8A / NEWS / THURSDAY, MAY 5, 2011 / THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN / KANSAN.COM
ABUSE (CONTINUED FROM 7A)
Photo contributed by Christie Brungardt than 200 activists from Kansas and
Mackey (left) and freinds at the 2004 Women's March in Washington, D.C. Mackey organized a bus trip for more than 200 activists from Kansas and around the country to travel for the march.
deliver his stuff and her decision.
When Megan arrived Tyler got into her car, reeking of cigarettes and stale beer. Drunk again, Tyler quickly became aggressive and began making threats when she said their relationship had ended.
"I'm going to shoot you and burn your body," he said. "Down here people's bodies disappear and they're never found."
"If you try anything" Megan said. "I'm calling the police."
--month before. This time, Megan believed him. She filed the first of more than a dozen police reports against Tyler.
"The police won't do anything." Tyler replied. "They don't take kindly to outsiders."
A few days after she announced the break up, Tyler called her and tried to mend their relationship. He promised he would go to welding school and stop drinking. He was going to get a real job and save to buy Megan a ring. He was going to support her.
"I need to work on myself" Tyler said. "I want this to work."
Courtney, Megan's roommate, saw her friend crying and took the phone from her.
In early December Megan answered one of Tyler's calls, presuming another effort to gain her trust. Instead, he called to insult and threaten her.
"You need to grow up." Courtney told him. "Stop messing with people's hearts and lives."
"I'm going to shoot you and that bitch," Tyler said. "I'll take your bodies out to the country and burn them."
"Tell that bitch to shut up and not open her cocksucker," Tyler shouted. "I'll hang up and start driving to Lawrence right now."
Megan grabbed the phone and said, "Don't ever speak to me again."
"You better watch your back, because you're not going to know who it is."
Tyler made the same threat a
That night, only hours after his threat, Megan was lying in bed watching television with a bedmate to comfort her — a softball bat. Suddenly, she heard a thunderous bang come from downstairs. Celeste, Megan's five-pound Yorkshire terrier, barked his alarm.
Bang!
Armed with her aluminum club, Megan walked into the living room to find her roommate, Courtney, awakened from her sleep.
"Someone's trying to get into the house." Courtney said.
"Call the police," Megan replied.
Gan lean walked slowly down the stairs to her front door, clinching the bat with a grip ready to strike. A look through the peephole showed nothing but the darkened entryway. Whatever made the noise had left or was hiding out of view.
She threw open the door, ready to swing her bat at a head to crack. All she found was a muddy鞋print and a dented door.
The next day, Megan applied for emergency housing at the Willow Domestic Violence Center.
--to establish dominance.
After moving into the shelter, Megan struggled with the idea of being a victim. The signs of her abuse weren't present physically and that was the hardest part for her to understand.
Willow advocates urged Megan to take legal action against Tyler, but filing a protection order meant he would go to jail and she wasn't ready to send him there.
"In spite of everything that happened, I was still concerned about him," Megan said.
Living at the shelter educated her. Advocates showed her how to recognize the abuse tactics batterers use
"I realized this is not just in my head," Megan said.
Three weeks later, Megan went to the Douglas County Courthouse and was granted a protection from stalking order that prohibited any form of telecommunication — including email, texting or Facebook.
Within days, Megan received a call from a former acquaintance she met through Tyler, but soon realized it was a three-way call. Tyler was on the line too, in jail and livid.
"You better watch your back" Tyler said. "I'm having my friends watch you."
---
Six months after receiving her protection order, the warmth of May comforted Megan as she began to emerge from the effects of his abuse. Life was better without Tyler — much better.
Mackey protesting outside Strong Hall in 2003. Mackey was involved in several student groups such as the KU Gay-Straight Alliance and Delta Force.
After school one day, Megan came home to find her second story patio door ajar. She had changed the locks after staying at the Willow and had locked the front door before she left.
On previous occasions, Tyler had climbed on the railing of the apartment beneath Megan's and pulled himself onto her patio to get inside. She reported the incident, but after arriving, police could find nothing and filed no report.
A few days later, Megan checked her Facebook and saw a message from Tyler — a direct violation of her protection order. She reported his contact, prompting a court battle that would last for nearly a year. She decided to return to the Willow for a second time until she could change addresses.
Photo contributed by Christie Brungardt
Megan's anxiety re-emerged and she began to worry about what Tyler might do if the trial went against him. With a history of Marine training, Megan recalled how Tyler told her he didn't need a weapon to kill.
