How to Catch A Criminal: The Bad Doctor

On March 13, 2008, Dr. William Hunter arrived home from work just after 5 pm. to find a mortifying scene. Inside, he found his housekeeper, 57-year-old Shirlee Sherman, dead on the floor from a knife wound to the neck. His nightmare got worse when he discovered his 11-year-old son Thomas just a few feet away, having suffered the same fate. The doctor knew that no amount of medical intervention could help either victim. 911 was called and detectives rushed to the scene. They determined the murder weapon was a knife from Dr. Hunter’s own kitchen. No suspect DNA or fingerprints were located at the scene, and both victim’s carotid arteries had been severed expertly. They also observed there was no sign of forced entry, indicating the killer was possibly welcomed into the home. This gave detectives reason to believe the killer was someone that knew the Hunter family. Dr. Hunter was the director of the pathology residency program at the Creighton University Medical Center in Omaha. His colleagues respected him, and the medical residents appreciated his kindness and personability. Dr. Hunter was also known for his ability to help struggling students succeed. He did not have any known enemies, and in his time as director he had fired only a few residents. After months of chasing leads, the double murder was deemed a cold case. Dr. Hunter and his wife, as well as the Sherman family, would have to wait years to find out why their loved ones were killed.

On May 14, 2013, a crew of movers arrived at the home of Dr. Roger Brumback and his wife Mary. Expecting to load a piano for the Brumback’s pending move, the crew was surprised when no one answered the door. They peeked inside the unlocked door to announce themselves. Inside the doorway they observed a handgun magazine and the body of Dr. Brumback. 911 was called and the same detectives who investigated the murders at the Hunter home responded to the scene. They found that not only had Dr. Brumback been shot three times, but he was also stabbed in the neck, severing his carotid artery. Further inside the home they found the body of Mary Brumback, who had been stabbed to death in the same manner. Just like the previous double homicide, the killer had entered the home without force and committed these stabbings using a knife from the kitchen. The similarities in the two double murders were immediately apparent and were further connected when detectives learned doctor Brumback was the chair of the pathology department at Creighton University Medical Center. He was Dr. Hunter’s colleague, and the two had worked closely together for many years. This connection reignited investigations into medical residents who would have a motive to harm the doctors.

As the detectives combed through the student files, they found very few who had been terminated from the program or filed complaints against either doctor. One unusual file caught the detectives’ attention. The resident’s name was Anthony Garcia. His file showed an extremely tumultuous time in the Creighton University Residency Program from 2000 to 2001 before being fired by Dr. Hunter and Dr. Brumback. His recent whereabouts showed he was now living in Indiana and had recently purchased a firearm which matched the magazine left behind at the Brumback home. Additionally, his credit card and cell phone usage placed him in Omaha on the day of the Brumback murders. Later investigation into his internet history showed he had searched for doctor Brumback’s home address in the hours leading up to the murders. This information was enough for an arrest warrant, as well as a search warrant to GPS “ping” Garcia’s phone every 30 minutes. Omaha detectives enlisted the FBI to help apprehend him. Agents tracked his movements until he was located and arrested while driving through Illinois on July 14, 2013. A search warrant of his home unveiled notes detailing a plot to get revenge on his enemies, as well as a stack of his school and work records, which showed a pattern of continuous failure.

Anthony Garcia was born June 7, 1973. From a young age his parents encouraged him to become a medical doctor, and he felt that he couldn’t let them down. He managed to graduate college, but his average grades made it difficult for him to transfer to a medical school. He finally managed to enter a medical program at the University of Utah and graduated in 1999. Schooling took its toll on Garcia, causing him to develop alcoholism to cope with the stress. He soon was accepted to a residency program in New York but did not get off to a great start thanks to performance and behavior issues. Anthony tended to blame other physicians for his frequent mistakes, including prescribing the wrong medication to patients. It didn’t take long for him to resign from the program after an expletive laden outburst at another staff member. Down but not out, Anthony began applying for other residency programs. In 2000, he was accepted into the Creighton University program in Omaha. Unfortunately, he did not flourish in this new environment. Anthony demonstrated a lack of rudimentary knowledge, an unwillingness to admit his mistakes, and general unprofessionalism. The director of the program, Dr. William Hunter, and the program Chair, Dr. Roger Brumback gave Anthony several chances to correct his performance, but Anthony was defiant, refusing to improve or accept that he was not fit for this line of work. After attempting to sabotage a senior resident and disfiguring a cadaver during an autopsy, Anthony was finally terminated. Dr. Hunter kindly provided him with a letter of recommendation, in hopes he would do better in a different program.

Anthony managed to get himself another residency in Chicago but left it in 2003 citing medical issues. Undeterred, he continued applying to programs until he got his next break in 2007 when he was accepted to a residency at Louisiana State University. In 2008, however, the state medical board learned of his termination from Creighton University and contacted Dr. Hunter for more details. After learning of his past issues, the board denied his license to practice medicine. As usual, Anthony was unable to accept that his shortcomings were his own doing. He wanted Dr. Hunter to suffer for derailing his career. Anthony traveled to Omaha and was able to find Dr. Hunter’s address online. Since the doctor wasn’t home, Garcia decided to take his anger out on Thomas and Shirley. Anthony talked his way into the house and armed himself with a kitchen knife. Thomas was his first victim, and Shirley the second when she came to check on the commotion. Instead of moving on from after getting his revenge, Garcia fell back into the same pattern.

Anthony Garcia managed to find employment at a clinic in Illinois in 2009 after getting a temporary medical license. He moved to Indiana in 2010 to work as a prison physician and saw success for a time, but once again, he was his own worst enemy. Unprofessionalism, aggressiveness towards coworkers, and drunkenness on the job ended his employment there. In 2012 he applied for a permanent medical license in Indiana, but the state medical board had questions about his termination from Creighton University. The board reached out to Dr. Brumback, who gave an honest rundown of Anthony’s poor behavior and termination. When the Indiana board denied Anthony’s license he felt the need to get revenge on Dr. Brumback. This led him back to Omaha in May of 2013, with a newly purchased handgun. Anthony knocked on the Brumbacks’ door and immediately met resistance from the doctor who made a grab for the gun. The fight resulted in the magazine being released from the gun, but not before Dr. Brumback had been shot multiple times. Anthony then used the empty gun to strike and incapacitate Mary Brumback, before retrieving a knife from the kitchen and finishing off the couple.

This narrative painted a very concise picture for the jury when it came time for trial in 2016. Garcia was convicted of four counts of first-degree murder and several other felony charges. He was sentenced to death in 2018. Anthony had failed as a doctor, failed as a serial killer, and in 2023 failed to get a new trial when he appealed his conviction. Anthony Garcia never recognized that he lacked the ability to be a doctor despite his ambition. Sadly, his repeated failures led him on a misguided quest for revenge.