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WEST VALLEY CITY — West Valley police say a woman was just centimeters away from receiving fatal injuries after her husband slashed her throat in front of their infant child while they were driving early Monday.
Isac Garcia, 24, of West Valley, was arrested for investigation of aggravated assault resulting in serious injury, domestic violence in the presence of a child and intoxication.
Garcia and his wife were driving home from a party about 1 a.m., according to a police affidavit. The woman was driving because Garcia “had been drinking excessively,” the affidavit states. Garcia was in the backseat next to their newborn child “when he became enraged” during an argument, according to an affidavit.
“The suspect then grabbed a knife and slashed the victim’s throat and face multiple times while the victim was still in operation of the vehicle. The location of the slashing occurred while driving through dangerous rainy road conditions on Bangerter Highway. The victim was bleeding profusely and holding her neck as she ran into the hospital,” the affidavit states. “The subject specifically stated he did this as he intended to kill his wife.
“The victim sustained significant enough injuries which likely could have resulted in the death of the victim, had the slashing have landed within centimeters elsewhere on the victim’s throat,” the affidavit continued.
Garcia admitted he had also been “physically violent” with the woman in the past, the affidavit states, though court records show no prior charges of domestic violence.
- Utah Domestic Violence Coalition operates a confidential statewide, 24-hour domestic abuse hotline at 1-800-897-LINK (5465). Resources are also available online: udvc.org.
Help for people in abusive relationships can be found by contacting:
- Utah Domestic Violence Coalition: Utah's confidential statewide, 24-hour domestic violence hotline at 1-800-897-LINK (5465)
- YWCA Women in Jeopardy program: 801-537-8600
- Utah's statewide child abuse and neglect hotline: 1-855-323-DCFS (3237)
- National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-7233