After she returned to her apartment to move her things, she found a note from Tyler on her bed: "Just because you don't see me does not mean I'm not with you."
---
Nearly a year after charges were filed against Tyler for violating her protection order, Megan opened a letter from the Douglas County District Attorney's Office that reads "Charges were dismissed by the State at the defendant's cost."
Megan was warned earlier by the district attorney that the charges might have to be dropped if Tyler didn't accept a plea bargain. Finding proof beyond a reasonable doubt that Tyler sent the messages was nearly impossible. The district attorney had no choice but to drop the case.
gos kept Jana Mackey's step in time as she twirled on the dance floor of Cielito Lindo, a restaurant and dance club in downtown Lawrence. On the dance floor she saw a handsome man whose salsa impressed her. Fito Garche, also known as Adolfo Garcia-Nunez, approached Mackey and asked her to dance.
Mackey told Kelli Brandt, a KU graduate and a close friend, about the man she met dancing a few days later.
Nearly two years after the abuse began, Megan still struggles with its effects and suffers from occasional nightmares about Tyler.
"She thought he was really awesome," Brandt said. "She really thought highly of him and he had the friends to prove it."
"Hed have me by my neck, screaming at me that I need to stop calling the police," Megan said about the dreams.
Garche had immigrated to the U.S. on a raft after fleeing Cuba in 1994. The emigré political artist had lived in Miami for several years before moving to Kansas in 2001. He became prominent in the Lawrence art scene and was featured in Lawrence Journal-World articles for his commentary on Cuban-American relations.
Although the mental effects of her abuse still remain, Megan is optimistic about her future. She plans to graduate with a degree in social work and hopes to work with children.
Mackey and Garche began to spend time together after that first dance. His art, culture and history of political activism impressed Mackey. The two hit it off.
Jana and Fito The rhythm of the claves and bon-
But before Mackey considered a relationship with a man 21 years older, she did what many women do today before dating — online research.
In the summer of 2007, Mackey typed "Fito Garche" in a Google search. Garche displayed his art around Lawrence and she hoped to see some pictures. Instead of finding his work, she discovered a Lawrence Journal-World article entitled "Cuban artist gets fresh start" — "click."
When Mackey confronted him about the charges, Garche became defensive. He said he wasn't given a fair trial and that his language barrier prevented a complete understanding of the case.
The story reported Garche's Christian renewal after struggling with depression, alcoholism and a prison stint. He was convicted of aggravated assault and battery for stabbing a former girlfriend and spent time in jail before being granted parole in August 2006.
"He was able to rationalize everything to her," Brandt said. "He made Jana think that he was the victim."
The couple began dating about three weeks after meeting each other.
Brandt said Garche's charming persona convinced Mackey that he was an innocent man.
--her. Nothing—no one had seen or spoken with Mackey since the day before. Mott then called police, but they said there was nothing they could do within 24
After nearly three years of political campaigning and lobbying for the National Organization for Women, Mackey entered the KU law school in the fall of 2007. When the semester began, Garche set up an office at his home for Mackey and her close friend, Steph Mott. The two women often studied while he made coffee and cooked them authentic Cuban dinners. Mott socialized with the couple at his home and at art events.
"We were nerdy like that—wed go everywhere together," Mott said. "He was very accommodating."
Garche would invite prominent figures in the Lawrence art and political scene for elaborate dinner parties and entertainment. He'd share with them stories of his activism in Cuba and imprisonment by Dictator Fidel Castro for his political art. Garche's hospitality and charm left no reason to question his integrity.
Throughout their relationship, family and friends never suspected he was abusive. But after almost a year of dating, Garchie was becoming possessive of Mackey. He was jealous of both the amount of time she spent with friends and her free spirit.
To test her fidelity, Garche created a false Myspace page and contacted Mackey, posing as a rich doctor. Brandt recalled talking with her about the messages.
"He was trying to come up with a reason to be angry with her," Brandt said.
Brandt said Mackey quickly realized the new suitor was really Garche, who was trying to manipulate and control her. Mackey confronted him about the fake Myspace page and Garche got upset.
Afterwards, Brandt confronted Mackey about Garche's temper.
'no, never.'
Mackey began to question whether their relationship should continue. She knew Garche had a history of violence against an ex-girlfriend but never felt herself to be in danger. After nearly a year of dating, Mackey decided the relationship must end and she broke up with him in mid-June.
