South Texas school board member arrested, charged with public intoxication

Yesenia Morales is a trustee for the La Villa Independent School District

La Villa ISD school board member Yesenia Morales (South Padre Island Police Department)

SOUTH PADRE ISLAND, Texas – A man and a woman, who is a school board member in South Texas, were arrested and charged after reportedly getting into an altercation at a South Padre Island resort last month.

Officers arrested Yesenia Morales, a La Villa ISD board member, and 37-year-old Andres Garza just after 1:30 a.m. on May 18 at the Isla Grand Beach Resort located on the island, according to a report from KGBT/KVEO in Harlingen.

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South Padre Island police said Morales and Garza, who KGBT/KVEO said live at the same address, were involved in a “physical disturbance” in the bar area of the resort. They were in “physical fights and were placed under arrest for public intoxication,” the police report said.

La Villa, located in the Rio Grande Valley, is approximately 35 miles northeast of McAllen.

A public intoxication charge in Texas is considered a Class C misdemeanor.

Morales and Garza were later booked into the South Padre Island jail.

It is not yet known what led to the physical confrontation between Morales and Garza, what their blood alcohol concentrations were on that night, or if either has had to go in front of a judge.

According to the school district’s website, Morales is listed as the board’s assistant secretary and as one of seven board members.


About the Author

Nate Kotisso joined KSAT as a digital journalist in 2024. He previously worked as a newspaper reporter in the Rio Grande Valley for more than two years and spent nearly three years as a digital producer at the CBS station in Oklahoma City.

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