Thread: TX: Man remembers wife, son killed in Texas 105 hit-and-run

Man remembers wife, son killed in Texas 105 hit-in-run

By Teresa Mioli
Published: 07:44 a.m., Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Comments (2)

When 10-month-old Tucker Holtzclaw smiled, he revealed five tiny teeth and a set of dimples. That's how his father, Todd Holtzclaw, will remember him.

Tucker and his mother, Alyssa Holtzclaw, were killed Sunday in a traffic accident on Texas 105 west of Beaumont near Pine Island Bayou. Alyssa was driving Tucker from their Sour Lake home to his grandparents' house when the accident happened. Her intended route would have taken her to Christus St. Elizabeth Hospital in Beaumont, where she worked as an X-ray technician, according to her obituary.

The driver of a pickup crossed the center line of the highway and hit their SUV. The driver fled the scene, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety report.

Ines Legarda, who is 38 and does not have a driver's license, was arrested Sunday at a home in Winnie, according to previous Enterprise reporting. He was released from the University of Texas Medical Branch Monday afternoon after being treated for his injuries and subsequently booked into the Jefferson County jail. The manslaughter charge carries a $750,000 bond, but he also has an immigration hold which prevents him from being released.

Sgt. Chuck Havard with the Texas DPS said his office is working with the Jefferson County District Attorney's Office to determine if other charges will be filed in the case. He added that could take some time.

Todd and Alyssa Holtzclaw, Beaumont and Lumberton natives, respectively, were married for more than seven years. The couple had three sons together, 5-year-old Ty, 3-year-old Luke and baby Tucker.

Todd said he and Alyssa met while hanging out at Cactus Canyon, a Beaumont nightclub, and were acquainted through mutual friends. The couple wed in New Orleans.

"Alyssa was my best friend and I'm going to miss her so much," Holtzclaw said by telephone Tuesday, his voice cracking.

"She was dedicated to her family. That was everything to her," said Holtzclaw, who describes his wife as a beautiful and radiant person.

Todd said that Alyssa's boss at Christus St. Elizabeth Hospital said she was meant for the health care industry because she was so compassionate.

"I don't know if she ever made an enemy in her life. She was always upbeat. Always positive," he said.

Tucker was inseparable from his mother, who had gushed with pride when Tucker stood on his own in the kitchen the night before the accident.

"He was beautiful," Holtzclaw said. "He was the best baby."

Visitation is from 5 to 8 p.m. Thursday at Broussard's Mortuary, 2000 McFaddin in Beaumont, according to the funeral home's website.

Their funeral service is at 11 a.m. Friday at the McFaddin location. Burial follows at Magnolia Cemetery.

A memorial fund is being set up at Bank of America with donations going to Ty and Luke Holtzclaw's college education, according to the Broussard's website.


www.beaumontenterprise.com

Well one thing for certain, we won't hear the open borders crowd speaking of how this family has been separated forever by what this "ILLEGAL CRIMINAL HAS DONE" where is the sympathy for the husband and the two little boys who will now grow up without their mother and their little brother. then there is the husband who has not only lost his wife but also his best friend and his little baby boy. these are the families that I feel sorry for because this person has separated this family forever by what he did. this is one more reason why they need to be deported every last one of them.