A DUI driver, Jose Sanchez, pleaded no contest to charges of gross vehicular manslaughter and DUI causing injury after hitting and killing Virginio Cortez while he was changing a tire on the side of Highway 101 in Salinas. Sanchez, who was speeding and weaving through traffic with a blood alcohol level of 0.220%, also injured Cortez's daughter. Witnesses highlighted the tragic suddenness of the event. Sanchez could face up to 11 years and 8 months in prison following this incident, which devastated Cortez's family, as he was known for spreading joy and love during his 77 years of life.
"It happened so fast," witness Emilio Paniagua Felix told KION. "I would imagine that family was having a good day, and who would've thought something like that would happen."
At the time of the crash, Sanchez had a blood alcohol level of 0.220%, over two times the legal limit, prosecutors said.
Cortez spent "a wonderful 77 years spreading joy, love, and happiness to everyone he encountered," according to his obituary.
When Sanchez is sentenced, he faces up to 11 years and 8 months in prison, prosecutors said.
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