LinasK
Verified insider- Mark Dribin case
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MARTINEZ -- Nanny Jimena Barreto was convicted Wednesday of two counts of second-degree murder in the hit-and-run deaths of two children who were struck down on a sidewalk during an evening stroll with their mother.
Barreto, 46, sobbed and buried her face in her lawyer's shoulder as she heard the jury's verdict. She faces 30 years to life on the murder charges. She also was convicted of leaving the scene of an accident, driving under the influence and driving with a suspended license. Her sentencing is May 16.Barreto was seen drinking earlier in the day and then spotted driving erratically in her gold 1979 Mercedes before the crash on Oct. 26, 2003. She swerved across two lanes without braking and smashed into Troy Pack, 10, and his sister, Alana, 7, who were riding a scooter and a bike on their way to get Slurpees with their mother and friends.
The mother, Carmen Pack, tried to prevent her from fleeing by taking away her car keys, but Barreto quietly disappeared into the crowd, and authorities weren't able to test for alcohol and drugs. She was arrested two days later outside a brew pub in San Jose.Barreto, a native of Colombia who had four previous drunken driving convictions, admitted taking the prescription painkiller Vicodin and a muscle relaxant for back pain on the day of the crash, but denied being under the influence of alcohol.
Deputy District Attorney Paul Sequiera told jurors they should not let the absence of a positive toxicology report dissuade them from convicting Barreto of murder. To do so would reward her for leaving the scene, which "wasn't any different from destroying evidence," while ignoring evidence of intoxication that is obvious from her actions, he said.
"How impaired do you have to be to hit a curb at 40 miles per hour and without hitting the brake, hitting a child on a scooter," Sequiera said during closing arguments. "To hit a child on a bicycle and crush her into the ground without ever correcting, how impaired do you have to be?"
The jury deliberated for less than a day before reaching its verdict midday Wednesday. more at link:http://www.ktvu.com/news/4422543/detail.html
Barreto, 46, sobbed and buried her face in her lawyer's shoulder as she heard the jury's verdict. She faces 30 years to life on the murder charges. She also was convicted of leaving the scene of an accident, driving under the influence and driving with a suspended license. Her sentencing is May 16.Barreto was seen drinking earlier in the day and then spotted driving erratically in her gold 1979 Mercedes before the crash on Oct. 26, 2003. She swerved across two lanes without braking and smashed into Troy Pack, 10, and his sister, Alana, 7, who were riding a scooter and a bike on their way to get Slurpees with their mother and friends.
The mother, Carmen Pack, tried to prevent her from fleeing by taking away her car keys, but Barreto quietly disappeared into the crowd, and authorities weren't able to test for alcohol and drugs. She was arrested two days later outside a brew pub in San Jose.Barreto, a native of Colombia who had four previous drunken driving convictions, admitted taking the prescription painkiller Vicodin and a muscle relaxant for back pain on the day of the crash, but denied being under the influence of alcohol.
Deputy District Attorney Paul Sequiera told jurors they should not let the absence of a positive toxicology report dissuade them from convicting Barreto of murder. To do so would reward her for leaving the scene, which "wasn't any different from destroying evidence," while ignoring evidence of intoxication that is obvious from her actions, he said.
"How impaired do you have to be to hit a curb at 40 miles per hour and without hitting the brake, hitting a child on a scooter," Sequiera said during closing arguments. "To hit a child on a bicycle and crush her into the ground without ever correcting, how impaired do you have to be?"
The jury deliberated for less than a day before reaching its verdict midday Wednesday. more at link:http://www.ktvu.com/news/4422543/detail.html