SANTA CLARA, Calif. – In a sentencing hearing Wednesday in Santa Clara County Superior Court, Deputy District Attorney Barbara Cathcart pursued a life sentence for a man involved in a fatal DUI crash in 2021. Judge Robert Hawk disagreed and did not sentence the accused to life due to his expression of remorse, youth at the time of the offense, and other mitigating factors.
The DUI incident caused the death of one victim and severe bodily injury to another. The accused was charged with four counts, including vehicular manslaughter and a “Watson Murder” charge — a second-degree murder charge for fatal DUI incidents. The accused’s two prior convictions for reckless driving facilitated the Watson charge, Judge Hawk said.
The surviving victim read impact statements from himself and his mother. His mother’s statement described the hardship she had experienced caring for him after his injuries, including securing a visa from China to travel to the United States. “I hope [the accused] will truly repent,” her statement read.
The victim described the great bodily pain he had experienced. “What you are going through is nothing compared to the pain we have suffered,” he said.
“I’m very sorry. I know my words are not enough,” the accused said. “This also hurts me very much.”
Judge Hawk explained that he had reviewed all the information presented to him, including the victim impact statements, and did not believe the indeterminate life sentence suggested by Cathcart was warranted.
“A life sentence as opposed to a lengthy prison sentence is not going to bring back the deceased,” Hawk said. “It’s not going to help [the injured victim] at this point.”
The accused had expressed remorse and experienced trauma as a youth, including exposure to alcohol, and had been “youthful at the time of the offense,” Hawk explained. He added that the accused had been participating in programs during his time in prison.
The accused’s judgment had been “reckless and horrible” but did not display the conscious intent to kill that is required for second-degree murder charges, Hawk added.
Hawk sentenced the accused to 16 years in state prison, with 1,516 credited days for time served. He revoked the accused’s driving privileges for three years and ordered him to install an ignition interlock device on any future vehicles.
