Juan Guadalupe Garza Jr

Camp Pendleton Marine mourned by Texas family

SAN BENITO, Texas — The family of California-based Marine Pfc. Juan G. Garza was informed April 8 that he was killed in Iraq that same day.

Garza was killed by a sniper as he patrolled an airport in Baghdad. He was sent overseas on Dec. 27.

“He was shot in the chest,” his mother, Mary Ann Garza, told the Valley Morning Star in Harlingen, Texas. “He died instantly.”

The last time she spoke with her son was on Thanksgiving Day over the phone, she said. She asked other Marine moms to keep praying for their children to “bring the boys home.” “This one never made it,” she sobbed, clutching a picture of her son in uniform.

News of Garza’s death was announced at San Benito High School, which Garza...