach out for help.Physical cues include clenched fists or jaw, flushing, heart palpitations and grinding teeth.Red flags could be a bout of road rage, a sense of entitlement that aggressively places your own needs above others, violent and non-violent impulsive behavior, or irrationally seeing the actions of others as challenges.Healthcare providers, psychological counseling centers and clergy are possible sources of information before anger moves into the realm of the justice system. The justice system needs to continue ordering anger management counseling. Schools have to be on the lookout for bullying and teasing. Mass school killings like the one in Columbine show us a victim of that type of abuse can turn to victimizer when unchecked and unrecognized anger boils over.In Garcia's case, an upper-middle class owner of a million-dollar home, with a steady job and a stable family life, he was putting up danger signals and then able to cover them up with a calm, rational end game that lulled many into indifference - and continues to leave many unbelieving that he could have committed murder.His was a story of a good neighbor, responsible co-worker and inspirational youth soccer coach who would lead fundraising efforts to ensure some of the needier players on his team had money to buy shoes. It was also the story of a combative man who could turn a squabble with a woman over a parking space into an incident that required Auburn Police involvement.That incident - not part of the trial - occurred in 2002 and no charges were filed. But the question remains. If Garcia received anger management counseling at that time, or any of the other times he was involved in violent incidents with women, would the events of that fall night in 2005 have been any different?Only Garcia knows for certain what happened in the Thunder Valley Casino parking lot, but evidence suggests that Garcia and Christie Wilson got into a deadly dispute over money and possibly sex. Anger turned to murder.There's no excuse for Garcia's actions on that night and no sense in his actions. The key is to separate the Mario Garcia that day from the man the day before. That day, anger management just might have saved Wilson, could have kept Garcia from committing murder and saved a community from the shock and despair which followed.The community as a whole needs to shoulder some of the blame for failing to recognize the signals coming from a man unable to curtail his anger. In essence, we all became victims.Help is out there. So are other Mario Garcias.Ultimately, the personal responsibility for his actions lies with Garcia but as a community we can do more to help others. It's up to all of us to see the signs and make the effort to stop the cycle of violence.Anger Management: Who to call for helpSierra Family Services Auburn, (530) 885-0441Kesler, Brockhoff and AssociatesAuburn, (530) 885-2152