If You Go See 'Anderson' Live On Wednesday

Fontana school board member to be on 'Anderson' daytime TV show

By Jim Steinberg Staff Writer

Posted: 01/02/2012 -- 06:05:06 PM PST

FONTANA - School board member Leticia Garcia is flying to New York City on Wednesday for an interview with Anderson Cooper related to the stigma associated with women professionals married to convicts.

Garcia said her understanding from those involved with the production of "Anderson," a syndicated daytime talk show hosted by Cooper, is that she and at least two other professional women will be part of the show, which is likely to be televised on Thursday.

Show officials could not be reached for comment last week.

Garcia shocked many in Fontana this past October when she revealed she had been secretly married, since 2002, to Jason Garcia, who spent 27 years in state prisons for two counts of second degree murder.

He was paroled on Sept. 30.

The reaction sparked calls for her resignation from the Fontana Unified board - or at least her removal as the board's vice president - by Mayor Acquanetta Warren and others.

That backlash will be among the topics examined in the show, she said.

Since his parole, Jason Garcia has been enrolled in a live-in residency program in Los Angeles to help him transition back into mainstream society.

He has a part-time job.

"I am proud of how he has learned to get around on public transportation" in L.A., Leticia Garcia said.

Jason Garcia will be at the CNN studios in Los Angeles and appear on the program with his wife via a satellite connection, she said.

Leticia Garcia said she hopes the program will raise public awareness so that people are "not so quick to judge" when they hear about someone who is married to someone incarcerated.

Some Fontana residents have said they have no problem with Garcia being married to a convicted murderer; their objection is that she did not disclose the marriage when she ran for office.

"That is really a non-argument," Garcia said. "I ran my campaign on issues, not about personal relationships."

Garcia quietly stepped aside as vice president of the Fontana Unified board on Dec. 14 by nominating board member Gus Hawthorn for the position.

But she hopes the "Anderson" show "stirs the pot" about the controversy because, she said, she and others "should not be defined" by who they are married to.