‘The law is not sufficient.’ Fresno County man who killed girlfriend in DUI crash sentenced
Edwin Sebastian of Mendota was sentenced to six years in prison on Thursday for the DUI-related death of his girlfriend Anna Rodriguez of Selma.
Sebastian, 28, who pleaded no contest in July to gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, stood motionless as friends and family of Rodriguez spoke about her, him and how the tragedy has affected them.
Rodriguez, 39, a mother of five children, was killed on Dec. 31, 2018 when the car she was riding in crashed. The driver, Sebastian, blew through a stop sign at Golden State Boulevard and American Avenue south of Fresno and the car rolled.
The couple had been out dancing at a nightclub in Fresno, celebrating Sebastian’s birthday, said Rodriguez’s close friend Natalie Bonilla.
She offered them a ride that night because she noticed Sebastian had been drinking and it was upsetting Rodriguez.. He refused and they drove off.
Bonilla said she is still haunted by that night.
“There was a sober driver that night,” she said. “If he would have gotten that ride from me, my friend would still be here.”
One of Rodriguez’s daughters, 22-year-old Maite Jaurez, said it’s been difficult explaining to her younger siblings, ages 6 and 8, that their mother is not coming back. She also struggles with making sense of the tragedy.
“Why did this person (Sebastian) come into our lives and cause us so much pain?” Jaurez said as she sobbed.
Sebastian’s attorney Maribel Romo asked Fresno County Superior Court Judge Jon Kapetan for probation and no prison time. Romo argued that Sebastian has admitted he is an alcoholic and has sought treatment. She also reminded the judge that Sebastian pleaded no contest because he wanted to prevent Rodriguez’s family from having to go through the difficulty of a trial.
Sebastian spoke briefly, saying that he was sorry and asking for forgiveness.
“I have also asked God to give me the opportunity to change and the strength to change,” he said.
Prosecutor Esmeralda Garcia pushed for prison time and Kapetan agreed, denying probation and sending Sebastian to prison for six years.
The judge sympathized with Rodriguez’s children, saying he could see the pain and anguish the death of their mother has caused them.
He also apologized for not being able to send Sebastian to prison for a longer term. But Kapetan explained that given the state’s sentencing laws, six years was the maximum sentence, given the circumstances of the case. “I agree the law is not sufficient,” he said.
This story was originally published August 1, 2019 at 12:55 PM.