"I asked her if he would ever hurt her," Brandt said. "She said
Three weeks later, on July 3, 2008, Steph Mott, Mackey's best friend, was planning to meet her to discuss their plans for the Fourth of July at her family's lake house in Council Grove. She had texted Mackey throughout the day before realizing she had not responded to any messages—unusual for Mackey.
--her. Nothing—no one had seen or spoken with Mackey since the day before. Mott then called police, but they said there was nothing they could do within 24
Mott said she panicked, drove quickly to Mackey's home and went inside.
"It didn't look like anyone had been home—her car was gone," Mott said.
Mott began scouring Lawrence spots Mackey frequented: Henry's coffee shop, up and down Massachusetts Street, the Law school and Garche's home. No one came to Garche's door when she knocked—the door was locked, windows were shut and his new dog was gone.
Mott made a list of Mackey's friends in Lawrence and began calling them, hoping that one had seen
hours and advised her to find Mackey's car.
Mott assembled a search party, directing people to different parts of the city. Eventually, someone spotted Mackey's car across from Garche's home in the parking lot of Lawrence Memorial Hospital. After opening the driver's side door, Mott saw that Mackey's seat had been moved forward and her purse was inside. Mott thought it strange her 6-foot-tall friend's seat had been adjusted for a smaller driver.
"She had some long legs." Mott said. "It was fishy."
Police got involved after Mott informed them they found Mackey's car. The long summer day was growing dark when Mott learned that Garche had left a note behind with a friend. She finally convinced the man with the message to come to Garche's home.
Once Garche's friend arrived, Mott began to translate the note, written in Spanish.
"It said how she and I were huge bitches," Mott said. "And how we needed to go back and learn to become better people."
Mott took the note to police and the group of friends, exhausted from the search, decided to wait on the porch of Mackey's home. Shortly after, police arrived, asked them to leave and began to tape off the property. Soon, Mott received a call instructing her to go to the police station.
Brandt and Mott rode together,
worried about what they might learn.
When they got there, they met Mackey's brother and Christie Brungardt, her mother, who told them, "She loved you two so much."
Jana, their friend, was dead.
Police discovered Mackey's body at 11:07 p.m. in Garche's home, 409 Michigan St. Garche was gone, but the Lawrence Police Department had several leads to where he might be. Authorities contacted police in New Jersey, giving a description of Garche and his truck. Douglas County issued a second degree murder warrant for him and set bond at $1 million.
Nearly 12 hours later Garche was found hanged in his holding cell, an apparent suicide.
Police located Garche's truck in Elizabeth, N.J., and within three hours four Lawrence detectives were on a plane to find him. Garche, who traveled with his 18-year-old son and 19-year-old daughter, was arrested later that same day in Elizabeth. Police reported that Garche had injuries that he probably suffered as Mackey struggled for her life.
--cans and family to activists and friends.
The following Wednesday a crowd of more than 1,100 people gathered at Liberty Hall for Mackey's funeral where speakers ranged from politi-
Many spoke about Mackey's incandescence and personality. Curt Brungardt, Mackey's stepfather, urged others to continue Jana's work.
Kansas Sen. Laura Kelly delivered a eulogy calling Jana "a fearless and dedicated advocate."
"Jana was first
and foremost about serving others." Brungardt said. "Jana's torch now needs to be passed to all of you here."
To continue Mackey's advocacy, the university established the Jane Mackey Distinguished Lecture Series that now brings prominent figures to campus to talk about domestic violence and other issues important to women.
Her parents, Curt and Christie Brungardt, established Jana's Campaign to create public awareness of domestic violence and campaign for better laws. Both testified before the Kansas Legislature in support of a law that would identify repeat domestic violence offenders.
According to Douglas County District Attorney Charles Branson, the new law, ratified in 2010, would allow his office to more effectively track and prosecute those with a history of violence.
"Simply saying 'how tragic' was not enough. We wanted to do something to recognize Jana for who she was, what she did and continue the work she started," said Kathy Rose Mockry, director of the Emily Taylor Women's Resource Center.
One such offender was Fito Garche, the man who stabbed one girlfriend and later charged with the murder of Jana Mackey.
Edited by Drew Anderson
Artwork contributed by Kelli Brand
Artwork contributed by Kelli Brand
Jana in the Garden," a portrait of Mackey made by her former boyfriend, Fito Garche. Garche, a politica
artist, moved to Lawrence in 2001 and became involved in the local art scene.