Kentucky woman accused of murdering an Uber driver in El Paso, Texas died, just weeks before her trial.
Phoebe Copas faced charges for killing 52-year-old Daniel Piedra Garcia on June 16, 2023. Her murder trial loomed on April 28, 2025 but she passed away on March 25, her former attorney Matthew James Kozik confirmed.
Copas claimed self-defense, alleging Garcia tried to kidnap her and drive her to Juárez, Mexico.
Kozik insisted, “Phoebe Copas was and remains an innocent woman.” She missed a court hearing scheduled for the day she died. Her health had faltered before; she collapsed at a December hearing.
Kozik defended Copas, claiming Garcia’s car had inoperable locks and windows. He alleged razor blades littered the vehicle. “She begged him to stop,” Kozik said.
“He sped up, saying, ‘I’m taking you to Juárez.'” Copas pulled her gun after failing to escape, Kozik said. “She didn’t just shoot. She feared for her life.”
Police disputed her story. They said Copas shot Garcia after seeing Juárez traffic signs, though the highway also led to her requested casino.
After the shooting, Garcia’s Nissan Maxima crashed into barriers — far from any border crossing, a police affidavit noted. “No kidnapping occurred. Piedra stayed on her route,” police stated.
Prosecutor Shantal Ortega reinforced this at a June 29, 2023, hearing. “No facts show she was being kidnapped,” she said. “Living in a border city, she’d have seen those signs before.”
District Attorney Bill Hicks called her reaction “very unreasonable.” He added, “El Paso is safe. Her actions reflect a misconception we must challenge.”
Kozik rejected the police narrative. “The sign story is law enforcement’s imagination,” he said. He cited body camera footage and Copas’s interrogation, noting she never linked the shooting to road signs.
Instead, an officer first mentioned the signs, sparking the rumor, Kozik claimed.
Video from the scene captured Copas’s distress. She sobbed in a patrol car, praying and asking if Garcia died. “She’s crying, ‘Jesus, I’m sorry,'” Kozik said.
“This wasn’t racial.” Police alleged she photographed Garcia post-shooting and texted her boyfriend before calling 911. Kozik countered she sought help, and her boyfriend doubted her at first.
Authorities found razor blades and a crowbar near Garcia, bolstering Copas’s fears, Kozik noted. Still, Garcia’s family mourns a lost chance for justice as Copas’s death closes a painful chapter.
