Capital Murder Trial Set for Next Year

TYLER – A trial date has been set next year for a Smith County capital murder suspect. The trial for Gustavo Zavala-Garcia was set for March 19 during a Thursday pretrial hearing. The date was scheduled for next year as prosecutors await forensic testing on some evidence. The test results are expected to be in early next year. He has been charged with the death of Kayla Gomez-Orozco, 10. She disappeared last November from a Bullard church during worship service. Her body was found days later inside a well on the suspect’s property. According to an arrest affidavit, a witness said they saw the man with Kayla shortly before her disappearance. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.