Fresno County man with 3 DUI convictions gets 19 years to life for fatal crash
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- Jury convicted Shane Shahan of second-degree murder and related counts in under an hour.
- Court sentenced Shahan to 19 years to life for a 2023 DUI crash that killed a passenger.
- Shahan had prior DUI convictions and was on probation when crash occurred.
A Fresno County man with two previous drunk driving convictions was sentenced to 19 years to life Tuesday for driving under the influence and causing a fatal crash in the early morning hours of Jan. 11, 2023.
Shane Lee Shahan, 36, of Shaver Lake, was convicted of second-degree murder, hit-and-run resulting in death and driving with a suspended license. On Jan. 29, it took a Fresno County jury less than hour to return guilty verdicts on all counts.
The day of the crash, police said Shahan was travelling at about 80 mph on westbound McKinley Avenue at approximately 3 a.m. when he ran the red light at First Street.
As Shahan’s Chevy Colorado truck entered the intersection he slammed into a northbound Hyundi Elantra. A passenger in the Elantra, 35-year-old Jesse Espino of Clovis, was ejected and later died at a local hospital.
According to police, Shahan got out of his overturned truck, walked over to the Elantra before fleeing on foot. Police caught him walking along Highway 41 where he was arrested.
Although Shahan was found with a cell phone on him, he did not call for emergency help.
Blood tests revealed Shahan had alcohol and marijuana in his system.
Shahan had two previous alcohol-related driving convictions in 2016 and 2017. He was still on probation for the 2017 DUI when he caused the fatal crash in 2023.
Because of that conviction, he was warned by a judge that if he continued to drive impaired and someone died as a result he could be charged with murder. The warning is known as the “Watson Advisement.”
Prosecuting the case was Senior Deputy District Attorney Steven Ueltzen.
This story was originally published March 4, 2026 at 12:07 PM with the headline "Fresno County man with 3 DUI convictions gets 19 years to life for fatal crash."
