24-hour guard costing county

An illegal immigrant charged with three felonies stemming from an accident where he allegedly was intoxicated has been running up a hefty bill for the Cape Girardeau County Sheriff's Department.

Juan P. Vargas, 25, of 1416 Jefferson Ave., is charged with one count of first-degree manslaughter and two counts of second-degree assault. Vargas is an illegal Mexican immigrant, according to a sworn statement by P.C. Hazelwood of the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

Guarding Vargas while he recuperates in Saint Francis Medical Center from injuries sustained in the accident has required Cape Gir-ardeau County Sheriff John Jordan to assign a deputy to the hospital around the clock. While some of the duty has been taken by unpaid reserve deputies, he said, the department has accumulated 594 overtime hours, or about $7,520 in compensatory overtime costs.

"That is a case that has just killed us, trying to keep up with guarding him for the past three weeks at the hospital," Jordan said. "It is bleeding us dry as far as manpower."

Vargas was kept in custody pending charges because he is considered an extreme flight risk, Jordan said.

On April 15 the silver 1993 Ford Mustang Vargas was driving left its lane and ran off the opposite shoulder, where it struck a barbed wire fence and a tree, according to the sworn statement.

Roberto Garcia-Lopez, 22, was killed in the accident, and Jose Martin Gomez-Alvarez, 20, and Ruben Garcia-Sanchez, 20, were injured. The three men are also Cape Girardeau residents.

According to the sworn statement, Vargas displayed a heavy odor of alcohol and presented a significantly high reading on a portable breath test administered at the scene.

Cape Girardeau Prosecuting Attorney Morley Swingle said Garcia-Lopez was Vargas' best friend, and that Garcia-Lopez's family did not want to see Vargas get in trouble for the accident.

"They've been cooperating more with the defense attorney than the prosecutor's office," Swingle said.

Vargas wept openly at his second court appearance Monday, where he waived his right to a preliminary hearing through an interpreter.

Vargas was still using a wheelchair because of his injuries.

"He had internal injuries and went to the hospital, where they treated him and released him to us," Jordan said. "After he was here a few days, he started having complications, and he has been there ever since."

The county will not be paying the costs of Vargas's medical treatment, Jordan said. Jordan sent a letter to both Cape Girardeau hospitals last year to tell them that the sheriff's department would not pay the hospital bills of inmates.

"We have an obligation to guard him because he has nothing to hold him here," Jordan said. "We have used reserves as much as possible, but no matter how you slice it or dice it, it is very taxing on your folks."

Swingle said his office would lower the bond amount in a case where the suspect wasn't a flight risk to allow the suspect to assume responsibility for hospital costs.

"We're reluctant to lower his bond, because we don't want him to disappear," said Swingle.

Vargas's attorney, Patirck McMenamin, is attempting to come up with confirmation that Vargas will not flee if released on bond, according to Swingle.

McMenamin was out of his office Monday and could not be reached for comment.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has told the county that it will deal with Vargas's status as an illegal immigrant after the criminal case is finished, Jordan said. "They don't want anything to do with him until he is done here."

Swingle said he's had to balance several competing interests in the case.

"With a DWI that ends up killing someone, you want the defendant to be accountable," Swingle said. "But you also hate to see the county incurring costs for his hospital time. The only thing you can do is try to keep the bills low."

Vargas is scheduled to appear in Circuit Court Division 1 on Monday at 9 a.m.

Reporter Rudi Keller contributed to the report.

pwylie@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 127