Judge says drunk driver acted ‘cowardly’ leaving scene of crash, shows no leniency
A Fresno man with two prior DUI convictions was sentenced Wednesday for a 2017 drunk driving crash that critically injured three people.
Steven Roy Esquivel Jr., 38, received a 13-year prison sentence from Judge Brian Alvarez. The judge showed little to no leniency for Esquivel whose blood alcohol concentration was .15, nearly twice the legal limit at the time of his arrest.
Esquivel, who has another pending DUI case, was on felony probation when the crash happened near the intersection of Belmont and Maple avenues on April 23, 2017.
Steven Ueltzen, deputy district attorney, said Esquivel was traveling 60-70 mph in his Infinity when he T-boned a Honda Civic driven by Crystal Bautista, 24. Inside Bautista’s car was her sister Yesenia Bautista, 22, and their cousin Jennifer Lopez, 18. The women had been visiting a friend and were on their way home.
The impact knocked all three woman unconscious. Lopez was thrown from the vehicle and pinned underneath the Honda.
Esquivel fled the scene but was followed by two witnesses who told police where he was. Esquivel tried to hide but was found and arrested.
Alvaraez called Esquivel’s attempt to flee “cowardly.”
“You ran away from the people you injured,” Alvarez said. “And if this was your first go-round with the criminal justice system you would have come to court with cleaner hands than you do now. But that is not the case.”
Esquivel had four outstanding arrest warrants at the time of his arrest and was driving on a suspended license, said Ueltzen.
“He was showing an escalating pattern of driving under the influence,” Ueltzen said.
Victim: ‘Pain ... for the rest of my life’
Crystal Bautista spoke at Esquivel’s sentencing, saying the emotional and physical pain caused by the accident has not gone away.
Bautista suffered major injuries to her neck. Doctors needed to remove a piece of her rib to fuse to her neck. She lost the ability to turn her neck 90 degrees. At best, she can move it about 50 degrees.
“I thought I was going to die that night,” Crystal Bautista said. “It was terrifying.”
Bautista’s sister Yesenia’s had internal bleeding in her brain and injuries to her back and pelvis. Lopez had both sides of her pelvis crushed and had a collapsed lung. She also got a gash several inches long on her forehead.
The three women spent weeks in the hospital and several months recovering. And they all said they are struggling with flashbacks, depression, anxiety and physical pain.
“I feel like I am going to have pain in my back, hips, and legs for the rest of my life,” said Lopez. “And all because of one person’s mistake.”
