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Wednesday, August 1, 2001
Vehicle kills man shortly after his release from jail
Accident victim, 86, had been arrested in sexual assault case
By Mary Moreno
Caller-Times
   Less than six hours after leaving the Nueces County Jail, an 86-year-old man was struck and killed by a white Saturn near the intersection of Morgan Avenue and Baylor Street.
   Refugio Rodriguez died Tuesday morning, two days shy of his 87th birthday, of injuries suffered when he was struck by the Saturn at about 4 a.m. Rodriguez suffered a fractured skull, according to the Nueces County Medical Examiner's office.
   Rodriguez bonded out from the Nueces County Jail at about 10:30 p.m. where he had spent a few hours after he was arrested on an indictment charging him with aggravated sexual assault of a child.
   Police on Tuesday would only say Rodriguez was accused of sexually assaulting a relative.
   Police said the fatal accident was unrelated to the charges against Rodriguez.
   Rodriguez was released after he posted a $10,000 bond, according to jail officials. Lidia Montemayor, the daughter Rodriguez lived with, said her father wandered out of their home at about 2 a.m., but his family declined to discuss the events before that.
   "There's a lot of things that we can't talk about," said his granddaughter Mary Esther Solis. "It's confidential."
   Montemayor said she called police after Rodriguez wandered off because she was concerned about him.
   Police told her they would be on the lookout for him.
   Less than three hours after walking out of his home Rodriguez was struck by the car as he stood in the middle of the street, according to a police report.
   The 25-year-old driver was not cited in the accident.
   Rodriguez was retired at the time of his death, but had worked as a rancher raising horses and cattle, Montemayor said. In retirement he cared for and sold mourning doves, Montemayor said, because he liked hearing their soothing call.
   "His life was animals," she said. "He loved animals."


Contact Mary Moreno at_886-3774 or morenom@caller.com

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