Solano County District Attorney Dave Paulson's decision to free one suspect in the slaying of Fairfield City Councilman Matt Garcia has met with much deserved rancor.

Last weekend, my girlfriend Cathi and I were dining in a nice restaurant in Sacramento. I was wearing the Matt Garcia button I'd received at Matt's memorial service. Our waiter, an older Hispanic gentleman looked at the button and placed his hand to his heart.

Keep the dream alive! It's hard to miss Matt Garcia's smiling face and that tagline on posters, T-shirts and buttons found throughout Solano County. More than 3,000 of Matt's closest friends gathered with that motto in mind on Sept. 9, and to mourn the senseless death of our young city councilman and community rising star.

The arrest of two suspects in the homicide investigation of Matt Garcia, who was gunned down outside a Cordelia Villages home on Sept. 1, should bring a collective sigh of relief for a community rocked by the city councilman's slaying.

This is an open letter to the killer of Matt Garcia. On Tuesday at the memorial service at Armijo, one of the most emotional and powerful moments came when Matt Garcia's grandmother tearfully said to her grandson's killer:

The family of the late Billy G. Yarbrough just keeps on giving.

Our community deeply mourns the death of Matt Garcia, the 22-year-old Fairfield city councilman who was gunned down in front of a Cordelia Villages home six days ago.

During a staff meeting at my job on Labor Day, I told my co-workers that the first thing on my agenda for the following day was to call Councilmen John Mraz and Matt Garcia because they were both helping us with a project.

Last month, we witnessed a historical moment at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, when Sen. Barack Obama was nominated by a major political party to be the next president of the United States. I felt an unforgettable sense of pride. I beheld a black man with a superior education, a loving family and no shame about his African heritage, a man who defied stereotypes and negative perceptions that tend to characterize black men in this country.

Slain councilman would want it that way

It has been a heart-wrenching week for the family and friends of City Councilman Matt Garcia and for the community of Fairfield.

How difficult is it to encourage young people to 'do the right thing,' be a leader or make a difference in your community when a person who does those things meets the same fate as a street thug or gang member.

Matt Garcia rose quickly to leadership in my hometown with grit, love and real hope, the kind that comes with plans for change. His rising star brought him into the bright sunshine and into the company of great people, from children and teens, the poor and the rich, to the elderly and those who saw no hope.

I've reported on several shootings, but before Monday night, the victim had never been a friend.

Whether it was a deliberate attack on a public official, a random act of violence or a personal vendetta, the shooting of Fairfield City Councilman Matt Garcia is a tragedy.

We lost Matt Garcia this week. Sadness strikes as we each attempt to understand the tragic loss of one so vibrant, so full of energy, ideas and limitless potential. The taking of Councilman Matt Garcia's life impacts us all: young, old, white, black, Asian and Hispanic.

The death of Councilman Matt Garcia is a nightmare for his family, his friends and the community. How could we be saying goodbye to one of our most enthusiastic, warm, dynamic young leaders?