CITY OF SAN ANTONIO

MANNY PELAEZ
CITY COUNCILMAN DISTRICT 8
May 11, 2021

TO: Judge Jennifer Peña

290th Judicial District Court

FROM: Councilman Manny Pelaez

City of San Antonio

RE: State of Texas vs. Linda Collier Mason; No. 2019CR8785

CC: Joe Gonzalez

District Attorney

I write to express my concerns about the above referenced case. I hope you will consider these
concerns as you assess whether or not to accept a plea bargain that it likely to be presented to you soon.

In April of 2019 the defendant got drunk, jumped in her car, and drove into one of our beloved cycling
safety advocates - - killing him and leaving his little boy fatherless. Tito Bradshaw’s life mattered to
many hundreds of San Antonians and to our City Council. He mattered to his family, his friends, and
to all of San Antonio’s cycling community. He was a tireless champion for bicycle safety and was
known throughout San Antonio for his efforts to help San Antonio become a city that is friendly to
cyclists. The irony and tragedy of senseless killing and the terrible loss is still profoundly felt by many
of us.

I understand that a plea bargain is imminent. I urge you to strongly consider insisting that the
defendant serve a meaningful jail sentence. If the plea bargain does not include imprisonment, then
that plea bargain will be perceived by San Antonians as insufficiently serious. The absences of jail time
will communicate all our neighbors and to Tito’s little boy that the price of Tito’s life was probation - -
an anemic set of conditions that amount to a prohibition on drinking, some substance abuse
therapy/counseling, probation office meetings, and a fine. This would be an empirically unjust result.

Also, City Council has made huge efforts during my tenure to increase funding for bike lanes, cycling
safety, public education, and policing. We need our judges to back us up by communicating to the
public - - by way of significant criminal penalties - - that the lives of cyclists are important and that we
will not tolerate another senseless death. The public whom I represent insists that you and your
honorable colleagues never forget that judges have a role to play in making San Antonian’s safer.

Thank you for having taken the time to read this memo. I appreciate the good work you do in your
court and I make myself available should you wish to discuss the community’s concerns even further.

P.O. BOX 839966 • SAN ANTONIO, TX 78283-3966 • TEL: 210-207-7086 • E-MAIL: COUNCIL.DISTRICT8@SANANTONIO.GOV