> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Accused killer claims he acted in self-defense - URL: https://www.smdp.com/accused-killer-claims-he-acted-in-self-defense/ - Published: 2005-08-19T15:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-23T07:35:58.000Z - Author: Ryan Hyatt - Tags: Crime, Santa Monica Airport, #archive-import *Pedraza takes stand 21 years after killing* AIRPORT COURTHOUSE — The bar owner who shot to death an angry customer after he tried to kill him 20 years ago told jurors on Thursday he acted in self-defense. A jury heard testimony from Antonio Pedraza, the man accused of murdering Javier Garcia, 25, on June 21, 1984\. Garcia was shot in front of the Jalisco Cafe, a now-defunct bar once located at 1811 Olympic Blvd. Pedraza, 58, maintains he acted in self-defense. If convicted, he faces 16 years to life in prison. Thursday marked the first time Pedraza has testified in the five-day trial. The jury is expected to begin deliberating today. The fatal shooting occurred late at night, after an intoxicated Garcia was kicked out of the bar for throwing beer bottles on the floor, witnesses and police said. Pedraza demanded that Garcia leave. Garcia waited outside the bar until Pedraza confronted him from the front side of the building. A shoot-out subsequently occurred and Garcia was killed. Garcia suffered a total of 14 gunshot wounds from 11 bullets — with some of the gunshots entering and exiting multiple parts of his body, police said. Pedraza was never questioned by police at the time of the shooting. He fled the scene, and abandoned his bar, wife and three kids. He was on the lam for 19 years before being arrested in Los Angeles in July of 2003 on drug charges. He allegedly sold narcotics out of a bar parking lot where he worked, according to police. Shortly after the shooting, police found Pedraza’s tan Ford pick-up truck abandoned in Santa Monica. According to his testimony, Pedraza went to Mexico. He returned to the United States 10 years later and lived here under a different name until his arrest. Pedraza appeared in court on Thursday wearing a dark sport coat, dress shirt and a red-striped tie. He had streaks of gray in his dark hair, with a white mustache. An interpreter seated next to him on the witness stand translated questions from attorneys. Pedraza said it was common for customers to bring guns and shoot outside the bars. On the night he shot Garcia, he was without a security guard because he had been shot at the bar a few weeks before. On the night Garcia was killed, Pedraza was wearing a bullet-proof vest and was armed with a can of mace and a.38 semiautomatic pistol tucked in his waist. Garcia and his brother, Ramon, entered the bar, asked for beers and were served. Garcia, who appeared angry, took his beer to the pool table and proceeded to smash his and other customers’ beer bottles against the floor, Pedraza testified. “I picked up a pool stick and walked up to him,” Pedraza said. “I said, ‘I don’t want any problems in my business.’” Pedraza called Garcia a huero, which is a slang word for “blondie” or “light-skinned.” Garcia was Hispanic. A struggle ensued. Pedraza maced Garcia and escorted him out of the bar. Garcia threatened Pedraza, he testified. “‘I’m going to come back and you’re going to get f--ked over,’” Pedraza said Garcia told him. “It means he was going to kill me.” However, Pedraza said he wasn’t too concerned at that point. “Drunk people always say stuff like that,” he said. However, Pedraza said Garcia returned to the front of the bar pointing a gun at him and reminding Pedraza about his threat. “’Tony, I told you you’re going to get f--ked over,’” Pedraza said Garcia told him. Mojgan Aghai, Pedraza’s public defender, asked Pedraza if he was scared. “Yes,” he said. Pedraza walked toward the back door of the bar. He heard a revving car take off and thought Garcia had left. Pedraza walked along the side of the building toward the front of the bar. Pedraza took a step on the sidewalk and spotted Garcia, who was near a tree on the opposite side of the bar’s facade. Pedraza warned “blondie” that he didn’t want to kill him and that he should go home. Garcia proceeded to fire. Pedraza took a bullet to the chest, which was protected by his vest. Garcia charged at Pedraza. Pedraza took cover behind the corner of the building, while Garcia was exposed on the sidewalk. They fired at each other repeatedly. Garcia fell to his knees, and Pedraza continued shooting until Garcia fell face first in the street. Pedraza walked up to Garcia and shot three more rounds in the back of his head. Deputy District Attorney Larry Droeger argues that the final shots proved the case was an act of murder. He noted in his cross-examination that Pedraza failed to lock the front door of the bar when Garcia first waved the gun. Pedraza also failed to notify police once he felt threatened Garcia might kill him. Pedraza said he acted the way he did because he was fearful for his life and leaving his children orphaned. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/55/9f/559f9abc-8372-4a2e-8c2d-27386da4e363/content/images/2026/10/081905-03_01.jpg) A kite-surfer attacks the incoming waters along the Santa Monica Beach, hoping to catch some air over the Pacific swell. (Photo: Fabian Lewkowicz/Daily Press) *Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on August 19, 2005.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/081905.pdf?ref=smdp.com)